The holiday season is a wonderful opportunity to show your students just how much you appreciate them. In this blog post, you’ll find a whole range of Christmas gifts for students – some that can be purchased and others that are 100% free.
As elementary teachers, giving Christmas gifts for students is a personal choice, and it’s important to remember that you should never feel pressured to give gifts to your students. That said, I understand that many teachers find joy in gift giving and want to do something special for the holiday season.
Read on for a whole list of creative and inexpensive gift ideas that you can easily purchase with just a click of a button. You’ll also find easy printable gifts that are an incredibly affordable option, that still bring the fun. On top of that, I’ll also share ideas that provide students with a fun experience, instead of a traditional present.
Plus, you’ll also find ideas for a twist on giving Christmas gifts for students which is giving a whole class gift instead! Read on to learn more about this idea.
Let’s spread some holiday cheer together—without breaking the bank!
Ideas for Christmas Gifts for Students
Below you’ll find a list of Christmas gifts for students, to be given to each student individually. There are different gift ideas included. You’ll find printable gift ideas that you can print and prep and affordable Christmas gifts for students that you can order ahead of time. Amazon links are provided for convenience but you can also keep these ideas in mind as you head to your local dollar store. Please note that as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Reward Coupons
Giving reward coupons is a fun way to gift each student with a special privilege. You can select a reward coupon to give out, or even let students choose 1-3 reward coupons, to use as they wish. Alternatively, you could set a specific day or week that students use their coupons.
All you need to do is print out coupons, cut them out, and give them as gifts! Easy peasy! Check out these reward coupons.
Craft “Kit”
This is another low prep idea that is incredibly low cost. Create craft kits for students to take home over Christmas break. This can be as simple as including the printable pages for a craft (or more). It will give them an activity to enjoy while they aren’t at school. There are a ton of printable craft ideas on Teachers Pay Teachers and some of them are even free.
Stickers
These stickers are a HIT with students. They are a super affordable gift option and if you go with the everyday stickers, you can even keep extras as student rewards.
Everyday Stickers: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Christmas Stickers: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Books
Any change to instill the love of reading is a good one! Scholastic often has affordable book bundles for sale at Christmas time.
Notebooks
Students get hyped about being gifted their own little notebook, even the ones who don’t love to write. Something about a new notebook is exciting and that’s not just for us teachers.
Dog Notebooks: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Motivational Notebooks: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Fidgets
Fidgets are a total hit with students! Plus, they can be kept in the classroom as focus tools, if you wish! You can grab a class set of any of the ideas below or get an assorted set so that students can choose their own!
Pop fidgets: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Soccer squishies: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Zipper bracelets: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Cube figets: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Monkey noodle: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Assorted fidgets: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Slime
If your students have been obsessed with slime at any point in time, then you know that there are different types of slime (cloud slime, butter slime, galaxy slime…) There’s a whole slime culture out there.
Cloud slime: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Glitter slime: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Ornament Kit
As a Christmas gift for students, grab on ornament kit or two and have a fun crafty afternoon making ornaments! Ornaments can be put up on a class tree or taken home.
Wood disk ornaments: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Wood shapes: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Beaded ornaments: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Play Doh
Play doh is fun for all ages! Play doh pack: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Bouncy Balls
This is a classic but kids still love bouncy balls. You’ll get bonus points if you give them time to play with them but… be prepared for it to get chaotic. Bouncy balls: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Keychains
Keychains are a fun idea as students can use them on their backpacks, lunch bags, or pencil cases.
Cute keychains: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Blank DIY keychains: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Pencils
Personalized pencils are a super fun gift! You could put your class code like “4E” or Mrs. Evancio’s Class or something fun like “Best Student EVER.” Another option is to get fun inspirational pencils that students can use year long (until they lose them, of course.)
Personalized pencils: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Inspirational pencils: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Bookmarks
Bookmarks are another way to boost your students’ love of reading! There are super cute printable bookmark options on Teachers Pay Teachers. You could also have students colour a doodle style bookmark and them laminate them for them as a special keepsake.
