Student Plan

April 29/30
So I told my students of my plans to volunteer in Thailand for the summer. I told them what I was already doing and what I had already done to raise money for my quest. I then asked if they wanted to be involved in something dealing with tsunami relief and the response was overwhelming.
Because the entire class wanted to be involved, I gave them complete control of the project. The only requirement was that the money had to go to an organization that would directly benefit tsunami survivors, not to organizations (as great as they are) that spread their funds to all of their programs. They decided they wanted to research that more thoroughly, and perhaps split funds among several organizations, or perhaps find a specific school or hospital in need for me to bring a direct cash donation. They were able to momentarily put that on the back burner in order to get to the planning process; the big question- how are we going to raise money?
This time, they had only two requirements. One was safety. For example, they could not go door to door. Secondly, because they are minors, they had to have permission from their parents for any after school activity.
Originally, I had allotted an hour for the discussion. They chose to take two hours, completely focused on the activity at hand. My students accomplished much more than I anticipated.
After discussing several possibilities, hey decided to combine a few of the suggestions. The end result was a rummage sale, selling their own unwanted items, as well as inviting others to donate to the cause. They also wanted to sell food and drinks, as well as craft packets at the rummage sale. At the same time, they want to have a car wash for those that are shopping at the rummage sale.
A step I may have overlooked in excitement, they had already covered in their small group discussions, advertisement. One student has a connection with a local sign making company, and another has a connection with the local newspaper.
Finally, when we regrouped and outlined the plan, the students recognized that we also needed permission to use the school, so they needed to write a personal proposal.
This is what it said:
Dear Mr. Lorenzen,
We would appreciate it very much if you would consider our proposal for our class to have a rummage sale/car wash. We were hoping we could have it at the school’s field and parking lot.
If you accept our proposal, we would like to talk to you about dates for it with you. We will be making and handing out fliers hopefully soon. There will be a group washing cars while parents and kids look around the sale space.
Our class recognizes that the tsunami caused a lot of damage and we want to help repair the lives that were affected by the tsunami waves. We are going to research where the money is going to be donated. Rebecca will be traveling to donate the money to the organizations we decide on. Rebecca is also going to give the money to the locals that need it.
In conclusion, the students of Rebecca’s class would like to have a special day to raise money for tsunami relief. We would like to use the field for the rummage sale and the parking lot for the car wash. – Rebecca’s class.

It’s a go

Mr. Lorenzen (principal) just came in to hear what the students had to say. They had agreed to keep it quiet until the proposal was complete. They read with enthusiasm and professionalism, and were met with the respect they deserved. Mr. Lorenzen accepted the proposal on the spot, and will return to tell us what dates are available.
This happened in a total of three hours from idea to acceptance. It makes me wonder what our government might look like if it were run by 8 and 9 year olds.