12 thoughtful gifts to send teachers for Teacher Appreciation Week
Thank them for all of their hard work.
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Call them heroes or call them teachers—it's no secret that the people who teach our kids deserve a reward for all of the hard work they put in day after day, now more than ever. After all, amid the coronavirus pandemic, most teachers have been forced to transition to a completely virtual classroom, which makes their usually tough job even tougher. And for that, we thank them.
As if you needed an excuse to do just that, this week happens to be Teacher Appreciation Week. To show the teachers in your life just how much you value them, we've rounded up 12 of the best gifts to send teachers, from a popular wine subscription service to the crafting tool with a cult following.
1. A food delivery gift card
Mexican, Indian, Chinese... the choice is theirs.
The last thing any teacher wants to do after a long day of work is slave away in the kitchen. And since they can't go out to their favorite restaurant right now, get them the next best thing: a gift card to a food delivery service like GrubHub or DoorDash. They can use it to treat themselves to takeout on a night when they just aren't feeling up to cooking.
2. A gorgeous bouquet of flowers
Bouqs lets you choose from three different bouquet styles.
Let's be honest: A bunch of pretty flowers can brighten even the dreariest—or most stressful—days in quarantine. Send a bouquet to your teacher or, if you can get the whole class to pitch in, sign them up for a monthly subscription. The flower delivery service offers bi-weekly and monthly bouquet deliveries (along with one-time purchases!) and has a huge selection of blooms, from roses to wildflowers.
Give a subscription to Bouqs starting at $36
3. Our favorite meal kit: Home Chef
Home Chef is our favorite meal kit overall.
For the teacher who's also a foodie at heart, send them a subscription (or a gift card) to a meal kit delivery service so they can whip up delicious dishes at home. Of all of the ones we've tested, we like Home Chef the best because it has the freshest, highest-quality ingredients and easy-to-follow recipes. Your teacher will especially love it right now since it's harder and harder to get to the grocery store, let alone find all the items you need in stock.
Give a Home Chef gift card starting at $60
4. This must-have for coffee drinkers
Keep your teacher well-caffeinated.
If anyone needs coffee right now, it's teachers (have you ever tried to instruct 30 elementary schoolers over Zoom?!). And for that, they'll need a quality coffee maker. While you could get them a drip coffee maker or a French press, our kitchen and cooking writer loves pour-over coffee the best. Here at Reviewed, we recommend this ceramic Hario one because it brews the most flavorful cup of coffee in less than two minutes.
Get the Hario V60 Coffee Dripper 02 Ceramic at Bed Bath and Beyond for $24.99
5. A Kindle Unlimited subscription
So. Many. Books.
Reading is fun. Reading endless student exams and parent emails, however, is not. Give your teacher something fun to read by gifting them a subscription to Kindle Unlimited. They'll have instant access to thousands of e-books (from new best-sellers to literary classics), audiobooks, and podcasts. The best part is they don't even need a Kindle—they can use the app on almost any device including their laptop or phone.
Give a subscription to Kindle Unlimited for $9.99 per month
6. These chic notecards
You can never have too many notecards.
Teachers write a lot of notes, whether it's welcoming their new students to class or thanking parents for helping out in homeroom. No matter the occasion, they'll need a set of classy notecards, like this one from Rifle Paper Co. Not only does the set have the whimsical floral designs and high quality that Rifle is famous for, but the cards are blank so your teacher can use them for anything and everything.
Get the Rifle Paper Co. Botanical Stationary Set from Rifle Paper Co. for $22
7. The wine subscription service everyone loves: Firstleaf
Wine makes everything better.
Virtual teaching is stressful at best and nearly impossible at worst. Help your teacher take the edge off with a few bottles of booze delivered right to their door courtesy of Firstleaf. One of our editors tried out the wine subscription service for herself and loved the quality and variety of wines offered, from red to white to rose.
Give a Firstleaf gift card starting at $25
8. A subscription to The Sill for the teacher who's obsessed with plants
Choose from snake plants to succulents.
Studies have suggested that even just having a plant in your home can lower stress levels. And less stress is exactly what every teacher needs right now. Enter The Sill, the popular plant delivery service that will send a healthy, live plant right to their home. According to our managing editor who has used The Sill, the plants arrive in great condition (hers is still thriving months later!) and there are plenty of resources on The Sill's website to help even the most novice plant parent care for their new greenery. Psst: You can sign them up for a monthly plant delivery or simply send a single live plant.
Shop live plants at The Sill starting at $20
9. A Cricut for at-home crafting
You can use a Cricut for almost all of your crafting needs.
Now that teachers are stuck at home like the rest of us, they have a lot more time for crafting, whether it's making new bulletin board decorations for when they're back in the classroom or working on their own personal projects. And one of many teachers' favorite tools for those crafts is the Cricut, which can be used for everything from DIY home decor to hand-designed stickers. The trendy tool is fairly expensive, however, so it might be best as an entire class gift or a present for your close friend or family member who happens to be a teacher.
Get the Cricut Explore Air 2 from Walmart for $199
10. This popular tea subscription box
Sips by creates a custom box based on each user's personal taste preferences.
If your teacher is always sipping a morning (or afternoon) cuppa, they'll love a subscription to Sips by, which delivers a monthly box of delicious teas. One of our chai-obsessed editors who tried Sips by out for herself loves that each box is customized to your preferences and that there's such a variety of teas available. I.e. your teacher will be able to try all different flavors and brands that they otherwise might not.
Give a Sips by tea subscription box starting at $15
11. This cult-favorite candle
Looks good, smells even better.
There's a reason so many people (including some of our own staff) are so obsessed with Capri Blue candles—they're deliciously fragrant, burn for hours and hours, and look absolutely stunning. So chances are your teacher will love the chic candles just as much. They can use it to cozy up their home (and de-stress after a long day of teaching) or bring it to their classroom once schools re-open.
Get the Capri Blue Candle at Anthropologie for $32
12. An e-gift card for school supplies
You can't go wrong with a Visa or American Express gift card, either.
Whether your teacher needs new red pens for grading mailed-in assignments or dry erase markers for the whiteboard they use on their daily Zoom classes, a gift card to a store like Target, Walmart, Office Depot, or Staples will be very much appreciated. Even if your teacher doesn't need anything at the moment (which is highly unlikely), they can save the gift card to use it for restocking their classroom once they finally return to school.