back to school teacher gift

Back to School Teacher Snack Bar

Posted by

2

I abandoned my traditional Teacher Emergency Kit back to school gift this year for a teacher snack bar that all the teachers at my school could enjoy. My children attend the school where I teach, and traditionally, I have made THESE KITS for my kid’s homeroom teachers. Well, my son and daughter are in middle school now (*sniff*), and they see multiple teachers throughout the day. I thought setting up a snack bar in the teacher kitchen for everybody to enjoy would be a great way to thank all the teachers.

back to school teacher snack bar teacher appreciation gift idea

Last spring during Teacher Appreciation Week, I put together a BEVERAGE BAR, and I used that same idea but with snacks. The interesting thing is that everyone commented on loving the salty snacks. I think when people bring treats for teachers, it is often cookies, cakes, muffins… I made a mental note to provide salty teacher treats more often.

back to school teacher snack bar teacher appreciation gift idea

Setting up a Teacher Snack Bar

I made Spicy Ritz Crackers, Tijuana Tidbit Snack Mix (CLICK HERE), and my daughter baked brownies. We put the mixes in cookie tins, the brownies on a platter, and set out napkins, small plates, and small 5-oz plastic tumbler cups to hold the snack mix. All the snacks were on the counter in the common teacher kitchen, and people walked by throughout the day and grabbed a little bite. The seasoned Ritz crackers were the crowd favorite. I was worried they would be too spicy but that is why everyone loved them.

back to school teacher snack bar teacher appreciation gift idea

Ingredients

  • 1/2 c. melted butter (one stick)
  • 1 packet Ranch dressing mix
  • 1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 T. red pepper flakes
  • 1 t. garlic powder
  • 1 box original Ritz crackers

Directions

  • Let melted butter cool slightly. Mix butter, Ranch dressing mix, grated Parmesan, red pepper flakes, and garlic powder.
  • Put Ritz crackers in a mixing bowl.
  • Pour butter mixture over the Ritz crackers and gently stir to coat crackers.
  • Put crackers on a foil lined baking sheet in a single layer.
  • Bake at 300 degrees for 15 minutes.
  • Let cool and store in a Ziploc bag or airtight container.

All the snacks were gone before lunchtime! It was an easy teacher appreciation gift, and I will definitely set up something similar again.

back to school teacher snack bar teacher appreciation gift idea

Back to School Teacher Emergency Kit 2017

Posted by

4

Since my children started attending elementary school, I have been cooking up some little back to school teacher emergency kit to give my kids’ homeroom teachers on the first day of school. Each year, the kits are a little different, but the contents are always based on items I need at school but don’t always have. I usually change up the bag or box to hold all of the items, but this fall, I am returning to the plastic bead box with removable divider slots that was the first container I ever used.

The Box: I purchase the bead storage boxes from Michael’s. It has ten slots with removable dividers. I remove a few of the dividers to make sections of the box bigger depending on what I have that needs to go in the box.

The Contents: Below is what I included in the kits this time. You could also consider adding things like mints, a good Flair pen or Sharpie pen, travel sized lotion, Advil or Tylenol, mini Windex wipes for electronics (I have seen these at Target), a Tide to Go pen… I browse the travel-sized aisle at places like CVS and Target for inspiration.

  • cough drops
  • safety pins
  • soda money in quarters
  • Blistex
  • Pepto Bismol chewable tablets
  • tweezers
  • disposable toothbrush and paste (one time use)
  • emery board
  • Band-aids
  • hair bands
  • dental flossers

The Labels: I printed THIS 2″x 4″ label for the lid of the box using a Red Cross style logo to make it look like an emergency kit. I created a table for the inside of the box and printed it on cardstock. Using a paper cutter, I cut it down to fit the inside lid and attached it with clear tape. I wanted the “map” on the inside to look like one of those lists they have in the big chocolate candy boxes, so you know what kind of chocolate you are eating. Here is a copy of the Teacher Emergency Kit Map.

To get more inspiration for Back to School Teacher Emergency Kits, take a look at some of mine from previous years by clicking the links below.

