A school Halloween party is a great way to fundraise for your PTA. With the summer over you can cheer up the little ones by getting spooky this October. Here are a few tips to plan successfully:
- You can make it healthy – some parents opt out of Halloween because of its candy culture. But healthy fun is also possible! Sausages, pies or even chilli are other good options. Warming food for the autumn season. Could you find a mobile food vendor or local restaurant to give you a hand in exchange for publicity?
- Beware of too spooky. Sometimes scary Halloween costumes can be overwhelming for younger children. How about a themed costume competition? Ideas include pirates, Disney characters, or animals.
- Face-painting. Temporary tattoos or a local children’s face painter, or just a creative parent could set up a stand and charge for each face or arm painted.
- Pumpkin carving contest - it’s cheap, easy and will help decorate your school Halloween party. Ask each family to carve their own pumpkin and bring it along. You can charge an entry fee and offer prizes for the winner.
- Invite parents. This event is not just for children. After all, who spent hours putting together all the excellent costumes?
- Start a fire! Bonfires have a way of bringing people together. All you need is wood, old newspapers, and a good volunteer to get it going.
- Magic tricks: get a parent or a local magician to perform tricks with spooky props.
- Fireworks! For the ambitious PTAs or those with great contacts, fireworks can get more people to come out and even pay a little extra for attending your school Halloween party.
- Use Classlist to communicate with parents – tell them about your event, ask for suggestions, send out invites and let parents know how to help.