With Christmas coming up, you may wonder whether to buy a gift for your class.
Every school culture is different; in primary schools, it is not uncommon for teachers to give a gift to the pupils in their class, but even in secondary, you may want to gift something to your form group.
Of course, your budget will be limited if you are buying for 30 pupils in a class. It can be hard to find something thoughtful yet economical.
To help you out, we have put together a handy gift guide for teachers to help you choose appropriate gifts for your class.
Buying gifts for your class: A Gift Guide for Teachers
Teachers typically want their presents to be meaningful or practical. Here are some ideas to get you started. We know that many of you are creative, so we have divided the list into ideas to buy and some to make.
Gifts To Buy For Your Class
Pens
Depending on the number of children you buy for, you may consider pen sets or buy a larger collection and split it into singles.
Zebra Z-Grip Smooth Retractable Ballpoint Pens have a comfortable grip for effortless writing and come in an assortment of colours.
They make an excellent choice for any student to encourage writing or creative drawing skills.
Fun Erasers
You can find a bumper pack of erasers like these food-shaped ones for under £10 for a set of 40. Pop one in an envelope with a handwritten card saying, “Mistakes help me learn”, and you will have a fun but useful personalised gift.
Friendship Bracelets
Children love friendship bracelets, and they are great for promoting a sense of camaraderie. You can buy a larger colourful set for under £12.
You can add a card with something positive about friendship to make the bracelet more special.
Bubble Wands
Younger children love bubbles, so a mini bubble wand will make them very happy.
These dinosaur-themed bubble sets are perfect for entertaining children. The good news is that blowing bubbles is also great for promoting speech and language development as well as a calming tool.
Goody Bag
These woven bags are perfect for filling with homemade biscuits or other treats, and as they are reusable, they are very environmentally friendly.
Seeded Shapes
Encouraging children to plant and nurture wildflowers is always positive. This pack of seeded hearts is ideal. Put one in an envelope with simple instructions, and you have a gift that will last for many months.
Gifts To Make For Your Class
Motivational Quote Pebbles
What is more personal than choosing a motivational quote for each of your pupils? Choose some smooth-sided pebbles that are large enough to paint a short quote such as “I can do difficult things” or “ Dream big”.
You can make the job easier by writing with an acrylic paint pen.
Bookmarks
Making a bookmark out of a card is relatively easy, or you can laminate printed bookmarks. We know how much teachers love to laminate!
Choose a design that relates to a theme you have just covered in class or something more general. As long as it is colourful, it will be sure to encourage your students to read.
Personalised Decorations
Everyone loves Christmas decorations, and Scandi designs are very on-trend.
You can use some salt dough and a cutter to make simple decorations.
Punch a hole and thread a ribbon through after baking so the children can hang them on a tree.
Check out some simple instructions here.