Teacher Emergency Kit 2012

Teacher Emergency Kit 2013

Teacher Emergency Kit 2014

Teacher Emergency Kit 2015

Teacher Emergency Kit 2016

Back to School Teacher Gift 2013

Posted by

22

teacher emergency kit filled and gift tags

A year ago, I made a back to school teacher gift that I considered practically perfect (mainly because it is something this teacher mom wants to have). After making the Swim Coach Survival Kit, I decided to blend last year’s teacher gift with this summer’s swim coach gift for an updated Teacher Emergency Kit.

I originally saw the idea on a site called Tidy Mom. If you read last week’s post, the directions below are about the same, but I have new pictures and some additional notes. You do need a sewing machine for the potholder bag. If you do not have a sewing machine, use the plastic bead box from last year’s post. Or, use the bead box if you just like that container better.

teacher emergency kit baggies and tape

Materials

  • square potholders (The Tidy Mom post suggested potholders from Target. I had a hard time finding single square potholders. I ended up purchasing 2-piece oven mitt sets from Kmart. My square potholders are 7″ x 8″– not a perfect square– with a loop along one short side)

teacher emergency kit pot holders

  • Scotch tape
  • snack size Ziploc bags (6 1/2″ x 3 1/4″)
  • sewing machine
  • ~7/8″ button (coordinating color)
  • thread (coordinating color)

teacher emergency kit align baggies

Directions

  • Set your potholder on a flat surface with the loop on the right side. I have the potholder “hand pocket” facing inside, but I also made the bags with the pocket on the outside too. It is up to you how you want your potholder to face.
  • Place one snack bag on the right side with the baggie opening facing the right edge. Place a piece of tape on the top and bottom to keep the baggie from moving.
  • Place another snack bag on top with the baggie opening facing the left edge. The center should overlap with the first baggie. Place a piece of tape at the top and bottom.
  • Continue alternating baggies right and left. I liked 5 snack bags (=5 pockets). The Tidy Mom post used 10, but the bags fill up fast if you include bulky items and then the clutch won’t close.

coach survival kit zig zag stitch

  • Sew a zig zag stitch down the middle of the potholder, which should also be down the center of the Ziploc bags. Cut any loose threads. Carefully remove the tape from the edges without pulling or stretching the plastic bags.
  • Fold the clutch in half and pull the loop around to the front and eyeball where the button will need to be placed. If you do not have a loop on the potholder, follow the Tidy Mom site’s directions for adding a loop.
  • Attach the button with coordinating thread.

teacher emergency kit button

  • Gather the items you want in your emergency kit. I dug into my assortment of plastic bead bags and filled mini baggies with Advil, Tums, and mints. The clutches fill pretty quickly and flatter items work better. You won’t be able to fill the kit with as many things if you use travel sized aspirin tubes and whole rolls of Tums. I printed Avery labels and attached the Teacher Emergency Kit Baggie Labels to the little bags. The label size is 2/3″ x 1 3/4″ and is Avery #42895.

teacher emergency kit labels and tums

  • I created a Teacher Emergency Kit Gift Tag page and printed it on white cardstock, cut it into squares with my paper cutter, hole punched the corner, and tied with curly ribbon to the loop.

teacher emergency kit gift tags

Content Suggestions

  • Aquaphor and/or chapstick
  • gum or mints
  • Bandaids
  • hair elastics
  • travel toothbrush and toothpaste
  • Tampax and pantyliner for female teachers (sorry, gentlemen)
  • Tylenol or Advil
  • Tums
  • change (for the soda machine)
  • nail file
  • safety pins and/or travel sewing kit
  • Sharpie pen
  • cough drops

teacher emergency kit contents

Notes

  • Don’t cheap out on the Ziploc bags. I bought CVS generic brand on sale, and they are a little flimsy. I wish I had used Ziploc or Glad snack bags.
  • Click the picture to see the directions for last year’s Teacher Emergency Kit in the bead box.

