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Happy Teacher Appreciation Week: Our Gifts To You!
Kara Gil
May 1, 2026
Happy Teacher Appreciation Week! This year, you’ve made it through lesson pivots, long days, and everything else thrown at you. And through it all, you’ve shown up for your students, and it matters more to them than you know.
As a thank-you, we want to offer giveaways, kudos, and quick lessons that can make the last few months of the school year feel easier yet just as rewarding.
[Enter for a chance to win a time capsule kit to celebrate the 250th anniversary of America](id-contest)
Check it out. It's big. It's shiny. It's waterproof. It's a time capsule. It's waiting to be filled by you and your students. We're celebrating America's semi quincentennial with the time capsule giveaway. And it's more than just a fun activity. It's a way to turn everyday teaching into something that is lasting, it's personal, it's unforgettable. What will your students put inside? ELA students, you might have them write a letter to their future selves, maybe analyze, language changes over time, Maybe include a list of slang words that are current in twenty twenty six. For your social studies students, you might, discuss current events, reflect on community, ask what will people in the future wanna know about who we are right now. Science class, explore materials, preservation, maybe make predictions about what life will be like in the future. And it doesn't have to stop with one classroom. If you decide to use your time capsule for the entire school, maybe you'll have each grade vote and decide what represents them best. Maybe have different clubs provide something to go inside. You could include school newspapers, lunch menus, maybe team accomplishments. Time capsule is a snapshot of your school, your community in this exact moment, sealed and saved. All you have to do is log in to Newsela, choose an article that helps you teach two hundred fifty years of America, and assign it. From the signing of the Declaration of Independence to the recent Artemis mission, anything that helps your students reflect on this momentous moment counts. We'll be pulling three winners starting in May. So what will your students leave behind? Send the message forward in time from your classroom to the future.
How are you planning to celebrate the United States’ semiquincentennial with your students? We’re giving you a chance to win a time capsule kit to preserve memories of 2026 for years to come!
There are three easy steps to enter:
Sign in to Newsela to search for and use great resources about America’s 250 years.
Assign an article about American history that helps your students better understand the last 250 years of our country. Need help coming up with ideas? Browse the time capsule text set!
We’ll pull randomly selected winners on May 15, July 17, and August 28, 2026. You only need to enter once to be eligible for any of the three drawings!
Newsela Knack: Don’t have a Newsela account yet? Start a trial and get access to 18,000+ pieces of content for 45 days!
[Give your fellow teachers their flowers by celebrating their accomplishments](id-spotlight)
At Newsela, and especially in our educator community, we love to highlight teachers who go above and beyond to bring content-rich instruction and engaging activities to their students in the classroom every day. Let’s give a virtual round of applause and spotlight some of our featured teachers for this Teacher Appreciation Week:
Ella A.
Ella is a fifth-grade science and writing teacher at Locust Grove Elementary in the Red Lion Area School District. She uses Newsela mostly for her science lessons to find articles relevant to the standards she teaches and to supplement what her students are already learning in class.
One way Newsela enhances her instruction? Using the articles she chooses for science as a springboard for formative assessment through short-response writing!
Meghan S.
Meghan is a middle school social studies teacher at Liberty Middle School, part of Plymouth-Canton Community Schools. One of the primary things she tells her students is that when they study history, they shouldn't rely on a single source or author as their only source of information. Meghan uses Newsela to provide additional resources to their instruction so they can see historical events from all angles.
And as for her students? Meghan says they actually like using Newsela, even though it’s sometimes tricky to get middle schoolers excited to read.
Conor P.
Conor is a high school ELA and journalism teacher at Monsignor Bonner and Archbishop Pendergast Catholic High School in the Upper Darby School District and the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
He uses Newsela as a warm-up activity in his print journalism elective class to look at current events, work through reading, and respond to writing prompts. Conor says these activities help expose his students to news they may not otherwise cover in class.
One thing that he didn’t expect when he started using Newsela? It’s a great resource for finding background information and creating strong formative assessment questions to check student comprehension.
Jayna D.
Jayna is a 10th to 12th-grade CTE marketing teacher at Chandler Park Academy High School in the Chandler Park Academy District. She loves that using Newsela for business-focused reading and quizzes helps her students build the same skills they need for Michigan’s ELA assessments, while still learning about real-world and workforce content.
One of Jayna’s main focuses is to get her students reading and building background knowledge like real professionals. Using Newsela to do this helps them learn key vocabulary, see examples that matter, and build a foundation so their learning doesn’t start from zero.
Davie P.
Davie is a 6-8 special education teacher at Granada Elementary in Alhambra USD. He uses Newsela to build background knowledge and intentionally shifts his students’ learning routines to keep them dynamic.
Something Davie didn’t expect when he started using Newsela? How much it helped him better learn about his students and understand their interests! Their article choices and responses reveal what genuinely engages them, allowing him to tailor discussions more intentionally.
[Watch your students grow with these Teacher Appreciation Week activities](id-activities)
Want to help your students show appreciation for other teachers at your school? Here are some activities you can do with your students to help spread gratitude throughout your building:
Ask students to describe their teachers in three words. Create and share a word cloud for each teacher to display in their classrooms.
Have students ask teachers the names of their favorite books. Find a way to purchase any missing titles for your school library—either with school funds or by having students brainstorm ways to fundraise—and donate a copy dedicated to that teacher from your class.
Browse the Appreciating Our Teachers text set to get even more ideas on how to help your students thank and celebrate the other teachers in your school and their lives.
[Help our Newselaverse community flourish](id-community)
In the Newselaverse, you can participate in events, get involved to provide feedback and tips, and share lessons or resources you love.
You can join the Newselaverse by following us on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, X, and LinkedIn. You can also participate in teacher events or share your best lessons with us all right on our website!
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