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With school around the corner, I’ve been trying to think up some cute ways to welcome Marlowe’s new second-grade teacher back to the school year. Even though our country has made some great strides since the vaccine in our battle against COVID, this year is shaping up to be just as unexpected as last year. It won’t be easy for kids OR students to navigate. I’m definitely going to be sending Marlowe to school on the first day with a little treat in her backpack!
I wanted to make a craft with her that was easy, but also had a store-bought component. Something homemade is always great, but I am lucky enough to have lots of teachers following me and my blog, and they always let me know that teachers LOVE gift cards. I decided to make a cute gift card holder that’s shaped like an apple, with a pencil stem! This craft is super inexpensive, and uses felt, a pencil, and any planter you may have. The little Hershey’s Kisses on the inside serve as a sweet treat, and help the gift card from banging around in there. I plan to fill our teacher’s “apple” with a gift card to Starbucks. Everyone needs a special latte from time to time, especially people dealing with multitudes of children in a classroom! LOL.
And because our teachers deserve a lot of extra help this year, I decided that I’m going to use this blog post to clear a teacher’s list! If you are a teacher, please comment below, and leave a link to your amazon list. Feel free to share a little about your classroom, too! I will pick one and clear the whole list.
If you are NOT a teacher but would like to clear a teacher’s list, feel free to browse around in the comments section and choose one! Just make sure to reply to the comment that you’ve cleared the list so people know that one has been taken. Thank you so much for helping me with this, and enjoy this back-to-school craft!
in this picture
Materials…
- Clay Pot
- Red Paint
- Foam Brush
- Green Felt
- Pencil
- Hot Glue Gun
- Hot Glue Inserts
- Hershey’s Kisses
- Gift Card
Step 2
Cut
When the paint has fully dried, cut a pencil about 2-3 inches from the eraser with a sharp knife, and glue it to the top of the clay pot’s lid with your glue gun.
Step 3
Glue
Take your green felt and cut out some leaves. You can also draw some detail on them with a dark green marker as I did, but it’s optional. Then adhere the leaves around the pencil resting on the clay pot’s lid with your glue gun.
Step 4
Fill
Finally, fill your pot with your Hershey’s Kisses and pop your gift card inside!
This is the cutest gift idea!!! I’m a 1st grade teacher in a title I school in Arizona. I have 24 amazing students! We started back to school on July 28, and it’s been an adjustment, as many of our students stayed online last year, so this is their first time at school. I love what you’re doing, helping teachers clear their lists! Thank you!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2V1MLTSA94CY4?ref_=wl_share
Hi! I’ve been a NYC public school teacher for 15 years, but I’m moving to first grade this year for the first time. I’m excited, but overwhelmed with all I need to make this a successful and fun year for my littles! Thank you for supporting teachers. 🙂
Wishing Marlowe and Major a great school year ahead!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3D4FG47WWGZQL/ref=nav_wishlist_lists_2?_encoding=UTF8&type=wishlist
Colette
I have taught in low income areas for all of my teaching career. I am currently teaching in Southwest Detroit and I love it very much. I usually end up buying all of the supplies myself so would be great if anyone could help.
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/HUS77XD8TEK7?ref_=wl_share
I have been teaching for over 10 years in low income areas and I love my job. I am currently teaching in southwest Detroit, I usually buy most of my supplies myself so anything can help.
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/HUS77XD8TEK7?ref_=wl_share
Oops I posted twice! Sorry
Hey! I went to grab a few things from your list. Are you able to change your settings so that it will ship to you?
Thank you so much for doing this and for supporting teachers! It’s so appreciated! My name is Katie and I am a public school teacher in New York. I have been teaching 4th grade for the last 4 years but this September will be my first experience as a 1st grade teacher! ? Our class ✨wish list✨ will help bring exciting activities, organization, and diverse books to the classroom. Thank you for your help making this school year fun! ???
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2NU5R9I2431EU?ref_=wl_share
Katie ???
Hi Katie! I’m happy to say you’ve been chosen by Team HEA as our list clearing recipient!
Best of luck during the year ahead and we hope this gift brings a smile to your face and sets the tone for a wonderful year for all your “kids”!
xoxoxo
Eva
Hi Eva,
THANK YOU so much for your support and generosity! ? I am truly overwhelmed and can’t wait to set up my classroom next week.? I am SO excited about moving to first grade and just want you to know that all of these ✨Wish List✨ items will help create a warm classroom environment, keep us organized and help with small group instruction and read aloud! I’ll be sure to share some photos once the year starts! Thanks so much again. ?????
Katie
This is so kind of you! I am a Special Education Teacher at an elementary school in Fairfield County, CT. Any help in clearing out lists is greatly appreciated!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/dl/invite/9SLb1AL?ref_=wl_share
Hi Tracy!
