What's the best way to help teachers get supplies they need for their classrooms?

I live in a neighborhood that the families of students could not contribute much in the way of money or school supplies. Some school districts are top heavy, but still teachers need to spend their own money to decorate their classrooms or do special projects.

A nearby college had a supply drive, placed a huge box near the library door, collected back packs, paper, pens, folders, etc., and donated them to local schools.

Advertise in the PennySaver in the items wanted section. List specific items such as colored pencils, construction paper, group craft projects, etc. Have volunteers pick up the supplies or have a drop off location.

My mom, a teacher, would contact a manager of a 5 & dime, drug store, or fabric store. Say she had little to no money and ask if they would fill up the bag she brought in with any scraps they were going to toss out. She'd get paper, stickers, ribbons, and card stock. Sometimes they would give her two bags. She'd take what she could use, then pass it on to another teacher.

At a local fast food restaurant (like McDonalds or Burger King) have a supply drive. See if the restaurant will offer free fries with an order of a sandwich and drink with any supply donation. Have it last from 2 PM to 4 PM, so it doesn't affect the lunch or dinner crowd.

In the PennySaver or other classified ad paper, or from parents ask for donated items that can be raffled off. Or do a money raffle. Have the raffle during a PTA meeting.

Advertise in the PennySaver in the items wanted section. List specific items such as colored pencils, construction paper, group craft projects, etc. Have volunteers pick up the supplies or have a drop off location.

My mom, a teacher, would contact a manager of a 5 & dime, drug store, or fabric store. Say she had little to no money and ask if they would fill up the bag she brought in with any scraps they were going to toss out. She'd get paper, stickers, ribbons, and card stock. Sometimes they would give her two bags. She'd take what she could use, then pass it on to another teacher.

At a local fast food restaurant (like McDonalds or Burger King) have a supply drive. See if the restaurant will offer free fries with an order of a sandwich and drink with any supply donation. Have it last from 2 PM to 4 PM, so it doesn't affect the lunch or dinner crowd.

This is a question that is not going to be answered on a Nationwide Basis. One of the main problems we have is trying to solve all the problems on a National scale, it's not going to happen. You cannot put every child in the nation in different boxes and try and mold a system into one size fits all and who deserves whatever is available.

The only way teachers should get their supplies is by asking each one what they need for the students they are trying to teach. Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic are the three that are most important and if we cant teach that with what we have, there is no reason to order any other supplies is there?

Parents are the ones that end up paying the bill, not the school district. The parents end up paying for the failure of the school districts. The PTA's around the country need to start stepping up and holding their school districts feet to the fire as to how the school district is wasting the money try to fit everything into one basket. Teachers are victims of political correctness. If teachers need political correctness to be good teachers they need to switch jobs. Political correctness is killing this country, Time for the intelligent people to start moving the school boards, that are not cutting it, out and stay away from the "good old boy syndrome"! We need to start taking a good look at the management that is suppose to be managing and not controlling. Teachers know how to do things but just like everyone else, the more they get the better they think they are. That's not true. So it's a management position that must determine what the teachers need to best do their job, and many times it's not money, it's motivation!!!

My mom, a teacher, would contact a manager of a 5 & dime, drug store, or fabric store. Say she had little to no money and ask if they would fill up the bag she brought in with any scraps they were going to toss out. She'd get paper, stickers, ribbons, and card stock. Sometimes they would give her two bags. She'd take what she could use, then pass it on to another teacher.

At a local fast food restaurant (like McDonalds or Burger King) have a supply drive. See if the restaurant will offer free fries with an order of a sandwich and drink with any supply donation. Have it last from 2 PM to 4 PM, so it doesn't affect the lunch or dinner crowd.

