This is by far my favorite time of year! I have the unique opportunity to be a parent but also a former teacher. I KNOW how hard being a teacher is and how good ones are not a given. So to help show the love for all the amazing teachers out there I’m sharing some cute gift ideas that won’t break the bank. Let’s spoil the teachers!
THEMED DAYS
- supply day
- flower day
- card/gift card day
- bring your teacher lunch day
- snack day
- sweet treats day
- book day
Some schools choose to do themed days for Teacher Appreciation Week. I’ve personally been on the PTA board and have been in charge of planning Teacher Appreciation Week several times and I like doing themed days so parents have a plan and you KNOW teachers will get something each day. Here are some of the ideas I’ve done:
Supply Day
This one seems better for the beginning of the year to most, but actually by the end of the year teachers have run out of some supplies. This also gives them some fresh new supplies to start the next school year with. I always encourage the room parents to ask the teachers for a personalized list of what supplies they need, so they aren’t getting stuff they can’t use. They always can come up with something!
This little supply bag was put together based on my son’s preschool teacher’s needs. You can put anything you want in your bag or basket! I got this bag from a Thirty One sale years ago and have been hoarding them. If you see some cute things super cheap throughout the year, grab them and hang on to them for later. I’m always so glad to have picked things like this up so I’m not rushing around!
Topping off a gift with a cute little tag is a must! Can you believe I couldn’t find a supplies tag for Teacher Appreciation Week on Pinterest? I was shocked! Lucky for you, I made one and am sharing in case you want to do the same thing!
Flower Day
This one is as easy as it gets! Since we do this as a school, the room parent is in charge of getting someone in the class to provide a vase for their teacher. Each child brings in a stem or two and add to the class vase. I always attach some ribbon and a cute tag too! Another way to do it is to have the room parent buy a bunch of flowers and pass out a few to each kid to hand to the teacher as they walk in.
If you’re school doesn’t do this teachers LOVE flowers so don’t forget about this simple idea!
Card/Gift Card Day
You know what teachers love? Heartfelt gifts! This is the day for your kid to make a card for their teacher! As a parent, I always include my own card with my words of appreciation so they know how much they are loved by us as well. In addition to sending a handwritten card, we give the option to send in a gift card as well. Who doesn’t love a gift card? Below are some gift card holder ideas to up you presentation game!
Gift Card Holders
Teacher gifts don’t need to be extravagant to be meaningful. Keep it simple. With Pinterest it’s so easy to find a cute way to present a gift card instead of just handing it over.
If you click HERE it will take you to my Pinterest board called Teacher Gifts and you can find other ideas as well as links to printables!
This was a fun gift card idea for my son’s one male teacher. We had him pose outside like this, and them cut it out to make it look like he was holding a gift card!
My friend Bethany over at http://crispcollective.org/ had made some of the cutest printables too! If you need more ideas you definitely want to check her out!
Here is a link to those printables!
Lunch Day
This is by far the teacher’s fav gift ever, and it requires no shopping and very little planning. Our entire school does this and each room parent is in charge of finding someone from their class to bring their teacher lunch on this day. The parent coordinates with the teacher and what they want from where and what time to bring it. We also have a signup sheet on our PTA page for parents to adopt all the non-classroom teachers. They need love too! I have gotten the most positive feedback on this one and if you have the time teachers love getting a special lunch.
Snack Day
Teachers need a lot of energy to deal with our kiddos for 7 hours a day! Since we do this as a school, the room parent is in charge of finding a parent to bring a basket to collect all the snack in. As with flower day, I also attach a cute ribbon and tag of some sort that says SNACKS. Last year, I found this cute chalkboard basket.
Here are some cute snack ideas with tags you can find on my Pinterest board – Teacher Gifts . . .
Shopping all year long and keeping an eye out for good deals has really paid off some years. Years ago I hit a huge Thirty One sale and grabbed some adorable lunch totes. I had fun stuffing them with some healthy snacks and even a few Rae Dunn snack bowls! Clipped on a cute chalkboard tag I found at Michaels and viola!
Sweet Treats Day
All teachers need a sweet treat now and again. These are some fun ideas for cute ways to gift them some!
The first one, is a twist on something I found on Pinterest. A few years ago, I was on the PTA board as the hospitality chair. For each teacher’s birthday we had to come up with a gift for $2! That seemed impossible, but I caught some sales, spray painted all the jars, had my committee cut out leaves, write cute birthday tags, and stuff it with a mini soda and a few kisses. We wanted it to be something special and I loved the idea of giving them a special treat instead of pencils. Both ways are super cute! I’ve since used this idea for the start of school or teacher appreciation week.
These two ideas were so easy as well. Just bought some sweet treats based on the cute printables I could find. The oven mitt stuffed with baking accessories and cookie mix was my fav! I was so excited to see those apple oven mitts at Target last year! Couldn’t resist the urge to have matching red & blue accessories (found at HEB – a Texas grocery store).
Colibri Cookies makes the cutest cookies for any occasion too! I ordered these mini cookies for our sweet teachers last year. They will ship them too!
Gift Ideas
Sometimes I just find some cute ideas for gifts! Keep your eye out for sales! I collect teacher gifts all year long and save things if I see a good deal. Even small shops have sales! Speaking of small shops, they make the cutest unique thoughtful gifts that you won’t find in a store. Here are some of my favs from this year and years past….
Any Scentsy lovers out there? I found these cute tags and put a Scentsy warmer in one and melts in the other bags. The personalized bags were one of the deals I found earlier that year that I went ahead and ordered ahead of time!
Hand painted Pot
This last one I made when my oldest (now 12) was in preschool. I’ve made one for each of my kid’s teachers the last year in preschool. This year I’ll be making my last one. Sniff. Sniff. My baby heads to kindergarten next year!
I just bought a terra cotta pot and painted it black and yellow with outdoor friendly paint. Wrote the words with a white paint pen. You could also use chalk paint and real chalk!
Hand Picked Basket
This little basket is one of my favs and I’ve been doing it for probably 7 years or so! I found it on Pinterest and it is so easy to throw together. I usually find my items at Bath & Body works, but pick up strawberry things anywhere I see them.
You’ll need a berry basket (I grabbed these from Crate & Barrel) but I usually try to get the disposable ones that are cheaper like THESE.
Here is a link to this adorable printable as well: https://eighteen25.com/2012/04/berry-basket-gift-idea-free-download/
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE remember those teachers! They work so hard for not nearly enough pay. Teaching the students is only part of it. As a former teacher, I know firsthand how you form a bond with each kiddo that walks through your door. Teachers play an important role in forming who those kids will become. Show them you notice their hard work.
Hope this helps you if you’re still on the fence about what to do. Sometimes we just need new ideas!
