Good morning! I know you're probably thinking "Oh good God, not ANOTHER gift guide". Am I right? I feel like gift guides have been ALL over the place lately and I really didn't want to do "just another" gift guide. Especially because my gift ideas for kids/husbands/adults are pretty specific to the person I'm buying for.
Then, this week as I was going through my list of what to buy for Christmas, I remembered that this is the first year Lily Grace has teachers that we will buy gifts for. My thoughts quickly went from "Oh! We have to buy her teachers gifts!" to "What the heck am I going to get them?!" to "Well, what were my favorite gifts to receive as a teacher?" and thus, this blog post was born.
I know sometimes it can be hard to buy something for someone you don't know very well, but I wanted to put together a list of some of my favorite teacher gifts I've ever been given in hopes that maybe it will help one or two of you when buying your teacher gifts this year.
Before you look at this guide though, my #1 advice when shopping for a teacher: TALK TO YOUR KIDS! When Devin and I first got our dog Tucker, I was surprised to see how many dog themed gifts I got that year (a cute bandana, a nice new collar, several dog toys, etc.). It warmed my heart to know that my students were listening to me talk about my new dog and were telling their families at home.
The first year Devin and I were married I had several families give us homemade or special Christmas ornaments to add to our tree. They knew as newlyweds we probably didn't have many "special" ornaments yet, and it STILL brings a smile to my face every year when I put them on the tree. I can tell you exactly which family gave each one.
My sweet kindergarten student Rachel made this for me and I love to put it on my tree every year! I'm sure this cost her family next to nothing but the amount of joy it brings me each year is truly priceless.
We got this sweet ornament as a gift our first year as newlyweds. It has our married monogram on it and I LOVE what a thoughtful gift it was!
One year I had this little boy who wanted to sit next to me at the lunch table every day. He loved to see what I had packed in my lunch because it was almost always leftovers from some fancy meal Devin made the night before (I won't lie to you, Devin did 99% of the cooking when we first got married). That year the little boy's parents gave me a bottle of wine and a very generous gift card to our local grocery store. It came with the sweetest note that said "Sam always comes home and tells us about the elaborate meals Mr. Darrell likes to cook for you. We wanted to "buy you dinner" for Christmas but knew you'd probably prefer your husband's cooking to a restaurant!" I was floored that this family took the time to "get to know me" through their son and thought it was such a thoughtful gift.
So I think the best thing you can do is talk to your kids. Does your teacher ever mention anything about her own family or life? Is anything new going on with her? I promise your child's teacher will LOVE it. Like Rachel's ornament above, it does not matter the cost. A thoughtful gift is worth so much more!
That being said if your child, like my 2 year old, doesn't come home with a lot of information, it's good to have some backup options!! These are my favorite "generic" gifts I have received over the years. In my opinion, you can make anything more personal by monogramming it and your teacher will be floored that you put in the little extra effort to find out her initials and then have your gift monogrammed!
1. Initial Coffee Mug-- One year I received the cutest initial coffee mug with a Target gift card stuffed inside. I loved this little mug and used it as my "school coffee cup".
2. Mini Scout Bag-- I have been given several of these over the years as gifts and they are the perfect size for traveling. I use one as my jewelry case, one as a case for chargers to put in my carry on, etc. They're the perfect size to stuff in a bigger purse too with a few kid snacks (applesauces, crackers, etc.). Then if the snacks spill, they just get inside the little bag and don't ruin your purse. I just throw this little bag in the washing machine and it's just like new!
3.Stationary-- I used to write letters to my students over the summer and one year a student gave me some nice stationary for the letters. I thought it was such a thoughtful gift! Let me tell you, teachers write a TON of thank you cards, so it's nice for them to have some cute stationary with their initial on it for them to use as thank you cards.
4. Monogrammed Tumbler-- This one if probably my all time favorite gift, and something I use every single day. I have received a few of these over the years and they are AMAZING! I love how they keep your water cold for HOURS. I think every teacher in our school has one similar to this so it's really nice to have your name/initials on it so they don't get mixed up.
5. Monogrammed Ornament-- Like I said above, an ornament is a sweet gift that will make your child's teacher think of them every year when she puts it on her tree.
6. Monogrammed Bag-- I have received several of these over the years too and LOVE them. I use one as my makeup bag. I use one to hole small things when we travel. I keep one in my gym bag with my travel deodorant/shampoo/conditioner etc. There's no such thing as too many of these little bags. 😀
I think these gifts would be great on their own, but if you wanted to add a little something extra you could always put a gift card inside.
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!! Happy ** almost ** Thanksgiving!!