Back to School Teacher Emergency Kit

Giveaway

  • I am giving away Back to School Emergency Kits to TWO lucky winners. Give the kit to your child’s teacher on the first day of school or keep it for yourself.
  • But wait, there’s more. Not only will each winner receive one filled Back to School Kit, he/she will also receive not ONE but TWO oven mitts because I had to buy oven mitt SETS to get the potholder I wanted, and I now own about 10 mitts!
  • Giveaway ends Sunday, Aug. 4, 2013.
  • Click on this Entry-Form link to enter the giveaway!
  • The entry form links to TheRoomMom on Bloglovin, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest where you complete the regular “like” or “follow” procedures on the social media sites directly then submit the entry form after you complete the like or follow. Just hitting submit does not create a follow or like. You can also leave a comment below and enter the name you used to comment in the entry form. All likes, follows, and comments are “verified” at the end of the contest, and the two winners will be randomly selected. It is more confusing than I would like, but it is my first experience with a giveaway site.

Swim Coach Survival Kit

Posted by

7

coach survival kit tags

Swim team season officially ends tonight with a swim and pizza party, swim medal presentation, and gifts for the coaches. We have four swim coaches for our team. Three are college students, and the head coach is a science teacher during the school year. The swim team mom in charge of the coaches’ gift decided cash would be the most useful for the coaches rather than gift cards or something more specific. She needed a way to present this present, so I offered to make these easy potholder clutches.

I originally saw the idea on a site called Tidy Mom. They are really fun (and fast) to make, but you will need a sewing machine. I filled the finished clutch with items a coach might need at the pool. We filled the first pocket with the cash.

coach survival kit supplies

Materials

  • square potholders (The Tidy Mom post suggested potholders from Target. I had a hard time finding single square potholders. I ended up purchasing 2-piece oven mitt sets from Kmart. My square potholders are 7″ x 8″– not a perfect square– with a loop along one short side)
  • Scotch tape
  • snack size Ziploc bags (6 1/2″ x 3 1/4″)
  • sewing machine
  • ~7/8″ button (coordinating color)
  • thread (coordinating color)

coach survival kit tape bags

Directions

  • Set your potholder on a flat surface with the loop on the right side. I kept the potholder pocket on the outside, but it is up to you how you want your potholder to face.
  • Place one snack bag on the right side with the baggie opening facing the right edge. Place a piece of tape on the top and bottom to keep the baggie from moving.
  • Place another snack bag on top with the baggie opening facing the left edge. The center should overlap with the first baggie. Place a piece of tape at the top and bottom.
  • Continue alternating baggies right and left. I liked 5 snack bags (=5 pockets). The Tidy Mom post used 10, but the bags fill up fast if you include bulky items and then the clutch won’t close.

coach survival kit zig zag stitch

  • Sew a zig zag stitch down the middle of the potholder, which should also be down the center of the Ziploc bags. Cut any loose threads. Carefully remove the tape from the edges without pulling or stretching the plastic bags.
  • Fold the clutch in half and pull the loop around to the front and eyeball where the button will need to be placed. If you do not have a loop on the potholder, follow the Tidy Mom site’s directions for adding a loop.
  • Attach the button with coordinating thread. I used green thread and black/green buttons in honor of our swim team colors.

coach survival kit buttons

  • I printed gift tags on white cardstock and tied with curly ribbon to the loop.

coach survival kit finished

Survival Kit Content Suggestions

  • plastic comb
  • chapstick
  • sunblock stick
  • gum
  • Bandaids
  • hair rubberbands (for the girl coaches)
  • travel toothbrush and toothpaste
  • Tylenol or Advil
  • Tums
  • travel size lotion
  • travel size shampoo
  • some cash or change (for trips to the snack bar or soda machine)

coach survival kit contents

Notes

  • Flatter items work better. The sunblock stick took up a lot of room. I ended up removing the toothbrush and toothpaste because the combination of the 3 created too much bulk.
  • When possible, I used items that matched our team colors (black comb, green gum, black and green hair bands). I did not force the color thing, though.
  • Don’t cheap out on the Ziploc bags. I bought CVS generic brand on sale, and they are a little flimsy. I wish I had used Ziploc or Glad snack bags.
  • This could easily be adapted to a Teacher Emergency Kit for a great back to school teacher gift. It could also be used for many other sports as an end of season coach gift. It is not very girly if you use solid colored potholders, so it works for males and females.

coach survival kit filled