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Fabulously Fun Inside this eBook:School Carnival Ideas for how to organize a carnival for Schools, Churches and Ideas Community groups Suggestions for games, activities, food, and fundraisers Tips for making the carnival fun for all ages! A FREE VolunteerSpot eBook

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VolunteerSpot Philosophy At VolunteerSpot, we believe that volunteers should be rewarded for stepping forward and sharing their time and talents with those in need. All too often, volunteering means putting up with a certain amount of hassle or frustration – whether that is late night emails, reply-all messages, reminder phone calls, or searching for a parking space. Our sponsors enable us to provide FREE Please feel free to post this eBook on your blog tools that simplify or email it to whomever you believe would volunteering, powering your benefit from reading it. good work in schools and THANK YOU! clubs, in your congregation and neighborhoods. We can’t find you a parking space, but ~ Team VolunteerSpot with VolunteerSpot, DOING GOOD just got easier!© 2011 by VolunteerSpot DOING GOOD Just Got Easier!Copyright holder is licensing this under the Creative CommonsLicense, Attribution 2.5.http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/

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Carnivals are FUN! Many schools and congregations hold carnivals every year because they are fun, involve the community, and can be a profitable fundraiser. We’ve collected ideas from carnival veterans to help you plan your event. Whether it is your first or 50th, we hope you will find some ideas to make your carnival a fresh success!Carnival Ideas / VolunteerSpot , DOING GOOD just got easier!

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Carnival Basics Share the work and have more fun! Create More stuff means more money. Offer a variety of subcommittees with a chair responsible for booths and activities attractive for all ages. Once you key teams. Use VolunteerSpot for simple have a theme, let it guide your booth and volunteer scheduling and parent signups! entertainment choices. Ticket Sales Concessions Rentals Good publicity and signage drives attendance. Start Sponsorships spreading the word 4‐6 weeks before your event. At Publicity the carnival, hang brightly colored signs identifying Booths booths and concessions stands. (Kids can help make Raffle or Auction them.) Prominently recognize sponsors on banners Music and Entertainment and signs. Setup/Cleanup Choose a theme to tie the carnival together. Your carnival can be planned around any theme, for example: The Circus Beach Party Future/Outer Space Hollywood Mardi Gras Sports FiestaCarnival Ideas / VolunteerSpot , DOING GOOD just got easier!

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Save time, Plan your Carnival Online with VolunteerSpot Example: General Carnival Committee Signup Example: 4th Grade Balloon Pop Booth SignupVolunteerSpot’s simple online signup tool Once volunteers have picked a shift, makes it easy to get the help you need. VolunteerSpot sends automated confirmations and reminders to help everyone keep their commitments. Volunteers signup on‐the‐go, from their smartphones!

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Where should we hold our carnival? You can hold your carnival anywhere Our school holds a carnival every year. that is safe and has enough room. The kids, teachers, and parents, all look forward to it. It’s such a fun way for our Either indoors or outdoors families to spend time together while Any area thats safe for kids raising money. In a space that is big enough to -- Parent, Campbell, CA fit all your booths and activities A backyard A big garage A church or school A playground Need Permission? Need Permits? Plan ahead!!Carnival Ideas / VolunteerSpot , DOING GOOD just got easier!

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How can we turn our carnival into a fundraiser? Don’t forget to give recognition • Sell Tickets! Offer tickets for sale in the weeks and send a “Thank You” note to before the carnival at a discount. This builds interest those businesses that helped! in your event while earning a base of funds. Avoid cash handling at all the activity booths and concessions stands by having a few designated ticket booths. Set a ticket price (# tickets) for each booth or food item. • Sell student designed t‐shirts, community recipe/cookbooks, arts and crafts, etc. • Keep costs down. Ask local businesses to donate food or supplies. Purchase inexpensive prizes for the games at party stores. • Add a bake sale or cake decorating contest. • Hold a silent auction or raffle. Include themed baskets where each class parent donates one small item for a collectively generous basket. Possible themes: Family Games, Backyard Fun, Cook’s Delight, Gardener Goodies, Puzzles, Arts & Crafts, Pampering, Slumber Party, Water FunCarnival Ideas / VolunteerSpot , DOING GOOD just got easier!

