Annual Hoedown - an opportunity to have many hands make light work.

 Our school's signature fundraising event is our annual fall Hoedown. It's a western-themed carnival-style offering of fun, food, and fellowship. There are horse-rides, hay-rides, and once, even a petting zoo. Each class hosts a game and each family purchases tickets that gain them access to all the games. There is also a chili contest and pie-baking contest, alongside a virtual silent auction. All proceeds are split evenly to be used directly in the classrooms. Additionally, items purchased with 'Hoedown' money are property of the school and are left behind for others to use when a teacher leaves or moves on from her role on our campus. This way, the money poured into our campus stays in our campus. The money poured into our students remains with our students. 

This event is impactful to build parent and family involvement for several reasons. The first and most important factor is that is absolutely does not happen without parent or family involvement. The need for volunteers is high - we need chili cooks, and pie bakers, and ticket takers, and food servers, and folks to secure silent auction donations, and folks to help set up classroom game booths while teachers are in school. 

My family and I started at our school as students first, long before I ever stepped foot at the helm of a classroom, so the Hoedown was our first opportunity to plug into our new school. It was our first opportunity to meet other parents. It was our first opportunity to give back to the teachers who spent their days pouring into our then-kindergarten son and 2nd grade-daughter. Our school had already done an incredible job making us feel welcome and valuable as an incoming family. The Hoedown sealed the deal. 

On a more personal level, breaking bread with each other over a chili dinner, getting a chance to meet my student's classmates, getting a chance to meet and mingle with other grade level teachers and other grade level students, and getting to take in an event where the entirety of the student body was represented was very impactful. 

On the other side now, as a teacher hosting the cupcake walk and reaping the benefits of many laborious volunteers' efforts, I am more grateful than ever for our Hoedown. It's an incredibly large amount of work for many, many involved, and some of the more jaded and critical of my coworkers have a great disdain for the event. I remain unconvinced. I see the value. I see great value. 

This year's Hoedown is next week. And I already have my boots ready.