Do you wonder about Christmas gifts for daycare provider? Your provider deserves to be appreciated, but Christmas gifts depend on many things

Christmas Gifts for Daycare Provider

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Do you wonder about Christmas gifts for daycare provider? Your provider deserves to be appreciated, but Christmas gifts depend on many things. For unique gift ideas for everyone on your list, check this out.

Christmas gifts and Christmas decorations on a board. Christmas gifts for your daycare provider they really want.

If you have a person who takes care of your children, you should appreciate them any chance you get! None of us are made of money, so it’s understandable if you can’t afford to add them to your Christmas list.

What to get daycare provider for Christmas

When I was working my husband through college and we had our daughter, I couldn’t even afford food, so I can relate, but I always came up with something as daycare provider gifts. She deserved it.

She loved my baby and, in my book, that was the top of my priority list. Childcare workers work super hard. They clean up nasty messes. They get treated a lot of different ways by clients and they aren’t all nice. It is long hours, little profit, and a lot harder than you think!

It’s a very rewarding job, but it’s internal and not so much outward appreciation most of the time. Most of it comes from love from the kids. And that is a lot!

Christmas ball ornaments on christmas tree

If you cannot afford daycare provider gifts for Christmas, just make sure they know you care. Having your child draw a picture for them and writing Merry Christmas on it will mean the absolute world to them. Give them a hug and tell them Merry Christmas. It takes no money and little effort to say, our family appreciates you so much. So for sure make sure you are doing that.

Teacher appreciation

Your daycare provider teaches your child so many things. Many providers feel forgotten and unappreciated during special holiday times. You need to make sure they know how you feel about them. If your provider is awful and you don’t appreciate them, FIND A NEW ONE! If they are good, they should matter to you.

A great way to show you care about your provider at Christmas or any other time of year is to ask them what they like. You can make a little questionnaire with questions on it like favorite soda, coffee or tea, favorite donut, whatever. Then once and a while during the year, surprise them with something of the list. It doesn’t have to be done at Christmas time.

Don’t forget to ask about food allergies and other kinds of allergies. It’s not fun to get a bag of candy when you are diabetic and can’t eat it. It feels like the person didn’t think about you at all.

Check out this printable teacher questionnaire. You can use it for ideas to make your own or print it out just like it is.

Teacher Daycare Provider Questionnaire

daycare provider with children loving them and caring for them. children playing happily.

Daycare provider appreciation day

Did you know there is even a day to appreciate childcare providers? It’s the Friday before Mother’s Day every year. If your budget is tight at Christmas time, which we can all relate to, maybe that’s a better time to show love for her and think about daycare provider gifts.

Daycare provider gifts

So, if you do have the budget to include daycare provider gifts in your Christmas plans, what do you get? How much is too much? How much is being cheap?

To be honest, the size of the gift doesn’t matter near as much as the thought behind it. I am the kind of person who doesn’t care about gifts AT ALL. I just want people to value what I’m doing.

The important part of a gift for your childcare provider is making it personal. Make sure they can tell you care through what you’re giving.

Your budget and your own beliefs will gauge what you should give. The miss manners guide says an appropriate gift for a childcare provider is a week’s wages. In the area I live, this is rarely what I receive. It’s just not customary. I don’t expect that either. In the past, I have received more than that, and I have received less. I have also received nothing from many many parents. It’s all okay with me as long as I know they care about what I’m doing and how hard I work.

I have had so many parents that didn’t give me gifts still make me feel like a million bucks while I was caring for their kids and even years later. Like I said before, that’s okay with me. I only want what people want to give me. I don’t want anyone to feel obligated because they feel like they should.

The easiest idea for daycare provider gifts is cash. How much cash? That’s up to your budget and what you feel is appropriate. I’ve received $10 all the way to $500 cash as a gift. I liked them both and everything in between.

Cash makes an easy gift for a daycare provider. They can get what they want. Many parents do gifts for the daycare. This is great to some providers and others feel it’s impersonal like parents are just buying something else for their kids. Are those daycare provider gifts or kid’s gifts? I don’t know. I like practical gifts, so it depends on the person.

