Getting parents involved in any school fundraiser can be a challenge. That’s why staying on the ball with fresh, exciting fundraising ideas throughout the year is a surefire way to engage parents. In this mini-guide, we’ll explore how to pick the right idea for your school and share a few of our favorites:

• Tips for Selecting School Fundraising Ideas Parents Will Love

• School Fundraising Idea 1: School Auction

• School Fundraising Idea 2: Read-a-thon

• School Fundraising Idea 3: Talent Show

Parental involvement is essential, especially for elementary school fundraisers. Parents can motivate their kids to participate by helping them choose a costume for a costume fundraiser or by encouraging them to participate in their school’s fun run. 

When planning school fundraisers, the key is to think like a parent. Let’s explore what that looks like in more detail in the next section. 

Tips for Selecting School Fundraising Ideas Parents Will Love

Aim for family-friendliness when weighing your fundraising options. Think about which ideas will generate the most parental involvement, and finalize your fundraising idea list by asking the following questions: 

• Is it relevant? To generate maximum excitement and participation, your school fundraising idea should be relevant to both parents’ and your school’s interests and values. This could mean selecting an idea to further a cause that resonates with the community, like partnering with a local food bank to host a canned food drive.  

• Is it accessible? Parents have busy schedules. If your fundraiser relies on their involvement, make sure they can access pertinent information quickly. This could mean including your fundraiser’s program details, dates, and ways to participate on your school’s website. Additionally, add an email or phone number for a member of your school’s staff who parents can contact if they have any questions. 

• Is it inclusive? School fundraisers should be inclusive to every family, regardless of background or financial situation. To ensure inclusivity, offer multiple ways for families to participate through volunteer opportunities, including methods for participating online.

The final step to predicting your fundraiser’s success is to compare it with previous events. How have families responded to previous fundraising campaigns? What sort of events or causes do they feel passionate about? 

To get you started, we’ve provided a brief list of fundraising ideas to try out.

School Fundraising Idea 1: School Auction

Live and silent auctions are flexible fundraising events that are known for generating revenue and building excitement. As a school, you have several options for hosting an auction. You can host your auction live, online, or through hybrid means. 

Auctions may seem to be complicated, involved fundraisers - and they can be! But you don’t have to start with a big event. If you’ve never done an auction fundraiser before, SchoolAuction.net suggests starting with an online silent auction your first year. These are easy to bring together, especially if you select a software platform designed for schools.  When looking, however, realize that you’ll want to grow your event over time - so select an online auction platform that can grow with you as your auction gets bigger and more successful.

Why Parents Love Them

School auctions are a parent favorite for several reasons. Firstly, they are typically planned with parental preferences in mind as the procured auction items are selected with your school’s community in consideration. Additionally, Double the Donation recommends that your school pairs a live auction with a parent dinner which can be promoted as a fun, date-night event complete with a decorated venue and booked entertainment. 

School Fundraising Idea 2: Read-a-thon

Read-a-thons kill two birds with one stone: promoting student learning and fundraising. They are simple fundraisers where students collect pledges from family and friends based on the number of books or pages they read. 

Students can collect flat donations or pledges based on how many books or pages they read during the read-a-thon. Then, designate a period of time, usually over the span of several days, and encourage students to read as much as possible. Have students log their total books or pages read, then gather pledged donations.  To encourage participation, you can set prizes for students who read or raise the most. 

Why Parents Love Them

Read-a-thons provide the perfect motivation for students to hit the books and cultivate a love of reading. Read-a-thons are also easy to plan, requiring only plenty of books, a few hours to set aside during the school day, and pledge forms students can take home to collect donations.

School Fundraising Idea 3: Talent Show

Hosting a school talent show is a great way for students to show off their skills while also encouraging parent participation. It only contains a couple of necessary steps—securing a venue, selecting a date, and holding auditions. From there, you can promote your talent show and sell tickets to raise funds.

Why Parents Love Them

Talent shows provide parents with a unique opportunity to watch their students perform on the big stage. Unlike regular sports seasons, talent shows let students express themselves in artistic, comical, and unexpected ways, creating a memorable experience for both students and their families

Regardless of which school fundraising idea you choose, be sure to select one that’s relevant, accessible, and inclusive to all families. Consider sending out a survey to parents ahead of time to gauge interest or decide between two competing ideas. To your school fundraising success!