OK, End-of-year Party People. Just a few more things to do before we throw those mortar boards in the air! I’ve got some super easy ideas to help make your preschool parties stress-free. I’ve also got some fun gifts for teachers that go beyond the mug. And yes, we can say “Thank You” without dipping into our vacation funds!

Preschool Party

Robot Juice Boxes

Whether they’re eating pizza or penne at these parties, we’re almost certain they’ll be drinking juice. Jazz up those juice boxes by turning them into robots— a creative (and allergy-friendly!) way to spin the ordinary into something fun.

Materials:

Juice boxes

Applesauce cups

Smarties

Extra-small raisin boxes

Googley eyes

Glue gun

Make:

A little hot glue goes a long way. Place a small bead of glue to attach feet, arms, heads and eyes. You now have a little robot programmed to make someone smile.

“Summer Rocks!” Guitars

Who has some cardboard lying around? (More like, who doesn’t?) Give it new life by transforming it into rockin’ electric guitars that the kiddos can decorate with paint and stickers. Makes a great “yearbook” that friends can sign and your child can hang in her room. Play Stairway to Heaven all you want, kid!

Materials:

Cardboard

Pencil

Box cutter

Embellishments (Paint and Stickers)

Make:

Trace the outline of your guitar onto cardboard.

Carefully cut out guitar shape with the box cutter.

Let your child’s imagination go wild with paint and stickers.

Wave Goodbye to Preschool T-Shirts

These t-shirts are a preschool craft that also make great party favors. Kids can get a little messy and we parents can remember how small their hands once were!

Materials:

T-shirts

Fabric paint (flat for the hands, puffy for the writing)

Paintbrush

Cardboard or magazines (to keep inside the t-shirt during painting)

Make:

Help child paint his or her hand with flat fabric paint.

Insert cardboard or magazine inside shirt so paint doesn’t seep through.

Ask child to make a nice, clean handprint on the t-shirt.

Write words with puffy fabric paint.

Let dry overnight.

Try not to cry as you think about waving goodbye to your preschooler!

Teacher Gifts

“Thank You for Helping Me Grow” Potted Plant

This potted herb plant comes with a twist— eco-friendly Sprout pencils that contain seeds for growing herbs and flowers in the bottom of the pencil.

Materials

Terracotta pot

Herb plant

Sprout pencils

Make:

Pot your plant.

Stick Sprout pencils inside plant or tie with twine to the front of the pot.

Decorate with a cute card and pretty bow.

Tote-ally Awesome Teacher Tote

Hey, the kids aren’t the only ones headed to the beach- the teachers need some sun and sand too! If a bunch of families can pool their money, filling a tote with useful summer items is a great gift for any teacher.

Materials

Tote Bag

Towel

Sunglasses

Flip Flops

Reusable Water Bottle

Summer Reading

Arrange everything in the tote- and don’t forget that sunscreen!

Movie Night Basket

Another fabulous way to say “Thanks” is with movie tickets. Tickets to a movie in the theatre is lovely, but at home on the couch near the fridge is even better!

Materials

Popcorn box

Popcorn

Candy

Netflix gift card

Arrange everything in the popcorn box and a card that says, “Thanks for Making Me a Star!”

Last Day of School Advent Calendar

This gift comes directly from the hearts of those little preschoolers. The children tell you their favorite preschool memory and you write it down and put their words in envelopes with their names on them. Your child’s teacher can count down to the end of the year by reading one from each child a day. In the end he or she has a full heart (and a corkboard to use next year!)

Materials

Cork board (or simply decorate an existing one in the classroom!)

Small envelopes

push pins

decorative tape, ribbon and misc. embellishments

Make:

Ask each parent to ask their kids what their favorite memory of the year was. OR, what they will miss the most about their teacher. Insert those love notes into envelopes and pin on the cork board. Decorate with embellishments and present to your teary-eyed teacher.

To all the teachers out there- thank you for nurturing our children during these special years. These are tokens of our appreciation, but the real gift is YOU.

I hope these easy peasy ideas help you breeze through the end-of-year madness! Enjoy those little ones and enjoy your summer!