7 Back-To-School Outreach Ideas For Your Church | All-in-one Church Engagement Suite

As the temperatures dip and schools open their doors again for a new year, we have many opportunities to serve teachers, students, and parents in our communities. This time of year can feel hectic for some, so it’s a great season to offer practical support and care. If you’d like to figure out ways to effectively reach the families and educators in your church and in your community as a whole, here are a few ways to engage with them in the weeks ahead.

1. School Supply Drive

Families in your area may be wondering how they’ll be able to afford school supplies for the year ahead. To meet this need in a practical way, host a backpack drive or have families in your church drop off essential school supplies. You can even schedule a “packing party,” a night for your church to gather together and pack backpacks with everything students will need for the year ahead. This is a great way to serve your city, practice generosity as a community, and build community within your church!

2. Clear an Amazon Wishlist

Did you know that many teachers spend their own money to stock their classrooms for the year? If you have teachers in your congregation, ask them to build a wishlist on Amazon so that your church family can help them clear their list and serve their classrooms effectively. You can even set up a special offering for this in your online giving software, allowing people to give as they’re able and then clearing the wishlist items with those funds.

3. Parents’ Night Out

After beginning a new rhythm of school drop-offs, sports practices, and other extracurricular activities, lots of parents are tired. Host a fun event for the kids in your church community by giving the parents a night away from parenting! Allow them to drop their kids off for a fun night of games and pizza, and let them go out to a nice, quiet meal for an hour or two. This may seem like quite an undertaking, but with Church Base’s Community module, planning and executing an event like this is simple. You can schedule volunteers, check kids in seamlessly, and print name tags or check-in stickers to keep things simple for drop-off and pick-up. The parents in your church will thank you!

4. Tutoring or After-School Care

Want to provide practical support in your community? After the school doors close, open yours. You can provide one-on-one tutoring with volunteers, or you can simply offer a space for students to study or play while their parents are still at work, eliminating the financial burden of daycare for working caregivers.

5. Coffee + Care Packages for Teachers

We love to offer support for families — and we want to do the same for educators! Offer a Saturday morning coffee stop with light breakfast and small care packages for teachers in your surrounding area, whether they attend your church or not. It’s a great way to bless them and let them know their local church cares about them. It’s also a great way to connect with teachers who may not be believers yet, or who are new to the area and looking for a new church to call home.

6. Family Movie Night

If you want to throw a party that’s fun for the entire family, how about a movie night? With the Community module on Church Base, you can easily gather RSVPs and make a plan. Choose a movie that’s fun for all ages, stock up on pizzas, and enjoy a night that’s truly fun for parents and kids alike. Back-to-school is a great time to offer a night like this — your children and youth leaders can join in serving, connecting with new families and inviting them to the next event or small group for their child or teen’s age group.

7. Adopt a Teacher

To make a lasting impact in a teacher’s life, adopt them (and their classroom) for the entire school year. It’s never been easier to set this up than with the Connection module on Church Base! With targeted push notifications, an interactive prayer wall, and public and private chat rooms, you’ll be able to connect with teachers throughout the year, keeping up-to-date on their practical and prayer needs. Imagine the impact you could make if every Sunday School class or small group in your church adopted a teacher for the year — you could potentially serve an entire school, offering Christ’s love and support in a meaningful way from August to May.

Church Base makes it easy to plan events, engage with your church, and serve your community — along with so much more!