How to Thank Multiple Teachers Without Losing Your Mind (Or Your WhatsApp Group)

Whether you're responsible for organising end-of-year gifts for multiple classes or everyone with a staffroom key, there is a way to make it through the season in one piece. We’ll show you the step-by-step to collecting contributions, creating cards and sending gifts without the administrative headache. Yes, it’s possible – we promise. 

There's a lot to thank teachers for – their endless patience, constant encouragement and the ability to pull a one man comedy show to rally the troops into enjoying Shakespeare. 

So when it's time to say thank you, you want to do it right. But there’s the rub – if you're organising gifts for multiple teachers, you're pulled into juggling contributions, card messages, different budgets and a WhatsApp group that's threatening to overtake the family chat. 

If you’re feeling the cortisol rising just at the thought – don’t panic. With GroupTogether, there’s another way. Two other ways, to be exact!

You can collect contributions online, let parents and students add unlimited messages to a group card and organise gifts for multiple teachers in one place. You just need to decide which setup works best for your school, class or year group. Here’s how. 

Step 1: Choose Your Gifting Game Plan

Before you get started, there's one important decision to make: Do you want one shared card for all the teachers or a separate card for each teacher?

Both options let you split the money collected between multiple recipients, the difference is how many cards you create and how personal you want each one to be. 

Option 1: One Shared Card, Multiple Teacher Gifts

Best for: Whole-school collections, year groups or even classes where you want to keep things totally simple.

This option means one collection link, one group card and multiple gifts. Everyone contributes to the same place, and you divide the funds between teachers and staff when you're ready.

It's particularly handy when you're organising a big end-of-year gift and would rather avoid the hassle of managing a separate collection for every person on the staff list.

Here's how to set it up:

1. Start your collection: Head to GroupTogether, click "Start" and select "Chip in & Sign the Card". Choose "Teacher" as the occasion. If you're organising a card without collecting money, you can select "Sign a Card" instead.
2. Give your collection a general name: Something like “Thanks for a wonderful year!” works well when everyone will receive the same group card. 
3. Set your contribution preferences: Choose "Any amount" so families can contribute what they're comfortable with. You can also allow parents and students to sign the card without contributing money – this means no one will be left out. 
4. Choose your card design: Here’s the fun part – you can choose from hundreds of original designs, personalise it with your own title and preview what everyone will see.
5. Publish and share your link: Once your collection is ready, invite parents by email or share the unique link through WhatsApp, Messenger or wherever your school community communicates. Parents and students can write a personal note, add a photo and chip in online. On your end, you can keep track of contributions and card messages from your dashboard.

And that's the collection sorted. One link to share, one place to keep track of everything and no need for increasingly desperate reminders as the deadline looms. 

Option 2: A Separate Card for Each Teacher

Best for: Class-by-class gifts, individual teacher appreciation and collections where you want every teacher to receive their own personalised card.

Sometimes a shared thank-you is perfect. Other times, you want to give the teacher their own card full of messages from her class, complete with photos from the year and and a few in-jokes. 

That's where separate collections come in. Each teacher or class gets its own link, collection and group card. Parents can then contribute and leave messages specifically for the teacher they're thanking.

Here's how:

1. Set up your first teacher collection: Follow the same setup process as above, adding the relevant teacher's details and choosing a card design.
2. Use the Duplicate feature: Once your first collection is ready, duplicate it to save yourself from repeating the whole setup process.
3. Personalise each new collection: Update the teacher's name, collection details and card design as needed. Repeat for each teacher or class.
4. Share each link with the right families: Send the relevant collection link to the parents who should contribute to that teacher's gift and card.
5. Let the messages come in: Each collection has its own card, so families can write personal messages and upload photos for their teacher.

Have two teachers for the same class? No stress, you can split that class's collected funds between both teachers – it’s that easy. Just remember that they'll receive the same group card for that collection.

Step 2: Invite the Contributions

Whichever setup you choose, you don't need to become the school's chief accountant and greeting-card editor all at once.

With GroupTogether, families can open the collection link on their device to contribute online and sign the card. You can also keep an eye on your collection through your dashboard, where you can see how much you've collected and who has contributed or signed.

A few tips to make the whole thing run smoothly:

• Make contributions optional: Choose "Any amount" so families can give what suits their budget.
• Let people sign without paying: Some families may want to add a lovely message without contributing money. That's completely fine.
• Send one clear invitation: Explain who the collection is for, what you're organising and where to find the link.
• Give everyone a reasonable deadline: A little time to contribute makes it easier for families to take part without a last-minute scramble.

And remember, you can go back and edit your group card. If someone sends a message late or you want to rearrange the order, you can manage the card through your dashboard.

Step 3: Split the Money Between Teachers

Here's where the magic of a group collection really comes in.

You don't have to decide exactly how much each teacher will receive before you start collecting. With one shared collection, you can gather the contributions first and divide the funds when you're ready to organise the gifts.

Say you've collected $2,000 for 20 teachers, you could allocate the same amount to everyone, or choose different amounts if that better suits your plans.

Once your collection has closed, here's what to do:

1. Open your dashboard: Log in to GroupTogether and select your collection.
2. Head to "Spend": This takes you to the Gift Store, where you can choose how to use the funds.
3. Choose your gifts: The GroupTogether AnyCard lets each recipient choose from over 100 retailers, making it a guaranteed hit for every taste. 
4. Add your recipients: If you're organising gifts for lots of teachers, choose "Add via spreadsheet" to upload a CSV with each recipient's details, gift amount, email address, sender name and message. 
5. Review and check out: Double-check the recipients, amounts and messages, then complete checkout and follow the confirmation steps.

Once everything is confirmed, you can check the gift status from your confirmation page, resend a gift if needed, and download the card and voucher as a PDF if you'd like to print them and hand them over in person.

Step 4: Print Your Teacher Card (Optional, But So Easy!)

If your school enjoys a good end-of-year presentation, you can also print your card and give it in person.

To print your GroupTogether card:

1. Log in and open your collection from your dashboard.
2. Select the card.
3. Use the download arrow to save the card as a PDF, then you’re ready to print.

For home printing, GroupTogether recommends A4 paper in booklet format, using quality paper stock. For professional printing, A3 paper folded to A4, printed in colour and double-sided on sturdy card stock is a good option.

Then all that's left is the handover.

Get Started on Your Teacher Gift

Whether you choose one shared card or a separate collection for each teacher, GroupTogether helps you bring contributions and messages together in one place so you can spend less time chasing people and more time celebrating the teachers who deserve it.

Ready to organise your teacher gifts? Get your collection started here or download our step-by-step guide for the 411.