Never mind that the equipment was originally meant for my own business, so what I do is volunteer my time and energy to a few schools in the region, three of which happen to be Title 1 status. (I know of several churches who help out too with their own stuff, too). But if the PTA want to fundraise, for whatever reason, I don't see the issue. So many departments are starved that whatever the PTA can bring to the table, so much the better.

Well, I wouldn't necessarily assign the full value of all that equipment to just one show. :p (Who does that?) It's more amortized over five to ten years, over many performances, stage plays, musicals, talent shows, and more. But, in any case, the sound system in the APR is sometimes nonexistent. (Some schools simply don’t have any options). And there is no budget to update, usually . . . I do find it amusing that you think it's okay to use the music department equipment’s stuff, but not to support them any further than that. (Even though, in some cases, the PTA damages the equipment! There’s nothing like testing out relatively-recent speakers and finding out that someone, not the school, has cranked them to their max and damaged them to the point of just distorted output.) The kind of speakers we're talking about are not the karaoke kind you can find at Sam's Club, after all, for a few hundred dollars, after all.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most people seem to be assuming the talent show is an evening event, and focusing on money. As the PP who said that every elementary talent show I can remember was held during the day, I’d like to point out that $$ isn’t the only barrier to participation. Elementary aged kids are unable to provide their own transportation and generally require adult supervision. If the child’s family is unable and/or unwilling to provide either, the child won’t be able to display their talents, or even watch their friends.

If you have the show during the day, while it may decrease the number of parents who can attend, it will greatly increase the number of kids who can enjoy the event. Moreover, as I pointed out before, it keeps the costs low, so there is no need to charge for tickets.

Op here- you just gave me an awesome idea which is why I (sometimes) LOVE this forum. I am going to talk to the pta president and principal and suggest a daytime “show” (assembly for the kids) that is obviously free and the pta can keep their evening nighttime event that charges tickets as the fundraising event. Even if it’s too late for this year, that’s a great solution for next year. This is such a cool way to make it accessible for all yet still make it a fundraiser for the pta. I’m excited about this!

Good luck finding a time that does not conflict with testing, instructional time, or any other in-school event.

Navigating the school calendar is actually really challenging, because each grade has a variety of mandatory tests, teachers may or may not be available to supervise, and at this time of year they are pushing to get through content before end of year assessments.

Is your child very young, or are you just new to public education in general? You seem to have this idea that there is one easy trick that no one has thought of before, but I promise that someone has thought of it and there's a good reason they are doing things the way they are.

+1. If something isn’t already in the calendar go luck trying to add it for March and April. Spring Break and Testing is right around the corner. The last thing that teachers or administrators want is last minute distractions that take up teaching time.

Op here- thanks for the feedback. Possibly but never too late for next year! I’ll still take the idea to the president and principal and hopefully they’ll like the idea. Thanks all for the great ideas

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most people seem to be assuming the talent show is an evening event, and focusing on money. As the PP who said that every elementary talent show I can remember was held during the day, I’d like to point out that $$ isn’t the only barrier to participation. Elementary aged kids are unable to provide their own transportation and generally require adult supervision. If the child’s family is unable and/or unwilling to provide either, the child won’t be able to display their talents, or even watch their friends.

If you have the show during the day, while it may decrease the number of parents who can attend, it will greatly increase the number of kids who can enjoy the event. Moreover, as I pointed out before, it keeps the costs low, so there is no need to charge for tickets.

Op here- you just gave me an awesome idea which is why I (sometimes) LOVE this forum. I am going to talk to the pta president and principal and suggest a daytime “show” (assembly for the kids) that is obviously free and the pta can keep their evening nighttime event that charges tickets as the fundraising event. Even if it’s too late for this year, that’s a great solution for next year. This is such a cool way to make it accessible for all yet still make it a fundraiser for the pta. I’m excited about this!

Good luck finding a time that does not conflict with testing, instructional time, or any other in-school event.

Navigating the school calendar is actually really challenging, because each grade has a variety of mandatory tests, teachers may or may not be available to supervise, and at this time of year they are pushing to get through content before end of year assessments.

Is your child very young, or are you just new to public education in general? You seem to have this idea that there is one easy trick that no one has thought of before, but I promise that someone has thought of it and there's a good reason they are doing things the way they are.

+1. If something isn’t already in the calendar go luck trying to add it for March and April. Spring Break and Testing is right around the corner. The last thing that teachers or administrators want is last minute distractions that take up teaching time.

Poor taste.

Donation box at entry.

Sell a 50/50 raffle.

Food sale.

Sponsor signage.

Anonymous wrote:In looking at all the equipment that might be needed, five to six wireless headsets; an analog/digital mixer; three to four speakers; a XLR snake; the speaker stands; XLR cables; lectern microphone; we’re easily talking about about eight thousands dollars worth.

That’s excessive. I don’t know how much it would cost but spending $8000 on an elementary school talent show is wildly insane.

Anonymous wrote:This is why many people hate the PTA and call it Parents To Avoid.

Seriously. Thousands of dollars on mini broadway shows? Out of their minds

Anonymous wrote:In looking at all the equipment that might be needed, five to six wireless headsets; an analog/digital mixer; three to four speakers; a XLR snake; the speaker stands; XLR cables; lectern microphone; we’re easily talking about about eight thousands dollars worth.

