Teacher gift roundup

I often have people ask me, “What does a teacher want for Christmas.” Why would they ask me this? Well, I used to be a teacher. For thirteen years I worked as a special education teacher with kids from preschool up to middle school. So today you get the inside scoop! I can definitely give you some thoughtful ideas that your kid’s teacher will love and appreciate.

Let me start by saying, I never expected anyone to give me a gift at Christmas time when I was a teacher. I worked in a low-income school district and gifts for teachers were not the norm. I also taught middle school, so at this age, it is difficult to buy all five to seven of your kid’s teachers a gift. I think teacher gifts are more common in preschool and elementary and lucky for you, I taught all the above.

I find one easy way to stick to my budget during the Holiday’s is to shop early and make a list with my budget included! Below you will find gifts that fit any budget and I suggest buying your teacher gifts first because you will be giving these out before Christmas. All of the gifts below will also work for the end of the year or teacher appreciation gifts.

If you are stuck on what to give your kid’s teacher this year keep reading and there will surely be something you can buy and feel good about to thank them for all of their hard work.

Life Lesson

It is so nice to teach your child the value of giving instead of only wanting “stuff” during the Holiday time, and this is surely one way to teach it. Kids like to give and it makes them feel good about themselves. One of my son’s favorite parts of visiting the firehouse over the summer was giving the firefighter donuts! Also, every time we gave my older son’s teacher a gift, I allowed him to hand it to her and see the smile on her face. This put a big grin on my son’s face too and kept warm fuzzy Holiday feeling alive!

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Tip: Try Amazon Prime 30-Day Free Trial and use Amazon Prime for free two-day shipping on all of your gifts this year. You can always cancel after you finish your Holiday shopping.

Best Teacher Gifts from a Teacher:

Below I have come up with some of the best ideas that would be helpful and useful for your child’s teacher. If you have any questions or need ideas, please leave me a comment below the post! All of these gifts have over a four-star customer rating on Amazon, so you know you are getting something quality. Check out my top teacher gift picks:

1. Sharpie, Paper Mate, Expo Writing Essentials Pack. At mid-year, many teacher’s supplies start dwindling down. What an awesome idea! Teachers can always use dry erase markers, sharpies, highlighters and pens and this set does not disappoint with a 4 1/2 star rating! Check it out!

2.Starbucks Valentine’s Day Balloons Double Wall Traveler – One of my absolute favorite gifts I received as a teacher was a Starbucks coffee mug! After around ten years, I still use it today! It is something I would not have bought for myself but I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it! Also, this one looks like it was picked out by a kid with the balloons, hearts, and bright colors! What teacher doesn’t like coffee?? (Trust me, they all do!)

3.Starbucks French Roast Dark Roast Ground Coffee, 20-Ounce Bag – Not only are teacher’s big fan’s of cute coffee mugs, but we love a great blend of coffee to put in it! Teacher’s talk all day and it is important to keep up our energy and vocal cords! This Starbucks French Roast will do the trick!
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4.Post-it Notes – 1.5″ x 2″ – 100 sheets pad – 18 pads Sticky – Teachers often receive office supplies at the beginning of the year and around December these supplies needs replenishing. Post it notes are so useful for lessons and staying organized! Plus these come in fun colors and received a 4 1/2 star rating.

5. Mud Pie L-Initial Canvas Tote – Any teacher would love this! Most teachers go home with a sore back from carrying books and papers around! Your kiddo’s teacher will find this useful, cute tote bag so adorable! Also, you can personalize with their name! How cute is that? This tote has a 5-star customer rating – can’t beat that!

6. Lindt Lindor Milk (100g x 5) – Chocolate…need I say more? If you have older children, this multi-pack would be perfect if they decide to give each teacher a small gift. This comes in a set of five.

7. 5 X mosDART 16GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive Swivel Bulk Thumb Drives Memory Sticks Jump Drive Zip Drive with Led Indicator,Black/Blue/Red/White/Green(16GB,5pack MIX Color) Teachers can always use more storage for their digital work. These Memory sticks are cute and have almost a five-star rating! We need to keep our digital files organized – Think worksheets, pictures, and reports!

8. Bath & Body Works, Aromatherapy Stress Relief Body Lotion and Body Wash & Foam Bath, Eucalyptus Spearmint (Bundle of 2) After a stressful day of teaching, this lotion and bath foam will help the teacher in your life decompress!


9. Bath & Body Works True Blue Spa Malibu Beach Pedicure Foot Scrub Teachers are on their feet all day long.Women that wear heels or men that wear dress shoes know what I’m talking about! At the end of a long day our feet HURT! That’s were this foot scrub comes in handy. Give your teacher spa treatment with this amazing foot scrub.


