The start of this school year was bittersweet as we felt the pinch of recent state budget cuts in education. We said, “Good-bye,” to some of our favorite teachers despite bigger class sizes and fewer instructional resources. Sadly, many schools in the United States are facing similar situations as budgets are slashed.
I do the best I can to help. I volunteer in the classroom to help the teacher manage the larger class size. I buy bulk copy paper whenever I make a CostCo run. I give extra when the teacher collects money for class parties. But, my budget’s been slashed too and there’s a limit to how much additional time and money I can give.
And that’s why I love General Mills’ Box Tops for Education program. Since 1996, the Box Tops for Education program has provided extra cash to participating schools around the country. So far, the program has earned over $300 million and that’s something to brag about!
Look for this logo, clip & save!
How your school earns money
If your son or daughter attends a participating school, chances are you’ve heard about the Box Tops for Education program. My daughters’ school is an active participant and holds grade level competitions each year to encourage parents to send in Box Tops. My daughter’s K-class won last year, and she is beyond thrilled to brag about the awesome ice cream party her class received!
If you’re not familiar with Box Tops for Education, here’s how schools earn money:
- Clip Box Tops from your favorite General Mills products. Just look for the Box Top logo, snip the coupon and send it to your child’s school. Each Box Top is worth 10¢ and trust me, it adds up! We’re serious Box Top collectors, so we accumulate them in a container that sits on our kitchen counter. The kids love finding Box Tops on unexpected products; it’s like a treasure hunt! When the school sends out reminders to bring in Box Tops, I divvy them between my two daughter’s and off they go!
- Shop online at your favorite retailers. If you’re already buying products online, why not make the Box Tops Marketplace your portal to your favorite online retailers? Bookmark http://www.boxtops4education.com/earn/marketplace/Default.aspx and access retailers like Target, Gap, Oriental Trading Company and more. Each purchase earns your school up to 15%!
- Buy books from the Reading Room. America’s #1 bookstore, Barnes & Noble, has teamed up with Box Tops for Education to give up to 6% of your online purchase back to your school. As a mom raising a family of avid readers, this is one opportunity to give that has double benefits!
- Purchase items your child’s classroom needs with My Class Essentials™. My Class Essentials is a free, online registry where teachers create a list of needed items and supplies. You log in to view your child’s classroom registry and purchase items. The classroom receives the items, plus the school earns a 2% cash donation for every purchase. I love it!
I can’t say enough about the significance of this program. There’s real power in those tiny Box Tops and it adds up to cash in the hand’s of your school (the money is not diverted to some State education fund to be squandered). If you look in your pantry right now, chances are you’ll find a Box Top on many of your family’s favorite items like Cheerios and Ziploc.
I hope you’ll join me in supporting the Box Tops for Education program that gives much-need dollars back to our schools:
- If you’re a parent of school-age kids, ask if your child’s school participates in the Box Top for Education program;
- If you’re a parent, but your kids are not yet school-age, clip and save the Box Tops anyway. You can donate them to a friend, or directly to a participating school;
- If you’re a grandparent, aunt, uncle, sister, brother, friend, or even a mere acquaintance, you can still help! Participating schools need those Box Tops. So don’t throw out the packaging without clipping the Box Tops first!
To learn more about the Box Tops for Education program, please be sure to check out these online resources:
- Visit the Box Tops for Education site at www.boxtops4education.com
- Follow Box Tops for Education on Twitter: @BTFE
- Become a fan of Box Tops of Education on FaceBook
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Our school raised a little over $2,o00 last year with Box Tops. My son knows to look for them and we have a zipper bag in the junk drawer to collect them.
Wow Melanie – $2,000 is awesome! I think my kids school raised just under $1,000 last year. I’m actually surprised the teachers at my kids’ school don’t take a more proactive effort to earn points, like using the ClassEssentials or placing their orders for the Oriental Trading Company through the Box Tops site: http://www.boxtops4education.com/earn/marketplace. I keep pushing it though!