You want to support your child, their educators and the school. We’ve got a way for you to help! Just click on the item below that you’re interested in learning more about. Online sign-up is coming soon for many activities.
Participate in FOGS Activities
Translate written materials into Spanish, Polish
Are you bilingual? We are in need of a group of people that can translate written documents -- typically a page or shorter -- from English into Spanish or Polish. If this sounds like a way you'd like to help Goethe, let
Tamra know.
Join the Goethe Fundraising Committee
For the first time last year, parents and community members from FOGS, the Local School Council, and the No Child Left Behind Parent Advisory Council have joined forces to coordinate Goethe's diverse fundraising efforts. The committee meets once a month and is working hard to plan events and support the school. To join the committee, contact Nicole.
Participate in the Goethe Garden Club
The Goethe Garden Club works to improve and maintain the gardens at Goethe School. As of 2010, FOGS is focused on establishing and maintaining the Bird and Butterfly Garden. There are two maintenance events, one in the spring and one in the fall, where we seek 5-10 volunteers and plant donations. In the fall we plant spring bulbs and cut back the roses for the winter season. In spring we plant perennials and lay mulch or compost, and clean up. Regular volunteers are needed to weed and water throughout the summer. Contact Elise for more information.
You can help by:
- Donating money for plants and garden supplies
- Donating flowering spring bulbs (crocus, daffodils, tulips, etc.)
- Donating plants either from garden center or your yard. These must be full sun plants.
Suggested plants include:
- Hardy iris
- Black-eyed Susan
- Cone flowers
- Seeds of zinnia, columbine and other butterfly mixes.
- Fennel
- Dill
- Hollyhock
- Milkweed
Volunteer at an upcoming Congress Theater show
The Congress Theater, located at 2135 N. Milwaukee Avenue, is a big supporter of Goethe Elementary. They graciously allow FOGS volunteers to fundraise before shows and invite the volunteers to see the shows for free. It is a great way to spread the word about Goethe, earn money for important school programs, and see cool live shows. To volunteer for an upcoming show, contact Jessica.
Collect Box Tops for Education, Campbell's Soup Labels, and Tyson Box Tops
It's easy to help raise money for Goethe Elementary by collecting Box Tops for Education, Campbell's Soup Labels, and Tyson Box Tops. Please check the products you already buy and clip the labels for Goethe. There are Box Tops on dozens of everyday products from cereal to toilet paper to tomato soup! Just drop off your collected Box Tops in the clear container that sits on the Security Guard's desk inside the front door of the Annex Building (the smaller silver building on the south side of the school). Leverage your collecting power by asking friends, family, and colleagues to collect Box Tops and Soup Labels with you - click here for a sample message.
Volunteer at the Metronome Festival
FOGS volunteers at the annual
Metronome festival held at the end of Goethe’s block on Milwaukee Avenue—typically in Mid-June. It's a fun volunteer event and FOGS is guaranteed at least $1,000 for the school for our efforts. The shifts are only 3 hours and after your shift, you are free to roam and enjoy all the amazing bands and festival events. Check out the Metronome Festival online.
Volunteer at Goethe
Goethe Parent Patrol
The Parent Patrol force helps keep order on school grounds and works to ensure student safety. The Parent Patrol provides supervision on the playground from 8:15 am until entrance is complete at 8:45 am. The group also patrols from 2:25 pm to 2:45 pm. Information is provided at Open House Back to School Night, and flyers are sent home with children with additional information and instructions on how to participate.
Lunchroom Volunteer
Goethe needs volunteers for the supervision of the 11:00 to 12:45 lunch crowd. We especially need four available parents on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. Children are not allowed to accompany the volunteer. If you are available to be a lunchroom volunteer on a regular basis, please
contact FOGS.
Volunteering in the Classroom
Goethe welcomes and appreciates any time parents can volunteer in the classroom. To read parents’ descriptions of their classroom volunteer experience, click here.
Volunteer Guidelines and Requirements
- Sign in and out at the security desk each visit.
- Report to the location without interrupting other instruction.
- Report on time because the teacher and students are counting on you.
- Call the office if you need to cancel.
- Be discreet. Treat all information as confidential. Refrain from sharing student/school information outside of the school setting.
