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Elementary school fundraising ideas

The best fundraising ideas for elementary schools offer fun for the whole family and bring in some major funds, too. Rally parents, students, staff members, and the surrounding community with these fresh and creative elementary fundraiser ideas.

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Haunted house

Create a spooky experience and raise funds by encouraging brave participants to enter—if they dare. Accept payments on the spot with scan-to-donate, Venmo, and more convenient options.

Cost:
2
Effort:
3
Impact:
2
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Student battle of the bands

Invite student-run bands to rock out for a prize! Charge entry fees and offer rad, donated prizes for the winners. Have each band create a team fundraising page, and encourage attendees to cast their votes for their favorites bands with a donation!

Cost:
2
Effort:
3
Impact:
2
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Peer-to-peer

Discount cards

Create and sell discount card coupon books full of deals to local restaurants and businesses. Sell the coupon books on a custom donation form and share it far and wide!

Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Fundraising page

“Celebrity” breakfast

Charge an entrance fee for a special family breakfast with a beloved children’s character like Elmo! Check-in attendees and accept in-person donations with Tap to Pay as guests arrive, ask volunteers to whip up scrambled eggs and pancakes, and arrange a corner of the room for family photos and selfies.

Cost:
2
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Escape Room Challenge

Charge a participation fee and challenge teams to solve puzzles and clues to "escape” from various spaces in this exciting, community-building fundraising event.

Cost:
2
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Raise some dough with cookie dough

Buy wholesale cookie dough for volunteers to sell during peak cookie-baking season. To gamify your efforts, use peer-to-peer fundraising so participants can compete to see who sold the most!

Cost:
2
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Family photo day

Partner with a local photographer and charge a fee for photo packages with themed backdrops or props. Create custom tickets with time slots for families to sign up to keep the day moving smoothly.

Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Tag Day

Invite students to post up outside local businesses and ask patrons for donations. Donors receive “tags” (stickers) when they give. Offer in-person payments using Venmo or scan-to-donate!

Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Trike-a-thon

Create a race course and encourage family and friends to sponsor your little big-wheel racers by making a donation on their behalf on your fundraising page.

Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Kids’ art calendar

Turn kids’ finger paintings and drawings into custom calendars—or transform them into keepsakes like photo books, mugs, or t-shirts. Sell the merch using a fun, eye-catching auction or fundraising page.

Cost:
1
Effort:
1
Impact:
2
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Donation forms
Fundraising page
Auctions

Virtual food/wine tasting

Partner with local eateries and provide tasting kits for participants to enjoy at home for a small fee. Then, host a livestream tasting experience.

Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Community service day

Organize volunteers to take part in a day of community care in which you work together to tackle projects and tasks in exchange for donations from your community members.

Showcase every project or fundraiser you’re working on with a central giving hub. Your supporters can then see all your amazing work in one place.

Cost:
2
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Easter egg hunt

Set up an epic Easter egg hunt and create a fundraising event page for families in your community to register and make a sliding-scale donation to participate.

Create an Easter Bunny photo booth and host a bake sale to bring in even more donations with scan-to-donate and Venmo donations on the day of the hunt!

Cost:
2
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Gift basket showdown

Using peer-to-peer fundraising, participants compete to raise the most money for your campaign. The winner gets the first pick from a selection of gift baskets.

Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
1
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Fundraising page

Virtual bike-a-thon

Set a distance and have your bikers pay a registration fee to join in. Then, foster some friendly competition by encouraging supporters to start or join a team, raise funds, and set off wherever they are.

Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
3
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Peer-to-peer
Events

Kids vs. grownups field day

Organize an afternoon of hilarious games and exciting dual-team events, such as tug-of-war, that are sure to get the competitive spirit going.

Charge entrance fees for this fundraising event, offer for-sale hydration and snacks, and don’t forget prizes for the winners!

Cost:
2
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Teddy bear picnic

Sell simple brown-bag lunches or have a mini bake sale at a picnic where participants can bring along their favorite stuffed animal. This fundraising event is a perfect family-friendly way to bring in needed funds.

Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Local celebrities

Invite a local children’s book author or beloved mascot to an event. Guests will pay a fee to attend, ask questions, and take photos! 
Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Maze for a cause

If you don’t have corn maze capabilities, find a large outdoor space where you can build a maze from hay bales!

Charge an entrance fee to walk the maze, and make transactions easy with scan-to-donate and Tap to Pay options.

Cost:
2
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Student art auction

Auction off students' art projects online, in-person, or both! Add photos and descriptions for each masterpiece using easy auction software.

Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Teacher “jail”

Challenge students to meet a fundraising goal. If they do, their teacher is sent to relax in the teachers’ lounge while students play games in the classroom. Use a custom fundraising page with a live goal bar to build excitement!

Cost:
1
Effort:
1
Impact:
2
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Peer-to-peer

Fall carnival

Host your very own fall-themed festival with live music, food and drink, local vendors, and carnival games.

Ask local businesses for supplies and prize donations and raise funds through refreshments, games, and stallholder fees.

Cost:
2
Effort:
3
Impact:
3
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Farmer’s market

Approach a local farmer’s market with a sponsorship proposal and see if they can host a special fundraising event for your cause or dedicate a certain percentage of their Saturday morning profits to your campaign. Be sure to outline all of the perks that vendors can expect from the collaboration, like free publicity.

Cost:
1
Effort:
1
Impact:
2
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That’s a wrap

Students make donations to buy sections of toilet paper. At the end of the fundraising period, they get to wrap their teacher with it! For a smoother process, set custom donation amounts and labels on your fundraising page or donation form.

Cost:
1
Effort:
1
Impact:
1
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Book sale

Partner with a publisher or local book store and host a book sale to raise money. Sell books of all kinds or organize the event around a theme—romance novels, religious books, or children's literature—whatever will resonate with your community.

Make sure to spread the word about your sale and send reminders using free email marketing software!

Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Frequently asked questions

Starting a fundraiser for your elementary school usually begins with identifying a need, like new playground equipment or computers. Ideally, this is done in partnership with stakeholders like the PTA and school administrators. No one should take on a fundraising effort alone, so your next step is to assemble a team of volunteers to brainstorm ideas. A book sale? A fun run? A trivia night? The sky’s the limit! 

Great fundraising ideas for elementary schools that have stood the test of time include events like fall or spring carnivals, bake sales, and walkathons. These evergreen activities appeal to families, engage more community members, and provide fun for everyone.

Regardless of how you collect donations, the best school fundraising ideas for elementary schools get both students and parents involved and even bring local restaurants and businesses in on the action.

The profitability of any fundraiser can vary depending on resources, expenses, and community support, but large-scale events like galas and silent auctions tend to be the most profitable. Alternatively, crowdfunding campaigns that allow supporters to make small donations on a donation page are also effective for raising money sustainably throughout the school year.

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