How to Request Free Products for a School Classroom
Today's teacher must be a counselor, nurse, educator and---too often---school supply resource. Across the nation, financially burdened parents are having problems filling their children's supply lists, and the job of securing these necessities is increasingly falling to teachers. If you're an instructor or you're just passionate about the subject of making certain kids get what they need in the classroom, leave no stone unturned when you tackle your mission because the future may be riding on your help.
Instructions
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Approach local businesses, as many are unaware that teachers are in need of products for their classrooms that are not being supplied by parents or school budgets. Approach business professionals armed with a list of items needed in the classroom so when you convince them of the merits of supplying, for example, crayons, you know exactly how many boxes are needed.
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Pitch a co-op program to merchants in your area, similar to the one department store chains have piloted for years in which a few pennies of every sale are donated to a school supply fund from which teachers can request items they need. Launch this effort by meeting with store managers, and if they say no, don't leave empty-handed. Ask for single box or case of products that the store can then write off via their tax returns.
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Head for the Internet to locate sites dedicated to collecting and dispensing free school products (see links below). Expect to compete with other school systems, but don't let that discourage you; persistence always wins out. Be prepared to take items that have been returned, are being closed out or discontinued---or damaged or flawed supplies that are still usable---as companies regularly liquidate perfectly good items for reasons as simple as outer box damage.
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Write directly to manufacturers to get free products for your classroom. Make your request at the beginning of the school term for the following year so your request arrives before companies establish charitable giving limits for the year ahead.
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Start a grassroots product collection drive to obtain essentials from individuals as well as organizations. Encourage shoppers to buy a single product when they shop a participating store. Place boxes or bins with informational signage in strategic places (beside displays of school supplies) so it becomes habit for shoppers to toss, for example, a blister pack of pens into their cart when they cruise the aisle.
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Encourage your community to clean out drawers and cabinets, gathering up pens, pencils, highlighters, paper, binders, glue sticks, markers and other items. Oversee drop-offs and plan to be delighted by the actions of a very generous community of folks as concerned about the lack of classroom necessities as you are.
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Personalize your effort by asking people in your social circle to adopt a single classroom. Consumers may feel overwhelmed when asked to support an entire school, but a single classroom sounds eminently doable and affordable---plus, this is a great way to refute the foolish claim that one person can't make a difference.
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