Chalkboard Table: School Silent Auctions

Ah, school fundraising auctions.  They are a bonus for most schools and a necessity for private parochial schools.  Our parish-wide celebration (and fundraising) event this year was awesome, with a carnival, auction, dinner all rolled into one night and then additional activities the following two days.  And like most school auctions, there were lots of great donations, gift baskets, traditional items (like reserved front row seating at the Christmas Concert-always a top seller!), and class projects.

Class auction projects- Scouring pinterest will warrant you thousands of options for creating something with your students that will help raise money for a fundraiser.  I thought I'd share what we created because it was easy, unique, and went over well!

We made this chalkboard table.  Well, more correctly, we painted and decorated a second-hand coffee donated by a school mom.  The kids helped sand the table as time allowed when their work was finished.  I actually did the painting of the table, because 22 kids in a crowded classroom trying to paint one table just didn't sound like an experience that I needed to try.  I used regular chalkboard paint (not spray paint) and gave the table a solid two coats. 

I let it dry over the weekend, and then the following week, each student got to decorate the table.  This was easy to fit in over a few days- they would take turns when their homework was completed, during silent reading time, or during our homeroom time.  The students could decorate as they wished, but had to include a favorite Bible verse or inspiring quote/words.  After each decorated the table, I took a picture of their work, and then we wiped down the table with a damp cloth and the next student went to work. 

When everyone had a turn, I decorated it for the auction with the quote that has been on our classroom door all year (you can see it at the very end of this post) and is especially appropriate because our school mascot is the Saints.

Any teacher knows that to make money on a classroom auction project it needs to be:
1. unique (always good)
2. sentimental (most important)
3. something the kids want for themselves (bonus)
The parents are donating money to own a memory of their child and his classmates.  So I played up the sentimental card.  I took all of those photos of the art the students created on the chalkboard table, made a folder on my computer, and took the screen shot below.  Normally I post all of our classroom pictures on our class website, but this time I just emailed the parents this screen shot and a picture of the finished table.  The only person who would get to see/keep the inspirational quotes created by the students was the person who bought the table at the auction! :)

I printed all of the pictures, put them in a little photo album, and tied it to the table.  Many of the kids wanted to keep the book because it had something created by each of their classmates.

And also tied a new box of colored chalk so the new owner could decorate the table themselves.  The kids also had plenty of plans for where they wanted to keep the table when they owned it and what they would write and draw all over it!

Our little project was a success!  It's always good to find something inexpensive and creative that helps support our school and that the kids enjoy helping with.

So, what are your go-to classroom auction items?  I'd love to hear your favorite ideas!