anybody NOT giving teacher gifts???

[brightvalleyjrts]

I probably do too much for my boys teachers, but I can't help it. I love buying for them too. I even do gifts for other holidays for them. I did halloween this year (Gave cute pumpkin candles from B&BW.)

I usually set a limit of like $10-15 for the teachers. This year for my son's kindergarten teacher I am thinking of doing a GC out to eat or a GC for the movies (for her and her Dh)

 

[melafive]

That is a great looking bag, will you be one of my parents?

I always send thank you notes, usually addressed to the kids, is that right(they are only 2) or should I send it in the parent's name?

I think either is fine. Just as long as the parent knows the gift was well received.

 

[momx2]

My oldest is in 5th grade, my youngest in 2nd grade....I've never recieved a thank you note from a teacher. I think I may have gotten one or two verbal thank yous, kinda sad.

Also, every year I buy for the 3 secretaries in my office on appreciation day and Christmas. I have never recieved a thank you, verbal or note. This year I am getting them a box of Pot of Gold Hersheys I got for a bargain at CVS and calling it a day. I'm tired of never being thanked.

I am buying for the teachers because there is a new one every year. I can't punish the new teacher for the old teacher's bad manners.

 

[MM27]

I teach in an urban area and receive gifts from maybe half of my students. I don't expect anything and would never think differently of a child or their parent if I didn't get a gift.

That being said, I always give the child a thank you card the day I receive the gift. Hopefully, they all make it home (I usually tape a candy cane on the outside and tell them they can have that but make sure the adult sees the card).

It's so sad when kids see other kids bringing gifts right before Christmas break and they feel that they should have brought something too. I actually have had students say, "I bought you something but I forgot it at home" or "we're getting your present this weekend" I always give the kids a gift and have even had kids say, "Are you only giving those presents to the people that brought you a gift?"

If you have some kind words for the teacher, a letter forwarded to the principal is also a nice gesture.

 

[mrstomrice]

We stopped after I think first grade and started sending in a nice tray of goodies to the main office with a thank you card from our whole family. Seemed to go over well. It had the added bonus of thanking their art, PE, speech teachers as well as other school personel.

This is really thoughtful! You might want to consider sending it in prior to the last day before break. There seems to be a lot of food around that day and I'd hate to see it be wasted!

For my sons' daycare teachers, I started a voluntary collection. I put notes in the kids folders today and I have already had 5 moms want to join in. I suggested a total of 10-15 per child to be able to buy gift certificates for both teachers. It will be nice to give them 1 bigger gift then spend more individually and surpass our budgets.


Finally, as a teacher, I never expect a present. I never open them in front of the kids and I make a point to send home or mail a handwritten note. This year, our education foundation is collecting donations in honor of a teacher to be used towards grants. This seems like a nice honor!

 

[bushdianee]

I can't believe how many teachers don't thank parents and students for gifts. I make my students write thank you notes to PTA for field trips etc. so why shouldn't I? I teach first grade and generally receive gifts from a few of the students. Many of my students are immigrants and don't celebrate the holidays the way we do. I always send my thank you notes to the students over the break so as not to draw more attention to those who give and those who don't. The students who don't give might feel that I'm giving those who give "more" if they see the thank you cards. I always give all of my students a coloring book, crayons, a book to read and a little stocking of trinkets. I buy crayons when they are super cheap before school starts and use book order points for the reading books. I buy the coloring books and stockings in bulk. So while it looks like I am giving a lot, it doesn't cost a lot of $. Then again I don't have kids at home to buy for.

 

[GothTink]

I don't give gifts to teachers, mailmen, or anybody that I'm not related to. In fact, this year we even cut back to give just to our immediate family.

 

[Mrsgrumpy2000]

I am a teacher that teaches in a small rural school. Every year we send a note to parents requesting a small donation and no gifts for school staff. We receive .05 to $100. The donations sponsor poor families for Christmas. It has been a great success for the past 10 years.

 

[TotalSnowWhite]

They have so many workers and to be honest, I'm not real excited about the afternoon workers these days. They show no discipline or structure. I would love for the afternoon to have a quiet area my daughter could start her homework but they don't, its a free for all. I do not expect them to do all her homework but atleast give her a place she could start it.

I'm in the same boat. DS is in a private pre-school that I am just about fed up with these days. Normally we're the family that goes out of our way to show our teachers how much they're appreciated (especially since I was a teacher there in college and now work in the public school system), as well as the teacher's lounge goodies. This year, though, his teacher is not impressive in the least. She is new to our school (another school closed, and we got some of their teachers and students) and really hasn't done much since she got here. Honestly, she's a little strange. She tries to get into everyone's personal business (things affecting my child, sure, I can spill a little bit, but you don't need to know how my love life is!!). I still have a monthly girls' night with some of the teachers there (my old co-workers), and she heard about one of them and decided to show up and sit with us. That aside, I don't feel DS has gained anything from her as a teacher.

We will, however, be giving a gift to his former teacher. She's been a constant source of assurance for us, serving as another set of eyes and ears regarding DS. She's always been partial to him after learning about the death of his birth mom (as she lost her mom at a young age, too).

We may still take something for the lounge, but, no, we won't be buying a gift for his teacher.

