17 Small Gifts for Teachers (When You’re Grateful… and on a Budget)

The end of the school year is quickly approaching, and with it comes the daunting task of finding gifts for all of the teachers who have helped your child throughout the year.

One of the best things about being a teacher is getting appreciated by your students and their families. During Teacher Appreciation Week or any time of year, it’s always nice to get a small token of appreciation. If you’re looking for some ideas, we’ve got you covered!

One of the best gifts you can give your child’s teacher is something that will help them in their classroom. A set of school supplies or a gift card to a local office supply store is a great way to show your appreciation.

While it can be challenging to find a thoughtful gift that is both unique and useful, there are plenty of small gifts that will show your appreciation for all of their hard work. From coffee mugs to gift cards and cute stationery, here are some of the best small gifts for teachers.

Personalized Tote Bags

Young man with eco bag on yellow background, closeup

If you are looking for a great end-of-the-school-year gift for your children to give their favorite teacher, personalized tote bags are the best gifts! Likewise, your child’s teacher will love receiving a special, personalized tote bag as an appreciation gift for the last day of school this year!

Coffee Mug

Teachers typically love to drink coffee, so a lovely coffee mug would make a great gift! You can find great mugs for teachers at all kinds of stores and even online.

A super fun and creative option are these DIY Marbled Nail Polish Mugs. Not only are these flippin’ adorable, they are beautiful, but with a super thrifty price tag.

I’ve found plain white ceramic coffee mugs at the Dollar Store and if you’ve got nail polish already, this gift would cost you less then $2!

How’s that for small gifts on a budget!

Amazon Gift Card

One of the best teacher gifts your child can give their teacher is an Amazon gift card! With an Amazon gift card, they can purchase anything they need for their classroom or just use it to spoil themselves. They deserve it!

If giving a gift card feels a little impersonal, you can grab these super cute gift card holders, completely free, print it off and add a little personal touch to your gift in the way of memories!

Personalized Stationery

One of the best small gifts for teachers is personalized stationery! Teachers love to receive handwritten notes from their students, and personalized stationery just takes it up a notch. You can find beautiful stationery sets online or in your local stationery store.

An extra fun touch are these adorable, personalized teacher gift tags!

A Lovely Bouquet

Flat lay composition of tulips and blank card on white background, space for text. International Women's Day

It’s always nice to get a fresh bouquet of flowers, and they make the perfect small gift for teachers! You can find beautiful bouquets at grocery stores, florists, or even online. Plus, who doesn’t love getting flowers?

Mason Jar of Goodies

There are many fun ways that your children can make DIY teacher gifts. A Mason Jar full of goodies is a super cute way to show a teacher that you appreciate her.

A mason jar gift can have all sorts of goodies and DIY elements. You could include a printable tag, handwritten note, and more. Head on over to your local Dollar Store to get inspired for a great teacher appreciation idea.

For bonus points, throw in some hand sanitizer and lip balm! Finally, check out these cute printables if you need ideas for a gift tag.

Hand Soap or Hand sanitizer

Another perfect gift idea for your child’s teacher would be a nice set of hand soap or hand sanitizer. As we all know, kids carry a lot of germs, so teachers tend to wash their hands a lot. So they would definitely appreciate a nice set of hand soaps that they can keep in their classroom.

Check out these super cute printable tags from Wonder Mom Wannabe, they are the perfect accent for your gift!

A Nice Pen

Golden pen isolated on white background

Teachers always love receiving new pens, and a nice set of pens would make a great small gift for any teacher.

You can find really beautiful pens at all kinds of stores, so it won’t be hard to find the perfect set for your child’s favorite teacher.

A Nice Notebook or Planner

Colorful notebooks and office supplies on wooden background

Similarly, teachers also love receiving new notebooks and planners. A nice, new notebook is the perfect way to start off the school year or to keep track of all of their new ideas.

You can find really beautiful notebooks at all kinds of stores, so it won’t be hard to find the perfect one for your child’s favorite teacher.

Also, be sure to check closeout stores like Ross Dress for Less or Marshalls as they often have some beautiful notebooks and planners at discount!