Can you add a shipping location!
Xo
I added a shipping address. Thank you!
Hi! Thanks so much for thinking of us!! I’m a proud Pre-K teacher from New Jersey. I can’t wait to get the party (school year) started in September!
?,
Moira
Opps here is my wish list ?
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3BA494A1A7L4B?ref_=wl_share
This is the cutest idea! May use for my director or administrative assistant- can’t forget them! I’m a Pre-K teacher and this will be my 8th year teaching. My favorite thing to do each year is build our library with new authors who are spreading messages of kindness, inclusivity and diversity. Thank you for your effort to clear the teacher lists because every year is different, every class is different and I can speak for many teachers when I say we spend so much of our own money (willingly and unwillingly) on creating warm and inviting spaces while also trying to keep up to ever changing standards! ❤️❤️
My Classroom List – Thank you!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/PY15CHIKO1JQ?ref_=wl_share
This is so cute. I can’t wait to do it with my daughter next week!
I am going back into the classroom after being a remote teacher for the last year and a half. I am going back to kindergarten as a special ed teacher in an inclusion classroom. I am so worried for the mental health component of all these little ones. The wish list I created is filled with social emotional books that deal with feelings, emotions as well as cultural identity and being true to oneself.
Thank you for appreciating teachers!
Hi Eva!
Thank you so much for doing this! I’m going into my second year as a 7th grade Special Education teacher in the Boston area. With my first year being as crazy as it was, I’m looking forward to having the opportunity to properly set up a classroom. I have a 17 amazing students!
All the best,
Meredith
Here’s the link!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2YND48MGD2PO2?ref_=wl_share
Thank you!!!
I love this. I can’t wait to do this with my daughter next week!
Thank you so much for posting teacher wish lists. Every little bit helps! I am a New York City schoolteacher who has been remote for the last year and a half. I’m going back into kindergarten as a special ed inclusion teacher. I am so worried about the mental health of these little ones. The wish list is made up of read aloud books that will target feelings and emotions as well as cultural identity and being true to oneself. Thank you!❤️????✏️?❤️
This is such a cute idea! I am a kindergarten teacher in a small town in Rhode Island. I’m returning to the classroom after taking maternity leave for most of last year. I love what you are doing! Thank you so much! https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/IUTR4EBLZP7T?ref_=wl_share
I’m a 2nd grade teacher at a Catholic School in Hawaii… a dream, right?!? It is but it’s also expensive and we receive very little funding. I have a list of some items that would help my classroom out this year.
Thank you for any/all help!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/25EB4LP10COC7?ref_=wl_share
This is so cute! I can’t wait to do it with my daughter next week.
Thank you so much for sharing teacher lists- every bit helps! I am a NYC teacher who has been remote for a year and a half. I am returning to an inclusion kindergarten class as the special education teacher. So many of our kids have not been in school yet. I am so worried about the mental health of all of our students. My list is made up of read aloud books that will target feelings and emotions as well as cultural identity and being accepting of one another and our differences.
Thank you so much!
First off, I LOVE the adorable teacher gift – hand-crafted gifts are my absolute fav! Second, THANK YOU for supporting teachers. This is my 9th year teaching Kindergarten in a title one school district. I strive to make an inviting and inspiring space for all my learners! Before public school, I taught in a Montessori setting and love pulling in components of that, too!
Hope your kiddos have a great school year – my son, Archer, starts kindergarten at my school with me! ❤️
Hi Eva!! I’m a fourth grade teacher in Marlborough, MA. My first year in fourth grade was last year and I moved jobs in the middle of a pandemic. I inherited a completely empty classroom and every book in my library is either lovingly gifted from friends and family or bought myself! My students are majority English Learners and I want my books and the characters in them to represent who they are! I also have a blind student this year who is the sweetest boy, and I have absolutely zero books in Braille. Sending books to my students would be the most helpful thing ever. It was hard because last year my students only got to read books online and this year I’m excited to let them have really paper books in their hands. I love that you’re doing this!!!
Hello! I am a 5th grade teacher in Massachusetts! I am so excited for the new year to start!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/SXG0MLXE22AN?ref_=wl_share
This is so nice! I am a 4th grade teacher in Los Angeles! I have 25 kiddos so excited to be back in the classroom! Thanks!
My wish list is: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1U0OXL026PRB2?ref_=wl_share
My name is Julie. I have been teaching students with autism in NJ for 20 years. I am passionate about my job and my students and love to do weekly themes (camping, space, animals) throughout the year to help teach my students not only a lesson, but the language, vocabulary and have tactile objects to correlate to the theme! I really am in need of games, sensory materials and hands in materials to keep my students engaged. Cheers to a great school year for your kiddos!
