Unique Teacher Gifts

As a former teacher, I can tell you that teachers are always giving. From the moment they see your child's face in the morning, to the time they send them off to the bus, teachers are giving out to the kids in their classes, to the parents and to the community.

Being a teacher is an extremely demanding position, and it doesn't just stop with the classroom. Many instructors help with extracurricular activities, committees for school improvement. On their own time, they call parents, mark papers and plan for lessons.

Teachers don't ask for much back, and don't expect any recognition, but a nice token can mean a lot. It's not so much the gift itself, but it's the acknowledgement of all the work they are doing. Whether you know a teacher through your child, or your friend is a hard-working teacher you want to honour, here are some ideas.

These would also be excellent choices for administration to give as appreciation gifts for their staff. This is the practice in many schools, as a way of keeping up morale and connecting with the professionals and paraprofessionals who make the school run.

Sometimes, it's hard to know what to get a teacher. You want to show them that you care, but you still have to work within a budget. I have complied a list of some unique teacher gifts this year, some which you may not have seen before. Some of these gifts are for the very budget-conscious, and others are quite extravagant. I wanted to give a sampling of ideas, so you can see what a variety of wonderful gifts are out there. Check this article on teacher gifts for even more ideas. 

The best gift I ever received as a teacher was not at Christmas, or at the end of the year, or even during Teacher Appreciation Week. The best present I ever received as a teacher was from two students who I will call John and Ryan.

It was a winter day, and I had not slept much the night before. I was suffering from a touch of the flu, and did not feel that I could call a sub in (it was discouraged!) So, I was suffering it through, trying to not make much of a fuss, but feeling terrible.

The students had just come in from a ten minute break, and I had called out John and Ryan's names but they were apparently absent: odd, because they had been there for the class before! I got into the class, and ten minutes after we had started, the two boys strolled in, huge grins on their faces, and carrying a huge coffee a mega-sized muffin.

Before I even had a chance to chastize them for being late, they plunked the coffee and the muffin down on my desk, looked up at me, and said, "this is for you, teacher. We knew you weren't feeling well."  Well, I was torn between whether to punish them for being late for praise them for being so thoughtful. They had broken the rules, but given me a present at the same time. That was just one of the moments of teaching that I treasured. To read this story in detail, go to "Two Creams and A Muffin."