Class fund non-participants: where do you think the party food comes from??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You need to scale back the parties and or split/itemize donations.

Do one collection letting parents choose to pay for all at one time or just contribute toward some events.

1. Class parties -keep it simple and cheaper.
2. Teacher gift- keep in mind that some parents want to give the teacher a gift from the family. Call it a class gift not a teacher gift.
3. Arts and crafts supplies -provide a box to donate $5 toward supplies and do an amazon wishlist for parents to donate supplies.


For the class parties - drop the pizza. Kids are after the treats.

Then why do they all eat the pizza and ask for more? They don’t care about the dumb crafts and games after 3rd.

Where does pizza fit in, in regards to lunch anyway? Snacks and treats make sense. Practically a meal does not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You need to scale back the parties and or split/itemize donations.

Do one collection letting parents choose to pay for all at one time or just contribute toward some events.

1. Class parties -keep it simple and cheaper.
2. Teacher gift- keep in mind that some parents want to give the teacher a gift from the family. Call it a class gift not a teacher gift.
3. Arts and crafts supplies -provide a box to donate $5 toward supplies and do an amazon wishlist for parents to donate supplies.


For the class parties - drop the pizza. Kids are after the treats.

Then why do they all eat the pizza and ask for more? They don’t care about the dumb crafts and games after 3rd.

Where does pizza fit in, in regards to lunch anyway? Snacks and treats make sense. Practically a meal does not.

There's an entire thread somewhere right now where a bunch of nut cases are arguing that just yoghurt and applesauce are a meal. So yeah, I'd say that pizza should count. Especially the full adult sized pizza for each individual child that OP must be buying in order to have a bill like $135 for pizza alone.

[Anonymous]

I'd be fine with no class parties.

I'd contribute. I wouldn't want to be one who didn't contribute
But most of the parties/extras that Room Moms think are so important, aren't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am a room parent and we ask for each family to contribute a certain amount at the start of the year. This covers teacher holiday and end of year gifts, costumes for the school play and all crafts/food for parties. Pizza alone runs roughly $135 per party. We have about 55% participation yet 100% of the kids get crafts, fed at the party, and costumes for the play. We sign the teacher gifts from the class. It's January and we are out of money once I set aside for end of year gifts ($25/teacher). That means no more parties for the rest of the year. Do I email the class asking again for those who haven't donated to step up? For those of you who don't contribute, how do you feel about your child taking part in the parties, etc when you've not helped? And for those in a financial hardship, I get it.. but I'd venture in our school that is not the primary driver.

How much were you asking each parent to contribute?

Did you make sure to tell them it covers pizza for 20 kids 5x/year, plus costumes, plus teacher gifts 2x, plus crafts?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd be fine with no class parties.

I'd contribute. I wouldn't want to be one who didn't contribute
But most of the parties/extras that Room Moms think are so important, aren't.

No, our school mandates it and no one volunteers because of how stingy the other families are and then some of us get recruited after saying no.

[Anonymous]

When did parties become this giant thing?

To me, as a teacher, an appropriate party starts 15 minutes before dismissal or before the Halloween parade starts. It has 1 treat, like cupcakes or cookies or brownies, and juice boxes if you want to splurge. It has one activity which does not need to cost anything. If it is a party to which parents are invited, it might be singing a song, or reading our latest poems. If it is Halloween then it’s the parade. Otherwise it might be going onto the playground to play wizards, giants and elves, or hot potato or musical chairs in the classroom, or a quick dance party. It might be decorating sugar cookies, if that is the one snack. If there are decorations they are paper chains and pictures the kids made the last time it was indoor recess.

Anything more than that is teaching the kids the wrong things about nutrition, consumption, and their own agency. It is harmful. So, no, if I know you are planning pizza, and crafts, and anything that lasts longer than 20 minutes, I am not giving money to that. My kid will be there because I can’t just leave work to pick him up, and he will eat the pizza because it’s there. But I will be disappointed that it happened.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm a room parent also and I email a few times. Everyone usually contributes except for the odd person who doesn't really do email because of language barrier etc. You absolutely need to ask more than once, and maybe do a hard copy flier also.

+1. This. And don’t do pizza. We have parents bring in chips and cupcakes to parties. Room parent donations we use for teacher gifts (which are bigger than 25$) and craft/game supplies to keep the kids occupied during the parties.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe some families are struggling and don’t feel it’s prudent to contribute to such non-essential nonsense. You do you.

Our school dictates the parties. I don’t care if you donate but yes, we see your the biggest house in the neighborhood and drive the fanciest new car and then scream poverty over donating some napkins from dollar tree. Your kids will have fun and be treated the same either way.

Your school tells you that there needs to be a party, or that it needs to have pizza and fancy napkins?

And is it the school or the PTA?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd be fine with no class parties.

I'd contribute. I wouldn't want to be one who didn't contribute
But most of the parties/extras that Room Moms think are so important, aren't.

Yes ITA

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not to come across as a complete curmudgeon, but why are room parents needed? This seems like a position in search of something to do.

So people like OP can feel important organizing expensive parties for a bunch of 8 year olds. Ridiculous.

