Teacher Appreciation Gifts

TAPIt’s teacher appreciation week, which means a lot of pressure will be coming your way from your kids, the school and the PTA! Everyone wants to make sure that we show our teachers how much we love them.

When my oldest was in kindergarten teacher appreciation was easy. There was only one teacher to appreciate! Now I have three kids in school and one in pre-school. I’ve also learned that it’s not just the main teachers that need to be appreciated. There are music teachers, librarians, gym coaches, plus any extras that your kids may participate in. We have robotics and a speech teacher. You also can’t forget the school nurses( If you’ve ever had a call from the nurse because your child has thrown up in the cafeteria, then you know that these ladies deserve a treat!). The question is, how do you show teachers how much they mean without going bankrupt?

There are many a Pinterest board dedicated to super crafty teacher gifts, but by the time you buy everything required, even the simplest looking gifts can start to add up. I’m a big fan of the gift card section at Costco. I don’t want to ruin the surprise, but I’m giving out $10 gift cards to Cold Stone to my main teachers. I also love Target gift cards, because I’m pretty sure everyone is at Target at least once a week!

Teacher Appreciation

If you don’t have a budget for appreciation week gifts (and let’s be honest, appreciation week is pretty close to the end of the school year… which means thank you gifts), I know that teachers love to receive thank-you notes. It’s important for your kids to write thank you notes, but it’s also important for parents to write notes of appreciation. When we have extra special teachers, I’ll also write a note to the principal to tell them how much and why I love a particular teacher. Most of the time the principal will let the teacher know, and that makes everyone feel good!

For librarians, music teachers, gym coaches, etc… I usually do something a little smaller; maybe some movie theater candy, or reusable water bottles. At some schools the PTA will send home a guide for every day of the week. Don’t feel pressured to do what they say every day. We did that one year, and I almost went crazy trying to keep on top of everything!

If you want to do something extra special for your teacher, but you’re not sure what they like, check with the room mom in your class, or with the front office. Our old school used to keep a binder in the office that listed every employee’s favorite thing. It was a gold mine this time of year! The most important thing to remember when trying to decide what to do for your teachers is that it really is the thought that counts. Letting a teacher know how much they mean to you and your family is the best form of appreciation!

Sarah
Sarah is originally from the east coast of Canada and moved to San Antonio from Salt Lake City 6 years ago for her husband’s job. They have 6 children: Samuel (9), William (7), Benjamin (5), Afton Rose (4), Charles (2), and a baby girl that was born on July 1st. She’s a busy stay at home mom, and she loves her job! She loves entertaining and cooking and spending time with friends and family. She’s also come to fully embrace the family road trip! You can read more about Sarah and her family over at Frankly Entertaining.