ROOM PARENT RESOURCES
Collect monetary contributions from families for teacher gifts to be given at the holidays, Teacher Appreciation Week and at the end of the year to the primary teacher and the paraeducator for that grade:
· Use the Staff Appreciation binder stored in the back of the PTA mailboxes (located in the teacher’s workroom) to determine the teachers’ favorite stores, foods, etc.
· If your teacher has not filled out this form, encourage them to do so. It’s a really helpful tool to personalize gifts. Extra blank copies of the form are in the binder. If you need additional help with this, contact the PTA Staff Appreciation Committee chairs.
· Purchase gifts/gift cards using the donated funds
· Include a card with the names of all children in the class. An extra nice touch is to have the kids participate in making the card. If you are looking for ideas, there are many teacher card suggestions on Pinterest.
· Present the gifts to the teachers in person; the students really enjoy participating in the gift giving and watching the teacher open the gifts.
· Email all parents and let them know what gifts were purchased.
Plan classroom parties (Halloween and Valentine’s Day)
· Determine which items need to purchased (party supplies, food items if allowed, etc.). Coordinate with the other room parents to ensure that parties are similar; they don’t need to be identical but there should be consistency across a grade (e.g. if gift bags are given in one class, they should be given to all classes in that grade).
· Create a sign-up for families to contribute items and to volunteer to help with the party if needed.
· Prepare and send emails to families with details about the parties
· Purchase miscellaneous party supplies as needed, mostly for crafts and games
· Send e-mail reminders to families as needed
· Attend the parties if possible and run the games/activities
Work with the PTA to communicate reminders to your classroom families about upcoming events and volunteer activities
· Solicit volunteers for large activities like Simulated Congressional Hearings and Field Day
· Send reminders about yearbook sales, class t-shirt sales, contributions for silent auction baskets, etc.
Plan Teacher Appreciation Week activities (typically in May)
· Coordinate with room parents from other classes in your grade if desired
· May involve placing orders for meals (breakfast or lunch) and picking up the food to bring to the school
· Most grades give flowers or a group gift (e.g. each child brings a piece of fruit to make a fruit basket or plan a collection of classroom suppliers needed by the teacher and put together as a gift.)
· Coordinate your classroom events in conjunction with PTA Staff Appreciation Events planned for the week. (Contact the PTA Staff Appreciation Committee chairs for details.)
· E-mail families with the schedule of events at least a week in advance; send reminders at the beginning of TA Week and later in the week as needed
Miscellaneous Tasks
· Maintain a list of e-mail addresses for all families in your child’s classroom (teachers should provide that at the beginning of the year).
· Send a welcome e-mail to your class from all of your room parents introducing yourselves as their room parents for the year. For 2019-2020, the recommended donation is $20.
· Make sure your child’s teacher has ample classroom supplies during the year (tissues, plastic bags, tape, etc.); e-mail requests for contributions from families if necessary.
· E-mail families if the teacher needs volunteer assistance with upcoming activities. Some teachers ask room parents to coordinate classroom volunteers; this varies by individual teacher.