Bake sales banned? Try these fundraisers.

The State of Massachusetts is banning bake sales at schools because of their alarm about childhood obesity. Leaving aside the fact that most of the goodies sold at bake sales are purchased by other parents, and not children, I put on my thinking cap to find alternative sales that would still help the band get to camp.



Tying Fishing Flies

Fish is good for you -- it makes you smarter and it keeps you lean. So let's encourage children to learn about fishing, and while they're at it, the kids can make and sell Fat Alberts and Nosepickers to raise funds. After all, their little fingers are ideally suited to tying those fiddly little pieces together. Don't forget to issue gloves so the kids won't poke their fingers on the hooks.


Reinvent Bob-a-Job week 

Lord Baden-Powell invented this scheme as a way to keep Scouts busy doing good deeds during their holidays. A bob was a shilling (in the olde money) -- call it a dime in the U.S. Of course, the British Health & Safety officiousness shut down this Scout program with all the angst Massachusetts has heaped on brownies. However, it has risen again in safer form. Taking a tip from the Brits, our own children can perform supervised car washes or reforestation programs to earn their new cheerleader uniforms.

Teach Granny to use a computer

Every kid these days starts using computers and related devices around the age of one. By the time they're in first grade, half of them can probably design web sites and provide tech help. Let's use those skills to raise some money for the team! Parents and grandparents can pay for mentoring from school kids and learn how to use their computer, smart phone, digital dishwasher, TV remote -- wherever the need is greatest.

Quiet time

What do parents want? Peace and quiet. What do kids want? Video games. Voilà -- in this fundraiser, the parents buy all the video games from the confiscated items box at the school, and give them to their kids to play in their rooms. Here's an awesome fundraiser that will put kids and parents in happy harmony.