School Fundraising Ideas

Fundraising in schools is an excellent opportunity to raise money for a charitable cause. With students, teachers and their families helping out, no fundraising venture is too large to consider. Teachers can even integrate aspects of charity fundraising into their lessons to enhance the learning experience.

The school fundraising suggestions outlined below focus on school-wide involvement and are applicable for a variety of different causes. You can use these ideas to raise money directly for your school, or for charity. Either way, involving schoolchildren in fundraising is a wonderful way to teach them about sharing and altruism.

Non-Uniform or Fancy Dress Day

Perhaps the most well-known of school fundraisers, non-uniform days are a fantastic way to raise money for a cause. Students pay a small donation and are allowed to come to school in their regular clothes or, for special occasions like Halloween, in fancy dress.

With your entire school participating, you can raise quite a lot of money from just this one fundraising activity.

School-wide Sponsored Activity

Sponsored activities are another way to raise money in a school setting. Kids appreciate any break from the normal routine of lessons, so sponsored activities are a great fundraising motivator.

Ask the children to collect donations from friends and family for a particular activity and try to involve all of the schoolchildren, even the very young ones. Here are some ideas for school sponsored activities:

• Read-a-thon - Students pledge to read as many books as possible within a set period of time. They can collect flat donations from their relatives or receive a donation based on the number of books they read. English teachers love this one!
• Sponsored run or sporting activity - Set up a race or obstacle course in the school yard and see how many times the students can complete this course. With the school's permission, you can even provide certificates or prizes for speed and endurance.
• Quiz day - Hold a quiz day for all the students, with age-specific questions for each subject. Students can collect donations for the number of questions they'll answer correctly, and the winner gets a prize or trophy.

School Event Fundraising

In addition to holding sponsored activities, schools are also fantastic venues for fundraising events like recitals and talent shows.

If the school already has a choir, ask them to prepare a special programme that can be performed one evening. Invite everyone from the community and charge admission, with proceeds benefiting your fundraising cause. You can also sell refreshments and snacks to raise additional funds.

Alternatively, you can ask groups of students to put an act together into a school-wide talent show. Charge admission into the show and make sure to give out prizes for the top act, the funniest and the most creative talents. The kids will love participating and the fundraising event is sure to be a big hit in your local community too.

Involving the School in Your Fundraising

There are many reasons why you may choose to fundraise at a school. In some cases, the school may be raising money directly to pay for a special trip or project; in other cases, schools will help you fundraise on behalf of your charitable cause.

The first step to getting any school involved in fundraising is to discuss your plans with the headmaster. Depending on the type of fundraising event you'd like to have, you may also need support from teachers and from the community.

In most cases, schools are happy to help out with a charitable cause, especially if it can also be used as a learning experience for their students.