Giving cash would be a way to let the childcare provider decide if they want to spend money on themselves or the kids.

Fun gifts for daycare provider that I know lots of us love is t-shirts. There are so many fun childcare t-shirts out there. Most of us are t-shirt wearers because wearing nice clothes to get barfed on or paint in isn’t smart. Plus, crawling around with the kids requires loose-fitting clothes.

Remember, again, be personal. Don’t buy your provider a large shirt when they are a 2x. Maybe the provider’s husband would be helpful in finding out the size. He would also know if his wife didn’t want you to know.

child giving a gift to her daycare provider for Christmas

Gifts for daycare teachers

Gift cards also make great gifts for a daycare provider. Something like a restaurant so the provider can take a break from making dinner. Pampering things like massages and pedicures-if you know the provider likes that. Remember to be personal.

Gift cards to a craft store like Hobby Lobby or for an experience like movie tickets or something else you know your provider enjoys doing are great daycare provider gifts too.

Great daycare provider gifts are some of their favorite coffee or tea or a case of the soda they drink. Think about the vices you need and find out what gets them through their day. Chocolate is usually a big hit with providers too.

childcare provider gift, red nikon coolpix camera with all the accessories

Should you go together with other parents on a group gift for a daycare provider? Sure. That’s a thoughtful idea. My parents have done that for me many times over the years and it always makes me feel special that they took the time to coordinate something like that. Individual things are awesome as well. Whatever works for you.

What are some of my favorite gifts I’ve received? It’s hard to say, in over 20 years of care, I’ve received so many wonderful things but this past year we remodeled our house one room at a time and my parents got together and all chipped in on a gift card to Lowe’s for supplies. I loved this so much because they knew we needed building supplies and I thought that was very thoughtful.

Another one of my favorites was when my husband accidentally dropped and broke my camera that I had saved for, my daycare parents went to a lot of trouble to find out what kind it was and replace it as a group gift.

I was so overwhelmed that I acted foolishly at the party because I was so emotional. I hate showing emotion, so I do stupid things when I think I’m going to cry. It’s a character flaw, but people have to learn to love me anyway. Ha.

Another great one was early on in my career when I was really poor my microwave quit and one mom got everyone together to get me a new one as a daycare provider gift. It’s always so touching when people want to meet your needs.

These people have put some thought into this and come up with great gifts for me.

Gifts for daycare workers

One more really good one was when I had written a grant and I was talking to a dad about it and how I had to take off a set of giant teeth and toothbrush because I didn’t have enough budget in the grant for it.

Greenery with small wrapped gifts, pinecones and christmas ornament balls

He searched all over the place and bought me those big teeth for Christmas because I told him I had always wanted some for the kids to practice brushing. They gave me money with it as well, so the gift was for the kids and me. It was really special.

There are so many special gifts I’ve received, I could never mention them all. The notes are my favorite. I have a special drawer where I keep them to remind myself why I do what I do sometimes.

Like I said, just being thought of is all that matters to your provider. As long as you do something to let her know how you feel about her, you’ll be doing the right thing.

More Christmas gift ideas:

Are you looking for Gifts for your daycare kids? Gifts for daycare friends or school friends? Click on the links to find out more.

And don’t forget all the Christmas gifts kids can make!

Do you know someone who wants to start a home daycare? Here’s the perfect gift for them! 

Christmas gift for daycare providers

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2 Comments

  1. My families gifted me with a day off this year. They got together to find a day that worked for them and told me to plan for no kids coming in. ☺️🫶🏽 I thought that was so creative and kind, to care about my rest! Because really, we are a tired bunch of people, us providers. There’s a lot to do and never wnough time to do it all. 😉

    1. Oh TaLisa! What a thoughtful and caring gift! I’m so happy your families honored you like that. It’s genius and so full of love. A dream come true! Thanks for checking out my article and for reading and for sharing that blessing! It’s very encouraging.