{"id":4054,"date":"2015-11-04T08:02:07","date_gmt":"2015-11-04T16:02:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.familymathnight.com\/blog\/?p=4054"},"modified":"2024-11-23T07:50:07","modified_gmt":"2024-11-23T15:50:07","slug":"getting-folks-to-your-family-math-night-event","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.familymathnight.com\/blog\/?p=4054","title":{"rendered":"Getting Folks to Your Family Math Night Event"},"content":{"rendered":"
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If I had to pick one refrain that I hear from educators all over the country it’s How do we get families to come to our event?<\/em><\/div>\n
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It’s obviously a common problem. \u00a0One that I don’t have a definitive answer for.\u00a0 But I do have a few ideas that may help. \u00a0Some of them are tried and true and a few I just discovered along the way.<\/div>\n
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Dinner + Math<\/b><\/div>\n
We all know that parents are busy people. \u00a0Any opportunity to make their lives easier and they’re usually in. \u00a0So let’s take dinner off their plate (ha!) and feed them. \u00a0A spaghetti feed works well. \u00a0But if you want to make it easy, bring in pizza or, even better, have a restaurant donate the food. \u00a0You can pass out their restaurant coupons at the Family Math Night sending customers in their direction. \u00a0It’s a win\/win!<\/div>\n
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Two-Fer<\/strong><\/div>\n
Or how about making the event a two-fer. \u00a0Offering dinner is one great way to get families out but so is connecting the Family Math Night event with something else. \u00a0For example, one year we had the local police department come and put together fingerprint packets for the families. \u00a0This was a huge draw. \u00a0Families came for the packets and stayed for the math. \u00a0And loved both!<\/div>\n
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Ice Cream Social<\/strong><\/div>\n
Another idea is to link an ice-cream social with your event. \u00a0This one is great at the beginning of the school year as the young kinder families are excited to meet new people and the seasoned families love reuniting after the summer break. \u00a0The key to this one is offering the treats near the end of the event. \u00a0That way families don’t eat and run.<\/div>\n
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Homework Pass<\/strong><\/div>\n
So for this next one you’ll need buy-in from the teachers. \u00a0But, let me tell you, it’s a huge hit. \u00a0All student participants who come to the event receive a FREE Homework Pass. \u00a0Of course, there are restrictions on its use. \u00a0That book report project is off-limits. \u00a0But the kids just L-O-V-E getting these passes. \u00a0Why not get one night off from writing out the week’s spelling words? \u00a0If you’ve purchased our kits<\/a> then you have the link to customize and print out your own passes.<\/div>\n
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Extra Credit Coupon<\/strong><\/div>\n
If the FREE Homework Pass just isn’t for you or your staff, what about an EXTRA CREDIT coupon? \u00a0I haven’t tried this one yet, but I like the idea. \u00a0So much so, that we’ll\u00a0be designing our own customizable coupon\u00a0and including the link in your Family Math Night kit. \u00a0I’ll let you know when it’s available.<\/div>\n
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Raffle<\/b><\/div>\n
Next in line, the raffle table. \u00a0Everybody loves to win something. \u00a0Consider setting up a raffle table where, periodically throughout your event, items get raffled off. \u00a0I like to stick to ‘mathy’ items like playing cards, calculators, dice, strategy games, etc. \u00a0Click here<\/a> to see samples of some of my previous raffle tables. \u00a0And here’s a great idea shared by one of our curriculum consultants – display the raffle items in a nice basket and put it in the office. \u00a0Make sure to label it Family Math Night Raffle Items<\/em>. \u00a0It’s sure to bring in some very excited students!<\/div>\n
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Family Math Night Ambassadors!<\/strong><\/div>\n
And here’s one of my favorites. \u00a0Use upper grade students as Family Math Night Ambassadors to promote the event in the classrooms. \u00a0Kids get kids excited. \u00a0You’ll need to “train” them before sending them off. \u00a0But I’ve got you covered. \u00a0Use thisPromotion Presentation Sheet<\/a> to help. \u00a0Have students practice a few times with each other so they get comfortable with what to say. \u00a0They’ll need to make appointments with the teachers and when they arrive to do their presentation be sure they bring a few sample activities to share (Ladybug clock from our Math Medley<\/a> kit or a pattern bracelet from our Nifty Numbers<\/a> kit or geoboards from our Gellin’ with Geometry<\/a> kit, a raffle prize, the estimation jar…). \u00a0I like to send out my Ambassadors a few days before the event. \u00a0Another good time to send them out is the day the flyers go home.<\/div>\n
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Reminder Stickers<\/strong><\/div>\n
Finally, for the little guys, I like to use Reminder Stickers<\/a>…a small sticker with the event reminder printed on it. \u00a0As K-1 students are walking out the classroom door at the end of the day, put a sticker on their shirt\/jacket. \u00a0These are customizable and print on Avery labels 5163.<\/div>\n
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Promote, Promote, Promote<\/strong><\/div>\n
Finally, as with any event, it’s really all about promotion. Advertise in the school newsletter, Facebook, Twitter and on the school marquee. Hang posters around the school that include the date and time of your event. And, of course, send out your Family Math Night Ambassadors. They’re the best advertising around!<\/div>\n
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These may be ideas for your Family Math Night event, but they can be tailored for just about any event. \u00a0If you’ve tried something at your school that works, I’d love to hear about it. \u00a0Getting families back to school in the evening can be difficult; if there are ways that work – we all need to know!<\/div>\n
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And remember, these parent engagement events are just the type of thing that the PTA and Title I funds are looking to support. \u00a0So reach out to them. \u00a0You’ll be glad you did.<\/div>\n
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Once your families flock to your\u00a0Family Math Night<\/a>\u00a0event, we’re here to make sure it’s the best event of the year. \u00a0Feel free to call or email us about our\u00a0Nifty Numbers<\/a>,Math Medley<\/a>, or\u00a0Gellin’ with Geometry<\/a>\u00a0Family Math Night kits. \u00a0And don’t forget to check out our Take-Home kits,\u00a0Play-N-Take<\/a>\u00a0and Make-N-Take<\/a>.<\/div>\n
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If I had to pick one refrain that I hear from educators all over the country it’s How do we get families to come to our event? It’s obviously a common problem. \u00a0One that I don’t have a definitive answer for.\u00a0 But I do have a few ideas that may help. \u00a0Some of them are tried and true and a few I just discovered along the way. . Dinner + Math We all know that parents are busy people. \u00a0Any…<\/p>\n

Read More Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[123,76,82,77,78,79],"tags":[102,81,142],"class_list":["post-4054","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-activities","category-family-math-night-2","category-nifty-numbers-kit","category-organization","category-promotion","category-recruiting","tag-common-core-state-standards","tag-family-math-night-activities","tag-parent-engagement"],"yoast_head":"\nGetting Folks to Your Family Math Night Event - Karyn's Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.familymathnight.com\/blog\/?p=4054\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Getting Folks to Your Family Math Night Event - Karyn's Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"If I had to pick one refrain that I hear from educators all over the country it’s How do we get families to come to our event? 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