Fundraising 101. Choose your battle. You will undoubtedly be bombarded with fundraising flyers that will unceasingly be delivered via the backpack from Day 1.
PTC Membership: Rule of thumb. Any grades from K-3 should pay to be a member of PTC. Your name will be printed on any flyer that Parent Teacher Club pays for, Choir and Drama Performances, and Yearbook. This is especially important if you have a daughter. If you have a daughter, the good girls without a doubt have parents that are hyper involved in Parent Teacher Club. Their mission is to keep their daughters on the trail of snobby status. (That’s another post. Sign up for Email Not’s. It will be a good one)
Cookie Dough: Fundraising 101. Just remember to choose based on how cliquey your child group is. If your child is a fourth grade girl that is exclusive to four girls and all three are going to the pizza party, sell all 10 boxes of cookies. Buy them if you have to. If your son is a sixth grade jock and the pack is going, well that’s their chance to take their ruling authority for a bus ride. Believe me it follows them where they go. But. If your child is cool, popular, sporty and has 1 best friend that has never left their side since Kindergarten; pick up the phone and let the other mom know you are out. There is no sense in buying $200 worth of cookies when your child will enjoy the same status if you call him in sick that day.
Box Tops: Please please don’t bother with Box Tops. Unless you enlist your entire extended family, don’t do it. While you are gluing box tops, I guarantee your neighbor is teaching their child sign language. In the long run, you can collect 5,000 box tops that will earn your school $500 and your child can be star student for the day OR your daughter will have practiced and became the best tumbler and eventually dominate. Up to you.
Carnival Tickets: Don’t buy the tickets or the wristband before hand unless you have inside knowledge on the cost of rides and quality of carnival your school will have. Every year it is different so you can’t go by how last years went.
Jogathon: Not necessary. The important thing about jogathon is not the money you raise. It’s how many laps you run and it is not monitored so closely that your kid can’t pick up tons of sticks on the way to the table. If there are 800 kids at your elementary, then your school is counting on $10 from each child. Add that up. The thing is, the sooner that jogathon happens, the sooner your school can start planning their carnival. It’s wham bam, thank you m’am (or grandparents, aunties, uncles…)
Donuts with Dad: One donut and a small styrofoam of orange juice. Enough said. Take your kids to donuts that morning before school.
Muffins with Mom: Half a Costco muffin and coffee. Really?
Christmas Wrapping: No
Anything else: No
***You will eventually give at the office. By that I mean Fundraising Dinners that have live auctions, Travel Sports, Coach gifts, Spirit packs, Pizza parties, Award dinners, all of which you and your child will get due credit for. Don’t be in a rush. Save your dollars for the real battles when you have to step up or step out.
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