What is a good whole classroom gift for a second grade class?
I am about to come to the ending of my twelve weeks of student teaching in a second grade elementary school classroom. I want to get them a littel something either to all of them or as a whole class. What do you think is a good idea, but not to high in price?
~~~years ago my daughter had such a wonderful student teacher,,,,he really gave them the gift of wanting to learn and loveing to read. At the end of his stay,,,he made each student a card, thanked them for letting him be their teacher, and he wrote something about each child that was special about them, for example he wrote to my daughter "thank you for sharing your Ameilia Bedilia books with our class, you helped make everyone laugh and have a happy day !" and inside each card , he tapped a silver dollar. My daughter to this day , still has that silver dollar and card !
Go to the dollar store. They have a section full of cheap little toys and what not that make good gifts for kids that age. You could buy them pizza or throw some sort of party for them.
References :
Does the class have an electrical pencil sharpener? If not, the kids will love that and so will the teacher… and it’ll last!
Otherwise, I don’t suggest candy or anything like that… and dollar store gifts can be okay… pencils, etc. I do suggest you go with a gift that reminds them of you and has a link to what you did with them…
But I often give electric pencil sharpeners and they are ALWAYS well received….
References :
Do you recall any classroom gifts that were given to you when you were child? Do you remember any class parties? If you are like me you will answer no to the first question and yes to the second. Class parties are so fun, and since you can buy a whole pizza for 5 bucks these days, they are affordable, too. Give them a memory… throw them a party!
References :
~~~years ago my daughter had such a wonderful student teacher,,,,he really gave them the gift of wanting to learn and loveing to read. At the end of his stay,,,he made each student a card, thanked them for letting him be their teacher, and he wrote something about each child that was special about them, for example he wrote to my daughter "thank you for sharing your Ameilia Bedilia books with our class, you helped make everyone laugh and have a happy day !" and inside each card , he tapped a silver dollar. My daughter to this day , still has that silver dollar and card !
References :
go to th dollar store or just bake cupcakes
References :
It would be worth it to check out orientaltrading.com if you have time to order anything by mail (it takes about 11 days to recieve the items at regular shipping cost. If you are in a rush they have express shipping at a reasonable cost). Many of the items are sold in units of 12 and up and are VERY CHEAP! its worth checking it out. ANOTHER GREAT IDEA that will cost @ $22.00 (depends on the size of your class) is personalized pencils from forteachersonly.com. Three pencils come in a red case and you could personalize the pencils with each child’s name. it’s only .79cents each!!!! the link is below. http://www.forteachersonly.com/static/products/18W.php?pv=1&item=18W
I like the card idea above, but it could be time consuming. What I did once was create an alphabet poem and used the letters to represent the students first names and special characteristics that each represented. I had multiple names sometimes with each letter, but it was fine. for example, I said "C" is for Charles thank you for your calmness and your diligence at getting your work done. Then, I tried to make the "D" line rhyme (it doesn’t have to though). If I got to a letter that I didn’t have a child that would be represented, I would say "Z" is for the zeal I feel when I teach you to read". I read the poem aloud and the kids loved it. You may want to end with, I will never forget you. Thank you for all the lessons you have taught me. What you may want to do is photo copy the finished poem and present it to the kids (wrap it up like a scroll and put curling ribbon around it) when you are done reading it.
Good Luck!
References :
http://www.forteachersonly.com/static/products/18W.php?pv=1&item=18W
You could get a book for the classroom with a personal inscription inside.
References :
Make sure this is ok with your master teacher first but the most appreciated gifts I’ve given my students over the years were Homework Passes. I make them on the computer and print them out – very inexpensive and the kids love them. I’ve also given out "Free Answer" Coupons for use on tests and "1 Minute Recess" coupons too (the kids can combine their recess coupons for extra class recess).
References :
When I was in second grade, our teacher bought us all these different games for the entire class. Games like Mononpoly or Scrabble or Connect Four or any other games that we didn’t have or lost the peices to. It was great fun. I think she bought us Jenga (you know, the game with the little blocks that say jenga on it and you have to build a tower with them and take one block out at a time until the tower falls over)All of us used to crowd around the tower until it fell over and we could play! It doesn’t have to be that expensive. It could be just a simple card game of maybe a board game like checkers. Whatever the game is, its always fun to get something new for the classroom!
References :
I was in second grade. =D
Being a teacher, you will need to know where to go to get things more often than this one time.
I swear by this place for all kinds of bulk goodie gifts:
http://www.orientaltrading.com/
You’ll thank me.
References :
Books
Go to a exchange book store and get a children books.
References :
Here is a tip for when you become a teacher. Use your Scholastic reward points to purchase book certificates for your students. I believe they are 95 cents each and are each good for a book priced up to 2.95 or 3.95.
Good luck!
References :
Find something that was specific to what you taught them. After reading about and studying turtles, I gave my 2nd grade class little turtle necklaces that I got at a flea market for $1 each. I still see my students 2 years later at school wearing those turtles!
References :
I would take pictures with the kids and then write a story and have it published ( you can buy the kit at Target). What a great memory for the kids!
References :
former 2nd grade teacher