How often does your kid’s school ask for volunteers?
And how many of those times have you thought, “I’d love to, but I’m just too busy”?
I get it. As parents, we’re busy people!
But, helping out with your child’s school comes with some impressive perks.
And before you roll your eyes and grumble the many reasons why you aren’t available, consider this: We don’t have to be the PTA president to partake in the benefits of volunteering. We also don’t have to be stay-at-home parents.
Whether you work full time, part time, or take care of younger kids at home, volunteering with your kid’s school needs to be a priority.
Here’s why.
No matter how awesome you think your child’s school is, there’s always something you can think of that the school, teachers, staff, or students need.
Volunteers can’t supply all of those needs.
However, what if I told you that as a volunteer, you can fulfill some of them? And that by volunteering, you supply your child’s school—and therefore, your child—with resources they may not otherwise have?
Still need more convincing? Then check this out.
Here’s why you should volunteer with your kid’s school. (Notice I said WITH your kid’s school, not AT your kid’s school. Keep in mind as you read this, you don’t have to be AT school to make a difference. Whether you help out in the classroom or from home, your contribution will be appreciated.)
Volunteering Benefits Your Child
If you already guessed this, then kudos to you! But let’s dive deeper into the many ways being a school volunteer helps your kid.
1. Volunteering offers an opportunity to bond.
Our kids are at school for a minimum of 6 hours a day. At home, I leave my three kids peacefully reading books for 5 minutes and come back to find the furniture rearranged, play food decorating each surface, and little servers welcoming me to their restaurant and asking for my lunch order.
My point is: We all know the possibilities of what can happen in a few minutes with our kids. Just imagine all the amazing things they do in 6 hours!
When you volunteer at school, you don’t have to imagine what goes on—you get to see it! And when you return home, you get to share those experiences with your kid. You can reminisce about what happened at school. You can relate to what he tells you because you’ve seen it.
There’s a connection that’s formed because of the shared experiences you two have at school.
2. Volunteering stresses the importance of education.
By being a school volunteer, your kid sees how much you value something that takes up a lot of her day and a place where she spends a lot of her time. When you support her school, you support her. By giving your time to something that’s important to her, she is affirmed that it’s important to you, too.
3. Volunteering helps you know who your child knows.
When you help with the school, you meet your child’s friends, teachers and support staff. You get to see how she interacts with everyone. So when you go home and hear her talking about someone from school, chances are, you know who she’s referring to. And your communication with her about that person is improved by having a bit of background knowledge. Your communication with her friends and staff will also improve as your relationship with them grows.
4. Volunteering gets you behind the scenes.
When you’re helping on campus—whether it be in the classroom, at an event, or with a booster club—you’ll likely witness details about the curriculum your child is learning, skills he’s practicing or other details you won’t be privy to at home. You’ll observe struggles and achievements that take place at school. And if you can’t be on campus, don’t fret. By being a volunteer, you’ll meet other volunteers (see #6 below) who are on campus and can keep you in the loop. But by being in the know, when your kid comes home stoked on an award he’s won, frustrated with an assignment, or saddened by something he struggled with, you’ll have some additional insight.
Volunteering Benefits Other Students
Did you know that other students besides your kid reap the rewards of you being a volunteer? Here’s how!
5. Volunteering lowers the student-to-adult ratio.
When parents volunteer, students have more one-on-one time with an adult. This support can be necessary for hands-on activities that require more assistance.
6. Volunteering builds parent-to-parent relationships.
While volunteering at events, in the classroom, or from home, you’ll speak to and work with other parent volunteers. You’ll exchange numbers and the next time you see their child doing something spectacular at school, you may snap a picture and text it to them. And now that student gets to share something about his day with his parents that he would not have if you hadn’t captured that memory. And this was all made possible because you volunteered!
Volunteering Benefits the Staff
In addition to having an impact on the students, your efforts as a volunteer will be felt among staff as well. Check out how:
7. Volunteering lightens the heavy workload on staff.
Teachers or administrative staff often need help filing student work, grading tests, or planning for an upcoming meeting or event. When volunteers assist with these tasks, it frees staff up to take care of the many other matters they need to attend to.
8. Volunteering makes the impossible possible.
Honestly, there are some things that just can’t happen without the help of school volunteers. Many events and projects require parent involvement. Volunteers mean more hands to work alongside students during a seasonal craft. Volunteers mean more eyes to supervise students on the playground while teachers attend an appreciation luncheon. Volunteers mean more manpower at evening events when staff aren’t required or able to stay. Volunteers mean these kinds of events and projects can happen.
9. Volunteering helps staff and teachers become more familiar with parents.
Although teachers may have an exceptional relationship with students, it’s also helpful to have a relationship with the parents. This has the potential to make relating to the child and communicating with the parents easier. And when parents help out at school, the staff has a chance to build those relationships.
