How to really get the families engaged with calendar art...

We surveyed some of our best performing schools and noticed they were selling 3-5 items per student. We expected these amazing results would relate to the socio-economics of the area, however some decile 2 schools got more efficient results than decile 9 & 10 schools. The most consistent factor was how they personalised the communications, they did not seem to promote any more than others.

When I saw this pattern, it made so much sense, by the time my youngest was about year 6 and my eldest was in college, I had stopped reading the school newsletters & emails. Between school and sports, there were just so many communications, but to this day, I still pay close attention to two things: app notifications, and emails from my daughter’s teachers.

This is the main thing these schools did: more personalised emails. So what we’ve tried to organise is a system that duplicates these results, in a way that doesn’t overburden the teacher.

How it works:

Organisers…

Review the process
Share with the teachers when you hand out the art paper
Collect the completed 3 items from the teachers
Select an email template or write your own
Populate one email per room (all families from each room get the same email i.e. 12 rooms = 12 emails)
Test the email and your parent instructions
Send out one email per room and using BCC so that all email addresses are hidden. Please include data@kidsartworks.com so tha we can track the results of this new initiative.

Teachers…

Decide on their art plan
Provide answers to 3 short questions
Take photos with the students and their art

Families…

Receive email with teacher-based content
Follow the instructions in the email
Purchase products

Step 4: Products are delivered with our DIY Packing Kit

What comes with your D.I.Y. Packing Kit?
Biodegradable bags for each purchase.
Custom labels for each bag, printed with the student’s name, their room and products.
Sorting Sheets to check off every item, as they’re packed into the labelled bags.
An Order Summary to check off completed each room, ensuring nothing’s missed.
… and constant improvement, if we see or hear of something that will make the process faster, we’ll do what we can to implement it!

We can pack your order for you, using the DIY Packing Kit
We will charge $0.75 extra per product for this service and your order will be delayed by up to 2 weeks. This is because one the order completes production, it then needs to go into our Packing queue which can get quite large! If the queue is small, then we may be able to get the order dispatched within a few days, but we would recommend that if you want your order out faster, opt for the DIY Packing option.

Step 3: Families Order Online

Ordering Online

After the artwork uploading and approving has been completed, families can start placing their orders online.

The school emails families an invitation to view the artwork and purchase products on kidsartworks.com

If any families prefer to pay directly to the school, those orders can be added in manually.

Receiving Your Fundraising Profit

Purchases paid online are automatically tallied into the school order,
Once your order has been dispatched we will email you a full settlement statement
The statement shows all the family purchases less the cost price of the products = your profit
You then supply us with your bank account details and we pay you the balance owing.

Step 2: Scan and Upload Artwork (via Pix App)

PIX: Scan | Upload | Approve

For 30 years we’ve been requesting each piece of art work is individually labelled, organised then shipped to us before scanning. Each year some unlucky school’s art is lost, delayed or damaged in transit. It also adds days to the production process depending on where in the country each school is based.
Our PIX tool is an online app that automatically crops both sections of our special art paper helping to create the perfect pictures we can use for the products. It will work on any landscape art or photo, but best results will come when using Kids Art Works unique art paper.

How PIX works:

1) Scanning is done at school. It can be done by 1-2 senior students during their lunch break. We’ll send instructions for best practices, and can schedule a call to check your first scans to make sure everything is correct.
2) Drag and drop each picture into our Pix app – and select the correct student.
3) Pictures can either just be uploaded, which takes about 5 seconds per student, or to save the most money, you can work through our quick approval process.

Step 1: Create Artwork

Products made from art are extremely popular with the families so they really appreciate the effort.
Students can either create a new unique piece of art for Calendar Art, or they can use an existing piece of art that they have done in the classroom.
To help with the artwork creation we have an online art library of over 50 free art lesson plans, with step-by-step videos.
If art is not your strong point and there is no art teacher at the school, students can follow along to the videos – a lot of classes do this.

How to create great emails for families
Each room should get a unique email. If you have 12 rooms, this means 12 different emails.
Use our templates to create a unique email for each room very quickly. Where you see [CAPITALTEXT] please replace this with your custom details
Photos or videos taken from the classroom are very engaging.
Have each teacher provide answers to our 3 questions – this forms the basis of each email.
We have three emails drafted below to use:
Invite to families
Reminder
Orders close in 24 hours
Email one: initial invite to families

View a completed example email of this email here
Subject: It’s calendar art time again! A message from [TEACHERNAME] from [ROOMNAME]
Hi families of [ROOMNAME],
The children of [ROOMNAME] have been busy creating art work that can be made into affordable customised Christmas gifts made from your own child’s art.
[ANSWER TO “WHAT IS THE INSPIRATION…” QUESTION]. This is connected to the [ANSWER TO “WHAT ASPECT OF THE CURRICULUM…” QUESTION] aspect of our curriculum.
These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.
[IF THE TEACHER HAS ADDED ANY OTHER APPROPRIATE COMMENTS, ADD THEM HERE] Here are a couple of photos of what we were doing.
[ADD PHOTOS AND/OR VIDEOS HERE]
Parent order forms are going home this [INSERT DATE] and orders are open until [INSERT DATE]
Payment can be made by…. [INSERT DETAILS]
If you have any questions please do not email the teacher directly, rather reply to this email.
Thank you for your support!
[ADD ORGANISER / GROUP NAME HERE] (on behalf of your lovely teacher)
Email two: reminder to families
Subject: A friendly reminder, it’s calendar art time again in [ROOMNAME]
Hi families of [ROOMNAME],
We’re half-way through the ordering period and we just want to make sure everyone that wants to get products made from their child’s own art has the opportunity to…
The children of [ROOMNAME] have been busy creating art work that can be made into affordable customised Christmas gifts made from your own child’s art.
[ANSWER TO “WHAT IS THE INSPIRATION…” QUESTION]. This is connected to the [ANSWER TO “WHAT ASPECT OF THE CURRICULUM…” QUESTION] aspect of our curriculum.
These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.
[IF THE TEACHER HAS ADDED ANY OTHER APPROPRIATE COMMENTS, ADD THEM HERE] Here are a couple of photos of what we were doing.
[ADD PHOTOS AND/OR VIDEOS HERE]
If you do not yet have a parent order form, please reply to this email.
Order close on [INSERT DATE] and payment can be made by [ADD DETAILS]