So true!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am a room parent and we ask for each family to contribute a certain amount at the start of the year. This covers teacher holiday and end of year gifts, costumes for the school play and all crafts/food for parties. Pizza alone runs roughly $135 per party. We have about 55% participation yet 100% of the kids get crafts, fed at the party, and costumes for the play. We sign the teacher gifts from the class. It's January and we are out of money once I set aside for end of year gifts ($25/teacher). That means no more parties for the rest of the year. Do I email the class asking again for those who haven't donated to step up? For those of you who don't contribute, how do you feel about your child taking part in the parties, etc when you've not helped? And for those in a financial hardship, I get it.. but I'd venture in our school that is not the primary driver.

Def email again. I always give but sometimes forget especially in the craziness of school year start. I always appreciate the reminder and give if I haven’t.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe some families are struggling and don’t feel it’s prudent to contribute to such non-essential nonsense. You do you.

Our school dictates the parties. I don’t care if you donate but yes, we see your the biggest house in the neighborhood and drive the fanciest new car and then scream poverty over donating some napkins from dollar tree. Your kids will have fun and be treated the same either way.

Your school tells you that there needs to be a party, or that it needs to have pizza and fancy napkins?

And is it the school or the PTA?

School dictates it. Dollar tree is fancy? A few $5 pizzas is fancy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When did parties become this giant thing?

To me, as a teacher, an appropriate party starts 15 minutes before dismissal or before the Halloween parade starts. It has 1 treat, like cupcakes or cookies or brownies, and juice boxes if you want to splurge. It has one activity which does not need to cost anything. If it is a party to which parents are invited, it might be singing a song, or reading our latest poems. If it is Halloween then it’s the parade. Otherwise it might be going onto the playground to play wizards, giants and elves, or hot potato or musical chairs in the classroom, or a quick dance party. It might be decorating sugar cookies, if that is the one snack. If there are decorations they are paper chains and pictures the kids made the last time it was indoor recess.

Anything more than that is teaching the kids the wrong things about nutrition, consumption, and their own agency. It is harmful. So, no, if I know you are planning pizza, and crafts, and anything that lasts longer than 20 minutes, I am not giving money to that. My kid will be there because I can’t just leave work to pick him up, and he will eat the pizza because it’s there. But I will be disappointed that it happened.

You should take off and get your kid if you don’t like how it is done and will not contribute. Solves the problem for everyone. If work is a priority then you can throw in a few dollars or buy something to donate. It’s not harmful to have a slice of pizza and cake if it’s not a regular thing. But, if it’s harmful, it’s probably because you feed your kid crap at home. Just get your kid or opt them out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When did parties become this giant thing?

To me, as a teacher, an appropriate party starts 15 minutes before dismissal or before the Halloween parade starts. It has 1 treat, like cupcakes or cookies or brownies, and juice boxes if you want to splurge. It has one activity which does not need to cost anything. If it is a party to which parents are invited, it might be singing a song, or reading our latest poems. If it is Halloween then it’s the parade. Otherwise it might be going onto the playground to play wizards, giants and elves, or hot potato or musical chairs in the classroom, or a quick dance party. It might be decorating sugar cookies, if that is the one snack. If there are decorations they are paper chains and pictures the kids made the last time it was indoor recess.

Anything more than that is teaching the kids the wrong things about nutrition, consumption, and their own agency. It is harmful. So, no, if I know you are planning pizza, and crafts, and anything that lasts longer than 20 minutes, I am not giving money to that. My kid will be there because I can’t just leave work to pick him up, and he will eat the pizza because it’s there. But I will be disappointed that it happened.

You should take off and get your kid if you don’t like how it is done and will not contribute. Solves the problem for everyone. If work is a priority then you can throw in a few dollars or buy something to donate. It’s not harmful to have a slice of pizza and cake if it’s not a regular thing. But, if it’s harmful, it’s probably because you feed your kid crap at home. Just get your kid or opt them out.

The law dictates that children attend school. It does not dictate that there be a parent funded pizza party with apparently the priciest pizza on the planet every month.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When did parties become this giant thing?

To me, as a teacher, an appropriate party starts 15 minutes before dismissal or before the Halloween parade starts. It has 1 treat, like cupcakes or cookies or brownies, and juice boxes if you want to splurge. It has one activity which does not need to cost anything. If it is a party to which parents are invited, it might be singing a song, or reading our latest poems. If it is Halloween then it’s the parade. Otherwise it might be going onto the playground to play wizards, giants and elves, or hot potato or musical chairs in the classroom, or a quick dance party. It might be decorating sugar cookies, if that is the one snack. If there are decorations they are paper chains and pictures the kids made the last time it was indoor recess.

Anything more than that is teaching the kids the wrong things about nutrition, consumption, and their own agency. It is harmful. So, no, if I know you are planning pizza, and crafts, and anything that lasts longer than 20 minutes, I am not giving money to that. My kid will be there because I can’t just leave work to pick him up, and he will eat the pizza because it’s there. But I will be disappointed that it happened.

+1 to all of this. Some people are totally crazy!

And we wonder why kids are so far behind on academics these days.