Funding is tight across the education sector with increases in the cost of living, high interest rates & cuts to education budgets. This doesn’t mean your students’ literacy & arts education has to suffer. There are many ways to ensure they can still get all of the benefits a theatre in education incursion provides.
So in these tight economic times, how can your school fund your next Theatre In Education incursion?
The answer is that several parties need to share the load. Get several departments & groups to each pitch in a little rather than one group funding the lot.
Who can you approach to share the financial load?
Ask your school’s financial manager: Sometimes there is funding just waiting to be used by projects like a Book Week theatre in education show. Parent contributions can be accessed as the show meets a range of curriculum needs for both literacy & the arts. Financial managers often have a few options to fund activities that classroom teachers don’t know about. It is worth starting there.
The head of literacy: With the company name “Books To Life”, it probably comes as no surprise that our shows promote literacy. We encourage students to read the new Australian picture books we perform, others on the CBCA notable & shortlist, plus more Australian books created by the same authors & illustrators. A theatre show that encourages your students to practice & improve their literacy skills is a great use of funding from the literacy budget. We even offer individually signed copies of the book with jokes & messages from the creative team & the characters in the book that students rush to the library to check out after the show.
The librarian or staff member who controls the library budget: Using some of the library budget to get students in the door & reading is the goal. Dedicating some of that budget to a show that encourages students to do just that is money well spent to ensure that your school library remains an in-demand & necessary space in your school.
The arts teacher/s who control their budget: Drama, Dance, Music, Visual Arts & Media Arts – Our show covers them all. If your school is lucky enough to have more than one of these areas as a dedicated subject for your students (such as music and art) then both subject areas can be approached to put in a little bit of funding per student for our show. They’ll all reap the rewards at the other end with our lesson plans providing excellent ways to achieve the arts outcomes in all 5 subject areas for your students.
Your local council library: Local councils want to advertise their services like their public library and encourage their constituents to engage with positive artistic projects in their area. Inviting the public library to host your school’s event (where they can also invite other local schools) or visit your school to make a little presentation to the audience at the end is a great way to engage with your local council for helping to fund your performance. They can often kick in a couple of dollars per student to help reduce the barriers for your students to engage with the arts & literacy.
Your local council, state & federal members of parliament: As your area’s voted representatives, they may be able to help with finding funding for your show. This is a great activity for Year 6 leaders to get involved with writing the letters to understand how government works.
Department of Education funding: Many funding opportunities are available for schools via their specific Department of Education. Special funding can be available for schools that are regional, remote, in a low socio-economic area, have a high number of students who are refugees, new migrants, non-English speaking as well as other categories. Contacting your Department of Education to ask if you qualify for special funding is time well spent.
Corporate sponsorship from local businesses: Approaching local businesses that share your school’s values & interests can reap great rewards. Local businesses can donate to help fund your show and claim it as a tax deduction. Using your school’s social media page to connect with your local businesses is a great way to engage with them and give them access to a large audience of parents & friends of the school.
Parents & Friends Association: People power is a magical thing & engaging with your school’s Parents & Friends Association to do some fundraising to help reduce the cost of the show is a great way to lessen the load on the school’s costs to host a show. A second-hand book sale, a book fair or a synchronised reading event can all work brilliantly to raise funds to go towards the show. Even a good old-fashioned sausage sizzle at your local hardware store or sporting event that does not already have a canteen, as long as the sporting club agrees.
Parents to pay a portion of the ticket price: If the school can fund part of the fee & the parents only have to kick in a couple of dollars per child then they’ll be much more likely to pay, especially if the show is well advertised using our trailer on Youtube. Collecting the payments 2 weeks before the show will also give schools time to remind those who have not paid that they need to get their money in before it is too late.
If even just 3 of these options kicked in a few dollars per student then you’d have the incursion fully funded. Please reach out to me at tony@bookstolife.com.au if you need any more suggestions. Chookas with your fundraising efforts!!
“Tony Bones” Appleby B.Ed
Director – Books To Life