If you have any questions please do not email the teacher directly, rather reply to this email.
Thank you for your support!
[ADD ORGANISER / GROUP NAME HERE] (on behalf of your lovely teacher)
Email three: Orders close in 24 hours
Subject: Last chance – orders close tomorrow! Calendar art in [ROOMNAME]
Hi families of [ROOMNAME],
This is a reminder that orders for Calendar Art close tomorrow!
The children of [ROOMNAME] have been busy creating art work that can be made into affordable customised Christmas gifts made from your own child’s art.
[ANSWER TO “WHAT IS THE INSPIRATION…” QUESTION]. This is connected to the [ANSWER TO “WHAT ASPECT OF THE CURRICULUM…” QUESTION] aspect of our curriculum.
These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.
[IF THE TEACHER HAS ADDED ANY OTHER APPROPRIATE COMMENTS, ADD THEM HERE] Here are a couple of photos of what we were doing.
[ADD PHOTOS AND/OR VIDEOS HERE]
If you do not yet have a parent order form, please reply to this email.
Orders are closing VERY soon so please don’t delay.
If you have any questions please do not email the teacher directly, rather reply to this email.
Thank you for your support!
[ADD ORGANISER / GROUP NAME HERE] (on behalf of your lovely teacher)

Example email to families
Subject: It’s calendar art time again! A message from Ms Griffiths from Room 23.
Hi families of Room 23,
The children of Room 23 have been busy creating art work that can be made into affordable customised Christmas gifts made from your own child’s art.
This term our inspiration was Kandinsky’s abstract art. We loved the bright, bold and beautiful colours. This is connected to the arts aspect of our curriculum.
These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.
The children really enjoyed experimenting with different colour tones and figuring out which tones work well together. Here are a couple of photos of what we were doing.

Please note these photos are just indicative, they do not relate to this email or any schools we work with.
Parent order forms are going home this Monday 21 August and orders are open until Monday 4th September.
Payment can be made by….
If you have any questions please reply do this email, do not email the teacher directly.
Thank you for your support!
ABC School Parents Group (on behalf of your lovely teacher)

How to create great emails for families

Each room should get a unique email. If you have 12 rooms, this means 12 different emails.
Use our templates to create a unique email for each room very quickly. Where you see [CAPITALTEXT] please replace this with your custom details
Photos or videos taken from the classroom are very engaging.
Have each teacher provide answers to our 3 questions – this forms the basis of each email.
We have three emails drafted below to use:
Invite to families
Reminder
Orders close in 24 hours

Email one: initial invite to families

View a completed example email of this email here

Subject: It’s calendar art time again! A message from [TEACHERNAME] from [ROOMNAME]
Hi families of [ROOMNAME],
The children of [ROOMNAME] have been busy creating art work that can be made into affordable customised Christmas gifts made from your own child’s art.
[ANSWER TO “WHAT IS THE INSPIRATION…” QUESTION]. This is connected to the [ANSWER TO “WHAT ASPECT OF THE CURRICULUM…” QUESTION] aspect of our curriculum.
These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.
[IF THE TEACHER HAS ADDED ANY OTHER APPROPRIATE COMMENTS, ADD THEM HERE] Here are a couple of photos of what we were doing.
[ADD PHOTOS AND/OR VIDEOS HERE]
Follow these instructions to place your order online:
Go to www.kidsartworks.com
Use the Entrance Code: [ADD YOUR SCHOOL CODE E.G. KZ1234]
Select [ADD ROOM NAME HERE] from the drop down list.
Start to type your child’s name and select it from the drop down list.
The order is open from [OPEN DATE] until [CLOSE DATE].
Payment can be made over the website via credit card or account2account.
If you have any questions please do not email the teacher directly, rather reply to this email.
Thank you for your support!
[ADD ORGANISER / GROUP NAME HERE] (on behalf of your lovely teacher)

Email two: reminder to families

Subject: A friendly reminder, it’s calendar art time again in [ROOMNAME]
Hi families of [ROOMNAME],
We’re half-way through the ordering period and we just want to make sure everyone that wants to get products made from their child’s own art has the opportunity to…
The children of [ROOMNAME] have been busy creating art work that can be made into affordable customised Christmas gifts made from your own child’s art.
[ANSWER TO “WHAT IS THE INSPIRATION…” QUESTION]. This is connected to the [ANSWER TO “WHAT ASPECT OF THE CURRICULUM…” QUESTION] aspect of our curriculum.
These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.
[IF THE TEACHER HAS ADDED ANY OTHER APPROPRIATE COMMENTS, ADD THEM HERE] Here are a couple of photos of what we were doing.
[ADD PHOTOS AND/OR VIDEOS HERE]
Follow these instructions to place your order online:
Go to www.kidsartworks.com
Use the Entrance Code: [ADD YOUR SCHOOL CODE E.G. KZ1234]
Select [ADD ROOM NAME HERE] from the drop down list.
Start to type your child’s name and select it from the drop down list.
The order is open from [OPEN DATE] until [CLOSE DATE].
Payment can be made over the website via credit card or account2account.
If you have any questions please do not email the teacher directly, rather reply to this email.
Thank you for your support!
[ADD ORGANISER / GROUP NAME HERE] (on behalf of your lovely teacher)

