Valentine’s Day “Love a Teacher” Gift Ideas

*I felt the magic of swiss herbs in Ricola® Herb & Throat drops as part of a sponsored post for Socialstars #swissherbs – All opinions remain honest and my own.

For Valentine’s Day it seems like we forget about our teachers. The very people that educate our children and play a major part in their development. We went through a year in the past with one awful teacher and it’s made me appreciate the wonderful teachers that much more. You really do not realize how a teacher can negatively impact your child until you come across one. This year both of my kids have STELLAR teachers. They’re so good that when I found out who they had for the coming year I actually cried with relief. I’m not one to complain, but I didn’t want another repeat bad year and I was prepared to put on my big girl pants and march down to the school if need be.

Because of my kids teachers being so awesome this year I wanted to do something special for them and their classrooms, so I put together this Valentine’s Day Teacher gift bag full of goodies. Some are for them to take home or for their personal in-class use and some are for them to use in the classroom when they’re working with the kids. A lot of people don’t realize that the teachers pay for A LOT of what goes into their classrooms. All that decor that helps with learning? The teacher bought that. The tissues, anti-bac, rewards, special art supplies… it’s all out of pocket for them. At the beginning of the year I always send in a Sam’s Club pack of tissues and anti-bac gels but obviously by now all of that would be gone.

After that long-winded intro here are some items to put in a Valentine’s Day “Love a Teacher” Gift Bag:

Anti-Bacterial Hand Gel. Yesssssss. All of this. The big sizes. It’s also good to send in the anti-bac wipes so if a child sneezes all over a desk it’s easier to wipe up than having to spray and grab paper towels.

Hand Cream. So. much.hand.washing. Give your teacher (male or female!) hand cream to keep their hands from drying out or cracking.

Tissues. So essential. My son has allergies and I bet he goes through a box a week on his own.

Rewards. Kids love to get stuff and nothing motivates them more than getting to pick a goodie from the prize chest. You can buy things in bulk at most mass-drugstore retailers or check out the dollar spot areas and discount stores. I send in fun erasers, pencils, stickers, tattoos…

Throat Drops. I’ve worked in child care in several capacities.. babysitting, day camps, before and after school care… You get sick. I can’t remember a cold weather season that I didn’t get at least one or two really bad sinus infections. Ricola® Extra Strength Glacial Mint are great because they combine a unique blend of ten natural Swiss alpine herbs (called Chrüterchraft), natural menthol and soothing syrup center for powerful cough relief. This way you can save your sick days and “Call in Well” 😉

FYI you can still win $500 or a trip to Switzerland by entering this giveaway on the Ricola® website! All you have to do to enter is tell them how you’d Call in Well!

Pencils. I’m dead serious. My kids school is set up to where they can buy pencils for a quarter, but a lot of kids will forget to bring it in or simply don’t have the means. You can buy packs of them and it’s not expensive. I’ve heard this is one of the number one items teachers request when they ask parents for contributions! In keeping with this theme you can also send in other supplies like paper, glue, scissors, crayons… anything you thing they need they do!

What items can you recommend for putting in a “Love a Teacher” Gift Basket?

*I felt the magic of swiss herbs in Ricola® Herb & Throat drops as part of a sponsored post for Socialstars #swissherbs – All opinions remain honest and my own. For more info on Ricola visit them on Facebook & Twitter.