quick and easy inexpensive thank you gifts for teachers

No matter how or when you do it, it’s an important time of the year to offer a sincere ‘thank you!’ to teachers, especially with National Teacher Day and Teacher Appreciation Week just around the corner.

Teacher Appreciation Week is the second week in May! Every year! That’s right.

But as a mom of three, I know that often, it’s really hard to scrape together the cold, hard cash for all of your kids’ teachers’ gifts.  Especially if you include your kids’ extra-curricular teachers, or their para-educators, support teachers, and adminstrators, there are a lot of people who support your child’s education.

It’s also hard to find time for putting together a thank you gift.

There are ways, however, to say ‘thank you’ without spending a trillion bucks.

And without buying dollar store junk that will fare well as White Elephant gifts for holiday parties.  And without spending a trillion hours on a craft you saw on Pinterest that looked a whole lot cooler on a pinboard than it does in real life, on your kitchen counter.

Go simple.

Here’s the skinny. . .

• Quick and Easy Inexpensive Thank-You Gifts for Teachers: These are simple but sweet. And seriously functional.

Simple thank you’s for teachers that are fun, frugal, and functional.

What teacher couldn’t use a well-made plastic container?

And what teacher couldn’t use some sweets?

Right. And when you combine them and add a little happy message, it’s sure to bring a smile to his or her face, any day of the week.

For our little teacher thank-you gifts, which Maddy, Owen, and Cora gave to their teachers one day this year, we went with the Systema Klip-It minis.  The kids use the lunch cubes every day, and we have come to love and trust this brand.

We used bold, vinyl alphabet stickers and added the following words to one side of each container:

• thank you
• love
• joy
• peace

And then we filled each small container with hard candy.  Bam. Done.

 

 

Each child wrote a small note to the teacher, which we included with the gift.

Notes make a big difference for teachers–for anyone, actually.  Both my husband and I still have boxes of personal notes from parents, students, and colleagues, and it’s amazing how rewarding it is to look back and read those every so often.

Maddy, Owen, and Cora gave the ‘Thank You’ boxes to their classroom teachers, and they gave the ‘Peace’, ‘Love’, and ‘Joy’ ones to their Religion School teachers. However, I’m betting that any of these messages would work for either teacher.

 

The Sistema colored containers looked great with white stickers. . .

 . . . and the clear containers looked great with black or rainbow stickers.

All wrapped up with a little curling ribbon, these little tokens of appreciation looked pretty good to us.

And from what the kids said, their teachers were quite pleased.

All I know is that I am thankful Every. Single. Day. for the gifts that are my kiddos’ teachers. Every day I am thankful because I know firsthand how difficult their jobs are and how every year the demands are more and more great for teachers.

So to be a gifted teacher–to be able to reach children and teach children? Not easy.  Not easy in the least.

You better believe I’m saying thanks.

Tomorrow? A whole lot more on Teacher Appreciation. Woot.

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