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Ultimate List of Teacher Appreciation Week Themes

Look no further for the most comprehensive list of creative and fun staff and teacher appreciation event themes to help your and your PTO celebrate the people who make school happen for your kids!

This post runs down a whole host of teacher appreciation week themes for staff and also links to theme specific articles with ideas for decorations, daily events, gifts and food ideas for teacher breakfasts, staff luncheons or even staff dinners too.

Having a theme is a fun way to celebrate Teacher Appreciation Week and way to show your staff how much you appreciation all they do for the students and school and can put a fun spin on the entire event.

Let’s dive into the theme ideas!

survivor themed teacher appreciation ideas

1. A Survivor theme will be especially appreciated at the end of the year. And you can style it like the television show or lean into the potential-campiness that staff are the true school survivors.

western themed teacher appreciation ideas

2. Show the staff a rootin’ tootin’ good ole time with a Western themed appreciation week.

jungle leaves on pink backdrop

3. Schools can be wild places, so a Jungle Safari theme is quite spot on.

movie star teacher appreciation week ideas

4. Treat the staff like the Movie Stars they are and roll out the red carpet to pamper them!

cinco de mayo teacher appreciation week ideas

5. Let’s Taco about how to treat your staff to a fiesta to remember, since Teacher Appreciation Week falls during the first week of May and often Cinco de Mayo too.

Palm tree in tropical location

6. Staff are sure to love a Hawaiian themed party since who wouldn’t want to be treated to the delights of the island!

friends show symbols in yellow, red and blue

7. Show the staff you’ll be there with them with a Friends themed week of appreciation events. Sorry for the ear worm!

to go coffee cup for teachers with trees in background

8. Perhaps a coffee themed celebration the whole week is in order, especially during a high stress time of the year like testing month.

pink donuts with sprinkles on marble counter

9. Donut know what you’d do without your fab teachers and staff? Sounds like a doughnut themed celebration is in order!

painted rainbow on blacktop

10. At the end of the Rainbow, you’ll not only find a pot of gold if you’re lucky, but your awesome staff since they’re as good as gold, right?

striped multi-colored pinwheels on organ background

11. Come May, all teachers cannot wait to get to Summer break, so give them a taste of what’s soon to come with a Summery party!

striped umbrella sandy beach with view of water and sky

12. Bring in the relaxing vibe of the beach to help stressed out staff unwind and relax after a long year during Teacher Appreciation Week with a bunch of beach themed events and goodies.

pile of baseballs with blue text below

13. Show your staff you think they’re hitting it out of the park with a Baseball bash.

football field with football graphic and black and white text overlay

14. A Football themed festivity is perfect for a Fall appreciation event, or one planned for late January or early February, in time for the Super Bowl!

spinning globe on pink background

15. A travel themed week to destination appreciation will have them packing their suitcases for the fun.

S'mores bar on picnic table

16. Light up a (decorative) camp fire for the staff to gather round and feel appreciated with a Camping inspired week of events.

blue and red game pieces and pair of dice against gold background

17. It’s all Fun and Games as teachers, right? Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case, but you can game-ify staff appreciation weeks to boost spirits!

pirate ship silhouette against blue background

18. A-hoy, mateys! There’s surely lots of treasure to be found with a Pirate themed appreciation week.

colorful balloon carnival game with prizes in bins below game

19. Put up a big top to celebrate teachers and staff with a Carnival or Circus function.

rocky beach at water's edge with turquoise water

20. On land or Under the Sea, put on the best week of appreciation events for your school staff.

full picnic basket with a bottle of drinks and flowers on blanket

21. Pack a fabulous Picnic lunch one day or stretch it into a full week of festivities.

pink gel eye mask on white towel with teal text overlay

22. Pamper your staff to special Spa themed treats throughout the week.

red and white tall dr. Seuss hat, cat-esque whiskers and a red bow tie

23. An ever whimsical theme is Dr. Seuss or any of his fabulous books.

rainbow of candies on blue background

24. Give them what everybody wants… Candy! Build a fantastical Candy Land for them to enjoy.

three images of various type of pizza on gold background with pizza graphics and a black text overlay

25. Sometimes there’s nothing better than to serve up some comfort food to celebrate your staff and Pizza certainly fits the bill!

