Creative Ways to Give Money as a Gift

Since my last post, I have discovered a few other creative ideas for ways to give money found on Faith, Trust and a Little Pixie Dust.
A money lei is the perfect way to congratulate the grad in your life!  Michelle has a tutorial to show you how to make one.

She also has a tutorial for how to make a money tie and an ATM machine.  I have been to several bridal showers where an ATM machine was given as a gift.  I love the idea of both!!

One more great idea for the graduate in your life that comes from the same blog, is to make a personalized pillowcase.  Write down any advice, thoughts, quotes, memories, etc. in permanent marker so your new college student can always remember memories from home or what they should do without you there to tell them! :)

Graduation {Balloon} Gift

Recently my daughter was invited to a birthday party which I wasn't prepared for with a present so we had to do some quick thinking.  Everyone loves to get money right?  Well that's the approach we took, only we wanted to make it a little more exciting than just money in a card.  I took 5 - $1 bills and rolled them up one at a time.  I stuck $1 inside of each balloon and then had them blown up with helium.  (You can see a dollar in the green balloon.)  We decided to fill a gift bag with candy and tie the balloons to the bag. 

Since graduation is right around the corner and money seems to be a popular thing to give, wouldn't this be a perfect idea?!?  Maybe more than just $5 for a graduate though! :)  Another idea is to fill balloons with gift certificates.  Whatever you decide to fill your gift balloons with, make sure your balloon doesn't get away from you!

Mother's Day Gifts

OH. MY. GOODNESS. Am I glad to see Friday here or what?  What a week.  I am sure most of you are feeling the same way!  This was such a great week with it being Teacher Appreciation week, but this close to the end of the school year also made it a crazy week.  Anyway, I realize that it is probably too late for any more Mother's Day ideas with your students, but if you are still looking for a craft idea to do with your own kids, then maybe one of these ideas can help.
I really liked this idea from Second Grade is Splendid.  

She used these {personalized} tiles as coasters, but I was thinking of something similar to these only using the tiles as...well...tiles.  I am sure you have seen tiles with vinyl sayings on them which sit in a stand (small easel).  Whichever way works for you, I think it would make a simple, cute and personal gift for mom!
Another really great mom idea is this bottle of leMOMade from Diary of a First Grade Teacher.

What did my class do for the moms this year?  Well my inspiration came from IKEA.  On a quick run into the store last weekend (literally in and out in 15 minutes) I was searching for small easels to make the tile project (mentioned above).  IKEA did not have any easels, but while I was looking in the picture department, I came across these 2 sided picture frames for only $0.99 each.

When I saw them I instantly thought of how perfect these would make for a Mother's Day gift, especially since I still didn't have an idea.  Well here is what we ended up doing with them:
I gave the kids each a 4 x 6 white cardstock and told them to draw a picture of their moms the best that they could.  Here are a few...

 Then I gave them each a questionnaire about their moms that they had to fill out with their best spelling and handwriting.  (Sorry the first one turned out blurry.)

My mom is a good cook because she makes _________________. (#1 answer:  hotdogs!)
My mom taught me how to _____________________.
I know my mom is smart because she knows how to _______________.
My mom makes me laugh when she _____________.
I know my mom loves me because she _____________.
(All of my students have moms, but be sensitive to those who don't!)

The last thing the kids got to do was decorate their picture frames anyway they wanted using Sharpies.  Each student decorated a lunch sack for their gift bag and took them home today.  I think the moms should appreciate these frames.  After all, don't most moms love a good homemade gift?!?

Mother's Day Portraits

I absolutely love this Mother's Day idea for the classroom!  The idea comes from Lesson Plans SOS but can be purchased from TpT HERE.  I am not so sure it would work for my 1st graders, unless I adjusted the prices and kept the same concept.  I think 2nd and 3rd graders would find this to be a blast though!!

Basically the students were allowed a $5.00 budget to spend on "mom" items at the Ma Store.  They were given a price list of the mom items and had to come up with what they would spend their money on.  Once their lists were approved, the kids could buy their items and begin creating their moms.  Some of the items to buy included buttons, googly eyes, hair, clothing, jewelry, etc.  Honestly, these are so stinkin' cute!  Here's a look at a few more, but head over to Lesson Plans SoS for the full scoop.

Further down on their post, they described about a Mom Spa the class hosted for the moms.  Sounds like a fun activity!

Mother's Day Ideas

With Mother's Day being only a few days from now, if you haven't found something yet, it's not too late!  Check out these ideas...
Frogs and Bees Under the Seas has FREE downloadable gift tags for Mother's Day.

A super cute All About Mom book that is a FREE download from Fabulous in First.

Make some Mother's Day Stationary using the template from In the Teacher's Lounge.

Several Art ideas for Mother's Day from Art Projects for Kids.

