teacher appreciation gift ideas

May 3-9, 2009 is National Teacher Appreciation Week in the U.S. May 5th is the day when children and their parents are encouraged to show their appreciation in their own way, whether it is a gift, a card signed by the class, or special award given to a favorite teacher. It's so easy to take for granted how many hours before, during, and after work that teachers put in to teach our children. Since we know our readers are crafty, we thought we'd give you some links to ideas for fun gifts you can make for your child's teacher this year.

Skip To My Lou, one of our favorite-est blogs ever, offered a whole week of great ideas for Teacher Appreciation last year. From these cute pill boxes filled with treats and cute notes, to oilcloth lunch sacks, she's gathered some creative ways to say "thank you" to that special teacher. This year she's got some fun ideas for door decorations for teachers' classrooms.




Another blog fave is Tip Junkie, and she's done a nice teacher appreciation round up, too. Check it out!


Family Fun has a list of great service ideas for your teachers, like ordering pastries and coffee the night before and having them delivered to the school in the morning.

Here's a round up of a few of our own past posts that would make great teacher appreciation gifts.

Notebook makeovers


Sticky note covers


Fabric-covered thumb tacks


Lanyards for badges or whistles


Embellished hand sanitizer


Cupcake bath bombs


Chocolate-dipped marshmallow treats


Easy make-up pouches


Pie-in-a-jar


Cup cozy


Make your own notebook


Shortbread cookies in an altered tin

But remember, teachers don't necessarily need (or want) you to spend money on them. Sometimes the simplest gift from the heart is the best! Why not have your child write their teacher a sweet note? Of course, if you're like us, you'll want to make sure the note is somewhat crafty, so feel free to make a cute card!