Community service project ideas

Today’s teens participate in community service for a variety of reasons: school requirements, club participation, college resume building and a simple desire to do good. Finding service opportunities you are passionate about is vital to the experience, especially if you want to nurture a lifelong love for giving back. Encourage Healthy Living • Volunteer to help staff or create a booth at a local health fair. Many national organizations such as the American Heart Association, the Alzheimer’s Disease Education and Referral Center and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will provide free resources to help make your event successful. • Sign up to be a coach or assistant coach to a youth team for a sport you love. Teaching others will give you a multitude of new skills. • Participate in a 5K run. You can find one for almost any cause. Make sure you raise money as well — set a stretch goal beforehand and see if you can meet it. • Volunteer at a race by taking registrations, handing out water or cheering runners at a charity marathon. • Become a Safety Ambassador for the National Safety Council and help educate others on preventable injuries at home, work and on the road. One of their programs advocates against distracted teen driving. Use Your Technology Expertise • Volunteer to set up a social media account for a local nonprofit. Educate a staff member how to use the tools or volunteer to post on a regular basis. • Teach computer skills to a senior. Look for oppor...

• News • About • Mission • History • Impact • Values • Partners • Leadership • Careers • Contact • Privacy Notice • Terms and Conditions • Annual Reports and Audit Reports • Districts of Kiwanis • Foundation • Structure of Kiwanis • Kiwanis sites • ACA Transparency: Machine-Readable Files • Clubs • Join • Member Resources • Find a Club • Club Locator • Membership • Featured When it comes to service projects, Kiwanis members are dedicated. Each year, they devote more than 6 million hours to service. These service projects are popular because they are unique, they are easy, they raise awareness and they’re fun. Do you have a creative and fun service project you'd like to share or have you tried any of these below? Email us at [emailprotected] to share! CARD WRITING • Contact your local chapter of the Red Cross and ask them if your club may participate in their • Make or buy greeting cards for kids at your local children's hospital for any holiday or occasion. • Send signed greeting cards to club members who encounter health challenges, life hardships, milestone birthdays or Kiwanis anniversary dates, etc. • Write “thank-you” notes that can be passed out to teachers at schools your club sponsors. • Ask members to gather “thinking of you” greeting cards and sign notes of encouragement for distribution to elderly residents of local assisted living homes. • Your club could distribute cards to your local NICU on Prematurity Awareness Day on November 17. KIWANIS FAMILY PROGRAMS • ...

More and more, middle schoolers around the country are being required to perform community service hours as part of their learning experience. Parents often struggle with how they can guide their tweens and teens to select a community service project that will be meaningful instead of just having it be something kids mark off their checklist. But if students can get involved in giving back to a cause or helping their community in a way that matters to them, the lasting benefits can be far-reaching. As anyone who has ever volunteered knows, the satisfaction and pride that comes from helping others can be life-changing. Carol Jacobs, superintendent of schools in Georgetown, Mass., feels strongly that schools have a responsibility to instill in young people the value of giving back to their community. “I think in today’s society people are busy and focused outside of their community, so to help our young people experience community service as part of their education provides them with the chance to give back to the community that helped raise them,” Jacobs says. “The value of helping others and not being compensated for it monetarily may be new to the children of today unless they are part of a church or civic organization or come from a family where service to the community is part of their lifestyle.” Hands-on STEM and STEAM ideas for parent groups to support learning GET FREE GUIDE 5 Community Service Project Ideas for Middle Schoolers 1. Animals: Local animal shelters are...