June 2, 2007

Gifts Kids Can Make for Teachers

by Shari Steelsmith

Tip—Kid-made gifts are more personal for teachers and fun for kids to create.

It’s June and for most of us, it’s the end of the school year. If you’re the parent of a preschool or elementary-school-aged child, then your thoughts will immediately turn to, “Oh no—what kind of end-of-the-year gift can we give the teacher this time?” If your child’s teacher is past her first year of teaching, then she already has enough decorative apples to cover the desk and shelves. What to do?

Since it’s your child’s teacher, and he is the one who has the more primary relationship with that teacher, then it makes sense to have your child make the gift. It’s also a nice way to teach your child that when we are grateful to someone for the service they’ve done us (like teaching) it is courteous to give them a small gift. Children love to make things, so you shouldn’t have a difficult time getting them on board for such a project.

Tools—Sandi Dexter, author of Joyful Play with Toddlers: Recipes for Fun with Odds and Ends, recommends a simple art project for ages 2-5. You can give them paper, markers, crayons or paint. When your child is finished creating, choose a colorful picture that you both like. (Note: it doesn’t have to “be” anything—and probably isn’t, in your child’s mind.) You can cut the picture down a bit and frame it simply. Or you can scan the art with your computer and turn it into a regular-sized greeting card. Have your child dictate a few nice lines for you to write inside the card (for example, “I like Miss Tricia because she always helps me with my snack.”) If he can sign his name, have your child sign the card.

Older children can make a God’s Eye as a teacher gift. Traditional Mexican-American good luck charms, they are fun for kids to make and a colorful, handmade keepsake for the teacher.

Materials: for one God’s Eye, 2 sturdy toothpicks and one yard of multi-colored yarn

Directions:

1. Make the frame. Make an “X” out of the two toothpicks and tie them together at the cross with one end of the yarn. Snip the sharp ends off the toothpicks.

2. Wind the yarn. Move the yarn to the right onto the next toothpick arm and loop it all the way around that arm (see picture).

Continue pulling the yarn from one arm to the next, looping it around each arm as you go. Each loop should be next to the last one on the arm. Do not leave any gaps. Wind the extra tail from the first knot into the Eye as you go.

3. Finish the Eye. When you are near the end of the toothpicks, tie off the yarn. Trim the remaining yarn so that no odd bits show. You can tie a brightly colored piece of yarn to the top for a hanger.

Another fun gift for kids of any age to make for a teacher is a batch of their favorite cookies. Whatever you decide to give, offer your child a chance to participate in the selection, the making, and the accompanying card.

You’ll find more practical tips you can use right now in Joyful Play with Toddlers: Recipes for Fun with Odds and Ends by Sandi Dexter and Historical Activity Guide by Elizabeth Crary, M.S.

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