Sunday School Teacher Appreciation Ideas
Teacher Appreciation Day for Sunday School should be really
wonderful! Find ideas for your program, including a skit and templates
for certificates!
Read our Featured Article "How Do You Thank A Sunday School Teacher?"
Feel free to use the resources and ideas listed here to help you as you make plans for your own time of Sunday School Teacher Appreciation!
Planning Teacher Appreciation Day?
- Download your Planning Packet!
which includes:
-Suggested Program Order for Teacher Appreciation Sunday
-Article "How do you Thank a Sunday School Teacher?"
-Original Skit "A Day in the Life of a Superhero."
- Sunday School Teacher Appreciation Certificates!
Download and use these printable certificates to help tell your teachers "Thank You" for their service.
-For Teachers of Children
-For Teachers of Youth
-For Teachers of Adults - Print these posters... Just for fun!
See if any of these little posters might bring a smile to the faces of some of your special teachers!
-Fun for the Nursery Door
-Fun for the Senior Crowd
-Fun for the Youth Worker
How Do You Thank a Sunday School Teacher?
It seems that the usual way of doing things for Sunday School Teacher Appreciation Day is to take a little chunk of time during the Sunday Worship Service to recognize the teachers and other workers. This usually happens on or around Promotion Sunday, or near the end of the school year.
The funny thing is that each year it always seems to surprise everyone! As if the Christian Education Board suddenly met one night and said “Uh, oh… It’s the end of the year! What are we doing for the Sunday School Teachers?” And then someone (probably someone just like YOU) gets put in charge of planning some sort of suitable recognition.
As if it was possible to plan a suitable recognition ceremony for Sunday School Teachers! Just exactly HOW do you do that?
What is it you are going to do for people, who come to church every single solitary Sunday with a lesson prepared, and sit in a room full of students to lead them through the intricacies of the Bible, teach them, raise them up, pray for them, and ultimately lead many of them to saving faith in Christ? I tell you right now; whatever you are planning to do… it is not enough!
The only way these people will ever get the reward they deserve is when they get to heaven and our Lord, Jesus Christ tells each of them ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.’ Matthew 25:34
But… (Good news for you…) They probably KNOW that already!
So, in the meantime, they will smile happily and be genuinely grateful for the lovely Christian bookmark or refrigerator magnet that you give to each of them. They will appreciate the card you took time to write, or the plant you tied the bow around.
They will most likely kick their toe in the dirt, or study the intricate weave of the carpet, as you have them stand in front of the congregation, while you extol their virtues. And all the while they will be thinking about how grateful they are that this day only comes around once a year!
In the end, all they really want to do is get back to their classrooms and to their students; because that is where God speaks to them and feeds their soul. These are the teachers you want.
They are the ones who come back year after year. They sign up to teach, volunteer to substitute, and even offer to be there for VBS. They are the ones you can’t ever pay back for the time, treasure, and talent they have given away. And don’t worry… you don’t have to! Like I said, their true reward is coming later!
For now, break out the refrigerator magnets, and get those bookmarks all lined up. Print up the Sunday School Teacher Appreciation Certificates and write all those Thank You notes. Because for now, this is the best we can do for these dedicated saints of God… at least on this side of heaven!
Sharon Chatwell
Find a Printer Friendly version of "How do you Thank a Sunday School Teacher?" in the Sunday School Teacher Appreciation Day packet.
On a Personal Note...
All of us have been Sunday School Teachers... (Face it... if you have read this far down on this page, you have been.)
And now, instead of just being one of the teachers, you are probably in charge of setting up a Teacher Appreciation Day for the teachers in your Sunday School.
God bless you!
It's an important and somewhat overwhelming task... because, honestly... How do you do it adequately?
My suggestion is to just love them. Go to them and tell them how much you appreciate them and their efforts. Thank them for all they do at your church. And make sure that you do this all through the year... not just on Teacher Appreciation Day.
They will know that you care, and that you appreciate them. And it will help (a little.) But the reason they do what they do, is the same reason that you and I did it... Because the love of God wells up within them and overflows to others.
This is evidence of the work of the Holy Spirit in their lives. They were called and gifted to teach.
Help them out. Pray for them. Be sure they get coffee. Keep the Media Center stocked with construction paper and crayons. And then just try and stay back out of their way... after all... They have an important job to do.
And you and I both know that!
With love in Christ,
Sharon