Probably impossible - in search of inexpensive but nice giveaways

February 16, 2023 5:20 AM

Hoping you guys can help me source some “giveaway” items for an elementary school event this spring. The school is hosting a festival and the principal wants to give each child some kind of little gift. The budget is (sigh) $1 per kid. Total 600 kids. I’d like to avoid cheap trinkety items. Ideally I would like to avoid plastics and excessive packaging, and get something made domestically (Canada or USA) but I realize that may be too much to ask. We can give different gifts for the different age groups (so that kindergartners don’t receive the same thing as an eighth grader). Ideal for me would be something consumable but memorable, like maybe tree sapling, customized cool pencil, flashlight? Probably a food item would be ok if it doesn’t contain nuts dairy soy wheat etc. We are located in Ontario Canada. Thanks in advance!!
posted by leslievictoria to Shopping (31 answers total)

Best answer: Cool rocks. You can buy bulk geodes and small tumbled stones pretty inexpensively. Small, brightly colored organza bags are cheap, too. One geode tied up in one bag, under your budget and cute. Kid doesn't like it? The bag can get reused for anything they want and they can return the rock to the earth.

If you want to get really involved, you can source nice quotes from gen z celebs, print them out in a label grid on some heavier weight paper, and stick one nice quote in each bag with the stone.
posted by phunniemee at 5:40 AM on February 16, 2023 [12 favorites]

Best answer: Can you partner with a local ice cream shop? Maybe buy 600 free ice cream cone coupons for $600? Maybe there’s a local book store that might want to pair up?
posted by Geckwoistmeinauto at 5:40 AM on February 16, 2023 [13 favorites]

How about fresh flowers? That goes well with a spring event. And I know they're not cheap if you buy individual stalks pre-packaged but if you could get volunteers (parents? high schoolers? local craft group?) to make them from, like, bulk daisies and ribbon, that might be possible to accomplish for $1 per kid.
posted by MiraK at 5:41 AM on February 16, 2023

Best answer: Back when I was a kid, I was always happy to get one of those pens with different ink colors to push down. Is there an equivalent of that nowadays? And then get a mom (or a dad or a local handmade goods boutique) with a cricut machine to volunteer to make custom vinyl stickers to put on every pen/marker.
posted by never.was.and.never.will.be. at 5:53 AM on February 16, 2023 [3 favorites]

I would try asking local businesses if they would be willing to donate items, sell items at a discount or donate money to help you buy items.

I wonder if a nursery would donate or discount some small plant starts. Small seed packets might be another idea. This time of year you can often buy last year's seeds at a discount. Their germination rates will probably be slightly lower than this year's packets, but not dramatically lower. Maybe you could repackage seeds from larger packets into smaller packets for each kid. You'd want to pick something that's easy to grow and doesn't take up too much space - maybe lettuce or other greens, radishes, carrots, nasturtiums. How late in the spring is this going to happen? Are things going to be coming up in people's gardens by then? Maybe you/your friends/PTA members have some plants like chives that could be divided and put in cheap plastic pots to supply enough gifts for at least one grade.
posted by Redstart at 5:53 AM on February 16, 2023 [8 favorites]

Best answer: Or buy a bunch of that paper with seeds in it, and add a note about how the students are like seeds that will spring into bright flowers and strong trees.

That stuff is like zero effort to plant (i.e., dig hole, drop in paper, pour on water, bury), so even the littles could manage it.
posted by wenestvedt at 5:55 AM on February 16, 2023 [3 favorites]

I'm not sure which age group it is, but somebody in there will be happiest with the actual dollar bill. Origami them into cats or whatever to make it more special. Is there a school mascot they could be?
posted by teremala at 5:58 AM on February 16, 2023 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Arg, crap, I even double-checked on the existence of such bills and missed the date. Sorry, never mind.
posted by teremala at 6:00 AM on February 16, 2023

You can get custom frisbees for under a dollar on an order that size.
posted by drlith at 6:04 AM on February 16, 2023

Custom buttons or pins would be fun. The older kids could get a different design/size then the younger kids.
posted by ljesse at 6:06 AM on February 16, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Please don’t pick something that will wind up being a project/obligation for parents (seeds, plant starts). I like plants and have outdoor space and I still don’t like getting that stuff as gifts.