Email three: Orders close in 24 hours

Subject: Last chance – orders close tomorrow! Calendar art in [ROOMNAME]
Hi families of [ROOMNAME],
This is a reminder that orders for Calendar Art close tomorrow!
The children of [ROOMNAME] have been busy creating art work that can be made into affordable customised Christmas gifts made from your own child’s art.
[ANSWER TO “WHAT IS THE INSPIRATION…” QUESTION]. This is connected to the [ANSWER TO “WHAT ASPECT OF THE CURRICULUM…” QUESTION] aspect of our curriculum.
These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.
[IF THE TEACHER HAS ADDED ANY OTHER APPROPRIATE COMMENTS, ADD THEM HERE] Here are a couple of photos of what we were doing.
[ADD PHOTOS AND/OR VIDEOS HERE]
Follow these instructions to place your order online:
Go to www.kidsartworks.com
Use the Entrance Code: [ADD YOUR SCHOOL CODE E.G. KZ1234]
Select [ADD ROOM NAME HERE] from the drop down list.
Start to type your child’s name and select it from the drop down list.
The order is open from [OPEN DATE] until [CLOSE DATE].
Payment can be made over the website via credit card or account2account.
If you have any questions please do not email the teacher directly, rather reply to this email.
Thank you for your support!
[ADD ORGANISER / GROUP NAME HERE] (on behalf of your lovely teacher)

Example email to families

Subject: It’s calendar art time again! A message from Ms Griffiths from Room 23.

Hi families of Room 23,
The children of Room 23 have been busy creating art work that can be made into affordable customised Christmas gifts made from your own child’s art.
This term our inspiration was Kandinsky’s abstract art. We loved the bright, bold and beautiful colours. This is connected to the arts aspect of our curriculum.
These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.
The children really enjoyed experimenting with different colour tones and figuring out which tones work well together. Here are a couple of photos of what we were doing.

Please note these photos are just indicative, they do not relate to this email or any schools we work with.

Follow these instructions to place your order online:
Go to www.kidsartworks.com
Use the Entrance Code: KZ1234
Select Room 23 from the drop down list.
Start to type your child’s name and select it from the drop down list.
The order is open from Monday 21 August until Monday 4th September.
Payment can be made over the website via credit card or account2account.

If you have any questions please do not email the teacher directly, rather reply to this email.
Thank you for your support!
ABC School Parents Group (on behalf of your lovely teacher)

How to enter your order into our website

Step 1: Logging in

Step 2: Add or open an order

Step 3: Order overview

Step 4: Order settings

Step 5: Record purchases for products made with art

Step 6: Finalise your order

Finding pictures for student's you have already sent with previous orders

If Kids Art Works entered the first order you sent in this year into the website, we would not have typed the student’s name into the rooms table. We would have recorded the picture code you had allocated to the student, as the student’s name.
So, if you have already had an order produced for a student, e.g. Sam F, and you had allocated Picture Code 16 to Sam, then if you get no results when you type Sam into the Student Name field for this 2nd order, try typing ’16’ as the Student name, and then completing the row as instructed above.
1. Click + add Purchase (ensure you are in the correct room)
2. In the Student name field, you can type the picture code you allocated the student in your previous order

3. Enter the required quantities of each product then click the tick.
4. You should see this happen if the code matches a record we have in our database. You will notice Student Name 46 has resulted in Picture Code 46 being used later in the row. You can check the picture by clicking the [eye] icon, edit the row, or delete the row.

If you are wondering how to find picture codes that have previously been used:
It will be the picture code on the sticker you applied to the student’s art
It will be displayed on the Room form from your previous order
It will be displayed on the Sorting sheets sent out with your previous order

How to reorder an item when Kids Art Works already has the student's picture on file

These instructions will help you ‘find’ a student and their picture when we have already received their picture in a previous order. This means you can add an existing picture to a new order, without needing to send in the artwork again. Please note, this does not apply to previous years’ pictures, only the current year.
Follow the instructions on how to record your orders using kidsartworks.com
When you are in the Purchases section of the website you need to add each student to the order for the Room.
Each time a student is added to a room, their name is being saved with their picture.
This means that if in the first-order ‘Jaime’ from Room 3 was allocated Picture Code 4, then when you start to type Jaime in the Student Name field, you should see the student’s name populate in the dropdown list below.
Please select the correct name from the dropdown list.

Related article: Finding pictures for student’s you have already sent with previous orders
3. Once you enter the quantities of each product ordered, and then press the ‘tick’, you should see that Picture Code 4 has now been allocated to this row. If you want to view the picture, you can click on the [eye] icon. If you have made a mistake, you can delete this row from the Room and start over, you will not be deleting the picture or any records from previous orders.

4. Complete the order following the instructions from step 1 above.
5. If you are comfortable with this, you can now go back to the first instructions on how to place a 2nd order.

