End of the year student gifts are a special way to finish the school year. Not every teacher invests time or effort in an end of the year gift, but those that do will tell you that it is deeply appreciated by students. Gifts don’t need to be extravagant, either! They can be simple, like a bookmark or a sticker. They can also cost nothing, like an end of the year letter to students. This blog post will share a few end of the year student gift ideas that are easy, memorable, and affordable.
Do you give gifts at the end of the school year?
End of the year student gifts can depend on a number of factors for teachers. A big factor to consider is how many students you teach. Since high school teachers can often have over 100 students, the cost and effort of End of the Year Student Gifts can add up quickly! This is one reason why student gifts are more often organized by elementary or middle school teachers.
Another factor to consider is your budget. Teachers should never be expected to reinvest their own finances into their classrooms. While an extravagant end of the year gift might be treasured by your students, it might not be appreciated by your colleagues. Not every teacher can afford to spend money on their students. This is why it is appropriate to stay within a reasonable budget.
I recently polled my audience on Instagram about end of the year student gifts, and more often than not, teachers stated that they do not give an end of the year gift to their students. At the end of the day, an end of the year student gift is really up to you! If you are the sentimental type or recognize gift-giving to be one of your love languages, then an end of the year student gift is a great idea.
What gift should I give to my students?
The perfect gift is thoughtful, easy, and inexpensive. To promote global citizenship, end of the year gifts can also be sustainable and environmentally friendly. These five end of the year gift ideas will cover all of your bases!
Stickers
Stickers are the simplest end of the year student gifts you can give to students. The most affordable way to purchase stickers is to purchase a sticker pack with a variety of stickers. There are many appealing themes for sticker packs that will resonate with your students. For example, you can find specialty sticker packs for the specific subject that you teach. If your class is especially silly, you can give them stickers with memes. There are also sticker packs designed with the teenage aesthetic in mind. Just make sure you sort through each sticker pack for inappropriate content before offering them to your students!
Class Playlist
Students love sharing their musical tastes with one another. A class playlist is a fantastic idea for end of the year student gifts to send your students home with over the summer.. Class playlists involve a little bit of prep: simply have each student select a school-appropriate song that they’d like to share with their classmates. The song can be representative of their school year, or simply one that they think their peers would enjoy.
To tie this to your curriculum, you could even assign a written component where students share what the song means to them. Compile each song on a playlist using Spotify, YouTube, or Apple Music and leave students with a link to listen to over their holiday.
Motivational Student Bookmarks
Bookmarks are another easy and affordable end of the year student gifts for students. This gift is especially applicable to teachers who teach Language Arts. You can use these motivational student bookmark templates as an affordable alternative to buying bookmarks from a store. These bookmarks are designed with students in mind, featuring a different end of the year quote alongside noteworthy authors, celebrities, and public figures. You can also design and print your own using a service like Vistaprint.
End of the Year Letters to Students
This end of the year gift takes the most amount of time. Fortunately, it costs practically nothing to make! End of the year student gifts, such as a letter to students, are a thoughtful way to show your appreciation for your time together. To save time, you may wish to write a letter to the entire class to print off. You can add a personal touch to each letter before distributing them.
You could also approach this end of the year gift by spreading out your note-writing over the course of a few days or weeks. Even though end of the year letters to students take a bit more effort, many teachers return to them year after year because of how much students appreciate them.
End of the Year Celebration
If you teach several students and would rather not plan an individual gift for each one, you can throw an end of the year celebration for them all. To make your life even easier, you can get students involved in the planning process. Students can be in charge of organizing entertainment, putting together end of the year student gifts like slideshows, and providing snacks. If you feel so inclined, you can also offer to bring in food and entertainment for the end of the year celebration. Don’t feel the need to put too much thought into it: your students would be more than happy to brainstorm ideas with you!
End of the Year Student Gifts
Most teachers agree that end of the year student gifts are never necessary but always appreciated. A small budget and a bit of time can go a long way with these gift ideas. I hope these affordable end of the year gift ideas have offered you some inspiration for your students! For more end of the year activities, check out this blog post.
