Teacher gifts

[meajuly5]

Just stop the madness! Why give the teachers gifts?

The whole gift thing doesn't make sense to me in general unless you're giving to people you are close to that you enjoy giving to. Struggling to find a gift, then the teacher having to write you a thank you, it's all time consuming.

My preference as a teacher is NO GIFTS. As a parent, I volunteered regularly and made sure the teachers knew how much I appreciated them, but I did not give them gifts! (although I did coordinate some classroom gifts signed by the kids.) It's a foreign idea to me that it seems to be expected since I haven't taught in higher income areas. I've usually gotten a few gifts (maybe 5 students out of 25) and they are simple tokens.

I'm currently teaching in a wealthier demographic. Reading these threads, I'm already starting to dread getting gifts from students. I have to balance being thankful to the kids who bring things with not making the kids who didn't bring things somehow feel they did something wrong. I have to figure out what to do with the stuff, much of which will be scented. It makes me uncomfortable to think of people spending money on me. Then I have to get thank you notes out while trying to wrap up my work and start my vacation. (I have always done thank you notes.)

Have I gotten gifts I've enjoyed? Sure. I have ornaments on my tree from students, I use (and enjoy) the mugs. I have "class gifts" decorating my classroom. I think fondly of the students who gave them to me each time I see them. But is it worth all the angst I see here? I don't think so. I can feel appreciated by families and remember them fondly with or without a gift.

Reading this, I'm thinking I should send out an email soon about supply needs for the classroom and see if it would steer people that way!

I sure if you let the class parent know that you prefer a gift to be enjoyed by the class (supply, game etc), it would be accommodated.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

I work at an elementary school. Last year, our PTO sent out a letter to all parents asking for a small donation in lieu of individual teacher gifts. They used the money to spoil us the week before holiday break. One day they left a huge breakfast spread in the staff room (bagels, donuts, fruit, really good coffee, etc.). Another day, they had pizza, pasta and salad catered for lunch. Finally, we each got a little goodie bag (candy, etc.) in our mailboxes. With each meal, there was a note on the table with a nice message and signatures from lots of parents. Some parents in my classroom still gave individual gifts but, overall, it cut down on the individual gift-giving and gave every staff member something to enjoy. I hope they do it again this year.

 

[disykat]

I sure if you let the class parent know that you prefer a gift to be enjoyed by the class (supply, game etc), it would be accommodated.

The "class parent" or "room mom" is kind of a foreign thing to me. I've been teaching off and on for about 30 years and have been at many different schools and I've never been to one who had this. We have parent volunteers, but no particular coordinator for each room. I was probably the most involved parent in several of my children's classes and helped with parties etc. but I wasn't a "room mom" and never had access to the contact information for other parents.

 

[lauradis]

You cannot imagine how much I struggle with teacher's gifts every year. I constantly second-guess my choices after reading these threads with all the negative comments saying how teachers don't like this and don't like that.

I WISH our school would do a group gift so I don't have to go through the trauma every year!

But, what really burns me... when I go through all the effort to send a gift and I don't get a thank you note. In over 10 years of sending gifts to dozens of teachers, I think I've gotten one or two notes back. That's plain rude!

Oh your like my mil. She get really grumpy if you don't send Ty card for every gift.

Not say its bad thing. I give gifts because I want to and don't understand the need for feedback.

If you get so upset then why bother with teacher gifts?

 

[lauradis]

The "class parent" or "room mom" is kind of a foreign thing to me. I've been teaching off and on for about 30 years and have been at many different schools and I've never been to one who had this. We have parent volunteers, but no particular coordinator for each room. I was probably the most involved parent in several of my children's classes and helped with parties etc. but I wasn't a "room mom" and never had access to the contact information for other parents.

We have room moms. It's done by lottery pick. Sometimes you get good one sometimes it horrible. We also have grade directory but its optional to be on.

We do cookies or gingerbread houses with ornament inside, small 5 gift card.

Personally I'm not really that offended if you don't eat the cookies your loss or send Ty card, just make my kids day and say thank you. It's the thought that counts right?

To all teachers out there if you get gingerbread house it's old German tradition to fill it with presents, candy, cookies. Hope you didn't throw it way with out looking lol

 

[meajuly5]

The "class parent" or "room mom" is kind of a foreign thing to me. I've been teaching off and on for about 30 years and have been at many different schools and I've never been to one who had this. We have parent volunteers, but no particular coordinator for each room. I was probably the most involved parent in several of my children's classes and helped with parties etc. but I wasn't a "room mom" and never had access to the contact information for other parents.