That’s insane. Our local ES used to have the fifth graders put on a little musical production before Covid and we just used the music department sound equipment. Our pta used to borrow it all the time. I don’t know many PTAs buying stuff like that (I mean unless the pta is in a really wealthy area ares like Bethesda or Potomac?) and quite frankly wouldn’t want my pta spending money on that anyway.

This is why many people hate the PTA and call it Parents To Avoid.

In looking at all the equipment that might be needed, five to six wireless headsets; an analog/digital mixer; three to four speakers; a XLR snake; the speaker stands; XLR cables; lectern microphone; we’re easily talking about about eight thousands dollars worth.

I’m bemused by a lot of assumptions here that talent shows can be run super cheap. (I suppose they could, but if we want to show communities what we can do, with the best we have, then I’m all for fundraising to get what we need. Apart from that some schools simply don’t have the audio/video equipment, so they have to rent it or borrow it. That can cost a pretty penny, never mind hiring someone to run the soundboard / mixer. For certain sets, you might need wireless headsets, or for others boundary microphones. None of this is cheap. (For a set of, say, five girls, all micc'ed up, you’re talking three hundred dollars per child, or fifteen-hundred dollars. A mixer is three to eight hundred dollars. Quality speakers, if they aren't built-in, can cost another few thousand dollars.) Props can also run the gamut of cheap to expensive. The entry fee may also be a reflection of the space, maybe they want to keep it under a certain maximum of attendance.

I’m thinking back on our elementary school PTA days and our PTA many free community events. They also ran spring fairs, bingo nights and talent shows that did require some kind of payment. Showing up to the spring fair was free, but you needed to buy tickets to participate in the events. Showing up to the bingo night was free, but you needed to pay to play. There was a craft night that you had to pay to get your craft which included RSVPing prior.

We live in a low farms area, so I believe the counselors have a list of families who may need financial assistance. Every field trip permission, slip, and event email had a blurb up about reaching out to the counselor if you needed financial assistance. Families would round up or chip in to cover if they felt the need to do so.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most people seem to be assuming the talent show is an evening event, and focusing on money. As the PP who said that every elementary talent show I can remember was held during the day, I’d like to point out that $$ isn’t the only barrier to participation. Elementary aged kids are unable to provide their own transportation and generally require adult supervision. If the child’s family is unable and/or unwilling to provide either, the child won’t be able to display their talents, or even watch their friends.

If you have the show during the day, while it may decrease the number of parents who can attend, it will greatly increase the number of kids who can enjoy the event. Moreover, as I pointed out before, it keeps the costs low, so there is no need to charge for tickets.

Op here- you just gave me an awesome idea which is why I (sometimes) LOVE this forum. I am going to talk to the pta president and principal and suggest a daytime “show” (assembly for the kids) that is obviously free and the pta can keep their evening nighttime event that charges tickets as the fundraising event. Even if it’s too late for this year, that’s a great solution for next year. This is such a cool way to make it accessible for all yet still make it a fundraiser for the pta. I’m excited about this!

Good luck finding a time that does not conflict with testing, instructional time, or any other in-school event.

Navigating the school calendar is actually really challenging, because each grade has a variety of mandatory tests, teachers may or may not be available to supervise, and at this time of year they are pushing to get through content before end of year assessments.

Is your child very young, or are you just new to public education in general? You seem to have this idea that there is one easy trick that no one has thought of before, but I promise that someone has thought of it and there's a good reason they are doing things the way they are.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here’s a solution OP. Maybe you can run the talent show next year and see the financials and logistics that go into running a PTA. Or you can continue running your mouth about things you don’t take the time to understand. Up to you!

OP here- I actually am involved and active in helping the PTA so yes I do understand logistics of planning events very well. I did not plan/ help this event and simply looking for how things are done elsewhere & what others think.

So instead of offering to help with a way to raise money to make the event free, which seems important to you, you choose to come on DCUM and throw shade at people who are just doing their best to provide a fun evening for families. Nice!

They could donate $500 to cover some of the costs.

Or $50. Does not take $500 to put on an elementary talent show. And yes, speaking from experience. If the talent show costs $500 to produce no wonder they have to charge families.

You have to pay for the space, insurance, need volunteers

You don’t pay insurance in mcps. If you were on / involved in a pta and rented the local elementary gyms or APRs you’d know this

You clearly are not involved with PTA. PTA has to pay insurance, not mcps to host.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most people seem to be assuming the talent show is an evening event, and focusing on money. As the PP who said that every elementary talent show I can remember was held during the day, I’d like to point out that $$ isn’t the only barrier to participation. Elementary aged kids are unable to provide their own transportation and generally require adult supervision. If the child’s family is unable and/or unwilling to provide either, the child won’t be able to display their talents, or even watch their friends.

If you have the show during the day, while it may decrease the number of parents who can attend, it will greatly increase the number of kids who can enjoy the event. Moreover, as I pointed out before, it keeps the costs low, so there is no need to charge for tickets.

Op here- you just gave me an awesome idea which is why I (sometimes) LOVE this forum. I am going to talk to the pta president and principal and suggest a daytime “show” (assembly for the kids) that is obviously free and the pta can keep their evening nighttime event that charges tickets as the fundraising event. Even if it’s too late for this year, that’s a great solution for next year. This is such a cool way to make it accessible for all yet still make it a fundraiser for the pta. I’m excited about this!

The children are not fundraisers for the PTA.