GREAT new craft ideas over at the Crafty Crow.



What are you doing for your moms?  I will be sharing what my class did  today later {hopefully tonight} after a ball game...

TpT Sale Extended!!

Last night was frustrated with TpT (Teachers Pay Teachers) because of the technical difficulties they were having in maintaining their site.  I assumed it was because of the large amounts of people on their site for their fabulous deal and I was right.  So many people were on supporting the TpT sale that their site continued to crash.  Lucky for us, most of the teachers who were involved in the 20% off (plus the 20% off - matched by TpT) sale will continue through today and some through the rest of the week!  Thank you to all you wonderful teachers for extending your sale!  If you haven't already tried TpT, check it out for a 40% savings today!  Remember the code: TAD11 at the checkout!!

Fortunate to Have Your Help!

 I have had {8} of the best parents this year.  Ok so I have really had more than just 8 fabulous parents, but those 8 I am referring to have been my parent helpers.  They have been so good about coming into my classroom to work with my students on reading, math skills, and any project we might be working on.  I wanted to give them each something to tell them thank you, so I came up with this:

I started with these fortune cookies I found at Walmart.  There are about 12 in a box for a little over a dollar.

 I grabbed some {chocolate and vanilla} almond bark (located by the chocolate chips).

 Then it was time for dipping.  I melted 4 squares (half the package) of almond bark in a small sauce pan and heated it on the stove on LOW heat.  You need to be sure to stir the almond bark continually so it doesn't scorch, but overall very easy.  When I was done, I dipped the fortune cookies one at a time into the {melted} almond bark and then dipped them into sprinkles.  Some I left just plain chocolate.  Then I laid them on wax paper to harden and set up.

I them added 10 to a take out box, padded by tissue paper...5 of each kind.  I found the take out boxes at Walmart down the party aisle.  They came in packages of 4 and I think they were $1.50/package.  Overall, a very easy way to let my parents know how I appreciated all their hard work.

 My (6th grade) daughter decided she wanted to make a candy gram poster for her teacher for teacher appreciation.  I think she did a pretty good job!

I still have so many teacher appreciation ideas I will be sharing.  This happens to be a crazy busy week though so bare with me.

Teacher - You really MEASURE Up!

For my son's {preschool} teachers, he will be taking these treats to school next week.

In case you can't tell...a ruler tied on to a box of fruit by the foot with a note attached saying "You really MEASURE up!"

Luckily, I have the rest of the weekend to finish up all my other ideas.  I am working on a gift for my parent volunteers so check back...

SUPER Door Decoration

Even though this was used as a bulletin board during teacher appreciation week, it could easily be changed to a door decoration!  I love this SUPER idea from The Teacher's Wife!

Teacher Appreciation - A Week of Ideas

So it is 10:00 and I should be getting ready for bed since I do need to be getting up at 5:45am (YUCK!), but instead I am waiting for my sheets to dry.  I hate when I forget that kind of thing! 
I came across some great ideas from Pens and Needles.  She sent simple gifts each day during teacher appreciation week.  If that seems a little much for you, I have broken it down day-by-day so you can pick one that works for you.
You're Tea-riffic:

You're Out of This World!

You're oFISHally a great teacher:

Thanks for making me a SMARTIE!

We need S'MORE teachers like you...fill a lunch sack with marshmallows, graham crackers and chocolate!

On a side note, I had a friend from my {small} town mention that she came across this blog.  I don't know why but I am still embarrassed by that.  Am I weird or what?  I really don't publicize this blog to my friends, so when others I know come across it I think they are caught off guard as much as I am by them finding it.  Does that make sense?  Do others feel the same way?  No matter, I love this blog for many reasons.  It allows me to find great ideas for teaching, clear my mind, and share any ideas I come across.  Thanks for listening and thanks for letting me share all your terrific ideas on here!!

Time for An Easter Party with these Treats!

If you have a family, classroom, church or friend Easter party to attend this weekend, maybe one of these treats will inspire you.  Hey even if you don't have a party to attend, maybe you will want to host one after seeing these...
From Family Go here are some Easter cupcake animals:

Some {rabbit} carrot cupcakes...might be fun to eat after watching the new Hop movie!:

Some easy grab and go treats from Make and Takes:
Marshmallow Bunny or Recess's PB "suckers"

From the Creative Itch, these totally adorable chick cookies:

Oreo Chicks from Brown Paper Packages:

I love holidays!  It's so much fun spending time with the family.  Oh and of course, having a 5 day break from school isn't bad either!  I can't wait to get some things done around the house.  Spring cleaning is definitely calling out to me!

Personalized Easter Baskets

With Easter being just ONE WEEK from tomorrow (YIKES!...that soon already!?!...actually it feels like it should have been forever ago!)  here is a super solution for your kiddos' Easter baskets (and grass).  This idea is from Brown Paper Packages.