Maybe its just a local thing. We usually have a volunteer assigned to coordinate volunteers, send out reminders, help with parties etc. they usually collect a small contribution from whoever can/wants to contribute and they coordinate holiday and end of year gifts from class. One teacher asked for no gifts. I donated books to her name and asked her if there was something she could use for the class instead.

 

[dismom115]

I am a teacher. Both my kids are in different schools from where I teach. At their schools there are optional collections taken up by the room moms and gift cards purchased. The teachers, special area teachers, office staff and IAs, usually end up with $250+ at Christmas and again at the end of the year. I am happy to donate, that way all get thank you'd and I don't have to sweat it!!

As a teacher, I never receive much. Some baked goods do end up in the trash; some I eat. I like the sweet notes most, as long as it is more than just a merry Christmas. The $5 gift cards to Walmart, target, grocery, subway, local Mexican place we go on pay days are an extra special treat!!!

 

[luvsmickeymouse]

I work at an elementary school. Last year, our PTO sent out a letter to all parents asking for a small donation in lieu of individual teacher gifts. They used the money to spoil us the week before holiday break. One day they left a huge breakfast spread in the staff room (bagels, donuts, fruit, really good coffee, etc.). Another day, they had pizza, pasta and salad catered for lunch. Finally, we each got a little goodie bag (candy, etc.) in our mailboxes. With each meal, there was a note on the table with a nice message and signatures from lots of parents. Some parents in my classroom still gave individual gifts but, overall, it cut down on the individual gift-giving and gave every staff member something to enjoy. I hope they do it again this year.

I think this is a great idea!

 

[RainbowBrite]

My kids are at a daycare full time - between them they have 5 main teachers and countless assistants. Last year I bought anyone that was ever in their rooms Pottery Barn ornaments that I got on sale. 20 people!

This year I decided to only focus on the 5 teachers and not the helpers because I had to draw the line somewhere. I bought them all Land's End bags. I found really cute ones on sale with an additional 30% off and free shipping. The totes were 12.50 each. One of the teachers I bought a more expensive tote for 17. I figure if they don't like tote bags they can regift.

As a former daycare assistant to a toddler classroom (9 kids between the ages of 12-24 months) I have to tell you...the assistants are the ones who do ALL the work. The teachers are the ones who plan the curriculum and oversee everything and get paid more, but setting up lunches, snacks, changing diapers, taking kids to the potty, cleaning up after potty accidents, cleaning up after every snack and meal, etc...the assistants do all of that. I know I worked very hard and spent 45 hours a week playing with and caring for each of the children and it would've hurt to see the teacher in my classroom get recognition and not me. I got to know the children one-on-one where the teachers often did not, because I got to spend more time with them.

 

[RainbowBrite]

I'm sorry you feel that way but if some families were to give to everyone that helps it would be way too expensive. I have 4 kids 3 year old in preschool, 5 year old in kindergarten, DD in grade 3 and DD in grade 5. Excluding the preschooler they all have multiple teachers plus helpers in the classroom ( I think the helpers mostly help with special needs kids most of the time. ) For us it's not financially feasible. I honestly wish I could come up with a gift that all teachers in the class could share but can't think of anything.

You call us "helpers" but we are not actually helpers, we are Assistant Teachers who do all of the real labor. Depending on the age and number of children in the classroom we HAVE to be in the room. For infants there has to be 1 teacher for every 3 infants, any more than that and there must be an assistant. For 12 months and older the ratio is 1 teacher for 5 toddlers, then an assistant must be present. I'm not sure about older toddlers or preschool as those were not my classrooms.

 

[taylor3297]

I teach and I agree, gift cards are good. I get a lot of Starbucks cards (we get a small gift per month) but I don't drink coffee. $50 so far this year, my husband takes them and I regift them. So, I don't get coffee for my own kids' teachers unless I know they drink it!

The best (and shocking) gift card was last year I got $150 Disney store and $25 Ann Taylor from a kid at the end of the year. I'm still floored by that one!

Starbucks has more than just coffee. I don't drink coffee at all but I have a gold card gift card from Starbucks I use all the time. I get hot chocolate, hot tea, passion fruit tea lemonade and smoothies.

I taught middle school for almost 20 years and have received many a gift. My favorites were always the homemade cards and such. I have also received baked goods and have never pitched any of them. I enjoyed every last bite. Though I will admit I haves shared with others.

