With the end of the school year around the corner, you may be wondering how you can say "thank you" to that special teacher that has guided your child throughout the year. Here are a few suggestions that any teacher would appreciate:

Here’s a whimsical gift that would make any teacher chuckle! Have your child decorate a fabric lunch bag with fabric paints, stamps and stickers. Then, using fabric paint, write the words “Teacher’s Survival Kit” on the flap of the lunch bag. Fill the lunch bag with several of the items listed below; on each, attach a label explaining the gift's significance.

Because of budget cutbacks in many school districts, teachers must often shell out their own money to buy educational supplies and materials. A thoughtful gesture would be to give your child’s teacher a nice thank you card, then tuck in a gift certificate for an office supply store like Office Depot or crafts store like joann.com  

If you want to do something really unique, give that teacher a gift certificate to theThe History Channel online store or to A&E's online store where they can purchase historical and other educational videos that they can enjoy both at home and in the classroom.  English literature teachers might enjoy a gift from Sullivan Boutique which sells books, videos and DVDs  from the Anne of Green Gables series. 

Your child can help with this one! Mix up a batch of rolled sugar cookie dough then use a hand-shaped cookie cutter to cut it out.  Bake and cool. Have your child decorate a plain round tin by placing his outstretched hand in some paint and  pressing his hand on the tin several times. Line the tin with a matching napkin, tuck in the cookies and include a note that says “Thank you for the helping hand this year!”

Teachers who use stickers on their students’ papers would love to receive a supply of stickers! You can find a wonderful selection with many different themes at the eSticker website.  Buy a two handfuls of stickers, then put them in a terracotta pot that has been painted each student in the class.  (Handprints or autographed names are nice, too.)   Incidentally, this is also a great gift for a teacher that enjoys scrapbooking. 

Inspiring words

When the going gets tough, many teachers year to hear a few encouraging and inspiring words. That's when they will gratefully look toward a book like Pam Brown's To a Very Special Teacher... .  Another option is the whimsical schoolhouse-shaped book called For My Teacher  Both of these books can be found at Amazon.com for less than $8.