10. Paper Mate InkJoy 100RT Ballpoint Pens, Ultra Smooth Ink, Medium Point 1.0mm, Assorted, Pack of 12 (1951393-514) Teachers LOVE pens!  I bought these for a Valentine’s gift for my son’s teacher last year and she adored them! We even got a cute thank you note with a smiley face! Fun, colorful pens help keep teachers organized and cheerful throughout the day! (It really is the little things)



11. Dry Erase Monthly Calendar Set / Large Magnetic White Board & Grocery List Organizer For Kitchen Refrigerator / Best For Smart Planners Help your teacher stay organized with this magnetic calendar! It comes with colorful pens and is easy to put up and move around the whiteboard in the classroom!

12. The Simple Elephant – Best Agenda Day Planner to Achieve Your Goals & Increase Productivity, Passion & Happiness – Gratitude Journal, Mindmap & Vision Board – Non-Dated-1 Year w/ BONUS Stickers – Planners are really a great gift for anyone, let alone a teacher! I use planners and lists on a daily basis, even though I am not teaching at the moment. My planner was a life-saver in terms of keeping meetings, phone calls and dates organized so I would not forget anything.

13. The Eric Carle Library Featuring 8 Classic Board Books Boxed Set [The Greedy Python, The Foolish Toroise, Rooster’s Off to See the World, Walter the Baker, A House for Hermit Crab, Pancakes Pancakes!, Hello Red Fox, The Tiny Seed] – This would be a great gift for an elementary teacher. Help your teacher build the class library with these classics by Eric Carle!

14. Bath & Body Works Christmas Holiday Traditions Soap – Vanilla Bean Noel + Winter Candy Apple + Merry Cookie + Twisted Peppermint – Set of 4 Gentle Foaming Hand Soaps – This is another great idea for an older child that would like to give a gift to all his or her teachers! These festive Holiday soaps come in a set of four, so you will have enough and they smell great!

15. Godiva Chocolatier Classic Gold Ballotin Chocolate Candy, 8 Count Gift Box I know I mentioned candy above but Godiva is a special treat that most people would not buy for themselves. Your teacher will devour this in the teacher’s lounge or maybe just take it home to enjoy.

16. Nursing Clipboard with Storage by Tribe RN™ With Quick Access Medical References – Nurse / Student Edition (Purple) – Clipboards come in handy for staff meetings and testing students before report card time. This one opens to allow paper storage.


17. Cynthia Rowley File Folders, 3 Tab, 6 Folders per package, Flowers Assorted Patterns – These file folders are so stinkin’ cute! Keeping organized is a HUGE job and these will do the trick.


18. Cynthia Rowley 7 Pocket Expanding File Folder, Letter Size, Cosmic White Floral – What better to go with those cute file folders above than this file folder envelope? You teacher will feel so fancy walking around the school with this floral pattern.


19. Starbucks Paint Drips Double Wall Traveler, 12 Fl Oz (11051190) I had to add another Starbucks mug as I mentioned earlier, this was my favorite gift! This one also has a paint splatter design so it looks like a fun kid’s choice mug!


20. Amazon.com Gift Card for Any Amount in a Birthday Cupcake Tin (Birthday Cupcake Card Design) – If all else fails and you still don’t think your child’s teacher will like any of the above (but come on, how could they not? ;-)) a gift card is the way to go. This gift card comes in a cute cupcake holder to boot!

Happy Holidays

I hope you enjoyed my teacher Holiday gift guide! Take it from a teacher – I know what a teacher needs and likes! Any of the above will get rave reviews so order early and remember, availability and price are subject to change on Amazon. Here’s wishing you the best this Season!

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12 Comments on 20 Ridiculously Useful Teacher Gifts For Any Budget

  1. Great list! I’m usually the lame parent that just gives gift cards and walks away because I am too overwhelmed with trying to choose. Love this list! I will be a different parent this year with gifts in tow for my kids teachers who deserve the world!

  2. These are all great ideas! While I might not have any kids, I do have a TON of friends that are teachers. I always look for gifts that they’ll actually enjoy and use, and this list offers just that! Thanks for sharing 🙂

    A- simplylovely90.com

  3. I love that paint splatter coffee cup! I never know what to get for my boys’ teachers, so this gives me a ton of great ideas. I really love that initial tote too!

  4. Awesome list! I struggle with finding gifts for my son’s many Pre-K teachers and speech therapist and occupational therapist, etc. etc.

  5. Another good teacher gift are the sanitizing stations for themselves or for their classrooms, but these are all really good too!

  6. I am usually not much for gift guides, but this one really delivers! I am always searching for good useful gifts for my children’s teachers. They do a ton for my kids all year and I love giving them a little “thank you and Merry Christmas” present to let them know how much they are appreciated.

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