Repeat orders

Why should I do a Repeat Order?
Some schools raise thousands in a repeat order, the average size is 15-30% of the main order.
Parents and children often get excited when they see Calendar Art products being delivered and unboxed in the first order. If they haven’t ordered, or want more, a repeat order stops them from asking you individually!
A Repeat Order is super-easy to do. Most of the original art is already in the Kids Art Works system.
What is a Repeat Order?
A Repeat Order is for parents who missed out on the original Calendar Art order.
A Repeat Order is also for parents who originally purchased Calendar Art products but they have now decided to purchase even more.
How does it work?
Send an order form home with each student.
A blank form you can complete and then photocopy can be downloaded here.
Colour order forms similar to what you used with your main order can be downloaded from here.
Are you a large school? We can print these for you.
Put a notice in your school newsletter.
Reuse the samples, posters from your main event.
Orders can be recorded using our website or you can download Manual Forms here. To use our website:
Login using the credentials on your Welcome Letter
Create a new order (to record all of the parents purchases’ into)
Watch the short video here on how to complete your order using our website.
If you are re-ordering from pictures we already have on file, you will need to know the students: Name, Classroom & Picture Code (refer to your Sorting Sheets)

Pictures
If we have already made products from a child’s picture, we should have this on file. Here are some quick guidelines: How to reorder for a student when we already have the picture from a previous order.
Do you have Art to send us for this order?
Print out the Order sheets which will be downloaded once you Finalise your order on the website.
Check and sign all of the order sheets.
Include all required pieces of art, payment is also appreciated at the time of ordering.
Post everything to:

Australia
Kids Art Works
PO Box 8691
Carrum Downs
Victoria 3201

New Zealand
Kids Art Works
PO Box 132 182
Sylvia Park
Auckland 1644

Do you have NO Art to send us for this order? i.e. you have only uploaded pictures into each room.
Download the Order sheets once you Finalise your order on the website.
Email them to us at info@kidsartworks.com
In the email please include your Organisation name and code in the subject line, and in the email, let us know you have checked and approved the Order Sheets e.g. “I confirm I have checked and approved these order sheets, for production”

Step 7: Completing your order forms

Once the order is finalised the website will download a set of order forms.
These include all details that have been entered into this order.
Do you have Art to send us for this order?
Print out the Order sheets. There are 3 different types of form in the one file, you should have:
Form C – Order Summary. This is a summary of your order including your contact, delivery and payment details.
Form B – School Totals. This lists the totals from each room.
Form A – Room Checklist. You will have one of these forms for each room, this is where the picture codes are allocated to each student.
The Picture Code stickers have to be physically placed in every piece of art that you will be sending us. These are allocated to each student on the Room Checklists (form A). For a more detailed explanation please read this article on how to apply your picture code stickers.
Check each page of the Order sheets, including signing the Order Summary page. Payment can be included with your order.
Use the supplied courier ticket. If you have already used it, you can post everything to:

Australia
Kids Art Works
PO Box 8691
Carrum Downs
Victoria 3201

New Zealand
Kids Art Works
PO Box 132 182
Sylvia Park
Auckland 1644

Do you have NO Art to send us for this order?
i.e. you have only uploaded pictures into each room.
Check the Order Sheets are all correct then email them to us at info@kidsartworks.com
In the email please include your Organisation name and code in the subject line, and in the email, let us know you have checked and approved the Order Sheets e.g. “I confirm I have checked and approved these order sheets, for production”

How one ECE sold 3x more products than the average...

The kindergarten had 3 rooms, so 3 teachers.
The organiser asked the teachers to each write 2-3 sentences on the art that was created by their students (one blurb per room, not per student). A very short blurb on the art and if/how it connects to a subject they’re doing.
The parent order forms were produced PER CLASS, which meant the notices were more engaging for the families they went to.
The orders forms had:
The teacher’s blurb regarding the art.
A couple of pieces of art from that class were made into a simple collage, not showing anyone students art in particular, just enough to show artwork that was connected to the blurb.
When the parents came to the rooms to drop off/ collect their child the teachers showed them the child’s art and let them know they can order Christmas presents from this art. It was not done like a sales pitch, merely to let them know it was available and an excellent way to celebrate their child’s creativity at home and with the wider family.

Setting up your rooms

Step 6: Finalise your order

1. Confirm your payment method. Online payments are preferred.

2. Complete the fields within your selected payment method so that we can match up your payment when it arrives.
3. Finalise your order by clicking Finalise and follow the instructions provided.
NOTES
Users can get the Picture code before finalising the order by clicking “Generate Picture Codes” or the codes will be automatically added to each purchase once the order is Finalised.
Once the order has been finalised, the order sheets are automatically downloaded and a confirmation message appears to show the order was successfully saved.

Step 5b: Record purchases for products made with uploaded photos

Please note, there are two videos here.

Step 5a: Record purchases for products made with art

If you are wanting to know how to record purchases for products from uploaded photos please see this video.

Written guidelines
Add a purchase to the room manually

Record each student’s purchase into the appropriate classroom.
Select the correct Room from the drop-down list.
Click “Add Purchase.”
Enter the student’s name.
It is recommended you enter the first and last name in case you have students with the same first name.
If you are entering a student’s name that has already been saved, please select them from the drop-down list that will pre-populate as you type rather than add the same student name twice (which will duplicate them in the database).
Enter the quantity of each product and click the green tick mark.
This will automatically set the Picture Type to Art i.e. you have a piece of art to send us.
If you want to upload a photo for a student, change the picture type to Upload and follow the instructions.
Once you have added in all the Purchases, click “Next.”
How to edit the row once it is saved:
You can click ‘X’ to delete the row.
You can click the pencil icon to edit the quantities.

Step 3: Order settings

Before you can record purchases you need to confirm all of your order settings.
1. Once you have selected the order, the Settings need to be confirmed.

2. Before you can progress to the next step, all 6 sections need to be Confirmed.

3. Once all 6 sections are confirmed, you will need to Confirm the page. This button can only be clicked once all other sections are confirmed.
Note: If you go back and edit one of the settings after they have been confirmed, you will need to re-confirm the page.

