Creating a student cookbook is a great way to raise money, especially if the cookbooks are sold prior to Mothers' Day. They make great gifts for grandmothers, too.
The cookbook should have several sections: include cookies, cakes, entrees, and the like. Each child (with her parent's help) should be asked to submit one recipe. All submissions should be included in the finished cookbook.
Children can also be asked to create artwork depicting food in their art classes that can be used throughout the book. A contest can be held to choose artwork to be featured at the beginning of each food category section, as well as on the front cover. Non-winning entries can be shrunk down and included on recipe pages throughout.
It is important that the child's name appears with her submissions: recipes and artwork. This adds value to the cookbook.
Advertising space can be sold to local businesses; the ads can be scattered randomly throughout the book and/or lumped together at the end. The inside front and back covers, as well as the outside back cover, can sell for a good amount. The revenue of the ad sales can help offset the cost of creating the books.
Sell the cookbooks as pre-order, pre-pay items so that no money is wasted producing extra books.
Selling gift wrap prior to the winter holiday break is a great way to raise money for schools. There are several companies that work with schools on a regular basis so they are well versed in making it as painless as possible.
There is no expense involved in this kind of fund-raising activity, as the gift wrap companies provide everything that is needed for the campaign. They also give out prizes to children for reaching certain sales goals.
Several companies, like Fundraiser Insights, Innisbrook, and Fast Track Fundraising, have websites that make setting up a gift wrap fundraiser simple.
A combination raffle, silent auction, and live auction is a great way to raise money. The key to making this event successful is two-fold. First, getting donations from local businesses is essential. Second, including items made by each class of students makes a big difference in total revenue.
When collecting donated items from businesses, use the smaller, less expensive items for the raffle. Set them items up on tables and place a labeled, covered container near the item. Sell tickets and encourage people to drop tickets in the containers that correspond to the items they would like to win. At a set time, conduct drawings. Keep track of who won so that even if they are not in attendance at the time of the drawing, winners can collect their items later.
Moderately valued items are good for a silent auction. Set the items up on a table with bid sheets. Assign a number to people who wish to participate, so they remain anonymous. Assign a time for the bidding to close and collect the bid sheets. Inform people that they must be present at the time the bidding closes in order to pay for and collect their items. If they are not present, award the item to the second highest bidder.
For the live auction, highly sought after items that were donated by businesses should be used. Further, this is where class projects should be included. Parents go crazy bidding against each other to get their hands on the thing their child was a part of producing.
Make sure that each child in the class participates in creating her class item. Further, make sure each child gets to sign the item in some way. For example, a class can do a set of barbecue aprons covered in colorful hand prints. Let each child in that class put his hand print on each apron using fabric paint. A parent volunteer can write the child's name below his hand print. Another idea is to create a class quilt that is made of 4x4 inch squares; each square can be decorated by a child in the class. Again, make sure that the child's name appears in the square she created.
Book fairs can be used not only to raise money but also to encourage reading. There are several companies that host book fairs, including Book Safari, Scholastic Books, and Boulder Book Store.
An alternative to using a book fair fund-raising company is to find a discount book store in the area, like Half Price Books or Books-a-Million. If an agreement can be reached with them, the possibility to get the books more cheaply and be able sell them more cheaply may add to the success of the book fair.
Once a month, host a dinner and movie night at the school. Charge one admission price for the two events. Make a simple spaghetti dinner, for example. It is far cheaper to make the dinner if volunteers do it rather than having it catered.
Choose a movie that is acceptable for school-aged children to view. Start the movie at a designated time, allowing people ample time to finish their meals. Make sure you have acquired the necessary permission to show the movie to avoid breaking any laws.
Alternatively, one or the other can be hosted: just a dinner or just a movie. If it is just a movie, snacks and beverages can be sold.