Pi(e) Day
Pi is the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter. Many schools observe the day with activities using pies or pizzas. You might recruit teachers who agree to be “pied,” then invite students to vote for one teacher to take a pie in the face by putting coins in a jar. Or you could help teachers with their Pi Day lessons by supplying pizzas for their classes. Teachers can use the round pizzas to demonstrate lessons before students eat them for lunch.

Family Fun
Hold a family night focused on math. Count off attendees from 1 to 9. Then recite the digits of pi, with a person representing each number moving to the appropriate place in order, until you run out of people. Plan math games and invite students to challenge their parents. End the evening with a helping of pie for everyone.

Pi Contest
Challenge students to write poems about pi or to memorize as many digits as they can. Give winners storybooks that involve pi, such as Sir Cumference and the Dragon of Pi by Cindy Neuschwander, or gift certificates to a local pizza place.

Dads’ Night at the Movies

The Huntsville (Ala.) Council of PTAs, together with some local churches, sponsored a PTA Dads Night at a movie theater in September, allowing fathers to purchase reduced-price tickets. The selected film, Courageous, follows four police officers and focuses on their roles as fathers. Parents from 17 schools attended, along with the superintendent and school board president.

Specific Requests

A San Antonio PTA found success asking fathers to volunteer at school on their child’s birthday, giving them the chance to enjoy lunch with their child. During meet the teacher night at Canyon Ridge Elementary, one father signed up about 60 other men to volunteer.

While researching programs to get more fathers involved at school, Canyon Ridge PTA president Lisa deBonoPaula learned of another area school that keeps a “honey do” list at the front desk. Dads can tackle tasks like moving heavy furniture, helping the PE teacher during gym class, and hammering nails into walls.

Just for Dads

Other schools have had success with dads-only parent groups or programs such as Watch D.O.G.S. and All Pro Dads, or by forming father’s committees that are a part of the parent group. The Mountainview Elementary PTA in Saugus, Calif., has an active Dads Committee. The group meets monthly and hosts a golf tournament and a rummage sale and helps with other PTA events.

Read more: Dad involvement article archive

Parent-Child Date Night
Give parents and kids a fun night out. Hold a dance for father-daughter and mother-son couples. Make it clear that kids can bring another relative or family friend if a parent can’t attend.

Teacher Treats
Write valentines to teachers and other staff members and place them in their mail boxes with chocolate candy. Change the school sign to say “we love our teachers.” Or organize a student serenade to teachers during recess.

Candygrams
For a small fee, let students order candygrams to be sent to other students or teachers on Valentine’s Day. Students can write a short note that is attached to a lollipop. Line up parent volunteers to make the deliveries. Another option is to send single carnations instead of candy.

Looking for more? Read “7 Fun Valentine’s Day Ideas” for inspiration.

If you are looking for a holiday link, I bet you’ll love this column from Sharron Kahn Luttrell. It’s called ”One Last Dance” and it’s been one of our most popular stories for several years now. It really captures the heart of this parent volunteering stuff that we do. Enjoy.

Happy holidays to all!

2011 PTO Expo T-shirt -- Your fun phrase could be on the 2012 t-shirt!

We are super excited to be in 14 cities for our 2012 PTO Today Expos! To kick off the Expo season we need your help! Do you remember the “My Parent Group Rocks” t-shirts that we gave away last year? (pictured right) They were a huge hit. In fact, we ran out. So, this is where you come in!

We need a new fun phrase for the 2012 Expo t-shirts!

Share your creative brilliance and you and your parent group can win!

Here’s the scoop on the Fun Phrase T-shirt contest!

First of all it’s living on our Facebook page on the Contest tab (left hand column of our Facebook page).  Pop over there to submit a fun phrase (7 words or less) that captures the spirit of PTOs, PTAs, HSAs, etc. (Note: We want all parent groups to be able to wear the t-shirt. So please use the term “parent group” instead of PTO or PTA.)

What will the winner get, you ask?!  Well, fame, notoriety and free stuff!

The winning fun phrase will be printed on t-shirts that will be used as prizes at PTO Today Expos and beyond.  The winner will be featured in a photograph wearing the winning t-shirt (with up to 4 fellow parent group volunteers) in an upcoming issue of PTO Today magazine. Also, you and 11 of your closest PTO or PTA peeps receive a free t-shirt. AND everyone who enters gets one free admission to your closest PTO Today Expo!

Here are the details on timing:

• From October 13- 25 submit your fun phrase (7 words or less) — use the “Enter Contest” button on the Contest tab or Facebook to get started. One submission per person.
• On October 26 the judges, the PTO Today editors, will choose the top three slogans.
• Starting October 27, all parent group volunteers are invited to vote for their favorite phrase until November 9th. Be sure to invite your PTO and PTA friends to vote for your fun phrase!
• The winner will be announced on November 10th.

Just think of the boost your parent group would get by winning the contest, getting the free t-shirts, and having your photograph in an issue of PTO Today Magazine! As they say in the Mastercard commercials, priceless!

* NOTE: When entering the contest using the Internet Explorer browser, after you hit “enter contest” and you get to the next page you need to scroll down to see the contest information. This is inherent in the contest application we are using and beyond our control.

CIA (Colts in Action) – Central Primary School, Gonzales, La.

FACT (Family Action Communication Team) – Summit Academy North Elementary, Romulus, Mich.

PAT (Parent Action Team) – South Elementary, Disputanta, Va.

PATT (Parents and Teachers Together) – James Mastricola Elementary, Merrimack, N.H.

PAW (Parents at West) – Byron Center West Middle School, Byron Center, Mich.

PIP (Parents in Partnership) – Shakopee Area Catholic School, Shakopee, Minn.

SPA (Stanbridge Parent Association) – Stanbridge Academy, San Mateo, Calif.

What other creative parent group names have you heard?

Click here to view the embedded video.

Mafia Moms

In Confessions of a PTA Mafia Mom, by Elsie Love, Elaine joins the PTA only to discover the reason the group is so effective: It uses “blackmail, bribes, threats and quite possibly guns” to get things done. When Elaine confides in the president that her husband is having an affair, her husband suddenly disappears, her children are kidnapped, and she’s forced to go into hiding in Las Vegas. To get her life back, Elaine has to take down the PTA mafia.

“It’s a bit of a mockery of the PTA, but nothing personal,” says Love. The mother of four is a longtime PTA member and school volunteer. This is her third novel.

Murder Mysteries

The main character of Laura Alden’s mystery series is Beth, a single mom and the secretary of a small-town PTA. In the first book, Murder at the PTA, Beth works to solve the murder of the elementary school principal. Several school parents, including the PTA president, are prime suspects.

The second installment in the series, Foul Play at the PTA, was released July 2011. In it, a dad is killed after a PTA meeting. Alden is currently working on the third book.

A Tale of Two Volunteers: Bridging the newbie-veteran gap.

Let Teachers Teach: What do you really want, and what should you expect, from the “T” in PTO?

The Truth About Cliques: If people say your group is a clique, it is. In this case, perception matters.