NOTES
Organiser details
It is very important to include your cell phone number and email address. We work outside of normal working hours when we are busy to fill all the orders.
If we have questions, we will wait for your feedback before the order goes into production.
Delivery Address
Number of Rooms Setup
Pricing – Set the price the parents should pay for each item.
Order Dates
This should be set by the user. A new order must be set to begin after the date the previous order closes. I.e. no overlapping.
Once an order has been Printed, the order dates can only be altered by an administrator.
Branding -This is what will be printed on some of the products.

Step 2: Order overview

1. From your Dashboard, you can open an existing Order by clicking on the row. There may be more than one order in your list.

2. Once you have opened your order you will come to this page with this at the top of it.

Summary:
Settings – includes your contact details, delivery address and text to be printed on products.
Purchases – this is a list of what has been purchased for each student or from each parent.
Finalise – this is where details of your order are confirmed before production.
Each of the above round buttons can be clicked on to take you to that part of the order. For example. If you click on Purchases, you will go to a page showing you a list of what has been purchased for each student or from each parent.
3. Once you have opened your order you can view the order quantities from any page by clicking on the small down arrow as shown:

Once expanded, you will see both the breakdown of the quantities and the prices:

Step 1: Add or open an order

Add a new order by clicking “Add New Order.”
or select an existing order from the table by clicking the row

Logging in as an organiser

Traditional Calendar Art - processing your order

Below is an outline of the different ways you can process your order at Kids Art Works when using our Traditional method. You should decide on the questions in blue, before you start to Promote your Event, as your decisions here will influence the steps you take.

ePay: Applying the Stickers

The Picture Code stickers have to be stuck to each piece of art listed on the Room Checklists. Please follow the instructions below when sending in Art for an order.
We only need the pictures that you have received purchases from, therefore you may not be stickering all pictures – just the ones listed on the room checklists.
You will need:
The art from all students that need to be sent in.
A Room Checklist for each room.
The Picture Code Stickers which are inside your Welcome Pack.

How it works:
1. Find the Room Checklist and artwork for the room you first want to process.
2. Using the below example, you will want all art from room 1.

3. You will then need to find the first students art, in this example, we are looking for Matty Templeman’s.

4. Matty has picture code 1 allocated, and therefore you need to take the sticker with Picture Code number 1 on it, and apply it to Matty’s art work.

5. Once you have applied the sticker, please tick the box to confirm you have included this piece of art.
6. After you have applied all stickers for this Room Checklist and have ticked each corresponding row, count how many pieces of artwork you are sending and write that number at the bottom.
7. To complete the room, initial the Room Checklist, place it on top of the art and put it inside the package to be sent.

Emailing the families

The below emails can be sent in bulk to all families, the same entrance code applies to all students at the school.

We recommend you use the BCC function so that the recipient email addresses are not displayed.

We recommend 3 emails are sent during the ordering time:
First email which is the initial invite
Mid way point reminder
Orders close in 24 hours reminder

It would be good to include a picture in the email, if possible. Please right click on the product shot displayed here, and download it so that you can use it. You’re welcome to use our logo too, if you wish.

We highly recommend sending out all 3 emails, or your own variation of them – and also logging into the website every day or so to see how orders are tracking. Your login details are on your Welcome Letter.

Images you can use in your communications

(You can right click on an image and “save image as”)

1. FIRST EMAIL TO PARENTS

(the day orders open)

It’s Calendar Art time again!
The student’s have been busy creating art work that can be made into affordable Calendars, Cards, Diaries, Mouse Mats and Sketch Pads.
Each product is made from your own child’s art.
These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.
Follow these instructions to place your order online:
1/. Go to www.kidsartworks.com
2/. Use the Entrance Code: KZ*….. (add in your entrance code from your welcome letter e.g. “KZ3452”)*
3/. Enter your child’s room & name when prompted
The order is open from [open day] until [closing day]
Payment can be made over the website via credit card or account2account.
If you have any questions please contact the school on [contact details]

2. MID WAY POINT REMINDER

This is a reminder that we’re currently taking orders for Calendar Art.
We’re half-way through the ordering period and we just want to make sure everyone that wants to get products made from their child’s own art has the opportunity to.
These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.
Follow these instructions to place your order online:
1/. Go to www.kidsartworks.com
2/. Use the Entrance Code: KZ*….. (add in your entrance code from your welcome letter e.g. “KZ3452”)*
3/. Enter your child’s room & name
The order is open until [closing day & time]
Payment can be made over the website via credit card or account2account.
If you have any questions please contact the school on [contact details]

3. ORDERS CLOSE IN 24 HRS REMINDER

This is a reminder that orders for Calendar Art close tomorrow!
Each product is made from your own child’s art.
These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.
Follow these instructions to place your order online:
1/. Go to www.kidsartworks.com
2/. Use the Entrance Code: KZ*….. (add in your entrance code from your welcome letter e.g. “KZ3452”)*
3/. Enter your child’s room & name
The order is open until [closing day & time]
Payment can be made over the website via credit card or account2account.
If you have any questions please contact the school on [contact details]

Risk explanation: Not using our Art Paper

Using alternative paper is one of the biggest causes of production issues.
It will slow down the scanning process significantly which will delay your order.
We will need to crop it more, which means it is likely parts of the art is cut off – which can lead to upset students & parents.
Anything over A4 will be significantly delayed in scanning: if you have 30 classrooms, and 29 use our art paper and 1 uses oversized (for example A3) paper, the entire school will be delayed in scanning.
Even a school that arrives after yours, will be scanned first. We need to process oversized art last in order to meet our lead times.
Recommendation: please, please, please use our art paper.
Note: If you have some A3 artwork, but everything else is on our art paper – one option that you can do to speed this process up is scan or photograph it at the school – and supply the art digitally. Please review the risk guidelines on how to supply files digitally, and then you can upload the digital files directly to our website against the correct student.