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What else can we do besides games? A carnival isnt complete without at least a few good shows. Feature your community talent and charge tickets for admission. Some ideas: Magic Show Puppet Show Ask teachers and staff to support Talent Contest the talent show by allowing Skateboard Freestyle Demo students to practice during lunch period or after school. Dance Performances Short Play Choral Groups Local Bands Art Show Carnival Ideas / VolunteerSpot , DOING GOOD just got easier!

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Activities for Little Kids• Learn a cheer with a High School Cheer • Football throw or soccer kick (with a leader (in uniform) uniformed HS player helping)• Diva Center – paint nails, glitter hair, • Basketball toss face painting, etc. • Tackle the quarterback (with a uniformed HS • Dress‐up corner player as the tackle target)• Face painting • Water balloon toss• Decorate a flower pot and plant a seed • Knock stacked cans with a ball Carnival Ideas / VolunteerSpot , DOING GOOD just g

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Activities for Older Kids • American Idol –like Karaoke Stage (charge per song) I love going to my church carnival. It • Who Wants to be a Millionaire – like Trivia Stage reminds me of when I was a kid! • Hot dog or pie eating contest -- Grandparent • Chalk mural, Group Graffiti Canvas or Trash Sculpture – group art Freehold, NJ project where everyone contributes • Temporary hair coloring, hair braiding and tattoos • Dunk Tank • Balloon dartboard • Corn Hole Toss • Cake Walk • Basketball Shoot (Miniature for indoors) • Silly Photos (Create painted character panels with head slots cut out. Have a digital camera and printer on site.) • Guess how many pennies in the jar – closest number wins the jar! • Chicken Drop (Create a numbered checkerboard in a 5’ x 5’ space. Sell tickets for each number. The number the bird ‘drops’ on wins.) • Cow Drop (same as chicken drop, but section the football field into a numbered checkerboard.)Carnival Ideas/ VolunteerSpot , DOING GOOD just got easier!

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Activities for kids of all ages!• Silly string corral (sell small cans of Silly String and rope off a fun zone) Please visit our blog for more volunteering suggestions and• Shaving cream/bubble corral to share your carnival ideas and stories.• Cascarones (confetti eggs, kids smash them on each other)• Box maze (made out of refrigerator boxes from a retail warehouse and lots of tape)• Hula Hoop/Jump Rope contests• Pick‐a‐pop• Fishing booth• Duck race• Ring toss• Dime toss• Water gun targets• Balloon Pop Relay• Fun fortune‐teller or palm reader Carnival Ideas / VolunteerSpot , DOING GOOD just got easier!

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Creative Carnival Game Ideas Potty Toss End of the Rainbow Players try to toss toilet tissue rolls through Draw a rainbow in chalk on an outdoor toilet seats hung from the ceiling. Each seat is surface. At the end of rainbow place a marked with a different point value. miniature pot (or fake cauldron). Players try Human Slot Machine to flip pennies into the pot from a designated point. Prizes increase depending on the Setup three large refrigerator boxes in a row & number of pennies the player tosses into the cut out a large window in the front of each. pot. When a player pulls an imaginary lever, a volunteer standing in each box tosses possible Quack Shack wax fruits (orange, banana, apple) up and A costumed volunteer pretends to be a mad down, finally picking one. Three in a row scientist and decorates the kids with fake wins! scars and wounds. Dinosaur Dig/ Treasure Dig Players dig in shallow boxes of sand for plastic “dino” eggs. Each egg contains a slip of paper with a number. Players can redeem the prize assigned to the number found on their paper. Pirate variation: hide chocolate gold coins & trinkets and players dig for buried treasure.Carnival Ideas / VolunteerSpot , DOING GOOD just got easier!

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Fun for Rent!Carnivals are a goodway to teach kids how towork in teams, makedecisions, and getorganized! You don’t need a big budget to have a successful carnival; however, adding a few well‐selected rentals can Organizing a carnival is a increase ticket sales and expand the fun.fun way to use math, art, Bounce castlemusic, science, and Giant slide/ Water slidelanguage arts skills. Photo booth Pony ridesWith a few simple clicks, Petting zooVolunteerSpot can help Dunking Boothyou organize your next Video game trailercarnival – and it’s free! Lazer tag Go cartsJust log on to Test your strength – hammer gamewww.Volunteerspot.com Sumo wrestlingto get started! Jousting Transportable Carnival Rides Carnival Ideas / VolunteerSpot , DOING GOOD just got easier!

