1. Bottle of Bubbles
For several teachers we had to come up with an inexpensive and fun idea, so we gave each teacher a bottle of bubbles with the message "Thanks for making our days fun." The teachers loved the gifts and had fun using them.
2. Calendar
For Christmas my son made his teacher a wall calendar. We printed the months and days of the year off the computer. He drew pictures (on separate sheets) associated with each month for the top of the calendar. January was a snowman, February was hearts of various sizes and colors, and so on. He wrote special days in the daily squares -- his birthday, last day of school, outings, her birthday, school holidays, and so on. We took it to a copy store and had a cover put on and had it bound for about $1.50. It was a great success. She loved it so much that her class is doing it as an end-of-year present for parents. It was so easy and a wonderful experience for us.
2. Candle with "You Lit Up My Year"
My daughter gave her teachers each a candle to which we attached a note that read "[teacher's name], Thank you for lighting up [grade] for me this year! Signed, ___." It was a great way to end the year.
3. Clip Board
We created a picture collage glued to a transparent clipboard and then covered it with clear Con-Tact paper.
4. "The Giving Tree" with a Sapling
My favorite gift for a teacher is the book "The Giving Tree," by Shel Silverstein, along with a small tree for the teacher to plant.
5. Notepads
If your child is just beginning to write, this teacher gift is very special. Have your child write out "From the Desk of" at the top of a sheet of paper and the teacher's name at the bottom. Then ask him to draw something simple like the sun or a flower next to the teacher's name. Use a black felt-tip pen and a plain sheet of white paper. Then take the masterpiece to a copy shop and have it made into note pads! If it doesn't all fit on two lines, just make copies and cut and paste in place. We had ours reduced so that the pads were smaller and less expensive. The copy shop can help you with this. The teachers loved it!
Variation: As an early-childhood educator, my all-time favorite gift was a notepad from a student. Her mother had encouraged her to draw a picture of herself and me, then took the drawing to a local copy shop and had it reduced in size and placed in the corner of a 5x7 notepad. Along the bottom, the pad was inscribed with "A note from Mrs. Murphy ..." I've already told the mom that I hope her son (who is in my class this year) will draw me another picture for a new notepad!
6. Personalized Stamp
As a kindergarten teacher I have received so many gifts over the years. The most useful would have to be the stamp with my name on it. I use it to stamp everything possible.
7. Personal Interests
As a room mother, I have gotten to know teachers fairly well and have been able to tailor the end-of-the-year presents to them. One, the mother of two young children, had a crazy schedule, so we got her a cookbook of easy-to-make dinners. Another teacher was always sending home notes on beautiful note paper, so we got her a gift certificate to a local stationery store.
8. Phone Cards
I have bought packs of pre-paid phone cards from a large warehouse/discount store. Each phone card can be put into a card your child makes or along with a drawing from your child. Teachers have commented that this is a unique and thoughtful gift.
9. Photos
I took photos at a field trip and presented a collage of the day to the teacher. Since I have a digital camera, I was able to send it in the very next day.
10. Poem
My son's class studied different poetry styles, so with his end-of-year gift we included a poem he had written about his teacher.
11. Seed-Planting Kit
The best gift we ever gave a teacher was a seed-planting kit. It had everything in it from the pot to the seeds that the teachers needed to grow a plant. This way they could either keep it at home or use it with their next group of children in the classroom. It's also a great learning experience for the next group if it is kept in the classroom. The teachers loved it!
12. Special Letters
One year I wanted to give a special gift to the teacher who had helped my son dramatically improve a significant speech impediment. After trying to think of the perfect "gift" for a long time, I finally settled on what turned out to be the most meaningful one: a personal letter to her saying how much her work had improved life for my son and our family. I told her how it used to break my heart to hear my son's peers make fun of his speech and how she had taken an enormous worry from my mind and made things so much better for our family. She was very touched by it, and sent me a card saying my letter had made her day and that she would always keep it.
Variation: Last year my daughter had a wonderful 4th-grade teacher whose favorite gift was 51 (the age she was turning) construction-paper apples with messages from students, staff, and parents. Many kids told her she was their favorite, but there were some amusing messages like "Your hair is the bomb!" She said she planned on keeping them so that she could read them on those tough days!
13. Special Reminders
We came up with a list of items to give the teacher that had a special meaning. The kids and I had a great time thinking these up, and their teachers said they had never gotten a more thoughtful gift:
Sponge - to soak up the overflow when your brain is too full
Candle - to light a small mind
Modeling Clay - for being a great model
Smarties Candy - to help stay smart
Highlighter Pen - for being a big highlight of my life
Glue - for holding everything together
Bubbles - to keep a bubbly personality
Cup - when yours is overflowing
Marbles - to replace those lost from time to time
Crayon - to color your day
Hanger - to hang in there -- summer vacation is almost here!
14. Thank-You Notes
We gave the teacher a box of thank-you notes, a package of stamps, and return-address labels. Real handy for quick notes for holiday gifts.
15. Tickets & Subscriptions
Tickets to a minor league baseball game -- the teachers loved it! Also, I like to give a subscription to a magazine that either caters to a teacher's interest (the outdoors, fashion, the news, etc.) or can be helpful in the classroom (a crafts magazine -- even FamilyFun!).
