Support Our Troops-and Their FamiliesĪre there military families within your school community? If so, work with them to find out how your group can brighten their holidays and those of deployed service members. When parents return for their kids with their shopping complete, they’ll thank you. Organize party games, put out craft materials, prepare an area where kids can kick back and watch a video. Recruit plenty of volunteers-middle school and high school students are ideal-and take over the school gymnasium on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon. Organize a “drop-off” event to give parents an afternoon to shop for gifts without kids in tow. Set up a refreshment stand with hot cocoa and marshmallows. Invite families to bring blankets or sleeping bags. Help your school community get into the holiday spirit with a showing of a classic holiday or winter movie. Take lots of pictures to post on your parent group’s website or newsletter! Winter Movie On the day of the event, each child decorates his own gingerbread house with candy canes, gumdrops, peppermints, and other varieties of candy. Keep it simple by using graham crackers instead of gingerbread. Get a head count of the number of participants, then gather a group of volunteers for a pre-event “construction” party to assemble the houses. This activity takes a bit of prep work, but it’s so popular with children that it’s worth it. Your group might hire a storyteller or ask a volunteer (your school principal, maybe?) to read a holiday- or winter-theme book. Encourage people to bring blankets or sleeping bags. What’s more cozy than snuggling under a blanket in your pajamas and listening to a story? Invite parents and children to your school library for pajama story time. And who knows-this could become a holiday tradition. Maybe an a cappella rendition of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”? A Rockettes-style holiday dance performance? A scene from A Christmas Carol? The surprise is half the fun. Set a date for your Holiday Open Mic Night, put out the call for holiday-theme acts, and see what you get. Holiday Open Mic NightĬall it a talent show, a mini American Idol, or simply an opportunity for kids (and maybe their parents) to display their unique gifts. Get together a large group to deliver the items. Get the word out to parents and place a bin in your school lobby for donations. Contact your local food pantry, homeless shelter, or a national organization such as Toys for Tots to find out what they need and how your community can help. Use your group’s organizing power to help others this holiday season. Give the children tiny paintbrushes to apply the frosting. Set out the cookies with a variety of decorating materials, such as colored frosting and candies. Recruit volunteers to bake batches of cookies in assorted shapes and bring them to your school cafeteria on the designated day. Invite kids to unleash their creativity on sugar cookies, and send them home with their tasty creations. This is a great service to offer as part of a larger event, such as a community tree-lighting or holiday bazaar. Parents can bring their own cameras, or if your PTO has access to a photo printer, you can provide photos on the spot. Invite parents to bring their children to pose with your costumed character. Recruit a parent to don a Santa Claus costume or dress up as Frosty the Snowman. Holiday shop all done? Thank your volunteers so they’ll be ready to help next year GET FREE IDEAS Pictures With. Book your school gym or cafeteria and set up stations where children can learn about their classmates’ traditions and sample traditional holiday foods from other parts of the world. Invite families to share their holiday traditions with one another at a multicultural holiday celebration. Parents who are looking for that perfect gift for their child’s teacher simply have to pick an ornament from the tree and return it with the requested item. Invite teachers to write their names on the ornaments along with an item they’d like donated to their classroom (for example, “Mrs. Cut colored construction paper into the shape of ornaments, thread with ribbon, and distribute them to teachers. Put a real or artificial tree in the lobby of your school, or make one out of construction paper and post it on a wall. A giving tree solves the annual teacher gift dilemma for parents while helping teachers stock their classrooms with supplies they need.
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