Read-A-Thons are among the most popular fundraisers for schools and organizations for good reason. They require minimal costs to start and operate (hosting a Read-A-Thon with ForOurSchool.org is completely free!), encourage participants to read more, and help raise funds by engaging donors beyond the school or organization’s immediate community.
As a Read-A-Thon administrator, your most important role is marketing! You need to inspire people to join your event and keep them engaged throughout its duration. This may involve creating posters, distributing flyers, posting on social media, reaching out to teachers and community leaders, and sending emails before, during, and after the event.
To help you get started, we provide Read-A-Thon images for your social media posts and customized flyers you can print from your ForOurSchool.org dashboard. Plus, below are sample emails to send at different stages of your event to encourage participation, build excitement, and maximize fundraising.
Note: These emails assume you are hosting a Read-A-Thon over a two-week period during the school year, with ice cream certificates provided to any class that collectively meets its reading goal. Your event may differ, so feel free to adjust the emails accordingly.
1 Week Before Fundraiser Starts
Subject: The Read-A-Thon Begins Friday!!
Get ready to dive into your favorite books because our Read-A-Thon starts this Friday, February 28th, with a Pajama Day and Drop Everything and Read announcements over the loudspeakers!
During the Read-A-Thon, students read as much as they can and ask friends and family to support them by making a donation to our school (we love you, Grandma and Grandpa!). This year, each class will work together to achieve a collective reading goal. If a class reaches its goal, every student, teacher, and hamster in that class will win a free ice cream from Goodiez on 7th Avenue and 4th Street!
Class Reading Goals:
- Pre-K: 1,000 minutes
- Kindergarten: 2,000 minutes
- 1st Grade: 4,000 minutes
- 2nd Grade: 8,000 minutes
- 3rd Grade: 10,000 minutes
- 4th Grade: 10,000 minutes
- 5th Grade: 10,000 minutes
Each week during the Read-A-Thon, teachers will announce the “Reading Hero” for their class. This honor, along with a special bookmark, will be awarded to the student who read the most minutes that week (limited to one award per student during the Read-A-Thon).
To participate, simply fill out this form:
https://www.forourschool.org/start?code=XXXXXX
If you ever have any questions or need assistance, please reach out to us at XXX
The Read-A-Thon team
1 Day Before Fundraiser Starts
Subject: The Read-A-Thon Starts Tomorrow!
It’s here!! The Read-A-Thon starts bright and early tomorrow morning and we’re kicking it off with some special events. Come to school in your coziest pajamas and bring your favorite book because, throughout the day, Ms. Joanna will be making Drop Everything and Read announcements—when everyone stops what they are doing to squeeze in some extra reading time.
If your reader would like to participate, signing up has never been easier! Just fill out this form to get started. Students in each class will work together to reach their class reading goals, so whether your student reads 1 minute or 1,000, they’ll be helping every student, teacher, and hamster in their class earn a free ice cream from Goodiez (yum!!).
Class Reading Goals:
- Pre-K: 1,000 minutes
- Kindergarten: 2,000 minutes
- 1st Grade: 4,000 minutes
- 2nd Grade: 8,000 minutes
- 3rd Grade: 10,000 minutes
- 4th Grade: 10,000 minutes
- 5th Grade: 10,000 minutes
Consider making a donation and inviting grandparents, friends, and family to support your reader and our school. If you child prefers not to participate, you can still support our other readers by making a donation here.
If you ever have any questions or need assistance, please reach out to us at XXX
The Read-A-Thon team
3 Days After Fundraiser Starts
Subject: Read-A-Thon Update: Week 2
Hope your reading glasses are nearby because we’re one week into our Read-A-Thon, and we have some updates for you!
Over XXX students are participating (a school record!), XXX minutes have been read, and we’ve raised $X! An amazing start.
To earn the coveted Goodiez ice cream certificates, your class needs to work together to reach its collective reading goal. Every class is still in the running, but they’ll need your help to push them over the top. Check out the school Instagram account for the latest updates on your class’s progress. If you have any pictures of your student reading their favorite book that you’d like to share with the community, send them to XXX or tag us in your IG posts/stories.
If you haven’t signed up yet, it’s not too late! Just fill out this form. The Read-A-Thon is one of our biggest fundraisers, and since 95% of donations go directly to the school, it’s a great opportunity to let your friends support you and the school. Share a post on Facebook, send an email to friends, or even film a video about the books you’re reading and your reading goals, and send it to your family!
If you ever have any questions or need assistance, please reach out to us at XXX
The Read-A-Thon team
3 Days Before Fundraiser Ends
With only a few days left, students and classes are likely making a final push to meet their reading goals. This email serves as a reminder of how close they are to earning their rewards and encourages them to finish strong.
Subject: Read-A-Thon Ends Tuesday Night!
We’re in the final days of the Read-A-Thon, and there’s still some work to be done!
Many classes have already earned their Goodiez ice cream certificates, but a few need a strong finish to reach their collective reading goal. Now is the time to record any missed reading time—if you forgot to log a session, you can always backdate it. And if your class already reached its goal, challenge yourself to reach your personal reading target.
Plus, there is still one more “Reading Hero” award to be handed out, along with the coveted bookmark—and it could be yours!
Thank you to everyone for making this a great event! If you ever have any questions or need assistance, please reach out to us at XXX
The Read-A-Thon team
2 Days After Fundraiser Ends
Subject: Read–a–Thon Recap and Thank You
Thank you to everyone who participated in our Read-A-Thon.
Exciting Read–a–Thon Stats:
- Over XXX students took part in our Read–a–Thon online!
- XXX minutes of reading logged (and we still have paper logs to add!)
- We’ve already raised an incredible $XXX for our school, and there’s more to come!
What an amazing turnout! Thank you all for making this event such a huge success!
If your class reached its collective reading goal (way to go!), the Read–a–Thon committee will be giving your teacher the Goodiez ice cream certificates next week!
If you have paper reading logs or if you have received cash donations, please give them to your teacher or drop them off in the office
The Read–a–Thon committee would love your feedback! Please let them know what you think by filling out the form below so they can make next year’s event even better:
https://forms.gle/UmQWzB9b7FHgDxWZA
Stay tuned for our Math-A-Thon, which we will be hosting at the end of the summer…
Bonus: Thank You Email to Teachers
Subject: Thank You For Your Support of The Read-A-Thon
The Read-A-Thon ended on Tuesday, March 18th and it couldn’t have been a bigger success! Over XXX students participated (a school record!) and almost $XXX raised. A consistent response in our feedback survey was that students loved the friendly competition between classes and the opportunity to earn ice cream certificates as a class.
In your mailbox this morning, you’ll find the final Reading Hero awards, and if your class reached its collective reading goal, there will also be a stack of gift certificates. We included one for every student and teacher in the class (enjoy!). If you need additional certificates, please email XXX, and if there are certificates that are not needed, please dispose of them or return them to the office.
Thank you again for your time and support.
The Read-A-Thon team
Make Fundraising Fun and Educational
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