5 Educational Giveaways You Should Know About

School districts across the country are faced with financial crises every year. It’s common practice for teachers to donate hundreds and even thousands of dollars worth of supplies to their classrooms, paid for out of their own pockets. Corporations and nonprofit organizations are trying to help relieve this burden by organizing educational giveaways, giving classroom supplies to teachers to use during the school year. Charities and philanthropists on both a local and national scale are organizing volunteers to connect with teachers and supply them with paper, pencils, classroom decor and countless other items used for elementary and high school students.

Treasures 4 Teachers

When Phoenix corporations and small businesses throw away office supplies, the volunteers and workers at Treasures 4 Teachers collect them and offer the supplies to teachers and other youth organizers in the area. Teachers join Treasures 4 Teachers for a nominal fee and are given two reusable bags. Members may fill the bag with whatever they like from the T4T shelves in their store and pay only $5 per bag. Whether a teacher needs 30 boxes of crayons or enough craft supplies to outfit her class for holiday art lessons, the same low cost applies. There are also shelves full of free items, as well as low-cost office services such as copying, laminating and book binding.

Adopt-A-Classroom

Adopt-A-Classroom is a nonprofit service that matches underfunded classrooms with individuals and groups who would like to donate to them. Teachers can register their classroom as one which needs funds. Donors looking for a recipient can choose by state, zip code, school name or teacher’s name, or even choose a random needy classroom to which to donate. When teachers receive a donation for their class, they use the funds to purchase needed items at approved vendors through the site. Teachers and donors can communicate throughout the school year, so donors get a close-up view of the good their generosity has created.

Kids Online

Kids Online is the Federal Trade Commission’s newest website that attempts to teach kids to be better consumers. The site offers free posters teachers can download and print for their classrooms and even a free stack of bookmarks just for the asking.

Kids in Need

Kids in Need is a nonprofit organization dedicated to wiping out teacher-funded classrooms. They organize accepting donations from companies and corporations and distribute them free through a nationwide network of resource centers. Teachers can go to one of the centers in their neighborhood and take anything they need for their classroom, absolutely free. Kids in Need is not in every city in the country, but they are growing, concentrating their efforts on the most needy areas.

Operation Kid Equip

Operation Kid Equip realizes that learning can take place more easily when children have the right tools and supplies. Based in Southeast Michigan, this nonprofit organization provides pencils, paper and other needed basic supplies to the poorest school districts in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties in Michigan. Students can receive backpacks filled with supplies and books, and teachers can visit The Teacher’s Annex to stock up on hundreds of dollars worth of free classroom supplies.

17 Rules

If you’re looking for statistics, more links to helpful resources, privacy software recommendations and more, check out this page from Broadband Search. They list 17 best practices to follow so parents can keep their kids safe from the dark side of the internet and privacy protection.