23+ gifts that show teachers how much you appreciate them
Whether you’re a student or shopping for your child’s favorite teacher, a small gift is a great way to say thank you.
Threshold 240-Page Faux Leather Journal
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$8.00
A journal is the perfect gift to help a teacher keep all of their thoughts, ideas and to-dos all in one place. This journal has foil stamping on the top cover, which is made from a soft faux leather. It also comes with a gold ribbon bookmark attached.
Some of the best gifts are the ones that upgrade your giftee’s daily essentials, which is why we love this hand sanitizer from Touchland. “These are the only hand sanitizers I use,” says NBC Select commerce editor Lindsay Schneider. “They don’t dry out my skin and I love the way they smell. The spray bottle is also really functional, I like that there’s no cap that I have to worry about falling off in my bag or desk drawer.”
Owala makes some of our favorite reusable water bottles. This tumbler from the brand holds 40 ounces of liquid and can keep drinks cold for up to 24 hours, according to Owala. “My Owala never leaves my desk at work,” says Fernandez. “It’s the perfect size to keep me hydrated throughout the day but isn’t too clunky or heavy to tote around. I also love the multi-tone options Owala offers for all of its reusable water bottles.”
For the history buff, this board game will give the teacher in your life a fun challenge to work on at home. The questions cover a range of subjects like science, technology, art and geography. It requires two or more players and a game lasts about 35-45 minutes.
If you know your teacher is a fan of art or want to introduce them to a fun hobby, this paint by numbers set is a good way to spark their creativity. It comes with a canvas, paint holders and brushes. Plus, once they finish it, they have a great piece of decor to put up on their wall at home or in the classroom.
Teachers with a sweet tooth will love a small variety of quality chocolate. This one includes six flavors, including milk chocolate, caramel, dark chocolate and almond and sea salt. You could give this on its own or add it to a gift basket with a few other small treats you know they love.
While some teachers love their coffee, they might also be inclined to try a homemade matcha latte. This set has everything required to make a matcha latte from scratch, including a bowl, whisk, sifter and small booklet with directions. Just be sure to pair it with a small bag of matcha powder so they can make it as soon as they get home.
This compact bag, which is smaller than an iPhone, can fit an earbuds case, keys, lip balm or a small tin of mints. It has a ring they can clip to the strap of their crossbody bag, backpack or purse, so they don’t have to rummage around to find their essentials. They can also customize it by adding a keychain or tassel.
AirTags make keeping track of personal items easy, so your favorite teacher can always know the location of their luggage or keys. Once they attach one to their desired item, the tags use Bluetooth to send signals to nearby iPhones so they can locate their items. They’re about the size of a nickel and come in a pack of four if you prefer to give more than one or buy them for a few teachers at once.
The Ember Mug2 is a high-tech mug that lets users control its temperature and keep their coffee hot for extended periods. They can pick from temperatures between 120 degrees and 145 degrees Fahrenheit using the accompanying app.
This highly rated diffuser can help fill any classroom with peaceful, energizing or refreshing scents. It has seven ambient light modes and four timer settings. There is also an auto-shutoff feature when water levels are low. This set comes with ten essential oils, including tea tree, lavender and lemongrass.
This collection includes ten popular blends with aromatic fruits, spices and herbs, including Earl Grey, chamomile citron and ginger lemongrass. NBC Select updates editor Mili Godio gifted this set to her mom, who teaches high school students, and says her mom loves the taste of the teas and the fun triangular shape of the tea bags.
Unfortunately, many teachers have to stock up their classrooms using their own money. A gift card to Staples can help them buy what they need without using their savings.
Any night, you may find teachers carrying home their laptop, papers to grade and more. So, why not give them a cute and functional tote to help make all that lugging easier? This one is made from machine-washable canvas and zips shut. It has an outer slit pocket and comes in 16 colors, so you can easily find one the recipient will appreciate.
They can use this gift card to stock up on the latest popular thrillers to read in their spare time or to buy books for their classroom. They can also redeem it in-store at Barnes & Noble cafes, allowing them to choose whether they want to use it on books or coffee.
These stamps help deliver messages in an upbeat, friendly way — and save teachers time from having to write on papers they’re grading or handing out. The set comes with eight pre-inked stamps, each of which has a different message like “Excellent!” and “Great effort!” The stamps also come in a carry tray, making it easy to keep them all organized in a desk drawer.
