Looking for a gift for your favorite teacher? Gift cards are safe, but not creative, and whatever you do, DON’T buy a mug that says ‘Greatest Teacher’. I’m sure teachers have a collection of unused stereotypical gifts, so why not break the mold and get something a little more unique. Here’s a list of eleven things that teachers won’t allow to collect dust.

• Movie Night – Watching a DVD or Blu-ray from Princeton Record Exchange, and enjoying treats from a movie snack kit (above) from Walmart is a great way to enjoy a winter evening.
• Sweet Soaps – Their Snowman Poop soap, Santa’s Coal soap, and Bacon soap are some of their most popular products, and make fun gifts.
• Hot Chocolate on a Stick – Popbar in NYC has Swiss chocolate on a stick that you stir into steamed milk, and makes a rich hot chocolate drink. (About $20 for a 6-pack)
• Snowman Kit – Making snowmen are part of family winter fun. This is great for teachers with school age kids.
• Afternoon Tea – Make a gift basket filled with Simply Nic’s Artisanal Shortbread, lillipies from Jen’s Cakes and Pasteries, and tea from Holsome.

• Brookstone – The Boogie Board is a green alternative to Post-its. This LCD writing tablet is small enough to travel with, yet large enough to write substantial notes. (Collect money from the entire class for this one.)
• House of Cupcakes – A dozen (or half-dozen) of these fancy treats will cure any sweet tooth.
• Radio Shack – The Princeton Shopping Center location carries the Kindle Fire and NOOK Color. Choose one of these hot tickets for hours of reading and entertainment. (Collect money from the entire class for this one.)
• Lindt – Select a beautiful Build Your Own Lindor Felt Bag, Lindor Truffles Snowman 19 oz. Bag, or a Lindt Bear Figure as a gift. Who can resist this Swiss chocolate?
• Bed Bath & Beyond – With the winter months coming up a Towel Spa towel warmer will hit the spot! (Collect money from the entire class for this one.)

• Radio Shack – The Roku 2 XS is a media streamer, allowing you to listen to Pandora, and watch Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Instant Video, Crackle, and enjoy many other internet audio and video services. There’s also a new gaming feature, and this unit includes Angry Birds and a Wii-like remote. (Collect money from the entire class for this one.)