The best gifts for teachers

Many of us rely on caffeine to get us through long days, and teachers are no different. But being busy with students, lesson plans, lectures, and other classroom activities can mean that their beverage of choice gets cold before they can drink it all. The second generation of Ember’s smart cup Cup 2, not only keeps tea or coffee hot, but also keeps it at a constant temperature for a long time. App integration allows you to set the temperature of the mug, while built-in sensors turn off the heat when the mug is empty or untouched for two hours. The 10-ounce size has up to an hour and a half of battery life, and the 14-ounce capacity adds another 20 minutes. They can also stick the cup into the included refill vessel to keep their coffee hot all school day. – Amy Skorheim, reporter, Buying Advice

If your child’s teacher is the sentimental type, like a digital photo frame Aura Mason allowing them to easily add and view their favorite snapshots. The Mason itself has a crisp, nine-inch, 1600 x 1200 resolution display and a minimalist design that should look normal on a desktop or side table at home. This thoughtful gift can display photos in portrait or landscape mode, and uploading photos (or videos) via the Aura app is a no-brainer. Just note that it can sometimes add black boxes around photos that don’t fit the 4:3 aspect ratio.

If you want to save $50, Aura Carver it’s a larger 10.1-inch frame with similar benefits, albeit with a lower resolution (1280 x 800) and only works in landscape. You can also make a gift Multifunctional as a smart display Google Nest Hubhowever, these usually have low-quality screens and are not that easy to mount on a wall. – Jeff Dunn, Senior Correspondent for Buying Advice

Maybe you don’t have a ton of cash, but you still want to say a little thank you to your favorite educator – this one Anker Nano Pro charger not an ordinary gift, but it will be one they use regularly. It delivers 20W of power to the device it powers, which means it’s powerful enough to fast charge the latest iPhones and can also power other smartphones and some tablets. It’s 45 percent smaller than most 20W chargers that come with phones, so it’ll be a great backup charger for your teacher to keep with them wherever they go. If you think your teacher would prefer something more muted, there are several attractive pastel colors to choose from, including white and black. — Valentina Palladino, Associate Editor, Buying Advice

Your favorite teacher or professor probably stares at a screen as much as you do every day. Blue light-blocking glasses can make a great gift, as they’ll (hopefully) make it easier for them to get work done while reducing eyestrain, headaches, and other ailments. For educators who don’t already wear prescription glasses, it’s best to get them because you don’t want to hinder their real vision with non-prescription lenses. Many eyewear companies make stylish blue light glasses, but you don’t have to spend an arm and a leg for a pair. Privé Revaux There are a ton of options under $30 each, or if you feel your teacher wants to change styles more often, Amazon There are many packages to choose from. – VP

For some coffee gems on Engadget Fellow Carter 3-in-1 Sip System the ideal way to carry and drink your daily cup of joe. The system combines a vacuum-insulated, ceramic-lined 16-ounce Carter travel mug with three different lids—one with a straw for cold drinks, a slide lid, and an original curved lip lid with a splash guard. Anyone who loves coffee will appreciate the luxurious treatment this travel mug provides. – AS

Chances are, if they love to teach, they love to learn. we found MasterClass being the bridge between an online learning program and a tightly curated streaming platform featuring the most talented people in many different industries. Sure, it can be approached with a specific goal in mind—learning to make kimchi, draw portraits, or survive in the wilderness—but the lessons can be viewed more passively for pure, curious entertainment. The gift works like a one-year subscription that goes for $120 for the standard tier. It allows access to all Masterclass content on one device at once, but does not allow offline viewing. Higher levels allow you to view downloads on multiple devices at once and offline. – AS

We don’t want to make generalizations, but if there’s a segment of the population that likes to read, it’s probably teachers. The Kobo Clara 2E is our trend favorite e-reader because it’s easy on the eyes, comfortable to hold, and offers just the right amount of customization. The waterproof design makes it a good candidate for vacations and poolside reading, and the warm lights make for easy late-night reading. Considering that Kobo now has an unlimited reading and listening subscription Kobo Plusthe company’s well-built devices are better equipped to compete in a space that Kindles have dominated for years. – AS

