Student Activities Resource: Homecoming Guide

HOMECOMING & SPIRIT WEEK GUIDE

Homecoming is one of the biggest activities your student government will sponsor. It requires careful planning and coordination months prior to the event. Listed below are some tips and guidelines you can use when planning your homecoming and spirit week:

Homecoming Themes for Dance & Spirit Week

Homecoming Dance Ideas & Tips

Homecoming Videos

THE ADVISOR: The Modern Homecoming Float

Create Committees & Subcommittees:

Make sure to create a great enough number of committees and sub-committees so everyone can take part in the planning to reduce the workload. Below are some responsibilities you might want to delegate to your ASB officers, class officers, and commissioners.

Homecoming Theme

Deciding on a great homecoming theme is your first, and one of the most challenging decisions when planning your homecoming / spirit week events. A great theme will give your students a lot of room for creativity when planning the festivities. Make sure to choose a theme that can easily be incorporated throughout the spirit week, along with the homecoming rally, homecoming game, dance, and floats.

Homecoming Themes for Dance & Spirit Week

Homecoming Spirit Week

Develop brunch / lunch activity schedule

Publicize schedule to school one week prior

Organize Spirit Points

Create music CD's to play at brunch / lunch each day

Make sure to follow incorporate the theme into the week

leading to the homecoming pep rally, game and dance.

Homecoming Rally

Invite alumni and include them in cClass Competitions

Present your homecoming court

Check our pep rally section for more tips

Homecoming Game Set-up

Food/Refreshments Alumni section

Stage to present homecoming court

Set-up PA System

Decorations such as props, balloons, etc.

Homecoming Half-Time Activities

Announcer

Develop a half-time schedule

Organize a unique way to announce your king & queen

Talk with your athletic director, administration etc. to

extend the length of your half time.

Homecoming Dance

Ticket Sales

Publicity

Location

DJ & Lighting

Song list

Photographer & back drop

Chaperoning/Security

Decorations/Cleanup

Themed Decorations

Focal Point

Entrance

Ceiling

Walls

Floors

Food/Refreshments

Table Decorations

Homecoming Court

Organize the election process

Set up meeting for court

Order Crowns/Favors/Souvenirs

Get a local boutique to donate flowers

Organize cars, horse/carriage, red carpet etc. to

introduce court

Invite last year's king & queen to crown the new winners

Homecoming Spirit Week Planning:

Homecoming Week is a crazy time with a ton of activities happening. An easy way to make sure things run smoothly is to assign each class a day of the week for planning activities; freshmen- Monday, sophomores- Tuesday, juniors-Wednesday, and the seniors-Thursday. Friday is reserved for a huge pep rally in which all classes assume responsibility for the planning. Therefore, on Monday, the freshmen organize and implement a brunch and lunch activity that fits their float theme. They should have music that also parallels their theme. If the freshmen chose “The Munsters” perhaps they will have a brunch activity that involves drinking some goblin stew or a lunch activity in which students will participate in a “Monster Mash.”

Allot each class a portion of the school to decorate in their class’s float theme. The entire school should exude energy and excitement in this very special week.

Float Construction:

Constructing floats requires a lot of planning; it is not something you can throw together at the last minute. Generally, students begin planning for their floats months prior to the event. Have your students give you a sketched layout of their float six weeks before homecoming. The students need to know their budget allotted for the floats, where they will build the floats, and what adult will supervise the construction process. Many stadium tracks do not allow heavy vehicles to drive on the synthetic tracks. Therefore, you may need your students to build a light weight base for their floats that can be pulled in by hand. All floats should be delivered to school the night prior to the homecoming game. This gives you a chance to troubleshoot any possible obstacles that might get in your way. Throwing a pizza bash that night is a good way to get everyone to show up. If necessary make sure to arrange with your local city hall to ensure proper permits, etc.

Homecoming Court Nominations:

Have your registrar or appropriate staff member print out all of the male and female names separately for each class. Miniaturize the names so all the 12^th grade males fit on one side of the paper and all the 12^th grade females fit on the other. Repeat the process for all the grade levels. To ensure the largest voter turnout, try handing out the nomination ballots to English or Advisory class. English classes are generally same-grade only classes. Allow the students to circle the names of 5 males and 5 females in their respective class. Collect the nominations and have your student government run a master tally of the nominations. Compile a list of the top ten males and females for each class and allow the students to vote for one male and one female this time. Next, take the top five males and top five females from each class and have a final vote. It is a lot of work, but each student has a chance to be nominated this way. The person who receives the highest vote from the final five for each grade is your king and queen.This style of voting should be conducted two weeks prior to homecoming. If you have a large school your Homecoming court should consist of 5 senior boys, 5 senior girls, 3 junior boys, 3 junior girls, 3 sophomore boys, 3 sophomore girls, 3 freshman boys, and 3 freshman girls. Your senior court will have a King & Queen, while the underclass winners are crowned prince & princess.

Invite Your Alumni:

It’s called homecoming for a reason. Invite the people you are welcoming home: your alumni. You can mail out inexpensive postcards to your alumni one month prior. Also, make it a special night for them. You can do this by designating an alumni area where you feed them, and they have a chance to catch up with old friends and staff.

Homecoming Parade:

Design a pre-game homecoming parade that people will not forget. Listed below is a sample of a homecoming parade outline that can take place inside your stadium:

a) Principal is driven out in a creative and introduced to the crowd

b) Cheerleaders follow principal on fire engine

c) Dance team marches in and performs at the 50 yard line

d) Homecoming Court is presented in convertibles

e) Freshmen class brings out its float and performs a skit

f) Sophomore class brings out its float and performs a skit

g) Junior class brings out its float and performs a skit

h) Senior class brings out its float and performs a skit

i) Judges complete tally sheets and give to the ASB Director

j) Float winner is announced at half-time

k) Kick-Off for the big game

(This parade takes approximately 30 minutes to conduct.)

Half-Time Festivities:

First, be sure you have communicated with the opposing school that this is your homecoming game and that you will need an extra ten minutes attached to half-time. Start your half-time festivities by parading your floats once again, but this time in order of how they placed, last to first. After you have announced the float winner, you can proceed with the court presentation. The underclassmen’s presentation generally involves them being introduced and escorted to the front of the stage. The senior court is who you make a big fuss over. You can have the senior court escorted in by convertibles with moms and dads included. As they come in you can read a quick bio about the person being introduced. The parents then escort their child to the stage. Once the entire court has been introduced, it is time for the crowning. Start with the crowning of your underclassmen first and then crown your senior king and queen. The queen and king are given larger crowns at the time of the coronation. It is awesome if you can shoot off fireworks the moment the senior king and queen have been announced. After the crowning, make sure your court stays together for a professional photo. Parents will want to grab their kids, but this only adds to the confusion. Tell the court ahead of time that they will have time to visit with family and friends after the professional photo.

Homecoming Fundraisers:

Penny Court Fundraiser

Homecoming Court Rally Ideas:

Homecoming Court Fish in Face Competition Activity