10. Volunteering introduces new knowledge and skills.
Teachers and staff share a wealth of information with students. But they aren’t able to run every club on campus or know everything that you know.
School career days are the perfect example of this. If you volunteer on career day to talk about your job, you’re opening teacher and students’ awareness to new possibilities they may not have known about before you showed up. Another example is if you volunteer to help with a specific project or program. Robotics, art, music and gardening are some examples. If your child’s school doesn’t have a robotics club, but you decide to create one and be the adviser, you’re introducing students to a new set of skills staff may not possess.
Volunteering Benefits Your Child’s School
Did you know the benefits of volunteering can be felt across your child’s entire school? Seriously. You can have that great of an impact!
11. Volunteering generates more extracurricular activities.
We can’t expect teachers to teach and run the music program, art class, dance workshop, etc. We can’t expect the same five parent volunteers on the PTA to do it all either. The more hands we have to help, the more we can spread everyone around without burning anyone out.
More volunteers means more booths at the school carnival. More people with unique talents to help with art, music, sports, and other extracurricular programs. And all of this translates into more opportunities for the students at your school.
12. Volunteering boosts funds.
It takes work to raise money for schools. And by you volunteering to help with a school fundraiser—whether you’re simply sharing the fundraiser on your social media accounts, or you’re running the show as the Fundraising Chair—your effort brings in dollar signs for the school!
13. Volunteering contributes to school growth.
When parent volunteers like you share their positive experiences about school on social media or by word of mouth, that message travels. And often becomes contagious. Other parents from school will be inspired to share their similar stories, and thus, the message multiplies. That positive publicity has the potential to bring more students (and as a result, more resources) to your school.
14. Volunteering breeds passionate advocates.
Does your school need a new crosswalk? A grant to help build a community garden? An issue to be brought before the school board? As volunteers, these are things we can help with. We don’t even need to be on campus! Volunteers can email the city about crosswalks and street signs that pertain to the school.
I once wrote to my city and requested a ramp be installed at the end of a crosswalk (for wheelchairs and strollers). I copied the principal on the communication so both parties were aware of each other. Within several months we had a sparkly new ramp!
When volunteers advocate for their school, great things are possible.
Volunteering Benefits YOU!
When you think of being a volunteer, you usually think about serving others. But it doesn’t stop there! YOU get to share in the benefits of volunteering with your kid’s school, too! Here’s yet another reason why you should volunteer!
15. Volunteering helps you build relationships.
As you meet other adults on campus—be it staff or parents—you begin to build a support group of adults who all have one thing in common: wanting to do what’s best for kids. These relationships can be extremely beneficial for multiple reasons.
- If you’re a stay-at-home parent, you spend a lot of time talking with little ones. Having other adults to converse with who value the welfare of children like you do is therapeutic.
- When your child has a rough day, and you need to know what happened at school, knowing trusted adults who were on campus means you can make a quick inquiry and get some necessary peace of mind.
16. Volunteering can lead to job possibilities.
Similar to a job, volunteering requires you to use a lot of skills. So why not include those skills on your resume? Many people have a section of their resume dedicated to volunteering. Not only that, but as you volunteer with the school and build relationships with the school community, you’re also networking—perhaps without even knowing it. You’re opening the door for job possibilities with the school, with other parents who volunteer at the school, etc. In fact, one study found that when you volunteer, you increase your odds of employment by 27%.
17. Volunteering will positively affect your mental health.
There’s something magical that happens when you work with a group of people towards a common goal—especially when you do that work for free. A bond forms between the group that’s built upon trust, hard work and faith. And as it turns out, all those feelings do a lot of good for our bodies. From increasing happiness and self-confidence to lowering stress and anxiety, service has many health benefits.
Whether you’re a stay-at-home or a working parent, there are loads of rewarding ways to volunteer at your child’s school.
And if you need help getting started, check out my Parent’s Guide to Volunteering at School, Loving What You Do, and Avoiding Burnout.
The next time your kid’s school asks for volunteers, consider how many lives (including your own!) you have the potential to impact by simply showing up and helping out.
Your school community needs you!
Now, Let Me Know What You Think!
What benefits have you experienced after volunteering with your child’s school? And if you haven’t volunteered, what benefits have you witnessed? I want to know—in your words—why you should volunteer with your kid’s school.
In the comments below, list what you feel are the 3 biggest benefits of volunteering with a school.
Stay mindful, even when your mind’s full,
Chelsea
2 comments
Great post! Working in a school, we love it when we get parent volunteers. With so many families stretched thin these days, it’s unfortunately becoming more rare. One thing that I have seen happen is that some parent are regular volunteers and love it; then when their kids grow up, they apply for jobs at the school 😀
LOL! There is a good chance that will be me Stephanie! 😉 I love volunteering and it’s killing me this year that I can’t due to the pandemic. But, hopefully soon I’ll be back in the classroom!