Gifts for Teachers: Desk Name Plates and Desk Sets for a Classroom Desk
Gifts for teachers tend to pile up: mugs, candles and ornaments by the dozen. A gift for the classroom desk is different, because it is used every school day and seen by every student. This guide covers the two forms that work best, a desk name plate and a small matching desk set, with the wording and etiquette that go with them.
Check the school's gift policy first
Some schools have a gift policy. Ask the school office or look in the family handbook before you spend anything, and let that policy decide the scale of the gift. The ideas below run from a single piece to a class gift, so there is a version for most answers.
A desk name plate for a teacher
A teacher's desk name plate does a real job on the first day of school, at open house and at every parent meeting. A personalized desk name plate can be ordered on its own through Build Your Desk Set: choose a model, add the nameplate piece, pick a color, and type the text before adding it to your cart.
What to print
Print the name students use. In most classrooms that is a courtesy title and a surname, not a first name; a classroom is the exception to the usual advice to leave courtesy titles off a nameplate. There is room for 32 characters on the first line and 36 on an optional second line: letters, numbers, spaces and a few punctuation marks.
- "Mrs. Thompson" with "5th Grade Math"
- "Mr. Daniel Okafor" with "Band Director"
- "Science Department" as a second line
- "Dr. Elena Vasquez" with "Principal"
Two cautions. Check Ms., Mrs., Miss, Mr., Mx. or Dr. with the teacher or the school office; guessing a courtesy title is the easiest way to get a plate wrong. And remember that grades and room numbers change from year to year, while a subject or simply the name does not.
Font and plate
A plate on a teacher's desk is read at a distance. Among the fonts shown in the tool, a plain upright one is easier to read at a distance than a script. The plate is gold or silver; the text is printed on a metal plate, not engraved, and the on-screen preview is approximate. Wording formats for credentials and departments are in what to put on a desk nameplate.
From one family or from the class
| Who gives | Right scale | Example |
|---|---|---|
| One student or family | One piece | A coaster, a pen cup or a memo holder |
| A few families together | A nameplate, or a four- or five-piece set | A nameplate with the teacher's name and subject |
| The whole class | A matching set | A compact set, or a set with a document tray |
For a class gift, keep contributions voluntary and private and sign the card from every child, whether or not their family took part. A handwritten note from a student is the part teachers keep.
Desk sets for a classroom desk
Grading, lesson plans and forms all cross a teacher's desk, in both directions. Grading happens on the desk pad; a tray and a pen cup keep the rest off it.
- Small and simple. The Luna 4-Piece Desk Set ($120) pairs a desk pad with a pen cup, a memo holder and a coaster. The Luna 5-Piece Desk Set ($125) adds a business card holder. More sets of this size are in compact desk sets.
- For the paper. The Luna 10-Piece Desk Set with Two-Tier Tray ($225) has a two-tier document tray, one level for work to grade and one for work to hand back, along with a nameplate base and two pens.
- In a school color. The Luna sets come in a wide range of colors, with red, blue, green and orange among them, so a set can follow the school's colors. If you do not know the classroom, how to choose a desk set color explains the neutral choices.
A memo holder is the holder only, and paper is not included with any set.
Gifts for a principal or administrator
A principal's office is where parents, staff and visitors sit across a desk, so it is closer to an executive office than to a classroom. A parent group or the faculty giving together can choose from desk sets with a nameplate. The Star 10-Piece Desk Set with Photo Frame ($225) includes a picture frame and a calendar holder beside the nameplate. For the title line, use the title as the school writes it: Principal, Assistant Principal, Head of School, Dean of Students.
Occasions
- Teacher Appreciation Week and the end of the school year are the usual times for a class gift.
- A first classroom. For a new teacher, a nameplate is a gift from family or a mentor that marks the start of a career.
- A move or a retirement. A plate with the name alone goes with the teacher to the next room or home.
Teacher gift questions
Will a nameplate be ready in time for the first day of school?
Order early. The shipping policy gives estimates, not delivery dates.
What if the name is misspelled in the order?
Tell us right away through the contact page. We can change the nameplate text until the order has shipped; after that it cannot be changed.
Is a desk set suitable for a teacher who shares a room?
A few pieces are. A nameplate, a pen cup and a coaster are easier to put away between classes than a desk pad.