If you are lucky enough to have a Silhouette, simply cut out the names of your children in vinyl and attach it to the color of bucket your child likes.  Kierste mentioned that she found this brightly colored spring buckets in the gardening section of Target for only $2.99.  Another reason why I love Target!!

The grass that was used was shredded cardstock.  A do-it-yourself straight from the paper shredder!  I absolutely LOVE this Easter basket idea!! 

Inspired By Blogland...

I've got to say that I love blogging and I love the blogging world!  This blog has opened my eyes to the teaching world so much more.  I love all of the great ideas and creative people who are willing to share their talent...it makes me love teaching that much more.  This post is a shout out to some of those wonderful people. 
A few weeks ago when my class was talking about weather, I decided to spend one day having a "rainbow day".  Our math center (I had a parent there to help with this) was graphing skittles.  My kids thought it was such a fun math idea...who can blame them?  We made these rainbows using tear art and wrote what each color reminded us of.  This idea came from Made for 1st Grade.  We also did the Roy G. Biv featured on their site.  That activity got things rolling by introducing the colors of the rainbow.

 Inspired by none other than Babbling Abby at the Inspired Apple, I decided to use her great popcorn idea to bring adjectives to life for my firsties.  My kids were amazed that you could pop popcorn in anything other than a microwave and I have to admit this was my first time {ever} using an air popcorn popper.  YIKES!

I love this next idea!  Isn't it funny how when you use a word like "PARTY" everything is suddenly more exciting!?!  My kids saw a package of gum and a package of balloons on my desk and asked if they were for them.  Of course they were, but I had to leave them guessing so I told them they were for our balloon party.  To a first grader, I am sure they were picturing balloons and confetti.  I must say they weren't too disappointed with our activity though.  As of today this idea became my current bulletin board and the teachers around the school were loving it.  Right now as part of our writing unit, we are teaching the kids about the writing process using the words First, Next, Then and Finally.  This project was perfect for reinforcing the skill and it is a FREE download at TpT thanks for Lesson Plans SOS. 

When I brought out the gum and told them we would be chewing gum {in class} and practicing blowing bubbles some of the kids just about died.  They wanted to know if the principal knew we were breaking the rules and if we would be getting in trouble.  You have to love the innocence of a 1st grader!

Thanks A Latte!

I'm not a coffee drinker, but for those teachers who are, this gift idea would be perfect for them!  I first saw this idea at The Sellers.  She made these gifts not for teachers, but for staff she worked with so really this gift idea could go to just about anyone...including parent volunteers.  I like the cute little cozy she made to go along with each cup.  Each cup were also filled with a gift certificate to Starbucks!
Skip To My Lou has also done this idea.  I like the way she wrapped it all up.

Super cute ladies!

Personalized Hand Sanitizer

If you are a teacher or around kids very often, one thing you are sure to know is that they always have germy little hands.  So what is better than giving a teacher some custom hand sanitizer for teacher appreciation!?!  Cute and very practical!
This first picture is courtesy of Adventures of Room 129.  To make this, she used clear avery labels and if you stop by her blog, you will see that she has included a free download for this label.  Thank you Mrs. Harris!!

This next hand sanitizer comes from How Does She?  She chose to use vinyl on her sanitizer.  Check out the link to see the tutorial on how to make this...

This last way involves a soap dispenser instead of hand sanitizer, although that would probably work with this method too.  You will use an overhead transparency sheet.  Basically print your saying and print it out on the sheet.  Cut it down to size and slip it in the bottle.  The more detailed instructions I had saved on my computer, but I didn't have where I found this from so I am sorry for not having the link.  If this is your idea, please let me know so I may give you credit.  Thanks!

Personalized Soap Dispenser

Needed:
Soap container (Item #B3222 at Industrial Container)
Pump topper (Item #DP111E at Industrial Container)
8½"x11" paper with individual templates for copying or printing
Transparencies with copied templates
Paper cutter
Wire cutters or heavy duty scissors
Clear hand soap

Directions
Purchase soap container and pump toppers at Industrial Container. Together, they cost $ .83. Using wire cutters or scissors, trim the pump topper so that it will fit in the container.
Create a template for each container on your computer. First create a text box (3.2"Hx2.5"W). In several different fonts, type the words to the "hand text." (See picture) There will be some blank room below the text. That will help the text show up in the correct place when trimmed and placed in the soap container. Copy the text box and paste several next to each other. I fit 9 on a page. At the top, you can put the name of the teacher.
Print or copy templates onto transparencies. (Using a laser printer or copy machine.) Cut out each text box, trimming to just over 3 inches high by 2 ½ inches wide. Roll up and put into the container. Fill the container with clear soap. Screw the pump topper on top and decorate with holiday ribbon. (You can give this alone, or add a hand towel.)