I like the idea of fun school supplies. Maybe print up a countdown to summer themed calendar? Stickers?
posted by momus_window at 6:24 AM on February 16, 2023 [5 favorites]

Classic glass marbles! Big ones. Cat's eyes. If you buy them by the bag, they should be within your budget.
posted by heatherlogan at 6:30 AM on February 16, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I think custom pencils are a good idea in this case and here's a source (won't be Canadian-made) - the small colour pencil 6-pack would be nice too. They also have custom notebooks. Not super eco-friendly, but not complete garbage. I ordered custom jumpropes from them (both plastic and probably out of your budget) and they were decent quality.

There's Branded Bites - not sure about cost, but you'd have to ask if they could do nut-free. It might be better to work with a local bakery though.
posted by warriorqueen at 6:43 AM on February 16, 2023 [1 favorite]

Print something. For $600 you can spend $5 on cute themed graphics/photos and make them each a set of postcards. Set up a big box as a postbox at the event and some writing stations with colourful pens and have them write cards to each other or teachers and 'post' them to classrooms. Or print a set of stickers - round stickers with art from the kids or cute graphics and an occasional school logo, for $600 you could make sure every kid gets a couple of small sheets.

If it doesn't have to be personalised, stickers are my go-to for things like that. You can get big bags of cute loose stickers from alibaba and then sort them into packs which would seem like a huge haul for the kids.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 7:07 AM on February 16, 2023 [4 favorites]

A bulk buy of bandanas or gaiters might fall in that price range depending on your supplier/supplier's donation (bulk price is often ~1-1.25 USD). Customization is probably too expensive so maybe just in the school colors. In my area, bandanas would be more spring oriented than gaiters but one-ply gaiters are a year-round thing here, especially those that can be used as headbands.
posted by beaning at 7:12 AM on February 16, 2023 [1 favorite]

This company in Georgetown, ON helped me with cookies

https://terracottacookies.com/

They are peanut/tree nut free, which in our school was the biggest allergen. After we reviewed what we needed, we decided to go with them, and then provided alternate snacks for the kids who couldn't have these. We just made the alternate a little bit 'better' than the cookie. They do have gluten free and vegan cookies as well.

Looks like should be in budget.
posted by Ftsqg at 7:13 AM on February 16, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Protest the "budget" by giving each kid a dollar.
posted by Furnace of Doubt at 7:50 AM on February 16, 2023

You might want to call your nearest branch of Chapters and see if they have a stash of stuff that's been marked out post-holiday and pre-inventory.

In any case I'm thinking bookmarks would be a nice gift. Kids really seem to love them, although I can't tell you why, and everyone's supposed to be reading, right?
posted by BibiRose at 7:54 AM on February 16, 2023

I love the seeds idea - something like vegetables kids can grow or else native wildflowers. You could probably buy seeds in larger quantities from somewhere like Vesey's Seeds or your local nursery and split them into little envelopes that have a description on them related to whatever values you'd like to convey through them. Depending on what the common housing types are in your area (houses with yards vs apartments with no outdoor space) and whether the kids would have access to a place to plant things, you could look at making some little pots available to some kids to let them grow their seeds on a windowsill or balcony or else see if there is a spot at the school where a little plot could be set up for kids to plant their stuff. I think it would be a good, practical skill to learn and has a lot of links to the current economy and costs of food as well as environment and healthy eating.
posted by urbanlenny at 8:11 AM on February 16, 2023

A sheet of customized temporary tattoos?
posted by dywypi at 8:25 AM on February 16, 2023 [4 favorites]

Please don’t pick something that will wind up being a project/obligation for parents (seeds, plant starts).