The parents end up paying for the failure of the school districts. The PTA's around the country need to start stepping up and holding their school districts feet to the fire as to how the school district is wasting the money try to fit everything into one basket. Teachers are victims of political correctness. If teachers need political correctness to be good teachers they need to switch jobs. Political correctness is killing this country, Time for the intelligent people to start moving the school boards, that are not cutting it, out and stay away from the "good old boy syndrome"! We need to start taking a good look at the management that is suppose to be managing and not controlling. Teachers know how to do things but just like everyone else, the more they get the better they think they are. That's not true. So it's a management position that must determine what the teachers need to best do their job, and many times it's not money, it's motivation!!!

etc. Also, if the teachers wouldn't like to use the money for decorations and instead would like to use them to buy books, etc, they will ask their pupils to decorate the classroom by making D.I.Y. items. Also, they should hold a contest where some of the pupils go around the neighborhood and collect newspapers and recyclables. After that, just sell the recyclables. The prize for the contest should be something affordable. Pupils will also be encouraged to recycle at the same time.

Another fun idea is to tell the pupils to donate some money to the teachers whenever they forget to bring or do their homework. This will encourage pupils to do their homework and also you may be able to get some cash to buy supplies if someone forgets to do so.

You can also try to do a 'walk-a-thon'. Students will be

earby college had a supply drive, placed a huge box near the library door, collected back packs, paper, pens, folders, etc., and donated them to local schools.

Advertise in the PennySaver in the items wanted section. List specific items such as colored pencils, construction paper, group craft projects, etc. Have volunteers pick up the supplies or have a drop off location.

My mom, a teacher, would contact a manager of a 5 & dime, drug store, or fabric store. Say she had little to no money and ask if they would fill up the bag she brought in with any scraps they were going to toss out. She'd get paper, stickers, ribbons, and card stock. Some

On a school-wide basis, students could receive a "wish-list" of supplies requested by the teachers. Then, each classroom could compete to see which homeroom could get the most supplies, with the winner getting something like a pizza party, pie-throwing, water balloon battle, lunch with principal, etc. Then, the supplies could get divided among all of the teachers as needed.

Another thing that could be done on a school-wide basis is have a night in which students' work/accomplishments could be showcased. Art classrooms could have art displays; if there is/are music program(s), they could play music; science classrooms could display basic experiments; and so forth. Admission could be based on a monetary donation or to have each person bring in an item to donate.

Student vs. teacher basketball/volleyball/dodgeball game are also a great way to get students and their families involved. Once again, admission could be based on monetary or item donation. At the game, there could be a bake sale consisting on donated baked goods, with money benefiting school supplies.

As many have suggested, hold a fundraiser or carnival. In my school, each teacher receives a budget to buy classroom decorations, supplies etc. Also, if the teachers wouldn't like to use the money for decorations and instead would like to use them to buy books, etc, they will ask their pupils to decorate the classroom by making D.I.Y. items. Also, they should hold a contest where some of the pupils go around the neighborhood and collect newspapers and recyclables. After that, just sell the recyclables. The prize for the contest should be something affordable. Pupils will also be encouraged to recycle at the same time.

Another fun idea is to tell the pupils to donate some money to the teachers whenever they forget to bring or do their homework. This will encourage pupils to do their homework and also you may be able to get some cash to buy supplies if someone forgets to do so.

You can also try to do a 'walk-a-thon'. Students will be encouraged to exercise.

This is all I got :D

1. Stop silly popularity contests like this. If I don't want Yahoo as my home page, so I won't vote. That doesn't mean the schools don't need funding. Instead, I'd rather donate $100 to my children's school or to our school district directly - or go buy $100 worth of supplies, printer ink and copier paper. .

#2 Stop waste in the school budgets. Limit administrative salaries. No superintendent of a small district should make $300,000 a year - ours does. Repair schools before the repairs get out of hand.Don't overspend on things like astroturf. Fund raise for those big extras. I'm happy to be a member of our athletic boosters. People whose homes are in disrepair need to go to work to fix them. They shouldn't be having more and more children, then whining. Same with schools - live within your means and limit the costs, don't whine. Ask and parents are usually more than happy to give directly.

#3 Adequately fund schools. We're going to pay for education one way or another.

Yahoo! is about to be sold off to the highest bidding corporate buyer. Is that really what we want for our children?