Then, this week as I was going through my list of what to buy for Christmas, I remembered that this is the first year Lily Grace has teachers that we will buy gifts for. My thoughts quickly went from "Oh! We have to buy her teachers gifts!" to "What the heck am I going to get them?!" to "Well, what were my favorite gifts to receive as a teacher?" and thus, this blog post was born.
I know sometimes it can be hard to buy something for someone you don't know very well, but I wanted to put together a list of some of my favorite teacher gifts I've ever been given in hopes that maybe it will help one or two of you when buying your teacher gifts this year.
Before you look at this guide though, my #1 advice when shopping for a teacher: TALK TO YOUR KIDS! When Devin and I first got our dog Tucker, I was surprised to see how many dog themed gifts I got that year (a cute bandana, a nice new collar, several dog toys, etc.). It warmed my heart to know that my students were listening to me talk about my new dog and were telling their families at home.
The first year Devin and I were married I had several families give us homemade or special Christmas ornaments to add to our tree. They knew as newlyweds we probably didn't have many "special" ornaments yet, and it STILL brings a smile to my face every year when I put them on the tree. I can tell you exactly which family gave each one.
One year I had this little boy who wanted to sit next to me at the lunch table every day. He loved to see what I had packed in my lunch because it was almost always leftovers from some fancy meal Devin made the night before (I won't lie to you, Devin did 99% of the cooking when we first got married). That year the little boy's parents gave me a bottle of wine and a very generous gift card to our local grocery store. It came with the sweetest note that said "Sam always comes home and tells us about the elaborate meals Mr. Darrell likes to cook for you. We wanted to "buy you dinner" for Christmas but knew you'd probably prefer your husband's cooking to a restaurant!" I was floored that this family took the time to "get to know me" through their son and thought it was such a thoughtful gift.
So I think the best thing you can do is talk to your kids. Does your teacher ever mention anything about her own family or life? Is anything new going on with her? I promise your child's teacher will LOVE it. Like Rachel's ornament above, it does not matter the cost. A thoughtful gift is worth so much more!
That being said if your child, like my 2 year old, doesn't come home with a lot of information, it's good to have some backup options!! These are my favorite "generic" gifts I have received over the years. In my opinion, you can make anything more personal by monogramming it and your teacher will be floored that you put in the little extra effort to find out her initials and then have your gift monogrammed!
2. Mini Scout Bag-- I have been given several of these over the years as gifts and they are the perfect size for traveling. I use one as my jewelry case, one as a case for chargers to put in my carry on, etc. They're the perfect size to stuff in a bigger purse too with a few kid snacks (applesauces, crackers, etc.). Then if the snacks spill, they just get inside the little bag and don't ruin your purse. I just throw this little bag in the washing machine and it's just like new!
3.Stationary-- I used to write letters to my students over the summer and one year a student gave me some nice stationary for the letters. I thought it was such a thoughtful gift! Let me tell you, teachers write a TON of thank you cards, so it's nice for them to have some cute stationary with their initial on it for them to use as thank you cards.
4. Monogrammed Tumbler-- This one if probably my all time favorite gift, and something I use every single day. I have received a few of these over the years and they are AMAZING! I love how they keep your water cold for HOURS. I think every teacher in our school has one similar to this so it's really nice to have your name/initials on it so they don't get mixed up.
5. Monogrammed Ornament-- Like I said above, an ornament is a sweet gift that will make your child's teacher think of them every year when she puts it on her tree.
6. Monogrammed Bag-- I have received several of these over the years too and LOVE them. I use one as my makeup bag. I use one to hole small things when we travel. I keep one in my gym bag with my travel deodorant/shampoo/conditioner etc. There's no such thing as too many of these little bags. 😀
I think these gifts would be great on their own, but if you wanted to add a little something extra you could always put a gift card inside.
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!! Happy ** almost ** Thanksgiving!!
The monogram! I guess that's a Southern thing; I have absolutely zero things with a monogram (#Canada). I will ask my 8 year old what I think his teacher would like. As for my 3 year old, I usually give a basket of Starbucks instant coffee packets, tea, and chocolates that all of the teachers in his daycare room can share.
ReplyDeleteHahaha yes, very Southern!! That's a great idea to give something for them to share. They'll love it!!
DeleteI love all the monogram gift ideas. To me, that tells the teacher that you were thinking of them personally when you selected the gift. Great ideas!
ReplyDeleteThanks! That's how I feel when on the receiving end of a monogrammed gift 😊
DeleteI'm an assistant preschool teacher and I'd love any of these.
ReplyDeleteOh good, I'm so happy to hear that!!
Delete