Risk explanation: Using Pencils

This applies to both coloured pencils and standard grey lead pencils.
Generally, when student’s use pencils they are trying to a get a more subtle and detailed outcome. If they press down firmly, it will be OK, but often pencils are used while pressing lightly.
Unfortunately, scanning does not pick up this detail well. We have had great looking art where after scanning, there is only about 25% of the actual picture visible 🙁
If we try and increase the contrast, the rest of the colours change too much. If we had 15 minutes for each picture to try and manually improve it, it’s still only a 50/50 as to whether or not we can. Unfortunately, we just do not have the time to spend 15 minutes on an individual picture.  We have two recommendations:
1. Please avoid using pencils for any significant part of the art.
2. If someone does use pencils and the art is really great, it might be worth scanning it at your end (or pinning it to a wall and photographing it), spending time with the colour control tools in a picture editing program and then uploading the art to our website as a photo – or emailing it through to us.

DIY Packing: frequently asked questions

How much effort is required to DIY Pack?

We suggest you find one helper for every 50 bags you have to pack. This will mean the job can be completed in about an hour. Of course, every order & helper is different – so times will vary.
Making sure each student (& family) gets what they ordered into accurate bags, ready to hand out is definitely a task. But it’s also something that if you can get a few helpers to each do some classrooms – it will be a lot faster and will mean you have more fundraising profit left over. If you cannot get any helpers and expect a good sized order, we’d recommend you request we pack the order for you. But if you can get some help, it is much more manageable. It’s also something that a few senior students can help with, under supervision.
A lot of organisers enjoy the packing process so they can check everything off themselves, and get to see all of the amazing art.

How much does a DIY Packing Kit cost?

It’s included as part of the Online service cost, there is no additional fee on top of that.

What if I don't have time to pack it?

We can pack your order for you, using the DIY Packing Kit.
We will charge $0.75 extra per product for this service and your order will be delayed by up to 2 weeks. This is because one the order completes production, it then needs to go into our Packing queue which can get quite large! If the queue is small, then we may be able to get the order dispatched within a few days, but we would recommend that if you want your order out faster, select the DIY Packing option.

Where do I make this selection in the website?

You can make your selection when you are setting up your Order Pricing. So:
Create your Order in our website
In the Order Settings, when you get to the Pricing section, click the Edit button and you have the ability to select your Packing option here.
At the bottom of the Order Settings, you can save these selections as your default settings.
Please note, you can change your selection from one order to the next e.g. one setting for your Main order and one for your Repeat Order, but you cannot change your selection once an order has opened.

If you want further guidance on this, feel free to contact us at info@kidsartworks.com

Parent order form & poster downloads

Select the product group that you have registered for...

All Products - Art & Photo

All Products - Art Only

Calendars, Cards & Diaries - Art Only

Calendars - Art Only

Getting help to complete the stickers

Imagery you are welcome to use in your marketing

Right-click on your mouse, on the picture you want, and select ‘save as’ or ‘copy image’

Inviting families to purchase via email

We recommend that families are invited to order in more than one way.
Printed parent order forms are excellent but won’t reach all people.
Emailing out the invitations to purchase is a great addition, but not a replacement to parent order forms – unless in exceptional circumstances.

We have a system that allows parents to order only using your school code, rather than the full entrance code that is allocated.
This means that the entire school can be sent the same instructions via email, examples are below.
However, we highly recommend you sent home the physical forms as well – not everyone will get the printed forms, and not everyone will get the email – but using both together gets a much better result.

Emailing the families

The below emails can be sent in bulk to all families, the same entrance code applies to all students at the school.

We recommend you use the BCC function so that the recipient email addresses are not displayed.

We recommend 3 emails are sent during the ordering time:

First email which is the initial invite

Mid way point reminder

Orders close in 24 hours reminder

It would be good to include pictures in the email, if possible. Please right click on the product shot displayed here, and download it so that you can use it. You’re welcome to use our logo too, if you wish.

FIRST EMAIL TO BE SENT TO PARENTS (on the day orders open)

It’s Calendar Art time again!

The student’s have been busy creating art work that can be made into affordable Calendars, Cards, Diaries, Mouse Mats and Sketch Pads.

Each product is made from your own child’s art.

These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.

Follow these instructions to place your order online:

1/. Go to www.kidsartworks.com

2/. Use the Entrance Code: K….. (add in your entrance code from your welcome letter e.g. “KZ3452”)*

3/. Enter your child’s room & name when prompted

The order is open from [open day] until [closing day]

Payment can be made over the website via credit card or account2account.

If you have any questions please contact the school on [contact details]

MID WAY POINT REMINDER

This is a reminder that we’re currently taking orders for Calendar Art.

We’re half-way through the ordering period and we just want to make sure everyone that wants to get products made from their child’s own art has the opportunity to.

These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.

Follow these instructions to place your order online:

1/. Go to www.kidsartworks.com

2/. Use the Entrance Code: K….. (add in your entrance code from your welcome letter e.g. “KZ3452”)*

3/. Enter your child’s room & name

The order is open until [closing day & time]

Payment can be made over the website via credit card or account2account.

If you have any questions please contact the school on [contact details]

ORDERS CLOSE IN 24 HOURS REMINDER

This is a reminder that orders for Calendar Art close tomorrow!

Each product is made from your own child’s art.

These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.

Follow these instructions to place your order online:

1/. Go to www.kidsartworks.com

2/. Use the Entrance Code: K…. (add in your entrance code from your welcome letter e.g. “KZ3452”)*

3/. Enter your child’s room & name

The order is open until [closing day & time]

Payment can be made over the website via credit card or account2account.

