The Best Options for Spring Fundraising

As the cold winter weather begins to shift to warmer days, it’s time to start considering your spring fundraising options! From festive outdoor activities to ways to build up school spirit during a new season of sports, there are many fundraisers that are perfect for the spring. The hardest part may be deciding which one is the right fit for your school! Whether you are working with enthusiastic elementary school students or busy high schoolers, we’ve got you covered. Read on for the top spring fundraising options for each age group.

In this blog you will learn:

• Spring fundraising ideas for elementary school students.
• Fundraisers that work for middle schoolers.
• Best fundraisers for high school students in the spring.

Top Spring Fundraisers for Elementary School Students

Organize a bake sale.

Ask families to contribute a baked good and set up your table in a high traffic area such as pick up/drop off or at a school event. You can also ask for parent volunteers to be in charge of the actual bake sale.

Pro Tip: Use an online sign up sheet such as a shared google doc or Signup Genius so that families signing up can see what is already being contributed. This will ensure you get a good variety!

Why It Works: There’s little-to-no upfront cost for this spring fundraising idea, making it instantly profitable. Plus, younger students love to work on projects with their parents. This is an opportunity for families to bake together!

Plan a fitness fundraiser.

Get students moving their bodies with a high-energy fundraiser such as fun run fundraisers, a color run or dance-a-thon. Leading up to the big day, incentives families and students to collect pledges for laps run, minutes moving or just set amounts.Then have a blast and bring your community together at your fitness fundraiser event! 
 
Pro Tip: A fitness fundraiser requires a lot of time and planning. Bringing in fundraising experts can help offset the workload and help you raise even more. Booster offers a range of services, from simply adding its online fundraising platform to your DIY event to a full-service fundraiser with a dedicated Booster team from start to finish. You choose how much help you need!

Why It Works: Elementary school students are motivated and eager to be involved in fun activities. This is also an impressionable age to teach students about being healthy and active.

Throw a festival.

Spring is the perfect season to plan an outdoor festival and enjoy the nice weather. Set up crafts and games for families, blow up a bounce house, organize a raffle—get creative with activities! Sell entry tickets and offer concessions to raise additional funds.

Pro Tip: Invite local food trucks or restaurants to sponsor your event in return for valuable advertising space on your event marketing material and a spot to sell items at your festival.  

Why It Works: Many families are newer to the school system and welcome opportunities to be involved and meet other parents. Throwing a festival is a great way to bring everyone together and build community!

Best Spring Fundraising for Middle School Students

Arrange a plant sale.

As the season begins to change, many members of the community will be revamping their yards and gardening. That makes it an ideal time to team up with a local nursery! Donors are already planning to purchase plants and flowers, it’s a win-win to do it through your fundraiser and know that their money is also helping a good cause.

Pro Tip: Timing is key for this fundraiser! Make sure you get the word out in advance and plan for a date that will ensure you are reaching your donors before they start working on their yards and may have already made purchases elsewhere.

Why It Works: There are a few different ways to host a successful plant sale. Students can collect orders in advance or you can ask the nursery for a proceed of purchases on a particular day and focus on advertising. This allows you to choose the format that fits your school and students the best.

Sell quality products.

From cookies and popcorn to kitchen gadgets and homeware, there are so many options with product sale fundraisers! Students and families can quickly and easily share their school fundraisers online and through text and email to collect orders.

Pro Tip: Partnering with the right school fundraising company is the key to success. You want to make sure that what you are selling your donors are quality items. Booster carefully curates products that donors want and need and updates its catalogs to be appropriate for the season.

Why It Works: Spring is far enough removed from the holiday season and shopping exhaustion, making it an ideal time to offer your donors the opportunity to purchase products.

Put together a car wash.

Grab some buckets, soap and sponges and set up in a high traffic area such as the school parking lot or local shopping center to offer your community the chance to have their cars cleaned and support a good cause.

Pro Tip: Make signs that share what you are raising funds for and put them up at your event. Donors are more likely to give when they know what their money is going towards.

Why It Works: It’s spring cleaning season—and that includes washing up dirty cars after a long winter! Plus, student volunteers will have a blast working together on a nice spring day. This one will absolutely build school spirit and community!

Spring Fundraising for High School Students

Partner up for a restaurant night.

Ask a popular local restaurant to partner with you and donate a portion of proceeds on a select night to your fundraiser. Then get the word out!

Pro Tip: Create fliers, email and text templates and social media graphics to give to your students and families. The easier you make it for them to share information about your fundraiser the more likely they are to get involved.

Why It Works: High school students and families are super busy! This fundraiser does not require much time from volunteers. It also gives families an opportunity to skip cooking for the night and grab a bite together!

Ask for direct donations.

The easiest spring fundraising idea is to simply ask for donations. Make sure to be clear on exactly what you are raising money for.

Pro Tip: To maximize your direct donation fundraiser you should use an online fundraising platform. This will allow students and families to reach more donors in less time! Booster’s platform, MyBooster, will also allow you to customize your fundraising page so you can clearly share why you are raising funds!

Why It Works: When done right with an online fundraising platform, this is another fundraiser that does not require much time and effort from busy students and families. This fundraiser can also be repeated throughout the year for different teams and groups raising funds as the target donors will vary.

Sell custom gear.

From t-shirts to hats to tumblers, there are many different items you can customize with your school colors and logo.

Pro Tip: If you set up an online store with Booster, they will only ship what is actually purchased, meaning no upfront costs or leftover inventory. Ordering in bulk is also a great option if you want to sell at a specific event or game where donors will be eager to show off their school spirit.

Why It Works: Spring kicks off a new season of sports and events so there are ample opportunities to build school spirit. This is another fundraiser that can also be done more than once for different teams and groups.

When planning your spring fundraising, remember to not only leverage the season’s energy, but to also take into account the group of students you will be working with. Whether it's young elementary school students or busy high schoolers, aligning your efforts with their schedules and interests will maximize the funds you raise, all while building community and school spirit.