Looking for advice on what to get a teacher

[mjr]

Without going into too much detail about the situation, my wife and I have decided that we want to show our appreciation for our son's teacher this year. She's done a lot for us, kept in communication with us, and really worked hard to make sure that everything goes well with him at school.

We have decided at the minimum that we need to get her an "appreciation" card.

But we can't figure out what else. We thought maybe a "gift card" to one of the local restaurants, but then we thought that might come off as careless and that we didn't really put a lot of thought into it. And we're very appreciative of the work this teacher has done, so we want to convey that.

So, does anyone have any suggestions?

[BlaqueKatt]

So, does anyone have any suggestions?

I'm partial to making "theme gifts" myself. stuffed in a box with the "theme" written on the outside of the card. I usually end up spending around $20-$40 for a theme.

Ones I do a lot.

"movie night"
giftcard for a cinema, giftcard for video store or rental store, microwave popcorn, some "movie type" snacks, maybe a blanket to snuggle under(I've seen 'throws' for under $5).

"relax/time for yourself"
giftcard for bookstore, some small votive candles(yankee candles smell great), some bath stuff(oils, salts, foaming bath), bottle of wine(or non alcoholic sparkling cider)/hot chocolate, comfy pair of "slipper socks".

[Greenday]

Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts if your child's teacher goes there. Stuff like that always seems to be good.

[BookstoreEscapee]

I can tell you that teachers get a lot of "stuff" at the end of the year. My former roommate always gets tons of bath stuff and candles and picture frames and other doodads and they kind of add up when you've got 30 kids in your class. Gift cards can be more thoughtful than it seems since it's something they can use when they want/need to and don't have to figure out what to do with yet another "thing" (especially for things like food/entertainment - restaurants, movies - or bookstores - they can get something fun to read or use it for classroom materials). A gift card they can use for something relaxing and a heartfelt message in a card might be much more appreciated than another basket of lotion and candles (especially if you include why you chose the gift card for that particular place in the note). Every summer when I worked in the bookstore I'd get teachers with stacks of cards for $5-$25 or so (amounts probably depended on how many teachers a kid had) and almost all of them loved that they finally had some time to read something other than stacks of homework and lesson plans.

[dalesys]

From watching my daughter... a tranquilizer gun.

[mathnerd]

I can tell you that teachers get a lot of "stuff" at the end of the year. My former roommate always gets tons of bath stuff and candles and picture frames and other doodads and they kind of add up when you've got 30 kids in your class. Gift cards can be more thoughtful than it seems since it's something they can use when they want/need to and don't have to figure out what to do with yet another "thing" (especially for things like food/entertainment - restaurants, movies - or bookstores - they can get something fun to read or use it for classroom materials). A gift card they can use for something relaxing and a heartfelt message in a card might be much more appreciated than another basket of lotion and candles (especially if you include why you chose the gift card for that particular place in the note). Every summer when I worked in the bookstore I'd get teachers with stacks of cards for $5-$25 or so (amounts probably depended on how many teachers a kid had) and almost all of them loved that they finally had some time to read something other than stacks of homework and lesson plans.

I agree with this. And also, please not another coffee mug! I have boxes and boxes of coffee mugs. My favorite gifts were always the thoughtful notes. Bonus points if they're handwritten. If you feel like actually buying something, gift cards are the next best thing.

[Kheldarson]

I had teachers who loved getting school supplies. It meant they didn't have to buy them the next year.