Teachers spend a significant amount of their time working with your children and helping them grow into respectful, intelligent teenagers and adults. Sometimes it’s difficult to show teachers just how much you appreciate their hard work but just because something is difficult doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try.

If you’d like your child’s teacher to know just how much you respect the time and effort they give to teaching your children, there are a number of ways to do so. Here are the top 10 greatest gift ideas from students to their teachers (revealed by teachers themselves):

1. Gift Certificates. Gift certificates are a great way to show a teacher how much you appreciate their work. Everyone loves gift certificates. If you’re not sure where to get the gift certificate for, choose broad options like department stores, restaurants and theaters.

2. Wine/ Alcohol. If you know your child’s teacher enjoys sipping on a glass of wine every now and then, you can’t go wrong with a bottle of wine. Likewise, if they’ve mentioned they like the occasional glass of Scotch or that they enjoy hosting parties, a bottle of liquor is also an acceptable (and much-appreciated) gift.

3. Gift Baskets. Gift baskets are great for any occasion and teachers love receiving these as gifts. Fruit baskets, wine baskets, chocolate baskets and gourmet cheese baskets are all great ideas for the perfect gift.
4. School Supplies. Teachers often have to pay for school supplies out of their own pockets, so a basket full of school supplies or a gift certificate to a store that sells school supplies is a great idea for any teacher.

5. Books. What teacher doesn’t like to read, right? A few months before the end of the school year strike up a conversation with your child’s teacher and try and see if there’s a book they’re looking to read. If not, a gift certificate for Barnes & Noble or any type of bookstore will ensure they find just what they’re looking for.

6. Movie and a Date Basket. A truly unique and very thoughtful idea for any teacher is a movie and a date basket. All you need is a basket, a gift certificate for your local DVD rental store, and a few packs of popcorn – perfect for any teacher and will likely cost you less than 10 dollars. Pack in some other snacks or a bottle of wine to bulk it up a bit if you think it’s not enough – or adding a gift certificate for a local restaurant will also work.

7. Charm Bracelet. Talk to other parents of the kids in your child’s class and suggest going in on a charm bracelet. Each child from the group gets to pick out a charm to put on the bracelet and you all split the cost. Thoughtful and practical, who wouldn’t want that?

8. Magazine Subscriptions. Magazine subscriptions are a great gift for any teacher. Speak to them beforehand to feel out their interests so you can pick a magazine that they can enjoy every month for the next year.

9. Spa Day/ Golf Day. Every woman loves a good day at the spa and (almost) every man loves a good day at the golf course. Gift certificates for a great spa or golf course in your area will likely be appreciated by any teacher.

10. Stationary Items. Notepads, card kits and scrapbooks are all fun and useful items for teachers. There’s no doubt they’ll get their use out of these items.
Any gift you choose for your child’s teacher will show your appreciation. Try to stay away from knick-knacks, apple themed gifts and coffee since many teachers claim those ideas are overdone. Good luck and happy shopping!

Want to show your teacher (or your child’s teacher) how much you appreciate their hard work but can’t find the right gift to relay the message? Take a look at 10 great (unique and affordable) gift ideas from students to teachers…

Sunny Sherbourne spent many years searching high and low for the perfect teacher’s gift for her children’s teachers. Finding unique (yet appropriate) cards and gifts for teachers can be difficult so, in her spare time, Sunny shares her gift-giving ideas with the readers of Occasions365.com.