Homemade Teacher Gift Ideas

It can be hard to find different and useful teacher gift ideas year after year—surely they’ve already got cupboards full of pretty soaps and don’t really want to spend the entire new year working off all of those chocolates the kids gave them before the holidays, right?!

Brisbane Kids has searched high and low to find this collection of unique homemade teacher gift ideas to show your appreciation to those who have guided your child through another year of their education. They are things that you can make at home, and some are so simple that the kids could make most of it themselves. Gather your supplies now and really give your teacher a unique gift they’ll love this Christmas!

NOTE: Teachers often have to declare gifts or gift cards received over a certain value, so you should also consider this when making your decision on how much to spend.

Hit the beach

The end of the year also means Summer holidays for Aussie teachers. This great beach roll idea from Heidi Swapp is totally different from your usual end of year teacher gifts and so practical. It’s also completely customisable for your teacher—male or female, sporty or chilled, young or not so young—they will all be able to use this homemade teacher gift idea.

Personalised DIY Sharpie Mug

An inexpensive, plain mug is made awesome with the addition of your teacher’s initial! Follow these instructions to make it wash-proof too, on Glued To My Crafts Blog.

Book of memories

Such a meaningful idea, this end of year teacher book from A Small Snippet holds memories and quotes from each student in the class for your teacher to cherish always.

Crafty Clipboards

A personalized clipboard will always come in handy for a teacher—and will never be permanently ‘borrowed’ if it has their initial on it! This idea from Echoes of Laughter just takes a basic clipboard and adds some bling for a useful but attractive teacher gift.

Apple Tote

Create a unique canvas tote for your teacher using apples as stamps. Full instructions for this super simple homemade teacher gift idea can be found at One Lombard.

Hot Chocolate on a Stick

Makes and Takes have beautifully presented this simple idea. Simply swirl these fudge and marshmallow sticks in a hot cup of milk and you have a delicious and creamy hot chocolate!

Coffee!

Why not give the gift of everlasting coffee and present a coffee gift card with this witty message and holder. You can find full instructions, including a link to the free printable at Smashed Peas & Carrots. 

Six Pack

Whilst a six pack of real beer is probably less than appropriate to be taking to school, this cute reindeer six pack from Life of a Modern Mom could be replicated with any number of drinks, or even BBQ sauces! We recommend cold-pressed coffee that is sure to score you some major brownie points.

Succulents

Succulent plants are perfect for classroom windowsills and require little upkeep. This planter idea from The Idea Room adds an educational slant to the gift, which we love.

Ice Cream Esky

We put together this super simple ice cream esky for a teacher a few years ago and we had so much fun doing it! We grabbed a cute esky from KMart, then filled it with everything they could possibly need to make their own ice cream sundaes (minus the ice cream!). We included ice cream cones, sprinkles, wafer straws, flavoured topping, marshmallows and more, then popped a supermarket gift card on top for them to buy their own favourite ice cream. Knowing our teacher had children at home that were also about to embark on summer school holidays meant we knew they could all share this yummy gift.