Home > Administrator's Desk Channel > Administrator's Desk Archive >Principal Ideas Archive > Principal Ideas Article

Principal Ideas
Volume #27

Just think of Principal Ideas as a virtual show-and-tell for principals. Each week in the coming school year we'll present five new principal-tested ideas. Send in your idea today! See the sidebar to learn how to be part of Principal Ideas.

Drawing a big crowd on PTA night isn't a given. We have found that in order to get parents to attend, we have to have kids involved somehow. Our fourth and fifth grade choir performs at some meetings. An exhibition of work by third-, fourth-, and fifth-grade artists, hung in a gallery-like environment -- complete with string quartet -- drew people to another meeting. I make sure that our first graders perform at every April meeting because that's when PTA elections take place for the following year. That strategy can pay big dividends because parents of younger students may commit to the PTA and the school for years to come.
Source: Mary Ellen Imbo, "Principals Share Parent Involvement Ideas" (EducationWorld.com -- February 28, 2000)

That's the Ticket!

Ask parents to donate theater or sports tickets they cannot use. Announce in your staff newsletter a drawing for those tickets; interested faculty members can enter their names.
Source: "Sixty-Five Ways to Recognize Teachers During Teacher Appreciation Week -- and All Year Long" (EducationWorld.com -- April 22, 2003)

Parents as Tutors

We use parent volunteers as tutors for our school's 700 K-2 students. Parents and friends of students are encouraged to volunteer on a regular basis to read to and with students. With parent help, our students have tested on more than 30,000 books a year [in the school's Accelerated Reader program] for the past several years!
Source: Barbara Wood, "Principals Share Parent Involvement ideas " (EducationWorld.com -- February 28, 2000)

Tap the Local Marketplace for Teacher/Parent Rewards

Contact local restaurants, sports franchises, movie houses, arts centers, and other businesses to arrange for gifts, gift certificates, tickets, or discount coupons that can be used as special prizes for teachers or coaches who volunteer their time or who go above and beyond.
Source: "25 Ways to Motivate Teachers" (EducationWorld.com -- November 19, 2002)

Education World® Editor-in-Chief
Copyright © 2006 Education World