End of the Year Gifts for Kindergarten

End of the year gifts seem to be somewhat of a hot topic. What do I give them? Why do I need to give them anything? These are questions that I have heard recently. So I thought I would break down for you what I did this year - and how much I $pent!

Here's my two-cents 

No, we do not NEED to give our students anything. But I WANT to. We have just spend 180 days together. Learning and growing from one another. I do not give them a a gift because it is expected, I give it to them as a reminder of the time we had together. I also do not expect parents to give me an end the year gift either. But the ones who do see it as a thank you. That's a way to look at my gifts as well. A thank you for working so hard during the school. And a well wish for the upcoming year.

What I Gave

Here's a look into my gifts for the end of the year. Disclaimer - it looks like I spent a lot, but I will break it down for you at the end!

I just have to give a shout out to Target for a second! They hooked me up in March! All of the Dr. Seuss items I snagged in the Dollar Section of Target. I saw those bags and knew it's what I would use for my goodie. 

What's Inside

I do a "oh the places you'll go" theme to encourage my students to dream big. So I was sure to stop at multiple stores to get what I needed!

1 - Pencils - Target - $1 for a pack of 6

2 - Bookmarks - Target - $1 for a pack of 8 (I think)

3 - Mini Hard Cover Notbooks - this was my splurge at $1 a piece

4 - Glow stick - Dollar Store $1 for 8 (Tag free - see below for TPT link)

5 - Book - Scholastic Book Club - $1 or use your bonus points (I got the same book for all my kids, because it went with my classroom theme - but you could spend the year getting a few at a time)

6 - Hand print pillow case - priceless - okay really there was a cost - I had to buy the labels which were $12 for 10 sheets (about) and then the parents sent in the pillow cases.

What I Spent

Altogether I spent $51, which comes to a little over $3 per kid. To me, it is worth it as I want to have my impact on them last as long as possible. 

If you are not looking to spend that much -turn to TPT! There are so many adorable tags to go with items such as glow sticks, pencils, bubbles, gold fish, play dough and more! How adorable is this tag I snagged as a FREEBIE from Creatively Teaching First.

I understand that each teacher is different, but to me this was a small thing to do for a year of hard work and learning!

Do you give gifts? I'd love to hear your ideas!