If you have any questions please contact the school on [contact details]

Order Checklist

(for traditional orders)

Check and initial the Room Checklist (form A) for each room.

Each picture needs a Sticker applied as allocated on the Room Checklist.

Bundle each room’s art (once it’s dry!) with it’s Room Checklist on top.

Using School Totals page (form B) check you have all required rooms.

Check and sign the Order Summary (form C) specifically:

Contact details – is this the fastest way to reach you?
Delivery address – is this the correct address for a courier delivery?
School Branding – do we have the correct branding for products?
Payment – a bank transfer is appreciated. No cash or cheques.

The art should be in a bag to protect it from water.

Place all of the above neatly into the box your Starter Pack came in.

Send your order following our Courier Instructions.

Getting help to complete the stickers

Risk: Anything within 1cm of the edge

In production, in order for the print to get right to the edge of the products, we need to make the print larger than the products.
This means that what is on the edges, will most likely get cut off.
Basically, there is a very high chance that if there is anything important in the outside 1cm of the art (on all edges), it will get cut off.
Recommendation: do not put anything important around the edge e.g. no text, no photos of people, no detailed frame.

Risk: Light water based paints or dyes

– Video coming soon –

Summary of risk:
Pictures get the best reproduction results when they are made from vibrant paints, colours and materials.
Similar to the description in Highlighters and Fluorescents, colours that are made to be transparent, do react with the light in scanning and become more transparent and “washed out”.
For example an azure blue, as shown below, would probably lose 25% of the vibrancy and may go a little green-greyish

Risk explanation: Adding a printed photo to the picture

Adding photos to the art can be a really great way to personalise the picture, especially for younger students, for example in between two hand prints.
The main issue we face with this is when the photos are small, and not printed well – the processes of scanning then printing leads to a further reduction in image quality which can disappoint.
If you do want to use photos, we recommend they are professionally printed and quite large so that the quality remains high. Alternatively, you can create the picture digitally. For example, if you want to create a picture with the student’s handprints, a photo of the student and a poem:
Do the handprints & art like usual, and once dry, scan them.
Import the scan into a design program (please view the ‘Digital Pictures Risk to get the correct size for the page / canvas’).
Add the photo of the student to the digital art.
Copy & paste or type the poem onto the picture.
Save the picture as a jpg and supply to us digitally.
This way, we will have a very high quality copy of the file and it should reproduce much closer to the original, than creating it on paper.

Risk explanation: Gluing items like sand and wood

– Video coming soon –

Summary of risk:
This one is pretty simple – things that are sharp, or course, will scratch the glass scanning lens.
Sand is an issue, it scratches and it also gets into the machine and can cause it to malfunction.
Wood, for example ice block sticks – these are fine, and they look great!  Whereas thin branches off trees, these are not recommended.
Stones, nails glued to the paper – please keep the kids away from these for the art process!

Risk explanation: Sending art that has not had time to dry properly….

Summary of issue:  Usually we get a couple of kindy’s or schools (or individual rooms from a school), who send us art that is not 100% dry.
We understand that sometimes it’s a last minute rush to get everything done, but this is one thing we see where it really damages the art. Also, we know that occasionally the paint just doesn’t dry well at all.
In these cases, we need to carefully peal apart the pages, and the white from the paper on top, has literally glued itself to the paint underneath – so that the art work underneath now has white patches all over it.
There is nothing we can do about this – and often important elements are now hidden or look like they have a white cloud covering them.
If you are using a lot of paint, please give yourself an extra few days for drying.
If you are late, and in a rush to get it completed – try to avoid heavy painting 🙂

Risk explanation: Writing the student’s name

– Video coming soon –

Summary of issue:
Usually it is preferred that the student writes their own name and age. Parent’s love it because it shows their development over the years – as they like to keep the laminated prints.  Even with letters written back-to-front, it’s super cute – it’s authentic!
Also, if paint has dripped over the section, or similar, and it’s a bit messy, that’s just what people expect on creations from their children. It’s totally fine 🙂
Sometimes, we get an adult completing this in their neat handwriting – this is also totally fine. It’s not quite like the student’s doing it – but it does look nice and of course, much younger children need help.
The issue is when the student might write their first name, and then an adult writes their family name – so we have two distinct styles of handwriting. We scan and print this section, which means whatever is written there – will be printed. We strongly recommend only one person fills out this section.
If you have 2 student’s in the same room, and both only write the same first name e.g. “James“, we recommend that you write their surnames on the back of the paper, just to make your life easier.

Risk explanation: Highlighters or Fluorescents

Summary: Highlighters once scanned go significantly duller. For example, it’s the same as if you photocopy a document with highlighters on it.

If a student has used highlighter pens, a lot of the vibrancy is lost.

If a student has used fluorescent paints, it is slightly better than highlighter pens.

This is definitely something that we are working on, but there are no scanners that we have found that get a better result. We are looking into different photographic technology, but this is not an simple option.

Recommendation: student’s can use these, but just be aware they are much less vibrant.  Below are some examples:

Fluorescent paints - photographed

Fluorescent paints - scanned

Highlighter pens - photographed

Highlighter pens - scanned

Risk explanation: Gluing art to our art paper

Summary: the students have completed their art work on other paper, and you are wanting to glue this to our art paper.
Firstly, this is appreciated, because it is significantly easier for us to handle than art supplied on other paper. For example, to just send in the art as it was, perhaps on A4 paper, this will take about 4x as long to scan and we will likely need to crop a lot off the top or the bottom.
Things we see that cause potential issues you should be aware of
1. If the A4 paper is stuck directly to our art paper (without cutting it down) and so there is about 2cm extra sticking out the top. We will need to crop at least 2cm off either the top or bottom. It would be better that you trim a bit off the top and the bottom so that it fits our art paper – this way you can decide what gets removed.
2. The paper is not glued properly and has dog ears.
Another option we see, which can work well, is when teachers cut the black strip off the bottom of our art paper, and glue that to the A4 artwork, along the bottom. This is essentially turning your A4 paper, into our art paper.