After a long day in the classroom, going home to cook dinner can sometimes feel like too much. An Uber Eats gift card eases that stress. You can choose a custom amount or buy a preloaded card ranging from $15 to $500. You can also add a gift message and select what day you want the card to appear in their inbox. (Amazon sends it via email).
The Cricut Joy can help teachers have fun with new projects in and out of the classroom. The smart DIY crafting machine lets users design their own logos, designs and doodles. Then it prints them out via cardstock, vinyl decals, iron-on materials and more that they can then add to water bottles, laptops or bags to personalize them. It’s 3.9 pounds, according to Cricut, so it isn’t very heavy, and has app compatibility, too. NBC Select commerce editor Cory Fernandez uses a similar Cricut model, which the brand sent him, and loves how easy and quickly it makes monograms and other designs.
No matter what time of year it is, classrooms can get stuffy. The Flippi V6 fan from Vornado has two speeds, an adjustable tilting head and a manual swivel base. “I bought this fan years ago to keep on my desk at work and I still use it almost every day. It’s powerful enough to cool me off in the warmer months or when I’m overheating after taking my big winter jacket off,” says NBC Select reporter Zoe Malin. “It’s more attractive than most personal fans since it comes in so many colors, so I don’t mind keeping it out all the time. I also convinced many of my co-workers to buy one.”
Practical doesn’t have to mean boring. This dry-erase calendar has a brightly color-blocked grid and a magnetic back so they can stick it anywhere a magnet can go. There are blank spots at the top of each grid so they can fill in the month and dates.
Reminiscent of traditional friendship bracelets, this key chain features a bracelet-like design with the word “teach.” The silicone beads are soft and brightly colored and there’s also a pink faux leather tassel and a glittery pencil charm to add to the teaching theme. It comes with a key ring and a carabiner, allowing them to easily attach it to their car keys or classroom keys.
Lunch crumbs, stray glitter from a craft and pencil shavings don’t stand a chance against this mini desk vacuum. This cordless desk vacuum fits in your palm and has strong suction to remove particles from your desk, according to the brand. It has a USB rechargeable battery and a single charge will get you up to 400 minutes of use.
Help them dress up any tissue box with this retro-inspired cover. It’s designed to look like an old radio, complete with a faux speaker and knobs to change the imaginary channel, and comes in three colors.
“I believe everyone needs at least one Moleskine notebook in their life,” says Fernandez. “They’re functional just like any other journal or notepad, but the cover material and the flexible band that fastens it make it feel more upscale.” You can get them in four sizes and choose from ruled, dotted, square, plain or mixed (ruled and plain) pages.
They can stash these individually wrapped truffles in a desk drawer or purse anytime they need a sweet treat. The 15.2-ounce bag includes a mix of five different flavors — milk chocolate, dark chocolate, extra-dark chocolate, caramel milk chocolate and white chocolate. Each truffle has a firm round shell with a gooey center.
The JBL Clip 5 is one of our favorite Bluetooth speakers because it has a carabiner to attach to a bag strap, dog leash or shower door handle (it’s also water-resistant). It has 12 hours of playtime on a full charge and is compatible with an app that your giftee can use to tweak sound presets and pair with other compatible JBL speakers. This is undoubtedly pricey compared to other items on this list, but we think it would make a great gift for that extra special teacher, tutor or coach in your children’s life — those who make an impact day to day.
Lego gifts aren’t just for kids. This Lego chrysanthemum flower can add some cheer to the classroom all year round. Once built, they can leave it as a bud or in full bloom. Along with the flower, it comes with a flowerpot and base built from Legos.
Every teacher deserves a little self care during the day and this hand cream set can provide a nice moment of pampering between classes. The set comes with three one-ounce tubes and the lotion formula has shea butter, vitamin E and argan oil to hydrate skin, according to the brand. Another perk: The set comes in a floral tin that is so pretty you don’t even need to wrap your gift.
The Bink water bottle is dishwasher-safe and made of glass but covered in a washable and removable silicone cover to protect it from cracks. The bottle is almost entirely covered by the silicone, except for a long strip on the side so you can monitor how much water is in the bottle. It has a carry handle and wide-mouth cap for sipping (they can also pair it with a flip cap or straw lid).
This fun trinket is a great desk accessory for any teacher. It bounces and bobbles by pressing down on the tops. It’s a creative way to spark some joy in your teacher's day while also giving them a more unique-looking desk.
I’m a writer for NBC Select and a journalist who has been covering beauty, style and home, and writing gift guides for nearly 20 years. For this article, I included highly rated products and items from brands we’ve previously covered.
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