How much should you ask people to pledge?

The Read-a-thon’s success as a fundraiser depends on students seeking and collecting pledges from family, friends and neighbors.  (The majority of pledges will most likely be from parents and grandparents!)

To figure out how much to ask people to pledge, take your Daily Reading Goal (the number of minutes you plan to read each day at home and school) times the 31 days of the Read-a-thon.  Then take that number times the amount of money per minute your sponsor wants to pledge to calculate the estimated amount due.  To calculate the actual total due, use the final number on the Calendar Tally Sheet.

Here is how to use the formula:

___________X____31___=_____________X $______________ = $_________

Daily minutes          Days    Total minutes            Per minute pledge     Total Pledge

____60_____X____31___= 1,860_________X $___.01_______ = $__$18.60_

Daily minutes          Days     Total minutes           Per minute pledge     Total Pledge

What do you say when you ask for a pledge?

“We’re having a Read-a-thon to raise money for our school.  The money we raise will be used for student programs, materials for our classroom and technology.  We are raising money by reading books and asking people to sponsor us for the amount of time we read.  I plan to read a total of ____ minutes.  Will you please sponsor me?”

One-time Donation

Some people may prefer to make a one-time donation rather than a pledge.  That’s okay.  A $20 donation is nearly equivalent to pledging $.01 per minute if a student reads 60 minutes each day during the Read-a-thon.  Remember, all pledges and donations are tax deductible.

Thank your sponsors!

Don’t forget to thank those who sponsored you. After the read-a-thon, let them know how many minutes the entire school read and how much money the school raised -- write a thank you note, send an email or call them.