March is one of those months that happens to have lots of special days worth celebrating. Plus, teachers and students could all use a little pick-me-up as we head into the final stretch of the school year and get ready to welcome spring! Not only is March National Reading Month, it also features the likes of:
- Read Across America Week (March 2)
- National Oreo Day (March 6)
- Cereal Day (March 7)
- Pi Day (March 14)
- St. Patrick's Day (March 17)
- First day of Spring (March 19)
- The Very Hungry Caterpillar Day (March 20)
- Full Moon (March 25)
- National Pencil Day (March 30)
- Easter (March 31)
- March Madness
And when there's an opportunity to bring a little joy and appreciation to the school community (and maybe a fun little fundraiser to boot), creative PTO leaders know how to take a theme and run with it. From teacher appreciation ideas to fundraisers, we round up what other PTO and PTA groups are doing to celebrate all the fun March has to offer!
Ways to celebrate Read Across America Week at school
Invite staff and PTO volunteers to dress up as book characters to greet kids during morning drop off!
@jus_rocky #readacrossamerica #charaterday #dressup #books #fyp #viral #foryoupage #foryou #techer #teachertt #drseussday2021 ##drseuss##schoolhacks ♬ original sound - rocky
Kick off a "reading buddy" program, where students receive a small stuffed animal (their reading buddy) from the PTO that they pledge to read to every night.
March is also a great time to have a readathon (it's National Reading Month, after all). Here's how to plan a reading pledge drive fundraiser (also called a readathon) at your school.
"We're so lucky to have you" rainbow snack spread for teachers
This is such a fun and simple display for teachers! Purchase and arrange snacks by color on a table in the lounge to represent a rainbow. Don't forget to add a pot of gold (chocolate coins or Rolos) at the end!
We absolutely love this colorful rainbow display that Marshall Elementary PTO in Fort Campbell, KY set up for their teachers and staff to enjoy! To set this up, hang colored plastic tablecloths in rainbow order and affix white balloons at the top for clouds. So cute!
Celebrate all the "smart cookies" at your school on National Oreo Day (March 6)
Teachers get to be a kid again by dunking Oreo cookies in milk to celebrate National Oreo Day on March 6.
Or, provide Oreos as a special treat for all students at your school!
Photo credit: Kristine Flores, Nokomis Montessori North PTO, Saint Paul, Minnesota
Cereal drive domino run on National Cereal Day (March 7)
Hold a cereal donation drive to support your local food pantry. Set up all donated cereal boxes for a schoolwide domino run on National Cereal Day, March 7!
Celebrate National Cereal Day (March 7) with a cereal bar for teachers
Let them know your group "cereal-sly" appreciates them!
Pies for Pi Day (March 14)
March 14 (3.14) is recognized as Pi Day. Celebrate by distributing oatmeal creme pies, mini pies, or moon pies to teachers and students.
Pie a teacher fundraiser (for Pi Day)
Students pay 50 cents per ticket and choose a teacher they'd like to pie in the face. A handful of lucky students will be picked to pie their teacher picks - and of course, the event is held on Pi Day (March 14)!
These teachers are such great sports, aren't they?
Teacher appreciation flower bar for first day of spring
The perfect way to kick off spring? A little teacher appreciation, of course! Purchase flowers (or collect donations for flowers) and vases from the dollar store. Display flowers and invite teachers to make their own colorful bouquet of flowers!
@ptotoday Make Your Own Bouquet - super cute easy idea for #teacherapprecationweek! #ptopresident #ptolife #teacherappreciation ♬ French music style, accordion, waltz - arachang
Woot woot wagon with a pot of gold
Desert Sun Academy PTO surprised teachers with snacks from their woot woot wagon...along with some cold hard cash!
You are our lucky charm (Canva template)
Use the "We're so lucky to have you" Canva template sign, shown below!
Guess how many charms are in the jar?
Fill a jar with Lucky Charms cereal. Teachers make their best guess at how many marshmallow charms are in the jar for a chance to win a prize basket!
Penny Wars
Go with a Lucky Leprechaun coin challenge, or a Mario Brothers gold coin theme! Here's everything you need to know about running a penny wars fundraiser at your school.
