Gift Cards for Teachers ...

I am giving my son's kinder teacher $25 to Barnes & Noble. I will also have him make her a nice card and, if we have time, we might bake something too.

Seriously, whatever you can afford with a personalized hand written note of appreciation inside a blank card, (meaning you write the sentiment).

I do gift cards quite a bit, for teachers & they have been very appreciative. I think you should give whatever you can afford or are comfortable with. Depending on my financial situation, the establishment that it's for, & if I'm giving anything else with them , I have spent anywhere from 10 to 30 $. I usually give them a few times a year, teacher appreciation, holiday, & end of year.

I always taught in a lower-income neighborhood and barely got anything!

I remember once a child - who I suspected was homeless/bouncing from house to house with her mom - brought me an ornament. It was a little plastic bear that used to have that velvety fuzz on it, but most of it was worn off. She saw a couple other children bringing me gifts and wanted to give me something too...but that was all she had. It sat in my desk as a reminder of the season and that it was about the THOUGHT that counts, not the glamour.

I think a note stating your appreciation is more valuable. As a teacher, I always appreciated that because sometimes, with district and government expectations, we don't hear it enough.

I am sure whatever amount you decide will be used and greatly appreciated.

If you can afford it in my arera $20 would be an awesome gift.

$50 if by handfull you mean way way way a handful close to sending the teacher over the edge, type of handful.

but $20 seems good to me. but again only if u can afford it. but if giving up getting your nails done or something means you can afford it then good if giving up heat for a month then no. just $5 and a really nice thoughtful note.

I give each teacher $5 for Tim Hortons and a dozen homemade shortbread.

I have 6 teachers to buy for so my budget is around 10 each.

I love the idea of Barnes and Noble gift cards; so often teachers really would love books, either for themselves or to share with the kids. I think $20 is fine, a little more is great if you are so inclined.

What you can reasonably afford. I've given up to $25 per teacher.

Any amount is appreciated!

I've gotten $5 gift cards to Duncan Donuts or Starbucks. I'm appreciative of that.

$10 would be nice to a local coffee shop. If you want to be super nice, then go $20 to the bookstore. $10 to a bookstore won't buy you anything much, but $10 to a coffee shop would get you some coffee and a snack :)

Do you have a school supply store near you? Consider that. Teachers have to do things with their classrooms on a small budget.

If your children are such a handful as you say, you might want to go with a coffee shop card instead! :^)

Let both teachers know, in writing, how much you appreciate them. If you cite a specific instance or two, it will be even more meaningful.

I am doing $25 gift cards to Barnes and Noble. Our local one has a cafe/coffee shop. They also have toys, learning activities or if she just wants to buy the latest bestseller.

I think $20 or $25 is appropriate. One year we did gift cards to a grocery store and the teachers really appreciated it!

It's not about the amount - it's about the thought.

I'd go easy on the gifts - if we teachers get 25 gifts, as cute as they are, eventually we have a storage problem.

A lot of classrooms band together and the room parent organizes a gift. Everyone contributes what they can and it's kept anonymous. Those who can give $1 do so, others $5, $10 and up. It totally depends on people's circumstances, not their level of appreciation of the teacher. And people with 4 kids in the system, some with multiple teachers, are just not able to give $25 a pop, and we teachers know that. Frankly, we'd rather see those kids come in with healthy lunches of non-processed foods - it makes our jobs much easier than $25!

The group gifts, in our school, were often pooled to give a variety of things - coffee shop and book store gift cards, teacher or office supply stores (but not all of it - we like to do things for ourselves, not our jobs!), sometimes a spa (especially if it's a multi-service spa so those who hate mani/pedis can get a massage or a facial), or boutiques those teachers couldn't afford otherwise. But make sure the stores have a variety of things to appeal to all tastes.

Teachers definitely don't need desk accessories or "#1 Teacher" coffee mugs. We get so many, and then we have the problem of displaying/using a gift from your child and not from the other children. Those things, while appreciated, wind up in yard sales.

The nice note about how much your child likes the class, or a note from the child, means the world to us.

I did 25each for the local teacher's shop so they could resupply as well as buying at least one book from their wishlist at the book fairs. I hope that helps.

Both mailed me ty cards and shared what they bought they were very excited.

You are awesome! We appreciate ANY amount. The fact that you recognize that you WANT teachers you know you appreciate them is enough in and of itself! Honestly. Wearing my parent and not teacher hat, I would go with $10 and up for either place, since that's a good starting point and the teacher can add to it to get a few books (in the case of the bookstore option) and not feel like she is paying a ton of her own money. For coffee, she can use it at least a few times and feel like she got a treat without having to spend a dime. You are very kind!

I usually do $20 or $25 for the teacher. $10 for each assistant. I usually do Target gift cards.

The best thing is a note to go with whatever you decide to tell the teachers that you appreciate them, just like you told us on here :)

I work in an urban area and don't usually get anything, so when I hear $25 or $50 it seems way over the top to me! I think $10 is plenty, especially for a coffee shop. I occasionally stop by a 7-11 near my school and $10 would go a long way there!

I usually do $15 for my son's teacher to Caribou with a handwritten note. This year I'll probably you $10 since I have two kids in school now.

$10 is plenty. That's 2 or 3 cups of coffee on the way into work or a lunch on a random "I don't feel like packing another turkey sandwich" day. It's also a new children's book for the classroom! Add a handwritten note from you and a picture drawn by your child and you're all set!

I've tried to consider the teacher's personality..

Therefore, for one of my son's teachers is getting a mani/pedi set.. it comes in a sparkly hot pink case, it's portable and the teacher LOVES hot pink. Additionally, I found some cute colorful socks and also bought some colorful pens (since she always writes using bright colors) ..

for his English teacher, I know this will sound weird, but I bought a large bottle of Chimay Ale.. :) it's not for everyone, but this teacher enjoys ale/beer (not on the job of course :):) also, there are these beautifully crafted candy bars and inside each one is a poem.. Since it's his English teacher has also taught them poetry, I thought it would be a gun gifts as well..
still working on the other four teachers...

What does your budget allow? Personally, I think $10 is good. If you can only afford $5, that's fine. If $20 is in your budget, that's fantastic.

I also think a card made by your child is a great idea.

my kids are giving a Cookies christmas theme oven mit,red mixing spoon,sugar cookie mix & a cookie cutter.It's something cute the thought of giving & was inexpensive.

Handwritten note and gift card for Panera, etc.

I get tons of Christmas gifts from the people I work for/with and I am a minimalist, so it's really more of a burden than a blessing. I feel bad that they spent time and money on something I can't/won't use. GC for food places will ALWAYS get used one way or another.

I always write a Thank You card to the teacher and have my children do one as well. Sometimes I bake a little batch of cookies and then I add a gift card to the nearby coffee shop (which I am in Seattle so they are everywhere!). I only do $5 a card. One drink, basically. We are not well to do, but I do want their teachers to know how much I appreciate them which is why I always write the card.
My mother works as an IEP in an elementary school and she ALWAYS keeps the hand written notes she gets, especially the ones from kids. She loves those.
L.

We usually do $10 gift cards to a local book shop or Panera. I think a lot depends on your school and your area.