As a past preschool teacher, I’m now on the mom-side of the fence and thinking about what my child’s teachers really would like as a thank you for the amazing amount of work they do every day.
Skip the homemade treats, with so many dietary restrictions, allergies, and specific needs, giving food can be a harder gift thank you think. Trying to find something sentimental, sweet, enjoyable, unique, and in our budget feels like finding a unicorn when scrolling social media. Then I started thinking back on what gifts I still have or still remember receiving from my own teaching days.
A Few Favorite Teacher Gifts:
1) Coffee Gift Card In A Mug
If you know your child’s teacher loves coffee, support their caffeine needs! Not a coffee drinker? What’s a favorite restaurant in town you know they would love? Gift cards are a great way to say thank you while letting the teacher chose exactly what makes them happy!
2) Movie Tickets
Who doesn’t love a night out at the movies? Attach a gift certificate to a box of popcorn and boom, done! Sub movies for any type of experience gift here. Maybe you know your teacher relieves stress with batting cages, yoga, or spin class. Possibilities are endless!
3) Fingerprints on Flower Pot
Here is one of my favorite examples of a Pinterest-Win! One year the entire class decided to put all of their fingerprints besides their names on a flowerpot. Obviously, the flower hasn’t made it all of these years, but I love reusing this gift over and over! Having all of my students remembered in one useful gift is one of the reasons I still have this gift!
4) Child-Made Love Notes
Emphasis on the “child-made” here crafty mamas! Don’t stay up all night getting your Cricut machine to make the cutest whatever, the largest pile of notes/pictures I have kept over the years are the ones my students created on their own. I cherish the stick-figure pictures of us holding hands with a meaningful caption full of backward written letters. Teachers are in this because we love your little people, let the little people shine! Low cost, highly loved gift!
5) Group Monetary Gift for Teachers and Staff
This takes a little more time and planning, but we can choose to be stronger together. Simply put, a parent can email fellow parents to donate money to offer the teacher a monetary gift. Send out your Venmo or collect during a school event. Kids and parents can offer as much or as little as they can (between $5-$50) and combined with everyone else’s gift it turns out to be a very generous, well-received gift for the teacher or teachers and staff. It can be a lower cost gift, but combined makes a big impact. Who couldn’t use a little extra cash heading into summer?
Be sweet, be simple. Gift cards are amazing! Never underestimate the power of a sweet thank you note from your little one! Still stumped on a gift? Check out our Favorite Things Guide for more great ideas!
This article was originally published in 2018 and has since been updated by our team.
