Schools are wrapping up for the year, and teachers and students are both looking forward to a well deserved vacation. Before the school doors close for the summer, take the time to express your appreciation for teachers and school staff.

We’ve put together our 10 favorite teacher appreciation ideas for the end of the school year to give you a few good ideas. For more teacher appreciation ideas, download our free Teacher Appreciation Ideas eBook in our Recognition Resource Center.

How do you thank teachers at the end of the school year? Share your favorite teacher appreciation ideas here!

1. Create a Wall of Fame. Honor all your teachers at the end of the year by creating a wall of fame. Create a spot for each teacher using certificates and their picture.

2. Summer fun pack. Show your appreciation for teachers’ hard work all year with a summer fun pack gift. Put summer items, like sunscreen, a paperback book, and a fan, in a plastic sand bucket. Present one to each teacher with a handwritten thank you note!

3. Create a memory book. Ask students and parents to write their favorite memories from the year on a piece of border paper. Put all the papers in a three ring binder and present it to the teacher on the last day.

3. Create a memory book. Ask students and parents to write their favorite memories from the year on a piece of colorful border paper. Put all the papers in a three ring binder and present it to the teacher on the last day.

4. Personalize a tote bag. Teachers are always carrying around tote bags of books, student papers, and supplies. Make the standard tote bag more personal by having all the students sign their names on the bag with a fabric marker.

5. Plant a tree in honor of teachers. Collect donations from parents and staff members, and plant a tree in honor of the teachers. Place the tree on school property where teachers and students can watch is grow every year.

6. Hold a teacher appreciation party. Ask all the teachers to join you for a short reception at the end of the last day of school. Celebrate with cake and lemonade and thank them for a great school year.

7. Frame a picture of the class. Frame a picture of the teacher’s class and engrave a message on the picture frame. The personal message will make the picture frame a special keepsake.

8. Provide a treat during exams. Teachers get extremely busy at the end of the school year with exams, final grades, and special activities. Let them know you appreciate all their hard work by providing a treat. Put muffins in the teacher’s lounge one morning and cookies for an afternoon.

9. Hold an award ceremony. Honor outstanding teachers at the end of the year with a school-wide award ceremony. You can present each teacher with a fun award certificate title or give a few teachers an engraved trophy award.

10. Write a personal thank you note. End the year with a personal thank you note. Choose a thank you greeting card and share a favorite story or memory from the school year with the teacher.

------------------

Cori is Baudville's in-house Recognitionista (she's officially a Certified Recognition Professional, too)  and a member of the Millennial generation. Get her employee recognition tips and special discounts by liking Baudville on Facebook.

Award certificates are a popular way to express appreciation or recognize accomplishments. At Baudville, we frequently give certificates to winners of games or contests, and use award certificates in our formal recognition programs.

With June right around the corner, certificates are also a great way to give end of the school year appreciation to teachers, volunteers, school staff, and students. To create and present memorable award certificates, follow these five award certificate tips.

1. Say it with style. Include your award winner’s name, achievement, the date of the award occasion, and any other important information about the accomplishment.

2. Design is everything. Be creative! Choose an award certificate paper to match the award occasion — be it fun and colorful or elegant and serious. Present the award certificate in an award certificate folder for a nice presentation.

3. Have an authority endorse it. Ask the PTO President, school Principal, or school district Superintendent to sign the award certificate. You could also have the teacher’s coworkers or students sign it.

4. Present it properly. Don’t leave an award certificate with smeared ink in the teacher’s mailbox. Choose a quality certificate paper, place it in an award certificate folder or frame it, and then present it personally. Elegant presentation underscores your appreciation and your recipient’s importance.

5. Dignify the award occasion. Present the award certificate at a school function, staff meeting, or PTO event. If your presentation will be one-on-one, make it special by treating your award winner to lunch.

Priceless Pointer: Some people may feel uncertain or awkward creating award certificates if they’re not used to doing it. Make it easy for them by taking a few minutes — in a meeting or one-on-one — to help them gain familiarity with any software, award certificate paper, or certificate materials you have assembled for your program. And, be sure to give them a reward for taking on this new task!

-----------------------

Cori is Baudville's in-house Recognitionista (she's officially a Certified Recognition Professional, too)  and a member of the Millennial generation. Get her employee recognition tips and special discounts by liking Baudville on Facebook.

Today’s post comes from a special guest blogger! Diane Hodges is a friend of Baudville and a contributor to our Recognition Resource Center. In this post, Diane, an experienced educator, shares some of her creative and effective teacher appreciation ideas for the end of the school year.

Just as the start of the year is a celebration, so should the end of the year be celebrated. So much has been accomplished that everyone should reflect on the success of the year and set goals for the following year.

Toast to a Successful Year
Invite the staff to an event and as they enter have good-bye songs playing. Some examples might be “Happy Trails” by Dale Evans, “See You Later Alligator” by Bill Haley and His Comets, “Na Nay Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye” by Steam, “So Long, Farewell” from “The Sound of Music” or “School’s Out” by Alice Cooper.

Serve sparkling grape juice in champagne glasses (glass, not plastic). Serve a celebratory cake with a motivational message written on it. Make sure all staff members get the chance to make a toast if they want to.

Thanks a Latte
It’s the end of the year and you want to thank everyone for a job well done. Obtain latte machines and say Thanks a Latte by making a variety of lattes for the staff members. Serve biscotti, scones, or other treats as well.

