Think about all the things your teachers do for you every day. Now multiply that by about a million, because there are so many things they do that you don’t even get to see. May is Teacher Appreciation Month, and while teachers deserve to be appreciated and celebrated all year long, don’t you think they deserve something a little extra-special this month for all their hard work?

Gift Cards

This might not seem very personal, but gift cards are useful to everyone! Who doesn’t love a gift card to your favorite convenience store or your local coffee shop? You can also get them a gift card to your favorite vegan restaurant, Barnes & Noble, a local bookshop, or a nice grocery store in town for picking up some vegan meals.

Offer to Help With Classroom Chores

Grab your cruelty-free cleaning supplies and offer to clean up the classroom. Ask if there’s anything else you can do to help, like organizing books, folders, files, or supplies.

Plants and Flowers

Plants truly breathe life into a room, and what classroom couldn’t use more color? Flower arrangements make beautiful gifts for the classroom or home. Succulents are also a great plant to give, because they last a long time and don’t need a lot of care. Some succulents even have specific uses, like aloe, which can treat wounds and sunburn.

Tea

Tea is a great gift because it’s almost always vegan. (Just avoid it if it has honey added).  We really love the Calming tea from Yogi.

Coffee Cup

If you’re getting your teacher some tea, you can put it in a TeachKind mug too. Let them know that they truly are teaching kindness to all kinds, like it’s their job.

Make a Donation

A thoughtful idea is to donate in your teacher’s name to a local animal shelter or sanctuary. This is a nice thing to do not only for her or him but also for animals.

Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy uses scents to address different issues. For example, scents can be used to calm or energize people, relieve stress, or help with sleeping or focusing. Aromatherapy products are great gifts that smell nice but aren’t generic candles or lotions. We love the Bath & Body Works aromatherapy line because it’s cruelty-free!

Animal-Friendly Books

Adding more books to your teacher’s classroom set would be a kind gesture! Teachers often go out of their way to fill their classroom library, and you can gift them with some animal-friendly books to have on their shelves. Some of our favorites include Junebug, Black Beauty, and Kayla the Vegan. For a more extensive list with proper age groups, you can check out TeachKind’s book list.

Cruelty-Free Manicure Set

Grab some vegan, cruelty-free nail polish (try Pacifica), some nail polish remover (like ella+mila), and a nail file. Then, write a big note that says, “Thank you for ….” Make a smaller note that says, “Polishing my skills,” and attach it to the nail polish. Attach a note that says, “Helping fix my mistakes” to the nail polish remover. And to the nail file, add a note reading, “Shaping my mind.” You can arrange it all together in a basket or bag as a perfect gift to let your teacher know how much you appreciate all the help with an animal-friendly manicure!

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Want more ways to make your school animal-friendly? Start here: