Inexpensive Student Gift Ideas

Good morning, friends!  We are knee-deep in all things HOLIDAY!  I'm wrapping up (literally) my Christmas to-do list this weekend.  On Friday, I stayed after school to assemble my kids' Christmas presents and I thought I'd share what I am giving this group of kids.  Each year, I try to think of something simple and thoughtful that doesn't break the bank.  Teachers spend enough on their classrooms/students throughout the year!  This year, I wanted my budget to be between $30-$40.  I was able to make that happen!  

Scholastic Book: "How to Catch a Gingerbread Man"--I used my bonus points, which I save throughout the year to get these for free.

Pencils and Erasers: Purchased two sets of each from The Dollar Tree.

Gingerbread Erasers: These were leftover from a Kindergarten Crate subscription.

Snowman Soup Hot Chocolate Bags: Purchased a bulk box of Swiss Miss from Costco last year and had plenty extra for this year's class, as well.  Marshmallows were around $1.50.  I only needed one bag.  Mini candy canes were around $3.00.  You can find free labels on TPT; just search "Snowman Soup Tags."

Christmas Plush: Grabbed these at The Dollar Tree.  My teammate gave them to her students last year and I thought they were so cute.  At $1.25 each x 20, they were my biggest expense.

Poly Mailers: Many years ago, I stopped wrapping presents for my students.  I got the poly mailer idea off of Instagram (from A Teeny Tiny Teacher) and never looked back.  I buy these in bulk every few years.  Grab yourself some HERE and enjoy the convivence of this!  

In years past, I've done Holiday Tic-Tac-Toe Boards with holiday mini erasers as the game pieces.  I've also given homemade crayons, trinket/treat bags, coloring books, personalized bookmarks, and personalized, homemade dry erase boards.  

Please know that whatever you decide to give your students, they will love!!

xo

Megan 

Affordable Student Christmas Gifts

Looking for some student gift ideas that won't break the bank?  Today I'm sharing two ideas for you!  I hope these help you during a very busy time!

Snowman Soup

Snowman Soup, aka hot chocolate in a bag, is a simple yet creative idea for a student gift.  Add the following to a ziploc bag: hot cocoa packet, candy cane(s), marshmallows, and Hershey kisses.  Seal the bag and staple a cute label to it.  I'm linking the free label I found HERE but you can grab a different one off TPT if you want....Lots of choices!  Instant gift.  Total cost: around $12.00 for a class.

Christmas Tic-Tac-Ho Ho Ho

This is super cute and FUN!!!  Your kids are going to LOVE this gift.  Print the TIC-TAC-TOE boards and laminate them.  Grab festive mini-erasers from Target or Amazon (linking the ones I used HERE).  I put the mini-erasers into small jewelry bags (linking the ones I used HERE).  I'll be putting a board and the bag of mini erasers into a festive cellophane bag (from the Dollar Tree).

 Merry Christmas!

xo

Megan 

Christmas Ideas

Hi, friends!  If you're on winter break, I hope you are enjoying it so far.  If you have to work this upcoming week, I am SO SORRY!!  Your break will be here soon!  This post is a bit late, but managing teaching, cooking, cleaning, and taking care of myself this year is about all I can manage.  Blogging and creating new products have taken a back seat.  Today's post is about my favorite time of year....CHRISTMAS!  I'll be sharing some tried and true crafts/projects in case you are in need of things to get you through this week.  If not, pin the ideas to your Pinterest boards for next year!

This first reindeer craft is from First and Kinder Blue Skies.  I love the simplicity of it!  You can make them as a glyph if you want!

A favorite holiday book of mine is Santa's Stuck.  This Santa craft by Crafty Bee Creations is perfect to go with it.  It also comes with an optional writing page.

Also by Crafty Bee Creations are these gingerbread people.  The patterns make large gingerbread people and they are super cute!  The best part?  This craft is FREE!

I haven't made these for years, because they are a bit intricate for first graders, but they are definitely fun and hip!  These techy Santa's are by Tunstall's Teaching.  I love the iPad Christmas list that accompanies the craft.

This next reindeer craft is one of my favorites!  I started doing it with my class a few years back.  Unfortunately, I can't find the digital version of this.  Also, I have no idea who made it.  If it's your creation, let me know so I can give you credit!  All I can seem to find are the patterns in my December box.  

