The Gift Basket Collection #1: Teacher Appreciation 101

Tuesday, July 28, 2026

 

It's that time of year – back to school sales, pumpkin spice colors everywhere, and Hobby Lobby is putting out their Christmas stuff! 😜 That means it is time to start gearing up for the gift giving season. Starting now helps you spread it out over many paychecks, which is helpful for everyone as prices never seem to stop going up.



This year, I will be doing a blog series called The Gift Basket Collection. I'll share ideas for how to create your own thoughtful, creative, and handmade gift baskets that look amazing, but are cost effective. You can follow along and do it yourself, or you can save time and purchase these ready-made gift baskets at The Rusty Petal in Loveland, CO. I will also have a booth at the Pinecrest Community Church Harvest Festival on September 19th at 7165 Delbert Road Parker, CO. If you're in the Southern Colorado area, come check out what I have available! 


Teacher Appreciation 101

With back-to-school vibes in the air, we're going to start with teacher appreciation gift baskets! You can make a gift look really special and thoughtful without breaking the bank. These gift baskets are great as a beginning of year gift, a teacher birthday or Christmas present, or for teacher appreciation. They are gender neutral, so they should work for any teacher. Here are some fun basket variations you can try. 


This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a small stipend if you use my links to purchase items, but at no cost to you.


If You Give a Dog a Donut

I love adding a book to a teacher gift basket for their classroom library. Elementary teacher's love picture books! There is a whole series of these books by Laura Numeroff that are a circular story. These books have been around for awhile, so you will probably be able to find a used copy in good condition. The original book in this series is called, If You Give A Mouse a Cookie. That is the starting sentence, and the next line is, he'll want a glass of milk to go with it. Then it goes through a series of crazy things that the mouse wants because one thing reminds him of something else. Then it ends back at the beginning with a cookie and a glass of milk. The gift tag and theme for this gift basket is a play on that idea: If you Give a Teacher a Donut, She'll/he'll want a cup of coffee to go with it. This lends itself to giving a personalized gift with a dog theme that includes coffee and a donut! Here is what is in the gift basket:
You can make variations of this gift basket by adding the same base gifts (reusable coffee cup, reusable coffee koozie, coffee gift card in a handmade gift card holder, teacher gift tag) but with a different book that gives you a different theme:



One Smart Cookie

This book, The Smart Cookie, is part of a series called The Food Group by Jory John. These books teach different character traits with punny food themes. In The Smart Cookie, Cookie crumbles because she struggles in school and has a hard time finding what she is good at until she finds a way to shine through her poetry. This series is really popular in classrooms right now, and they are on sale as part of the Kohl's Cares Collection along with matching stuffies! Unfortunately, the sale price at Kohl's has gone up, but it's still a better deal than a brand new book. Not to mention, 100% of the net profit for Kohl's Cares books and toys go to initiatives that support families. This book series is pretty new, so you're unlikely to find used copies of these books at garage sales or Goodwill. If you hurry, you can still find them at Kohl's. Here is what is in the gift basket:



The Humble Pie

Another book in this Food Group series by Jory John is Humble Pie. In this story, Pie likes to be in the background, and his best friend cake is often in the spotlight. When Cake is too busy to help with their team project, Pie finds a way to kindly stand up for himself and ask for help. This book is part of the Kohl's Cares Collection as well. There is also a stuffie that goes with it that you could choose as an option in your gift basket because elementary teachers love putting stuffies--especially stuffies that match books--in their classroom! I just wanted to have some variation, so I did not choose it this time. Here is what is in this basket:
  • Book: The Humble Pie
  • Handmade Silent Ball from Emily's Art Room - this is a perfect gift for a teacher! The instructions say: 'Students spread out around the room. Without talking, they throw the ball to someone else. If it is dropped, both students are out and sit down. You can’t throw the ball to the same person twice until only 2 people are left. ' I use it all the time in my classroom for transitions or when we have a few extra minutes to wait. Kids LOVE it K-5!
  • Handmade Apple Pie burnless candle from Emily's Art Room -- burnless candles are perfect for classrooms because you cannot have a candle flame. Made with epsom salt and essential oils, just open the lid to fill the room with the smell of a freshly baked apple pie. If the smell bothers a student who is sensitive to smell, just put the lid back on. The epsom salt soaks in the smell and keeps it smelling great for months.
  • Red Giant Party Cup Bucket -- spring sale at Hobby Lobby--get them while they last!
  • Red crinkle cut paper shred to line the bottom of the basket
  • Optional: add an apple or a pie!
  • Optional: wrap the gift basket in clear gift wrap with a bow


The Bad Seed

Another book in the Food Group book series by Jory John is The Bad Seed. In this book, Seed has a reputation for making some bad choices and having a bad attitude, but another seed helps him learn that things can be different. Also a book in the Kohl's Cares Collection, you can get a bad seed stuffie to go with your book if you choose. Here is what is in this gift basket:
  • Book: The Bad Seed
  • Handmade Silent Ball from Emily's Art Room - this is a perfect gift for a teacher! The instructions say: 'Students spread out around the room. Without talking, they throw the ball to someone else. If it is dropped, both students are out and sit down. You can’t throw the ball to the same person twice until only 2 people are left. ' I use it all the time in my classroom for transitions or when we have a few extra minutes to wait. Kids LOVE it K-5!
  • Handmade Faux Plant Sweater Collection - Medium from Emily's Art Room. Not all classrooms have windows, so a faux plant brings a homey touch of green into the classroom, and it's wearing a handmade sweater which gives the space cozy vibes. 
  • Basket - Goodwill
  • Black crinkle cut paper shred to line the bottom of the basket
  • Optional: add some sunflower seeds or trail mix
  • Optional: wrap the gift basket in clear gift wrap with a bow


The Cool Bean

The last gift basket I'm going to share in the teacher appreciation 101 gift basket collection is another book in the Food Group book series by Jory John called The Cool Bean. In this book, Bean is friends with all the other beans until they come back from summer, and they are the cool beans. Bean has a hard time fitting in, until he realizes he's fine just being himself. This book and stuffie are also available in the Kohl's Cares Collection. Here is what is in this gift basket:

I hope these gift baskets gave you some inspiration for creating your own teacher appreciation gift basket with a handmade touch! As a teacher myself, I only curated things that I would (and do!) use in my own classroom, so they are teacher approved. Don't forget that I have these baskets for sale at The Rusty Petal in Loveland, CO, and I will be selling a few in my booth at Pinecrest Community Church Harvest Festival on September 19th in Parker, CO. I hope you'll come visit me there!

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