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Spreading the Word Having a big turnout is key for your Carnival fun‐raiser! Getting people to show up takes planning and effort. Fliers. Hand out information about your carnival at school or congregation and to everyone you know. Include the date, time, location, what kinds of things you’ll have at your carnival, and a list of sponsors. Newspapers, newsletters and local websites. Ask your local newspaper, congregation, or school newsletter to run a free announcement about your carnival. Posters and Banners. Make colorful signs that tell people about your carnival. Tell the date, time, location and all the things you’ll have: “Games! Prizes! Food! Entertainment! Silent Auction! etc.” The more posters you put up on telephone poles, at school and at nearby businesses, the better. Word of mouth. Tell all your friends and their parents. Carnival Ideas / VolunteerSpot , DOING GOOD just got easier!

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Food and Drinks Many local restaurants and businesses will donate food in exchange for sponsored publicity. • Popcorn • Snow‐cones / snow balls • Hot dogs/hamburgers • Cotton candy • Soft Drinks & Italian Soda • Peanuts • Cookies • Candies • Pretzels • Churros or Doughnuts • Trail mix • Fruit • Caramel or candy apples • Ice cream/ Italian IceCarnival Ideas/ VolunteerSpot , DOING GOOD just got easier!

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Tips for a Successful Carnival• Print maps of your carnival space. • Give out prizes right away at each game booth, or kids can collect ‘point tickets’ • Share the fun! Give each class or group the redeemable at a prize booth. responsibility of planning and staffing a specific booth. That team should consider • Ask yourself, “Can everybody play this decorations, setup, cleanup, and prizes. game?” You may have people come to your carnival who use crutches , wheelchairs. or • Have plenty of lined garbage cans and a trash team to keep them ready. Set the trash cans have less strength in their arms and hands. back away from your serving area to avoid • Set aside a safe, shaded area for babies and flies or odors. toddlers to crawl and play without having big • Price your tickets so a typical family can have kids around. A few gym mats, some baby toys, a lot of fun and enjoy multiple activities. Give a fence of some kind, and chairs for parents discounts to people who buy 20 tickets at could be all that you need. once, or pre‐order. Consider selling fixed‐ priced wristbands if your carnival is more of a • Cash Sense. Keep cash‐handling locations to a community‐builder than a fundraiser. minimum and staffed with two or more Wristbands are simpler than tickets, but people. Have locked cash boxes on hand, and typically not as profitable for the carnival. a process for moving and storing large sums of • Offer both substantial food and treats. money. Many banks and supermarkets Hungry carnival goers appreciate something provide an auction and carnival service and filling like pizza or hot dogs in addition to can help with your cash process. candy and popcorn. Carnival Ideas / VolunteerSpot , DOING GOOD just got easier!

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Simplify ALL Parent VolunteeringHelping parents, teachers and volunteer leaders coordinate activities and events simply and easily all year round! • Soccer Snacks • Scout Campouts • Walk‐a‐Thons & Fun Runs • Swim Meets • Sports Tournaments • Vacation Bible School • Girl Scout Cookie Booths • Neighborhood Clean ups • Coat, food and toy drives and more . . . Class Parent Carnival Ideas / VolunteerSpot , DOING GOOD just got easier!

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Additional ResourcesClick here for Sample Class Parent Letters: www.budurl.com/BTSSampleLettersSee our other free eBooks with ideas andbest‐practices for: • School Carnivals • Teacher Gifts • Family‐Friendly Volunteering • Fundraising with Kids • Bake Sales • Talent Shows and more . . . www.VolunteerSpot.com/ebooks Class Parent Carnival Ideas / VolunteerSpot , DOING GOOD just got easier!

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We love to hear what you have to say! If you: Liked this eBook Thank Shared this eBook with a friend Used some of the ideas in this You! eBook, or came up with some of your own Love volunteering Thank you for downloading this FREE eBook from VolunteerSpot. Want to be more involved with your kids’ school …And much more We take the hassle out of volunteering and make it point- and-click simple to schedule all Be sure to visit our blog to your volunteer activities with our post your comments and read FREE powerful real time calendar what other volunteers have to signup tool. say! http://blog.volunteerspot.com© 2011 by VolunteerSpot DOING GOOD Just Got Easier!Copyright holder is licensing this under the Creative Commons License, Attribution 2.5.http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/