Risk explanation: Glitter

This is not a major issue, using glitter does come out well, but the issue is the speed of the order going through production.
We need to clean the scanner after every 1-2 pictures because after each piece of art – the glitter goes everywhere – all through the scanner.
Ideally, if you do use glitter, please use plenty of glue and once it is dry – shake it well, so that all the loose glitter is removed.
Better yet, the glitter pens which is a mixture of glue and glitter – these generally don’t result in a lot of loose glitter.
On the scanned picture below, you can see where some of the glitter still looks… glittery (gold – green – red), whereas the blue and silver are a lot duller.
On some pictures, after scanning, it can be quite hard to see that glitter has been used. This is probably where the glitter is quite thin. Again, looking at the picture below, where the glitter is thickly applied, it is quite clear it’s glitter, whereas when it is thin, and especially around the edge of the paper, it looks more like coloured sand.

Risk: Digital Pictures – supplying us jpgs. instead of physical art

The Detail
Page size: this is really important because if the size is wrong, it just will not be good on the products. It’ literally won’t fit and will need cropping. In the program you are using, they may call “page size” other names such as “canvas” size, or the “art board” size.
In some of the free online apps, they only have preset sizes designed for screens – this is not ideal, we need to be able to set a custom size.
Page size settings: 1000 long, to 635 high. Or any variation of that ratio. For example…. in inches it could be 10 inches to 6.35 inches. In centimeters it might be 20cm x 12.70cm (which is doubling both number).
We also want for the design to be landscape, this is important because the calendars are landscape.
Now that you have the shape and size correct, you will have solved 90% of the issues we encounter with digitally supplied files.
When you are saving the file, we would like it as a JPG.
We want for it to be saved with a high picture quality – some apps may just have a simple description like high, medium and low quality. In this case pick: High.
If it is a more advanced system you are using, it may be labelled as ‘resolution’, if this is the case, then please select 300dpi.
Another option you may be asked when saving is the colour settings to use – some will ask this – some won’t, if they do – it would be good to select RGB.
When you send us the files, we would like you to name the file the name of the student.
If you have multiple rooms to send it, please put each room into a different folder.
Lastly, what will give you a lot more control over the process, is to upload the images directly to our website. You won’t need to send them into us, you won’t need to name them, you won’t need to wonder how we will crop them – you can check this all yourself

Summary:
Page size ratio: 1 to 0.635 e.g.
1000 x 635 pixels or
10 inches by 6.35 inches or,
20cm x 12.7cm
Output file type:
JPG
high resolution (300dpi)
RGB
Name each file with the students name.

Risk explanation: Borders & Frames

If there is a frame or border added to the art work, we may need to crop completely inside of it, i.e. remove it entirely.
While it may look nice on the art, it may create issues in production. Often the result of this is parent’s contacting us, asking us to remake the product.
We definitely recommend having something covering the background e.g. a solid colour, newspaper glued to the paper, or some other background effect, but nothing that will affect how we can crop the art.
Any border or frame will impact our ability to crop and therefore the end product.
Recommendation: do not use a frame or border.

Reminders & Notices

Book 2-3 newsletter notices before and during the period parents are purchasing products.
At least one notice in your newsletter before the Parent Order Forms are taken home.
At least one notice in the newsletter while the Parent Order Forms are out.
School app notifications – this may be the most effective reminder method. It is especially powerful over the last couple of days to encourage parents to return their orders.
Email is a very effective form of communication.
Social media e.g. Facebook, is not a great medium as they have tricky tools that mean your posts are only displayed to some of your followers, which means many will not see it when you want.

Example reminders

Personalised Artwork Calendars, Cards, Diaries, Mouse Mats & Sketch Pads – A School Fundraiser

Your child’s art can be made into affordable Calendars, Cards, Diaries, Mouse Mats and Sketch Pads. These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas. Look out for further details  and order forms later in the term.

Personalised Artwork Calendars, Cards, Diaries, Mouse Mats & Sketch Pads – A School Fundraiser

Due Date extended to (insert date here)

Thank you to all the families who have placed their orders for Calendars, Cards, Diaries, Mouse Mats and Sketch Pads. The last day for ordering has been extended until (insert date here). Make sure you get your order in. You can view your child’s fantastic artwork in their classroom. Additional order forms are available in the office. These make outstanding individual gifts for friends and family and are perfect for   posting overseas.

If you are running a Repeat Order:

Personalised Artwork Calendars, Cards, Diaries, Mouse Mats & Sketch Pads – A School Fundraiser

Thank you so much for all of your Calendar Art orders! The response was excellent and the feedback has been great. We’ve been getting a lot of requests for extra items and from people that were away during the initial order taking process. Rather than deal with them individually, we are running one more short order taking period to consolidate all of these requests.

Orders close (insert date here) —there will be no extensions

If you have any that you’ve found have worked really well, please share them so we can let other schools know 🙂

Settlement process - how you get paid your fundraising profit

Once you have finished placing orders for the year, we need to settle your event.  We will do this by way of a Settlement Statement which is a summary of all transactions and orders.
Usually, with an online order, Kids Art Works will have collected more than the invoice for the products. In this instance, we will be transferring funds into the school bank account.  On some occasions, the School will need to pay Kids Art Works to settle the account.
The Settlement Statement will itemise every purchase and payment so that you can see exactly what is required and why.