Last month, I started my very first DonorsChoose campaign to try and raise money for hardcover literature circle novels. I figured it was go big or go home, right? I mean, we all know that hardcover is significantly more expensive than paperback, but that’s because they last longer. Especially in middle school! For the first seven days of your campaign, they match any donation up to $100. Awesome! In the first week, I raised about $700 of the money I needed from friends and family.
Since then? Crickets.
I open my campaign link, and moths fly out.
I see teachers posting their “Funded!” images on Instagram pretty frequently, and this may have skewed my understanding of how these things work. I guess I thought some crotchety, but big-hearted, millionaire was out there just waiting to fund books for a poor teacher’s classroom. A Daddy Warbucks-type, you know?
Nope.
Then my dad asked me to “stop pimping for money on the internet”. I wish I was kidding. So now I feel all oogey and used car salesman-y about it. Like, how dare I ask for help from the people I know. Does anyone realize that people on GoFundMe ask for stuff like, “Please send me $1500 so I can put down a pet deposit on my apartment. I can’t live without my pet grizzly cub and his friend the liger”.
And they get the money!
Gah! Maybe I’m just naive or wearing rose-colored glasses about this whole thing. Maybe I should just give up on the idea of these lit circle books. But surely if grizzly cub/liger guy can get his money, I can too.
I have until July 9th to find out.
That’s another thing. What happens to the money I’ve raised if I don’t meet my goal? Do they let me buy at least some of the books I have on the wish list? I guess I should read the fine print, huh?
Stay tuned to see how this thing turns out, and if you have any advice, I’m all ears.