Gift Certificate to their favorite Restaurant

Beautiful gift card, vector illustration.

A great gift idea for any teacher would be a gift certificate to a nice restaurant. This is definitely one of the more expensive small gifts for teachers, but it would be sure to please any educator! Plus, it gives them a night off from cooking!

Bath Bombs

If you are looking for a fun gift for your children to give their teachers, you may want to get some bath bombs! This is an easy gift that teachers will love. Your children’s teachers deserve a nice relaxing bath after a long day at school, so they will definitely love this cute teacher gift idea!

Also, be sure to grab these adorable printable tags (free!) to go with them!

Gift Card to Dunkin’ Donuts or Local Coffee Shop

Another great teachers gift idea would be a gift card to Starbucks, Dunkin’ Donuts, or any other local coffee shop.

Teachers definitely love to drink coffee as they have to get up early each morning to work on their lesson plans, so giving them some free coffee would be greatly appreciated!

Check out this adorable free printable tag to go with your gift card!

Stainless Steel Insulated Mug

Three Blank Stainless Steel Tumbler with Lid for branding mock up. on wooden  table

Speaking of coffee, why not get your child’s teacher a stainless steel insulated mug to keep their coffee warm (or cold!) for hours?

A nice stainless steel mug or thermos is the perfect addition to any teacher’s desk, and you can find many stainless steel mug options that come in many different colors!

Good Book

white book on white background

Another great end-of-the-year gift for your child’s teacher would be a good book.

Teachers often have to read the books that they assign to their classroom, so getting them a book that they can enjoy in their free time or over the summer would definitely brighten their day.

Target Gift Card

picture of a target

A really great idea for a teacher gift would be a Target gift card! Everyone loves Target and teachers are no exception!

They can buy everything at Target, from school supplies to things for their own home, so this is a gift that is sure to please!

Photo Book

white photo book on why wooden table

If you are looking for some sentimental teacher gift ideas for your kid’s teacher, a photo book is a very special cheap teacher appreciation gift!

Your kid’s special teacher can use the photo book to add pictures of her students and their activities throughout the year. It will be a nice memento that can be cherished for years to come.

Classroom Supplies

One of the best teacher appreciation gifts your child can give their teacher is classroom supplies. Every year, teachers have to reach into their own pockets to purchase supplies for their own classrooms, so taking some of the burden off of them would be greatly appreciated.

Not only do they need supplies for their students like pencils, erasers, paper, etc., they could also use some handy teacher supplies. Some items that would be useful could include sticky notes, pens, highlighters, and dry erase markers. A small set of these supplies would definitely make your child’s teacher happy!

If you are looking to add a fun, more personal touch to your gift, check out this super cute printable gift tag from DIY Gift Ideas.

A Grateful Student!

At the end of the day, the best small gift for any teacher is a kind word and a grateful student! Thank your child’s teacher for all they have done for her this year. A simple thank you goes a long way!

teacher giving high five to school girl

Teachers Love Knowing That They’re Appreciated

When looking for small gifts for teachers, it’s essential to find something that is unique and useful. These small gifts will show your appreciation for all of their hard work! From personalized stationery to Amazon gift cards, there are plenty of great small gifts out there that your child’s teacher will love.

Let your child’s teacher know that you appreciate them with small gifts like a Starbucks gift card or a large mason jar of goodies. But don’t forget about the big stuff, too!

Consider donating to their favorite charity in honor of all they do for children and education each year. Teaching is one of our most noble professions, so let us celebrate teachers every chance we get!

When it comes to gifts for the special educators in our lives, sometimes small trumps big. Coffee mugs, DIY gifts, and other small tokens of appreciation can mean a lot to a teacher who is grading papers and preparing next year’s curriculum. We hope that the gift ideas we listed above will help you choose the perfect small gift for your child’s teacher and say thank you, teachers, for all that you do!

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Kristen

Kristen is the founder and content creator at Mom Managing Chaos where she teaches busy moms how to simplify and organize their life and finances. She writes about frugal living, budgeting, productivity and organization.