Gold coin hunt
Give each teacher a handful of gold coins to hide in their classrooms. Let students know that a sneaky leprechaun hid gold coins all over the school the night before St. Patrick's Day. Students get to enjoy looking for coins throughout the school day and those who find a coin get to redeem for a prize!
Lucky Grams Fundraiser
With a Lucky Grams fundraiser, students are able to send a pack of fun size rainbow Skittles and/or a "lucky coin" to friends or staff! Students fill out their lucky gram cards, place them in an envelope with money and return it to their teacher. Lucky Grams are delivered on March 17 (St. Patrick's Day).
Bag pipes for hire
A fun way to kick off St. Patrick's Day? The sound of bag pipes in the school hallways! This is a fun surprise for elementary and middle school students alike.
Skittles "make a rainbow" science experiment
Tamaqua Elementary PTO sent home fun size Skittles and a science experiment for students to do at home on St. Patrick's Day.
The directions on the tag read:
Make a rainbow for St. Patrick's Day!
1. Make a circle out of Skittles round the outside edge of a plate.
2. Pour warm water into the middle of the plate.
3. Watch the rainbow appear.
4. Take a photo and post it on our school's Facebook page for the yearbook!
Pot of Gold Fundraiser
Paper gold coins are sold for $1 each. The teacher whose classroom has the most coins at the end of the fundraiser (March 16) will be asked to wear a fun leprechaun costume on March 17!
Distribute Lucky Charms cereal bars to staff
Leprechaun for a day
Find a willing parent volunteer (raises hand slowly...) to dress as a leprechaun and greet students on St. Patrick's Day. You may want to ask your school principal if they're up for the job!
Green bracelet fundraiser
Very Hungry Caterpillar Day (March 20)
Set up a "very hungry caterpillar" teacher treat trolley and deliver breakfast treats to teachers, hold an "Eat the Rainbow" week to teach students about the importance of good nutrition, or invite parent volunteers to dress up as characters from the beloved book during carline.
Moon pies for the full moon (March 25)
Ahead of the full moon on March 25, your teachers could probably use a little treat break! Pair moon pies with our printable gift tag that reads, "“There’s a full moon this week? I had no idea!” –No teacher ever" (part of our free appreciation mega bundle).
Decorate your front entrance with a lucky theme
Horizon PTO decorates their school's front entrance every month. Impressive!
@fancyflowerfarmer Horizon Elementary PTO Front Entrance for March! #balloon #balloons #balloonartist #balloonart #balloondecor #balloongarland #balloondecoration #balloonchallenge #balloontiktok #balloongirl ♬ Sunshine - WIRA
A simple lucky-themed display outside using yard signs is fun, too!
National Pencil Day (March 30)
We all know come March, teachers are short a few pencils. Show your teachers some love on National Pencil Day (March 30) by replenishing their pencils (add a "teachers like you are just write for our school!" gift tag), or gift the viral pencil sharpener shared by teachers across TikTok. Or, hide a bunch of new pencils around the school for teachers to find...including a special "golden pencil" that one lucky teacher can redeem for a prize.
@misstaylorteaches4th The worlds great invention for a teacher. 100000% worth the $30 on amazon!!!! #teacherfinds #teachertok #pencil #sharpener ♬ original sound - MISS T ☻
Fill plastic eggs filled with treats for teachers to find
Fill plastic Easter eggs with prizes for teachers to find at school! Hide a special golden egg with cash inside. Stuff the rest with small items that will fit inside a plastic egg, like candy, erasers, and fun passes (like a jeans pass, leave early pass, VIP parking pass, classroom coverage, breakfast on us, etc.). Get our free set of editable teacher appreciation coupons
Egg My Yard fundraiser
With this fun fundraiser, kids get to wake up to a yard filled with treat-stuffed eggs!
March Madness
March Madness typically begins mid-March, when the NCAA college basketball tournaments are held. With a March Madness bracket, you can bring a little competition to school, too, with a Rock Paper Scissors tournament! Invite teachers or students to compete against others in their bracket each week for a chance to duke it out during the championship. Or, simply decorate the school with a March Madness basketball theme.
Get more trending ideas for schools 👉