Here’s an entire week of pizza themed appreciation events all figured out for you.

blueprint with a level, yellow construction hat, compass and pens

26. Build the most perfect Teacher Appreciation Week with a Construction theme!

royal staff appreciation events.001

27. Bust out the crowns and scepters for a Royal event theme.

blue and purple galaxy star background with a purple rocket and white text

28. A Space or Out of this World themed teacher appreciation week has a lot of potential to leave staff feeling like they’re over the moon loved.

pink, white and black lottery ticket with blue and black text overlay

29. Make the staff feel like they’ve won the lotto with a Lottery themed week of fun.

whipped cream milkshake with sprinkles against pink background

30. Throw it back to the golden oldies with a 50s / Sock hop jubilee.

playing cards and casino chips on red background with tex overlay

31. You really won’t be rolling the dice with a Casino theme for teacher appreciation week!

Super hero costumes hung up on hook against white wall

32. Teachers are actually Super Heroes in disguise, so order up some capes and masks for your crew and throw them a party fit for heroes.

woman holding emoji balloon bouquet against colorfully painted brick wall

33. I know it’s hard to hide your feelings about how much you love your staff, so an Emoji themed appreciation event is perfect, no?

Pictures of bees on flowers, dripping honey into a bowl and a honeycomb with a pink text box overlay

34. Get the staff buzzing with excitement with a Bee themed appreciation party!

multi colored concert lights

35. Set the stage for your Rock Star staff so they can jam out and enjoy the party.

mylar foil heart shaped balloons on a white background with pink and black text overlay

36. It takes heart to be teachers and your staff will love to be loved on with a Heart themed week of events.

summer garden with text overlay

37. A Garden party would be so loves as a theme for Staff Appreciation Week since it falls during Spring.

table with lemonade for teacher appreciation week hosted by a PTO

38. A Lemonade themed week of appreciation events would be easy, peasy, squeezy!

red ombre hot air balloon against bright blue sky

39. Tell your staff “you lift us up” with a Hot Air Balloon themed celebration.

magic teacher appreciation week

40. Teachers are Magic makers, but surprise them by pulling out some tricks of your own.

strawberry ice cream atop a waffle cone against pink brick wall background with black text below

41. Let the compliments for the staff drip like Ice Cream on a hot day for a teacher appreciation week they’ll never forget!

mardi gras masks and beads with text overlay

42. Another fun theme for an almost mid point of the school year is Mardi Gras. Toss those beads!

paris teacher appreciation week.001

43. Who could resist a free trip to Paris? Well, at least you can transport them there via a super decorated teachers’ lounge.

Harry Potter symbols: striped tie, sorting har, golden snitch, round glasses

44. Another word for teachers should be wizards given all the amazing things they conjure up to make schools so fantastic, so bust out the wands for a Wizard themed week of fun.

a group of cheerleaders in blue and white uniforms on a field on a sunny day with a text box below the image

45. School spirit will be boosted when you chant “2-4-6-8, who do you appreciate? Teachers, yeah, the Teachers!” as a part of a cheerleader themed week of gratitude.

horses racing on grass field with jockeys atop with text box on lower half of picture

46. Everything will come up with roses should you decide to host a Derby themed week of appreciation celebrations.

silhouettes of wizard of oz characters looking at emerald city in distance

47. Invite staff to follow the yellow brick road to the teacher’s lounge you’ve decked out with wicked Wizard of Oz decorations and treats!

teachers toasting each other during staff appreciation week

48. Raise a glass of your favorite beverage (sans the alcohol if on school grounds, of course) and say Cheers to You to the teachers and staff during a week long of appreciations events.

ts appreciation week ideas

49. Calling all Swifties! Here’s a ton of ideas for a Taylor Swift inspired week of appreciation events.

Over to You!

You’re all done with my bad puns and jokes, so hat’s off to you for making it through this list of staff appreciation week themes!

Hope these ideas have given you inspiration when you needed it the most to help plan a fabulous event to let the teachers and school staff know exactly how much you appreciate them.

Christina Hidek

Author of The Principal's Parent Group Playbook: Practical PTO Partnership Strategies for a Stronger School Community. Recovering attorney turned Professional Organizer. Host of the vibrant Super Star PTO Leaders Facebook Group. PTO/PTA engagement expert and school parent group volunteer nerd with 15+ years of experience. Learn more about Christina here.
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