A Trade Coffee subscription can help the teacher in your life shake up breakfast. It offers a curated selection of over 450 coffees from the US and intelligently customizes which ones to recommend to each subscriber. Upon redeeming the gift, your instructor will be prompted to take a short quiz asking them about their taste and brewing preferences, information that the Trade will use to offer a custom bag to their taste. They can then give any coffee they buy a thumbs up or thumbs down, which is meant to refine the company’s future recommendations. All this is easy to manage online. You can gift anywhere from two to 24 bags, and Trade says that any gift subscriptions won’t automatically renew, so there won’t be any surprise charges for anyone to deal with. – JD

They say an organized desk is an organized mind. Whether that’s true or not, it can certainly be difficult to keep track of all the technology you need on a regular basis. Bellroy’s Desk Caddy it has pockets, pouches and loops to keep cords, plugs, earphones and keys in place. The structured shape stands up when you load it up, but is flexible enough to fit into a compact backpack if you need to take it with you. We also like that it’s waterproof and made from recycled materials. – AS

If you know a teacher who is still a champion of the printed word, they are a Subscribe to Book of the Month. I like how BOTM does the hard work of determining what’s new and good in fiction, so I just have to read it. The club selects seven or more books each month for members to choose from, and the selection is varied enough that most readers will find something to their taste. If nothing looks good, they can always pick something from the back catalog or skip the month altogether. At first I thought it would be a lot of pressure to tackle a new book every month, but the option to switch effectively extends their subscription, so there’s no pressure. You can gift a three-, six-, or twelve-month membership for $60, $100, or $200, respectively. – AS

The Anker Soundcore Motion+ it’s a reliable portable speaker for audio-related classes or just to enjoy some music while out and about. Its wedge-shaped frame is small enough to fit in a bag without too much hassle, and it’s waterproof with an IPX7 rating. Most importantly, it gives impressive volume for its size. Like most small speakers, it won’t deliver a ton of deep bass, but it sounds full enough to be useful in the classroom or at the beach. It also supports wired connections via a 3.5mm jack, while the battery can last for 15 or more hours per charge. – JD

The The Purist Mover it’s the closest thing to a “premium” water bottle I’ve tried, with a clean, minimalist stainless steel aesthetic and a satisfyingly textured finish. Its biggest snag is the ultra-thin layer of glass that covers the inside. In addition to insulating your drink all day, it’s designed to prevent liquids from acquiring metallic flavors or unwanted odors as quickly as other bottles. Everything will still need frequent washing, but in my experience it has really worked.

The Mover is an 18 oz bottle, however different size and cap options to choose from (the “Unity” header is my preference, though it can be a bit noisy if you do). No Purist bottle is particularly cheap, but it should make hydration a little more convenient for your teacher’s day job and provide a nicer design for their desk. – JD

If your teacher considers himself a movie buff, a Subscribe to Criterion Channel may suit their tastes. This is a streaming service A set of criteria, a video distribution company that restores and preserves a carefully curated selection of popular movies spanning genres and languages. It doesn’t have the same flood of content as Netflix or Prime Video, but it also has less trash.

The service makes many movies useful collectionsfrom Afrofuturism for Foreign Language Oscar Awards for David Lynch’s short films. Different titles also come with bonus features like cast interviews. Unfortunately, not every movie in the Collection is available on the Channel at any given time. (There is Gift Cards (which can only go to movies that are available in physical form.) Even so, the service should still provide hours of stimulating work for movie-loving educators who feel like they’ve watched everything on the usual suspects. Gift subscriptions are available in increments of one to 12 months. – JD

A selection from us power bank buying guidethe OtterBox Fast Charge 15,000mAh It’s a simple yet effective way to ensure your teacher’s equipment doesn’t die in the middle of class. Its handsome, sturdy frame features one USB-C and one USB-A port and can deliver up to 18W of power. This allows it to fully charge a new iPhone in two hours, or charge it to 33 percent in less than half an hour. The 15,000 mAh capacity in this model is enough to provide more than two charges for the iPhone 15 Plus or more than a full charge for the iPad Air. To be clear, this isn’t the fastest battery we’ve tested, and it’s not fully wireless like some newer alternatives. But it looks good, does the job, and is a nice value at around $30. – JD

If you don’t know what it takes to express your gratitude to your favorite teacher, one Amazon gift card is a good solution. Whether it’s school supplies, family essentials, or something on their wish list, most teachers will find a way to spend a few extra bucks on (or at) Amazon. Walmart, Target or another retailer they prefer). – VP