EVENTS – Ideas for older pupils


so parents can work out how much money to give their children. As this event has no costs, it’s pure profi t.


Sleepover Contrary to what some children


might think, their teachers don’t actually sleep at school. But pupils can – if you throw a sleepover in the hall! Ask pupils to bring sleeping bags and pillows, plus overnight supplies. Run some classic party games with prizes, before tucking into late-night snacks. You could even show a fi lm, as long as you have the right licensing in place (visit pta.co.uk/licences/keep-it- legal/fi lm-licensing for details). You will need to ensure you have the relevant ratio of DBS-checked supervising adults to children.


Mini prom Develop your disco into a mini prom


to give kids a grown-up evening with their friends. Invite the children to dress up, or choose a theme such as red carpet or masquerade ball. Start with a sit-down meal, then pump up the music and get everyone dancing. Set up a photo booth with some fun props, using an instant camera so you don’t have to worry about retaining images of the children. Create a chill-out space with


‘The children were happy, loud and competitive’


‘We decided to hold a different event for Years 5 and 6 because of the low uptake for these year groups at our discos and movie nights. We held a quiz night in the school hall straight after school, and each team was allocated a table, with the children choosing their own team name. A mum who is a secondary school teacher set the questions and was also our quiz master. We held several rounds, including: David Walliams books Space


Music (identifying a song


from the intro) Sport and games


General knowledge Tasting rounds (guessing drink and crisp fl avours) Pictures (using a map of the world) Biscuits


We charged £4 per child, which included drinks and three snack items, which they could choose from the snack station. Each round was marked straight away, and the scores were written on a whiteboard for all to see. The children were happy, loud and super-competitive during the quiz.’ Emma Walding, ROLE, Friends of Wyburns, Wyburns Primary School, Rayleigh, Essex (222 pupils)


a pop-up gazebo, fairy lights and beanbags where people can chat. You can never go wrong with a party game or two, but tailor them to an older audience.


Escape room Get pupils to fl ex their team and


strategy skills with an escape room. Challenge your committee and teachers to come up with a series of age-suitable puzzles, testing them as you go to guarantee they’re doable. Use equipment readily available at school so you don’t have to buy any extras, and work the puzzles into a story for pupils to follow. Once it’s set up, do a test run with some parents to make sure it works. Charge £3-4 per pupil, asking


children to enter in teams of four to six. The escape room can be run in multiple classrooms at the same time, but if you have more teams than classrooms, hold sessions at different times. Ask volunteers to roam the


corridors giving clues and making sure there’s not too much mischief going on. Give teams an hour to escape their room and get back to the school hall, where they can receive an award for fi nishing. Award a bonus prize to whichever team does it in the quickest time.


Leavers Events for older children


are an ideal celebration for pupils moving on to secondary school. For


inspiration on leavers’ gifts, from yearbooks to hoodies, visit pta.co.uk.


Obstacle course Sometimes the most straightforward


event can be the most entertaining. Create a ‘wipeout’ course using equipment such as hurdles, cones, tunnels, hula hoops and bubble machines. Lay these out on the school fi eld and invite pupils to run the course in groups of two or three at a time. To raise money, request that pupils seek sponsorship or ask them to pay a fee to take part. While children do their run, invite their peers to stand around the course spraying the runners with water pistols – you could even give them coloured powder to throw. Place a photographer at a key point on the route to capture a shot of each runner as a souvenir – just like a theme park!


pta.co.uk SUMMER 2020 43


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