Hello!!
My name is Chrissy and I am a Kindergarten teacher!! I love my kiddos and look forward to seeing them soon!
Thank you for your support!
Oops ! Here is the link to my class wish list ! Thank you so much for all of your support!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/14GWRS8L3M5YH?ref_=wl_share
Hello!! Love this apple!! Such a great gift!!
I am a Kindergarten teacher and I can’t wait to see my new kiddos soon! I love teaching and Kindergarten is such a great year ! I get to see so much growth during the year.
I look forward to in person learning this year !
Thank you so much for supporting our classroom!
Here is my classroom wish list to help my students!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/14GWRS8L3M5YH?ref_=wl_share
Hi!
Thank you so much for using your platform to help teachers!
I teach in Port Chester, New York which borders Fairfield County. I’ve been teaching for 17 years (first grade) and this upcoming year I will be teaching in a new classroom and a new grade. Yay kindergarten!! My school is a high needs area with a large population of English Language Learners. Many of my kinder kids will come in with no school experience at all, so I want to make sure their first year is the BEST ever! Please consider choosing something off of my list to help me and my kiddos! Thank you ?
The link to my list:
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/155LFHLZUSY99?ref_=wl_share
This is a wonderful idea! Thank you for thinking of us teachers. I am 3rd grade teacher in California and have an amazing class this year. My scholars are true survivors after last year and are real troopers with all of the Covid precautions we must take this year. We are so happy and grateful to be back together in person. Thank you again for this amazing idea. It’s so very appreciated!
Forgot to include my link!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1D3818PZ984MW?ref_=wl_share
Hi I am Deaf teacher. This fall it will be my 21st year of teaching. I have been teaching virtually for 18 months. Now that we will be returning to school in person this year.
Unfortunately I haven’t made a list from Amazon of items I needed/wanted for my classroom. All I wanted is any good graphic novels books for my high school students. I am teaching ELA (English Language Arts).
It’s so nice of you making this craft for teachers. We all sure need to be reminded how good and hard work we have been with our students. ?
Thank you for thinking of us teachers!
Jennifer
??
Love this teacher gift idea! I am a special education teacher at Monroe #1 Boces. Unlike a typical district we do not get money to buy new supplies for our classroom. Love that you are doing this! Love following your blog!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3KM8WJWV55LZ9?ref_=wl_share
Love this! I have a kindergartener and 2’s grade starting school in September, will have to try this! Thank you for sharing! I am a special education teacher at Monroe Boces in Rochester, NY! I love that you are doing this for teachers! Thank you!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3KM8WJWV55LZ9?ref_=wl_share
Hi!
I am a kindergarten teacher in Port Chester, NY. I am moving to kindergarten this upcoming year after teaching first grade for the past 16 years. My school is in a high needs area with majority of the students being English language Learners. I’m so excited to teach kindergarten because for most of my students it is their very first experience in a classroom. I feel like it’s my job to create a warm, loving environment that makes them LOVE school! I am up for the challenge but need your help. Please consider donating from my wish list to help these little learners in Port Chester. Thank you so very much!!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/155LFHLZUSY99?ref_=wl_share
Thanks Eva for doing this!
This is so cute! I’m a second grade teacher in Hartford and am so excited to meet my 24 new little friends in about a week! ☺️ Here’s my wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/210K41CJTT3QY?ref_=wl_share
Thank you for supporting teachers!!
This is amazing, kind and thoughtful of you. Teachers really appreciate every little thing people do to help move their students forward. I am a Kindergarten Teacher from Brooklyn NY and I work in a NYC public school and I know everyone is lacking supplies for the upcoming school year due to lack of supplies we did not get the prior year due to covid. woohoo. Even if my list does not get chosen thanks for all you do.
Hi,
I think I linked my list in the wrong spot So here it is. https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3F2IOYAI31NX9?ref=cm_sw_em_r_un_un_sb1gsJyUrOObQ
Thank you so much for sharing teacher lists! ❤️ This will be my 9th year teaching Kindergarten in a title one district. Can’t wait to go back next week!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1R6G4RIFU2RI5?ref_=wl_share
Eva, what a wonderful idea! Thank you! I’m a preschool/pre-k teacher. It is a joy to help the littlet learners in my community. Here’s my wish list.
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2MJ2BYU607JB6?ref_=wl_share
Hello!!
I just stared my 18th year teaching this week, and it’s off to a crazy start. Teaching during these times is tough, especially in Texas! My list has a ton of books, I teach 3rd grade ELA and love instilling the passion of reading in my students. There are also some other STEM activities on my list.
