If you are reading this, you may be panicking about how to show your kid’s teacher how much you love them.

May I say a gift is truly not necessary? Seriously. I have never thought less of someone or their family based on any gifts that were or weren’t given.

If you are absolutely certain you’d like to show some appreciation with a gift, I offer a guide.These are some things and experiences I have either gotten from families over the years or would love to get some day.

Last Minute Teacher Appreciation Gift Guide

A thank you card/letter either from the student or the parent. No store-bought card necessary! If you want to go this route, please be as specific as possible and include the ways the teacher has affected your student’s life. Seriously. If your kid’s teacher has made a positive impact on your student or your family in any way, they would most likely want to hear about it.

I have every letter like this I have ever gotten and I plan to keep them forever.

A magazine subscription for the classroom. Kids love reading magazines and I love having current issues in my library, but they are expensive. Depending on the grade level of the class will decide what is appropriate.

In third grade, I loved Time for Kids, National Geographic for Kids, New Moon Girls.

Office supplies. Dry erase markers, sharpies in all the colors, washable markers, a pencil sharpener that actually works, pencils (!!!!!), boxes and boxes and boxes of tissue, wipes to clean the desks. {My dorky teacher heart is all pitter patter about the thought of this!}

A book for the classroom library. Have your child pick out their favorite book from the year and donate a copy to the classroom library. Extra points for a dedication or a tiny book review to entice others to read it.

A magazine subscription for the teacher to read over the summer. Knowing I love music, one of my students gave me a year of Rolling Stone. Loved it! Maybe not your jam, but a year of Real Simple or Yoga Journal might be up your alley.

A gift card for office supplies. So appreciate any help we can get with buying supplies for our classrooms without digging into our own pockets.

A gift card for Powell’s or Amazon. We can buy something good to read over the summer. Maybe even a book to help improve our teaching practice!

A BPA free water bottle. Teachers are notorious for not taking care of ourselves, so why not gently encourage a healthy water habit with an awesome new water bottle?

A gift card to their favorite self-care team: yoga studio, massage therapist, hair stylist.

I hope you found this guide helpful. Please let me know if there is anything I missed.

Image source: The Man Of Yesterday by JD Hancock on Flickr (cc)