Thanks, Volunteers!

Thanks, Volunteers! lesson plan

Celebrate workers in your school! Honor volunteers and staff with handmade certificates, medals, or ribbons. Let them know they’re appreciated.

  • 1.

    Look around your school to find volunteers—people who make your school a better place for learning without getting paid. You might find them on the playground, in the office, in your classroom, or in the media center. Volunteers also run organizations that raise money for your school. They may make snacks for a party or coordinate your book fair, too.

  • 2.

    How can you thank all of these generous people for helping at your school? You might throw a party or make a poster to display in the hallway. Plan an event with your classmates.

  • 3.

    In addition to celebrations, make sure all volunteers receive certificates, medals, or ribbons of THANKS made just for them. On a recycled file folder, design your unique thank-you with Crayola® Erasable Colored Pencils. You can easily change your mind, erase, and start again.

  • 4.

    Color your designs with Crayola Metallic Twistables. The metallic colors look so official! They work especially well to create shimmering borders, gold medals, silver ribbons, and original seals on certificates. These cool twist-up crayons work great on dark paper, too.

  • 5.

    Write your thanks for what the volunteer does. Be sure to include the person’s name, your school name, and the date.

  • 6.

    Cut out your awards with Crayola Scissors. Attach sections together with Crayola Glue Sticks. Add a glittering touch with Crayola Glitter Glue. Air-dry your award.

Benefits

  • Students discover who the volunteers are at their school and what they do.
  • Students organize a program of appreciation that includes an award presentation.
  • Students design and fabricate individualized award tokens.

Adaptations

  • Interview school volunteers to learn why they volunteer.
  • Do a survey among students to record where they and their parents volunteer their services.
  • Interview the principal to figure out how much money school volunteers save the school. Find out how many hours volunteers give and what their salaries would be if they were paid. Ask the principal what services would be cut if the school could not count on volunteer labor.
  • Make these certificates for school support staff, teachers, and administrators. They appreciate words of appreciation, too!
  • Teachers could encourage students to commit to volunteer service projects in honor of school volunteers.