Christmas Note From Teacher
Writing a special note to each student helps them to feel seen and loved – plus, it doesn’t cost a thing! If you plan to write a few notes each day, you’ll have your entire class done in no time. You can use cute stationary, a post it, or even use put your special note in a Christmas card.
Christmas cards: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
A Twist on Christmas Gifts for Students: Class Gifts
Below, you’ll find alternative ideas than the class Christmas gifts for students where they each receive an individual gift from you, their teacher. Here, there are ideas for giving a class gift. Ideas included free ideas like gifting your class an experience or a fun day, or gifting your whole class something special that they can enjoy while at school, in the classroom. This way, you can pool resources into one class gift, instead of splitting up resource to gift each student, individually.
My students have loved this! In the past, I’ve purchased board games, puzzles, graphic novels, and building toys. They have been a hit and have led to great memory making together as a class.
Keep in mind, too, that these gift ideas don’t need to be purchased new! You can use these ideas to guide your search in thrift stores and on Facebook Marketplace. You can find great steals for your classroom on there that your students will love, and they will be an even better price!
Furniture
Okay, hear me out. I know it sounds weird to gift furniture as Christmas gifts for students but this can be a great time to purchase something to make your class cozy and have it double as a gift. When I’m talking furniture I mean a wobbly stool, a ball chair, a cozy couch, a fun lamp, or carpet for your reading nook. Again, Facebook Marketplace is a great place to look for deals for classroom furniture!
Cozy fixings
Cozy things that help students feel calm and settled in your classroom also make great class gifts. Ideas are: pillows, reading carpet in your reading nook, bins for your classroom library, soft lighting, etc.
Puzzle
Setting up a class puzzle table with a new fresh puzzle is an awesome Christmas gift for students. They will love meeting up at the puzzle table during free time, during indoor recess, or as an early finisher activity.
World map puzzle: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Dog puzzle: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Cat puzzle: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Search and find puzzle: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Craft Kit
If you have crafty students in your classroom, gifting the class a craft kit to make crafts during students’ free time will be sure to be a hit!
Craft kit: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Air Dry Clay
Keeping on the craftying theme, students love to create with air dry clay! Since it’s not something they get to use all the time, it’s fun and exciting.
Air dry clay class set: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Books
Books, books, more books! Adding a few popular books to your classroom library makes for a great Christmas gift for students! This is a great time to grab the newest graphic novel or popular book series. Students always get excited to dig into new titles!
Building Toys
Building toys are a hit for elementary students of any age.
Magnetic tiles: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
LEGO basic bricks set: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
K’NEX: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Plus plus blocks: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Magnetic sticks and balls: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Marble run: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Brain Quest
Students love quizzing each other with Brain Quest trivia! It’s the perfect quick activity they can do as early finishers, during indoor recess, or when they have free time! I was surprised how much my students loved these.
Grade 2: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Grade 3: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Grade 4: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Grade 5: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Grade 6: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Board Games & Card Games
Headbandz: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Guess Who: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Apples to Apples: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Throw Throw Burrito: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Uno: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Battleship: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
The Game of Life Junior: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Candyland: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Chutes and Ladders: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
Connect 4: CAN aff. link | US aff. link
A Fun Class Experience
An experience – countdown, yes day, movie & popcorn, hot chocolate and reading with flashlights, gameboard day, pizza, cupcakes, etc.
As we embrace the holiday season, it’s a wonderful opportunity to show our students just how much we appreciate them. In this post, we’ve explored a range of ideas for Christmas gifts for students—some that can be purchased and others that are completely free.
From creative and inexpensive gifts to easy printable options that bring fun without a hefty price tag, there are plenty of ways to spread cheer. We also discussed alternatives that focus on providing enjoyable experiences instead of traditional presents. And for those looking for a twist on individual gifting, a class gift can create a sense of community and joy among your students.
I hope you found these ideas for Christmas gifts for students helpful in spreading classroom cheer for the holidays!