- Remember the teacher is in charge—you may need to adjust to the classroom policies and climate.
- Remember a volunteer is never considered a substitute for a member of the school staff.
If you volunteer more than five hours a week at Goethe, you must have a tetanus shot and TB test. Necessary forms are available at the security desk inside the main door in the annex.
Participate in Goethe Parents' Groups
Friends of Goethe School
Welcome to our website! Friends of Goethe School is a Logan Square and West Bucktown group of parents, friends, and neighbors working together to make Goethe Elementary a better school for everyone in Chicago. Click here to learn more about FOGS.
Local School Council
Each Chicago Public School has a Local School Council (LSC) to help conduct the school's operations. The LSC's primary responsibilities include approving how funds and resources are allocated, developing and monitoring the annual school improvement plan, and evaluating and monitoring the school’s principal. To read a LSC members’ first-hand account of participating in the LSC,
click here. The
CPS website provides more information on LSCs, including how to check your LSC eligibility and to find the requisite forms.
No Child Left Behind Parent Advisory Committee (NCLB/PAC)
Bilingual Advisory Council (BAC)
The NCLB PAC and Bilingual Advisory Council are both designed to provide opportunities for parents and guardians to participate with the principal and staff to assess local school needs and to promote a more positive learning environment in the community. The NCLB Parent Committee and Bilingual Advisory Council both have three officers (President, Vice President, and Secretary) that are elected each year. The Parent Committee and BAC hold combined monthly meetings open to the public and advertised to the school through flyers sent home with children. Suggested topics are discussed at the beginning of the year, voted on by Parent Committee members, and a schedule for the year is laid out.
Elections for the 2010/2011 school year will be held before the end of November. The NCLB Parent Committee has responsibility for setting the meeting topics and determining how to spend the NCLB funds earmarked for parent education and outreach designed to enhance parent-child interactions and impact students’ academic success. The Parent Committee and BAC officers also attend a monthly CPS meeting and are charged with bringing information back to the Goethe PAC.
Each group sponsors events during the school year and provides additional assistance to the school on an as-needed basis. The BAC sponsors the Christmas Bazaar and Mother's Day Shopping Day. NCLB hosts the annual Christmas and Mother's Day programs. NCLB has also funded software for tutorials for the classrooms that can be used when parents come in to volunteer, had a consultant conduct parenting classes, and has been a key supporter of the Fall Festival. For more information on the NCLB Parent Committee, please
contact Matt Johnson.
Contribute Online
No time to spare? Be an armchair supporter of Goethe Elementary. You can always contribute financially by donating to the annual FOGS pledge drive. Read about FOGS Save-a-Teacher Fund and find out why it is so important to support Goethe financially.
Other Ways to Donate
Do you shop at Target? Get a Target Red Card and make sure to designate Goethe Elementary School as the beneficiary. Target donates an amount equal to up to 1% of your Target Visa Credit Card, Target Credit Card, Target Check Card, or Target Business Card purchases (minus returns and sales tax) at any Target store and Target.com. Target sends the check directly to the school twice a year. Plus, you get 5% off your purchases every time you use the card. With only 41 people signed-up for the card Goethe has directly received over $4,000. This money goes right back to the kids; the money is used for materials and recognition ribbons for Field Day, Science Fairs, Gym equipment and more!
- Does the company you work for have a matching donation program or a computer giving program? Steer your company's efforts towards Goethe.
Do you drink Coke Products? Then PLEASE visit
mycokerewards.com/sprite to find out more about their $25,000 sweepstakes. It's just a few simple steps (register on the site, enter your product codes, click on the Sprite 25K for 25 parks promotion, enter Goethe's zip code, scroll down to it and click on it) but you could help Goethe's Playlot win big.
Donating Supplies
- Art materials: Goethe’s teachers appreciate art supply donations, including rubber stamps, sponge paints, clay, etc. You can drop general donations off in the main office. Individual teachers may also provide “wish lists” from time to time, and donated items on their lists are also greatly appreciated.
- Plants: Donations of spring bulbs and full-sun plants for the Goethe Bird and Butterfly Garden are also appreciated. Appeals go out in the Fall and Spring for plant donations.