Smoothie Party
Invite staff members to celebrate the completion of a Smooth Year. Talk about the good things that happened during the year and serve smoothies as refreshment.
 
Admission by Ticket Only
Ask each staff member to submit a positive achievement they accomplished during the year and that they are proud of. When they submit their achievement, they are given a ticket to attend an end of the year celebration. At the event, read each person’s achievement. Have the group applaud each other’s accomplishments. Encourage the applause to get louder and louder so that people are cheering, whistling, whooping, and hollering! It will be a positive surge of energy and sense of satisfaction that will carry over to the start of the school year.

------------------

All of these ideas and more can be found in the book, Season It With FUN! by Diane Hodges. Visit her website www.dianehodges.com and remember to schedule her as a speaker for your organization or district.

For more Teacher Appreciation Ideas, download Baudville's new free Teacher Appreciation Ideas eBook.

Download the new ebook!

 

To this day, one of my clear memories from elementary school is a special school assembly held in the honor of a retiring teacher. Some classes had prepared songs for her, she wore a crown and sat upon a “throne,” and coworkers shared special stories about her contributions to the school. The recognition was memorable – even for me! –and I’m sure my teacher felt honored by it.

But why do we wait for a teacher to retire before we praise her contributions? Why don’t we praise a teacher’s dedication to the students before she’s left the building?

This year, recognize more than just your retirees with end of the school year teacher appreciation. The end of the school year is an important time to recognize teachers for their dedication and contributions during the school year, and there are lots of ways to give memorable teacher appreciation.

Just in time for the end of the school year, we’ve published a free Teacher Appreciation Ideas eBook to help you plan your end of the school year recognition! Our eBook is full of 60 teacher appreciation ideas for special days (like the end of the school year), holidays, and every day. We also have suggestions for great, affordable teacher gifts you can incorporate in your teacher appreciation efforts, too.

 

Your teachers are the most important factor in making your school great. This June, let them know they’re appreciated!

-----------------

Cori is Baudville's in-house Recognitionista (she's officially a Certified Recognition Professional, too)  and a member of the Millennial generation. Get her employee recognition tips and special discounts by liking Baudville on Facebook.

Today is our final post in our 5 day series on our recent employee recognition success story. You can read the story of Grace Haven Assisted Living in its entirety in the Recognition Resource Center. Today we’re sharing the exciting results Grace Haven experienced after implementing an employee recognition program.

Recovery: Imminent

Within one week of the program’s implementation, the level of interest and optimism increased noticeably. The employee engagement survey given at the initial evaluation was repeated every 30 days and revealed steady improvement at each interval. The positivity grew over time, and after 3 months many Grace Haven employees expressed satisfaction with the improved culture.

Win 1: A Whole New Attitude Evolved
With the recognition programs in place, management met the goal of increasing positive feedback. The number of employees who felt recognition to be a priority at Grace Haven increased 47% since the beginning of the program.

After 60 days, 78% of staff had given recognition and 68% had received it. One respondent said of the program, “I’m impressed at the progress!” And recognition has made employees feel more comfortable about communication in general. Both managers and employees acknowledge that communication has improved and verbal recognition has become a common occurrence.

Win 2: Collaboration and Respect Increased
Before Shout Outs were implemented, only 26% of employees felt their coworkers were committed to quality work. After using the program for 60 days, that measurement increased to 63%. Teamwork and trust increased among team members, and many employees were pitching in where needed. The Shout Outs helped them show appreciation for and become more aware of each other’s contributions. One staff member told us, “I feel it made us closer; people you didn’t think cared, do.” Employee confidence in leadership also experienced a 66% lift.

Win 3: Attendance and Accountability Improved
The increased sense of teamwork led to employees putting a greater value on attendance. After just 30 days—and then again at 60—managers needed more Tokens of Appreciation because they had given so many attendance awards. 90% of employees received at least one token award in the first 60 days the program was in place. Since the start of the program, attendance has improved dramatically.

In just a few months, the Grace Haven team saw improvement in every area measured. Overall satisfaction increased by 66%, with 64% of staff believing that their work culture has improved since the start of the program.

Grace Haven Assisted Living Director of Resident Care had this to say about the changes:
I just can’t get over the change! I see smiles in the hallways and a true spirit of cooperation among most of the staff. And, our attendance issues are all but solved. Plus, giving recognition has been such a rewarding experience. Seeing the pride and satisfaction on the faces of the recipients not only tells me it’s making a difference, it makes me feel good inside, too!

Get a Case of the Positives

You don’t have to be in the caregiving industry or in a morale crisis to benefit from an employee recognition program.

Simple day-to-day acknowledgements improve communication, and expressions of appreciation make team members feel valued. Overall, staff members feel more satisfied with their jobs, increasing both engagement and retention. In addition, incorporating peer recognition into your program gives team members ownership as well as a greater appreciation for the work that others do in the organization.

The Grace Haven team discovered that implementing regular recognition into their routine was easier than they expected. With the right tools in place, the organization has transformed into a highly engaged, positive workplace where employees are proud to work.

-----------------

Cori is Baudville's in-house Recognitionista (she's officially a Certified Recognition Professional, too)  and a member of the Millennial generation. Get her employee recognition tips and special discounts by liking Baudville on Facebook.