Teacher Gifts
10 Holiday Teacher Gifts with Heart
Executive Summary by Norma Schmidt
Teachers Gift
Choosing and perhaps making teacher-gifts with your child can provide quality family-time while teaching your child to give from the heart. The best teacher gifts need not be expensive; the meaning and thought put into it is far more important than the price tag. Here are ten ideas even busy families can use for giving teacher gifts.
1. Have your copy shop help you make notepads featuring your child’s art.
Visit your local copy shop with your child and let the staff advise you about which design will work best. When you bring the pads home, your child can glue to the cardboard backing a strip of magnetic tape, available at crafts stores.
2. Make potpourri ornaments.
Make a batch of these when you want to remember multiple teachers.
At a craft store, buy clear, round, hollow plastic ornaments and holiday-
colored potpourri.
3. Mold glycerin soaps in fun shapes.
Buy colored glycerin soap bars and molds from a craft store. Melt soap
chunks in a can placed in a pot of water over a low flame. Package several soaps in a cellophane bag and tie with ribbon.
4. Shop fair trade.
The “fair trade” label means the farmers or artisans who produce an item
are paid fairly.
5. Make “jar-mixes.”
Layer the dry ingredients of your favorite cookie recipe in a jar. Tie a pretty ribbon around the jar’s neck and include the full recipe, noting which ingredients need to be added.
6. Buy a relaxation wrap.
This gift is more expensive than the others listed here. This is a fantastic gift for a
special teacher, especially in areas with cold winters.
7. Bake with your child.
Even preschoolers can pour pre-measured ingredients and
stir, and middle-schoolers can take pride in baking independently with
adult supervision.
8. Make candles.
Kits are available at craft stores. Supervise carefully around hot wax.
9. Give a gift related to your teacher’s children, pets or hobbies.
Would the teacher enjoy a subscription to a magazine devoted to cats or
dogs?
10. Give contribution to a charity in the teacher’s name.
Sponsoring organizations generally provide a card or certificate you can
download or have sent.
Some Web sites also offer a wide selection of teacher gifts, at prices that can suit any budget. Some ideas could include gift certificates to book and art supply Web sites, snow globes, figurines, globes, atlases,
There is no one perfect gift for all teachers. Putting some thought into a personalized gift that suits the teacher being gifted, however, is always a good idea. It is also advisable to go with something practical and useful or work-related, as many teachers need these items but don’t always have the money to spend on them. Remember, a gift is a thank you, a reward for a job well done. Any teacher will be happy to receive a token of gratitude, regardless of price, if the gift comes from the heart.