 

[leebee]

Teacher gifts are usually small remembrances from DD. A couple of times we baked a pie or something similar, but usually it's a $5 gift card from Dunkin Donuts- enough for a cup of tea and a muffin on a dreary morning! One year when DD had several teachers, she made salt crystal ornaments for all- the science teacher was impressed! I have a friend who has her kids give the teacher a classroom gift: pencils, colored paper, markers, etc., or something for the teacher's desk, like post-it notes, white-out, etc. Unfortunately these days if teachers want their students- or themselves- to have these kinds of things, they must pay for them themselves, so this is kind-of a gift for the teacher also!

 

[RobinFabulous]

I give teachers one gift-at the end of the school year. Not a big gift-$20 gift card to Target or Walmart. That's it.

At our school they do teacher appreciation around the end of the year.... PTA organizes it. Last year I gave Christmas gifts and just sent a small contribution to Teacher Appreciation Day

 

[Matt'sMom]

We stopped giving holiday gifts to the teachers when DS hit middle school. In Elementary, he had one primary teacher who taught most of the subjects, and then one additiional teacher for one or two other subjects and his band instructor--three teacher gifts, plus one more for the bus driver. That was managable. But in MS, he now has TEN different teachers for regular classes, plus two band instructors & their student teacher (MS & HS bands). There is just no way we could afford to be giving all of those people Christmas gifts, along with buying for our own extended family (DS has five cousins under the age of 15 that we still buy Christmas gifts for too).

We do volunteer to help out at the school (and with band activities) whenever needed throughout the year, though... and I really do believe that most of the teachers appreciate that (the gift of time and participation) far more than the typical store-bought teacher gifts.

 

[*BTMRR*]

My kids are in elementary and every Christmas and at the end of the school year we sit down and make little thank you cards for their teachers. We've never given a gift and until I started reading the DIS I never knew so many people did give gifts.

 

[mlynn]

Money's tight here.
But my daughters teacher is so GREAT and always there to help. I can call her at any time and she will help or just come to my house to help with my daughters work. My duaghters is labled at risk. She is learning slower than her 1st grade class. So the teacher goes above and beyond to help her. She calls or emails me almost everyday to see how things are going at home. She has also sent me a Hooked on Phonics set to work with at home too.
So I could never not give her something. I have never met any teacher like her. That I have already told the school when my DD4 gets to 1st grade I want her in this teachers class. As for little cards and notes I have already sent her that card because of how much she has helped already.
So I'm getting her a nice gift card for her and her husband to go out to eat on us.

Now my 4 yo is in Preschool with 9 teachers and Aides, I'm only sending in for the teacher. I just can't do all of them.

 

[Minniemouse07]

Dd and I make a trip to the craft stores (Michaels/AC Moore) each year and pick something for her to make for her teacher's holiday gift.

In kindergarten she painted a birdhouse and last year in first grade she painted a cookie jar. We'll be making our craft store trip this weekend for her gift for her second grade teacher.

Dd also writes her own card to go w/ the gift.

I prefer dd to be involved in the process as opposed to me just picking up a gift card.

 

[sndfan]

OK. I'm a major Christmas elf. I love Christmas. So I do buy for my DS9's teachers...I found some great deals during the Vera Bradley sale. I also make homemade bookmarks and put them in the clear plastic sleeves.

I usually do the base of the bookmark, and my son glitters them up...he then writes a note on the back with his name and the year. He's in the 4th grade now...I also give bookmarks to all the "Specials" teachers like art, music, pe, computer, the office staff and principal and vp, and all is old teachers!

We're up to about 20 or so now, but they are fun to make on an afternoon with my son, and we have all the supplies already because I scrap...I can't tell you how often the teachers will grab me in the hall and let me know how they love them and how tickled that they are to get them even though they don't have DS in class anymore.

We also do them at the end of the school year.

I have ALWAYS rec'd a thank you note from the teachers...if I repeatedly did not get thanked, I probably wouldn't feel appreciated and would cut out the extras.

 

["Cinder" Ella's Mom]

I am a high school teacher and because kids have 7 or 8 teachers, we rarely receive gifts. That said, it would really be wonderful if more kids/families did send cards, maybe with a nice note. I certainly don't expect a gift, but have been know to cry at some of the heartfelt notes and cards I have received over the years. Some families will send edible gifts or an ornament. It is really just so nice to be remembered at all. I have also received $5.00 gift cards to the local bagel shop, etc. All are so appreciated, but never expected.

 

[angelat]

I love to write poetry and so 3 years ago, I wrote a poem about my DS 2nd grade teacher. I don't remember it by heart, but it was how I entrusted him to her each day and why he likes and respects her and how grateful I am to her for helping to mold him into a good person. I shrunk it to a good size, laminated it and when gave it as a bookmark. She loved it and it wasn't something that she couldn't use.

This year, I think I will find out what the kids use most in the classroom and just donate some of the supplies to the teacher. I know most teachers have to buy supplies out of their own pocket in our schools.

 

[Chelley00]

This year we are letting the kids pick out a bags of candy, and we tie them in a Christmas themed baggie with a note withing them Merry Christmas on them. This way we are giving them something, but it's not going to break my budget.

 

[Longsx3]

In Elementary School, we always gave a generous gift to DD's classroom teacher and a nice but modest gift to the extra teachers (art, pe, culture). this year DD is in Middle School, it will be different...We are going to make pretzel rods and accompanied by a nice note.