These paper plate wreaths are fun and festive and make such a cute display!  To make, cut the center of a paper plate out.  Use green tissue paper squares and cover all of the remaining plate.  Trace the kids' hands and form a "bow" with them.  Use hot glue to add "berries" with pom poms.

The Grinch is a great craft to do before/after reading the book or watching the movie!  I got this many years ago from a seller who had to pull it down due to copyright issues, but I am sure you can find a similar craft on Pinterest.

My kids always make an ornament to take home.  I often have them make craft stick ornaments because they are fairly simple and the pieces are easy to manage.  The year, we made Christmas trees again.  To make, have the kids paint craft sticks green.  Once dry, hot glue them in a triangle.  Add a trunk.  *I used copper glitter foam that I found at Michael's.  Add a star.  I used silver and gold foam stars from Michael's.  Create a loop with a small piece of ribbon and hot glue it to the top.  Use craft glue or hot glue and have kids add mini pop poms.  Write each child's name and the year on the back with a Sharpie.

Another fun and classic ornament is a craft stick reindeer!  

Speaking of reindeer, these handprint reindeer are a cute idea for an ornament, magnet, or decoration.  I haven't done them in several years, but they are on my list of great crafts!

Looking to plan a holiday party in your classroom?  Check out my best-selling party pack!  Loaded with goodies for an exciting day!

Shop my TPT store for more CHRISTMAS IDEAS!

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.  I make a small percentage of money off purchases made through my links.*

xo

Megan 

Christmas in the Classroom

Hi, friends!  It's hard to believe that Christmas is over!  I am so sad!  I had intentions of posting this a few weeks ago, but man, those 3 weeks in between Thanksgiving and Christmas were INTENSE!  We went to California for Christmas.  Mr. Wheeler's family lives out there and we go there every other year.  On the years when we go, we celebrate with my family the second week of December.  So, all of my family's gifts have to be purchased and ready for that.  It's always a mad dash to get everything ready! 

I had some pictures of Christmas things that we did in class ready (although it wasn't much because we use so many box curriculum's now and have to "keep going"), so I figured I would go ahead and post them now, even though they are totally irrelevant now.  Perhaps you will see something you can pin  on your Pinterest boards for next year!  Hope your Christmas was fabulous! 


We did just two art projects in December.  The first were these elves.  They were a lot of work!  The day we did them, we were SUPER pressed for time.  I shouldn't have tried to do them given the amount of time I had to work with.  They didn't' turn out like they were supposed to...I think they kind of look like pigs.  LOL!  The ears didn't stick to the plates, so if I do it again in future years,  I will use tape for them. 

The other project that we did were these reindeer profile projects.  I love how they turned out and will definitely be adding them into my Christmas craft rotation.  I actually had a sub do them with my kids because I took a personal day one Friday in December.

We played trick word BINGO a few times and used Christmas mini-erasers (always a fun way to incorporate something seasonal!). 

Many of our centers were Christmas-themed.  This one shown below is a *FREEBIE* in my TpT shop.  Click the cover below to download it.

I incorporated some Christmas coloring pages into my Early Finisher Board activities!  If you aren't familiar with the Early Finisher Board, you can check it out by clicking the cover below.

For a parent gift, I had my kids create craft stick Christmas tree ornaments.  In the past, I would have had my kids do these all by hand, but I came across a girl on Instagram (@loftydots) who preps the ornaments so all your kids have to do is paint and decorate.  Brilliant and such a time-saver! 

First, the kids painted their trees green.  Then, they painted on a thin layer of glue.  Last, they added decorations like pom-poms and self-stick gems.  ***Next year, we will add the glitter LAST...having it on first made it really hard for the gems to stick and I ended up having to go back and glue them on at the last minute because they were falling off.  Overall, I think the ornaments turned out super cute!  I hope the parents liked them.

We had a 1/2 day the day before break began, so we didn't have a holiday party.  Instead, we let the kids vote on a movie to watch and split the kids as a grade level.  We also played Christmas BINGO and made a holiday trail mix.  Super easy.  I gave my kids a book (Scholastic $1) and a candy cane and called it a day.  They were happy with it!  No one asked about a party and I didn't mention it!

xo
Megan