Thank you for helping teachers!!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2CIU1RALGV5ZM?ref_=wl_share
This is too cute! I love handmade items, it feels very thoughtful to whoever receives it ❤️ I’m a teacher and will always appreciate a handwritten note just saying thanks. I’ve always saved those type of gifts throughout the years and love finding them and remembering the student that gave it to me. Thank you for helping out teachers; I’ve never done the clear the list but after moving to a new school and teaching a whole new grade I would appreciate any help. I am now working at a title 1 elementary in South FL, teaching 4th & 5th grade reading/ELA, and many of my students cannot afford all their supplies. I’ve already spent a large chunk of $ getting my classroom ready but am still missing some things. I would love to provide more tactile and interactive reading activities for my struggling readers after a year of online learning. Here is my list: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/10T7VPKCG3T76?ref_=wl_share
Anything helps! Thank you ☺️
I will be teaching 1st-3rd graders with Autism at a new school this fall. I am always looking for tools to help make learning more accessible, engaging, and fun. The items on this list will directly support each student with his/her IEP goals as well as communication, behavioral, gross/fine motor, and sensory needs. The books will help create a more diverse classroom library. Gift cards will be used to buy snacks, cleaning supplies, and other essential items as needs arise. Thank you!
I will be teaching 1st-3rd graders with Autism at a new school this fall. I am always looking for tools to help make learning more accessible, engaging, and fun. The items on this list will directly support each student with his/her IEP goals as well as communication, behavioral, gross/fine motor, and sensory needs. The books will help create a more diverse classroom library. Gift cards will be used to buy snacks, cleaning supplies, and other essential items as needs arise. Thank you!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/130B6JQJAYC58?ref_=wl_share
I am definitely going to make the craft for my daughter’s teacher.
I teach in Math and Science in Fairfield County. Thank you so much for doing this. I have two classes; my morning class has 19 students and my afternoon class has 18 students.
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2OFR98DW87HFA?ref_=wl_share
Any help would be greatly appreciated 🙂
Such a cute idea ? Thank you for doing this and for supporting teachers! I’m a 7th grade ELA teacher in Connecticut, and I can’t wait to welcome back 100 students to my classroom in a few weeks. I am wishing for more high-interest books, social emotional learning materials, and school supplies that will help get my students excited about learning. Thank you for helping me make this a positive and productive year! ?? https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/OL48HHB5BHF0?ref_=wl_share
Hi Eva! I love this craft! I’m Brigit and I teach in Hartford, CT at a title 1 public Montessori school. This will be my 5th year in my classroom, teaching grades 1-3. In Montessori, our classrooms are multiage. My classroom and school are extremely diverse. I am expecting 27 kiddos, some who have not been back to school in over a year because they were remote. I’d love for them to feel welcome back to the room (and school in general), with a lot of options for seating so they feel comfortable and are also able to give one another space as delta spreads. Our classrooms do not allow for a lot of space between one another because there are so many kids! Thanks!!!! https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/KBNTXW6HM166?ref_=wl_share
Hi Eva! I love this craft! I’m Brigit and I teach in Hartford, CT at a title 1 public Montessori school. This will be my 5th year in my classroom, teaching grades 1-3. In Montessori, our classrooms are multiage. My classroom and school are extremely diverse. I am expecting 27 kiddos, some who have not been back to school in over a year because they were remote. I’d love for them to feel welcome back to the room (and school in general), with a lot of options for seating so they feel comfortable and are also able to give one another space as delta spreads. Our classrooms do not allow for a lot of space between one another because there are so many kids! Thanks!!!! https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/KBNTXW6HM166?ref_=wl_share
This is so generous of you to use your platform for supporting educators. It has been such a difficult three years!
The majority of the items on my list are to support and boost our classroom library to be more racially diverse. It is my personal goal this year to work on acknowledging my own implicit bias as well as engage my 5th graders in conversations about diversity. We also spend a lot of time outside in the Vermont woods and some materials support our Forest Friday’s.
Thank You!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3JT7OHQWS8ZQ6?ref_=wl_share
I’d be SO appreciative if people could clear my list for my public school Kindergarten classroom in Boston, MA 🙂 More about my classroom and what we’re wishing for in this link: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1VBBNYQXQDU8?ref_=wl_share
Hi! I am a teacher in Jersey City and have been there for 16 years (since I began teaching). We have a very diverse population of students from different ethnicities, socioeconomic statuses and cultures. I wanted some extra supplies on hand and some things to enhance our literacy, learning and classroom! Thanks so much for your support Eva!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2CTJ05Z52W4TV/ref=nav_wishlist_lists_2?_encoding=UTF8&type=wishlist