Ways to Get Involved for Elementary Students

There are many ways that you can get involved in your community and with the Legislature. Community service is a way for you to serve your community and help those who need it the most. When you volunteer in your community, you have an opportunity to meet new friends who share your beliefs, and you may also find new interests.  Before participating in any of these volunteer activities or with campaigns, always make sure to ask your parent or guardian for permission first! Here are a few ways you can participate with the Legislature and in your own community.

Ways to participate with the Legislature or in the political process:

  • Get in contact with your legislator about any issues that you are interested in or care about. This is something that you may hear a lot when asking about how to get involved in politics, but really, contact your legislators! Legislators love hearing from the people in their communities, especially the youth of their districts. You can write a letter, email, or even call your legislator with your concerns or ideas. Find the contact information for your legislators here.

Ways to support others or volunteer in your community:

  • Donate clothes that you no longer wear or toys you no longer play with. There are many organizations that will take your gently used clothes or toys that you no longer need. These items will be given to someone who needs them in your community.
  • Donate food/help with a food drive/volunteer at a food bank. There are many ways for you to help people in your community who are in need of food. You can donate food during food drives or directly to a food bank; or even host your own food drive to deliver to a local food bank or nonprofit organization.
  • Donate your hair to organizations like Locks of Love or Wigs for Kids. For this community service, all you have to do is get a haircut! Many organizations take donations of hair to make wigs for children and adults who have lost their hair due to medical conditions. Each organization has their own requirements for the donation of hair, including the length of hair that is eligible for donation. Check their websites before going to your next haircut to make sure you meet the requirements!
  • Help neighbors who are unable to maintain their homes and yards. You don’t have to go very far from home for this one. If you know of anyone in your own neighborhood that has difficulty keeping their yard clean or needs help with simple household chores, you can reach out to them with your parent or guardian’s permission and ask if they would like your help. 
  • Instead of asking for birthday presents, you can ask your friends and families to donate to an organization of your choice. Find a charitable organization that supports a cause that you believe in and ask for a donation to be made to that organization instead of your guests buying you gifts for your birthday.
  • Make a blanket or donate a toy to a local hospital. Being sick and in the hospital can be uncomfortable and scary. You can make blankets and donate them to local hospitals to a patient in need. You can also donate new stuffed animals to children who are sick in the hospital to provide them comfort in an otherwise frightening situation. Make sure to check with your local hospitals for any restrictions that they may have on donations. 
  • Participate in a neighborhood cleanup. There are many nonprofits that organize cleanups of local areas. You can find one that works in your community, or you can work with friends and adults to organize your own neighborhood cleanup.
  • Visit elderly care facilities to talk with residents who don’t have frequent visitors. In some cases, residents of nursing homes do not have many visitors. You can bring a smile to their faces by coming to visit with them with a parent or guardian. During a visit with residents, you can read to them, have lunch and talk with them, share a hobby or something that interests both of you, etc. Taking a small amount of your day to spend with someone in a senior care center will make a big impact on you and the people you visit!
  • Volunteer at a local animal shelter. If you love animals, this is a great opportunity to help pets in need. Animal shelters need help with a variety of tasks, including spreading the word about pet adoption, working at pet adoption events, taking shelter dogs out for walks and playing with them, feeding and cleaning up after shelter pets, and more.

If you like to play quizzes for fun, then go to these sites to answer quiz questions with varying levels of difficulty to earn donations to charity.

  • Freerice.com (click here)You can choose from several categories of questions to answer. Each question that you answer correctly on freerice.com earns “10 grains of rice” to be donated to the United Nations World Food Programme. According to the website, “Every right answer on the game generates the equivalent of ten grains of rice as payment towards the United Nations World Food Programme’s operations in over 80 countries around the world.”
  • BeanBeanBean.com (click here)Similar to freerice.com, you can choose from a variety of categories of questions. This website donates to a mixture of charitable organizations, including “hospitals, natural disaster relief efforts, and other assorted charities.”

NOTE: The links to the Internet sites above are provided for informational purposes only. The Nevada State Assembly is in no way responsible for the contents of these sites, and their presence on this page should not be construed as an endorsement. If you would like to suggest additional links for this page, or if you notice broken links, please contact the Chief Clerk’s office.