This is a good point. The ideal plant would be something like chives that could just be used for cooking right away by people who don't want the hassle of growing a plant. Chives might actually be the perfect choice. You can grow them in pots inside or in the soil outside, they're easy to grow, they come up year after year, and their flowers are attractive to butterflies. (They do have a tendency to spread, though.)
posted by Redstart at 8:57 AM on February 16, 2023

Custom lip balm?
posted by vunder at 9:02 AM on February 16, 2023

I am a sucker for a little wooden top, and it looks like you could easily source them (maybe with the school logo, even?) for less than $1 each. It's small and unobtrusive, it is a universal toy, and it's a little keepsake for a kid's desk or bookshelf at home.
posted by AgentRocket at 9:05 AM on February 16, 2023 [3 favorites]

In my kid's school we gave away the "Otter Pop" style of popsicle and it was basically as if we'd given each kid a million bucks. Everyone was so happy!
posted by BlahLaLa at 9:10 AM on February 16, 2023 [8 favorites]

Rent a couple of candy floss machines for the day.
posted by Iteki at 10:24 AM on February 16, 2023 [3 favorites]

Stickers. Maybe custom sheets that include stuff related to the school.
posted by vunder at 10:51 AM on February 16, 2023 [2 favorites]

A local chain restaurant gave out coupon cards to our elementary school that said "free kids meal with the purchase of an adult entree during the month of January" and everyone we know went so it was probably a win win. Might be a nice add-on if you feel the $1 gift is too small and can get a restaurant to do this.

Seconding chapstick (buy in bulk on amazon) for less than $1 each.

Chapstick, cute pen/marker, stickers, plus a coupon make a nice gift bag.

See if you can get local stores to donate sets of pens and gift bags, tell them your budget.
posted by never.was.and.never.will.be. at 2:04 PM on February 16, 2023 [2 favorites]

A lot of kids would be thrilled with Iwako erasers -- they are technically a school supply, but so cute and fun to play with that it's hard to tell. If you buy sufficiently in bulk, they are under a dollar each.
posted by blueberry monster at 3:04 PM on February 16, 2023

I'd second popsicles or freezies.
I also like the cotton candy idea, but the stuff is very sticky. I'm not sure if you could make 600 cones in a day, but it's fun to do. Chapstick ... some kids love it, some will be completely unimpressed.

Failing that, you can make something, but the logistics of making 600 of anything are impressive.
I've had to do this in the past, if on a smaller scale. I once had to make necklaces for a couple of lower grade classes. We built a block of fimo (or sculpey) with a picture in it, rolled it out inte aa couple of yards of sausage, which preserved the picture, cut them up and cooked them. I'm sure there are lots of instructions for this on the net. Each kid only got a few beads but they were very popular. Obviously this doesn't work for the higher grades if you're not very creative.

You can also make buttons - you can get the machines and parts from Tecre.com. I'd be very leery of buying from anyone else because their machines are solid and I've seen cheap ones disintegrate in a lot less than 600 buttons. Mine's at about 4000 by now, and still fine. (No connection, I just think they're the best.)
You can make the paper part on a printer, and if you're good at this sort of thing you can make a variety of them depending on age and taste. I'd get a circle cutter, too, because cutting out 600 little blanks is overwhelming.
I've got several button machines but the most popular one is for the smallest buttons: 7/8". They're unobtrusive and can stay on clothing. I've washed them lots of times.
The machines are a couple of hundred bucks, which is within your budget, and the blanks are about 8 cents each if you buy a thousand. This is also nice because you'll have the machine and a few hundred parts when you're done.
You can let the children make their own buttons. Every child I've known loves these things, and they're simple enough that a small child can use them. Children can cut out their own blanks, which slows down the rate of parts consumption and means you don't have to buy a cutter. (I wouldn't if children are making their own buttons.) Time to make a button is about fifteen seconds.

Still, everyone likes freezies.
posted by AugustusCrunch at 3:20 PM on February 16, 2023 [1 favorite]

Can you partner with a local ice cream shop? Maybe buy 600 free ice cream cone coupons for $600?

I love this idea. It benefits a local small business by bringing in kids because their parents will also buy ice cream. It builds community.
posted by bendy at 8:03 PM on February 16, 2023 [1 favorite]

What about button badges? Make the buttons at the festival.

$100 for the machine and $100 for enough parts to make 600 buttons. Maybe let the kids know ahead of time to bring a favorite small picture, a cartoon character printed out, a photo of a pet or friend, a magazine clipping, self made art, or have art supplies so they can color their own button, etc.

You can buy precut rounds for the kids to create their own art or buy a circle paper cutter to punch out images the kids provide.

This way everyone gets the same thing but also everyone gets something unique and custom made for them.
posted by CleverClover at 9:37 PM on February 16, 2023 [4 favorites]