DIY Teacher Gifts

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Have a bunch of teachers on your list? Here are some DIY teacher gifts your teacher would love to get!

We are hot off the heels of Thanksgiving and gearing up for Christmas around here. There is a special group of people on our list every year…teachers! I have so much respect and admiration for what teachers do and today I am sharing a group of DIY teacher gifts you can make to show your teacher appreciation this holiday season.

Maps have been on my brain since the gift list I shared a while back and I channeled that into my teacher gift idea. Some time ago I was given a fabulous stack of old National Geographic maps and they are begging to be used. I pulled them out and dusted them off for this gift idea. Since teachers truly shape our children and help put them on the road to success I thought it would be fun to showcase the town that our teachers are making a direct impact on through the children they teach.

We live in Bryan, Texas and have been BLESSED with some amazing teachers. There have been quite a few awesome male teachers in the bunch too I might add! I always want to share something special with them, but with three kids, each having multiple teachers, it can get expensive. Throw in there a mix of male and female teachers and gift ideas can get rough. This teacher gift idea costs very little money, would work for men or women and is extremely personal…that’s a win win win in my book! 

Start by getting an old map (you could find some online if you don’t have one on hand). I made copies of the target area so I could make multiple gifts and still use the map for other projects. Get good color copies on heavy cardstock, this will cost you around $1 each.

Next find the shape you want to use in the size you want to display, print and cut it out.

With a bright light behind you, hold the shape to your map and get the focal point centered (please disregard my dog slobbered window!). Trace the shape on the back of the map and cut out.

If you are like me I am not the best at cutting so I like to fray the edges of my paper for a more finished and rustic look. Simply scrape the scissor blade on the edge of the paper all the way around your shape.

Glue your shape to a coordinating background (I used heavy cardboard stock). Break a brown crayon for the stem and glue with a heavy all-purpose glue.

Use the paper from a green crayon for the leaf. Tip: Slice down the paper with your scissor blade to easily peel the wrapper off in one piece. Glue on.Find an old frame and paint it to match or maybe even make one yourself! You could mount the teacher’s apple on wood for a more rustic look. There are so many different ways to share this gift idea. And FYI…you can make a bunch of them at once, quick and easy!

I think you could jazz up this teacher gift with a name or the date your teacher started teaching for an even more personalized touch. These would be great gifts for Teacher Appreciation Week as well!

If you want some other lovely teacher gift ideas visit my friends below (they aren’t JUST for teachers!)

11 Magnolia Lane

Craving Some Creativity

Robb Restyle

I Should Be Mopping The Floor

My Life From Home

Lehman Lane

Thanks so much for stopping by, don’t forget to pin these projects for later!