 

[lauradis]

No home-made goodies are allowed to be brought into the school.

This is horrible, I really dislike not being able to bring homemade cupcakes to school for my child's birthday.

Yes I understand the allergy reasons, but after that it like saying hey parent we don't trust you not to poison us.

Our district try this for one year and guess what happen cupcake baking moms got really grumpy and the education board changed it ASAP. Small town little issues lol

 

[disykat]

This is horrible, I really dislike not being able to bring homemade cupcakes to school for my child's birthday.

Yes I understand the allergy reasons, but after that it like saying hey parent we don't trust you not to poison us.

Our district try this for one year and guess what happen cupcake baking moms got really grumpy and the education board changed it ASAP. Small town little issues lol

My district now allows homemade, my district 25 years ago did not. It's always been a food safety issue.

You have to understand it's not that they don't trust individual parents. It's not a comment on YOU. It's that one case of salmonella, e coli, etc. could mean severe harm to a student, lawsuits to the district, etc. It's protecting you and your child as well.

I still eat homemade food, but I have to admit sometimes watching shows like hoards, dirty house, etc. and seeing often perfectly normal appearing people who think eating food with mouse droppings on it is okay certainly gives me pause.

 

[writersblock42]

I have taught special education for 10 years. I can count on one hand the number of gifts that have been given to me by students. I got an ornament one year and I got a gift card to Barnes and Nobles another year. That is it and I am mostly okay with that. I would like a thanks once in a while or a gesture. I would definitely eat the baked goods. So you can send all the baked goods my way. I lived for a year in rural China, a brownie will not even phase this stomach.

 

[lauradis]

My district now allows homemade, my district 25 years ago did not. It's always been a food safety issue.

You have to understand it's not that they don't trust individual parents. It's not a comment on YOU. It's that one case of salmonella, e coli, etc. could mean severe harm to a student, lawsuits to the district, etc. It's protecting you and your child as well.

I still eat homemade food, but I have to admit sometimes watching shows like hoards, dirty house, etc. and seeing often perfectly normal appearing people who think eating food with mouse droppings on it is okay certainly gives me pause.

I know it's not about ME.

My written form of communication is very poor.

Let me explain we live in a very nice public school district. The school is overboard with communication to parents. Parents are highly involved we have waiting list to volunteer. Technology and class sizes are just awesome. Standing room only at all open houses. Etc

They normally have surveys before they make changes, for everything. They just up and made the no outside food policy, without informing parents like normal. It's smaller town and out of the norm.

Hoarder shows make me get on my hands and knees and scrub floor corners with a toothbrush.

 

[rainydayplay]

Gift cards and homemade treats are my favorite. Notepads are also good too. As a teacher we cannot accept a gift that is valued at $50 or more. Not sure if that is in every state, but definitely here in MA. We had to take a mini course with certificate of completion.

In Alabama, it's a $20 gifting limit. (Can be more if it's coming from a group of people as opposed to one person.) It's also in our ethics law that we cannot accept hams or turkeys as gifts (although when that law came about, my colleagues and I all laughed heartily at that one...who's going to give us a ham or a turkey?)

Really, our ethics law was meant for politicians...but teachers were lumped in. Maybe I should think it's not fair or whatever, but over the last 8 years, I have gotten very few gifts. What I have done is give each of my students a sheet of card stock and asked them to provide a page about themselves for a scrapbook for me. Their instructions are that they can put anything they want for me to remember them by and their name. (We change classes at the end of each semester, too.) The ones who want to will do something, the ones who don't, won't, and they didn't have to pay anything for it. Plus, I have something special I can go back and flip through on a bad day that always makes me feel better.

The "class parent" or "room mom" is kind of a foreign thing to me. I've been teaching off and on for about 30 years and have been at many different schools and I've never been to one who had this. We have parent volunteers, but no particular coordinator for each room. I was probably the most involved parent in several of my children's classes and helped with parties etc. but I wasn't a "room mom" and never had access to the contact information for other parents.

At my daughter's school, there are parents who volunteer to help out in the classroom. I don't believe that they have access to anyone's contact information, but all of the kids have a folder they call their "agenda"; anything that needs to be sent home can be put in that, and parents are supposed to check it daily. If my DD had won class president, I was going to send her with a note for her classmates to take home for their parents about everyone donating an amount to get a class gift for their teachers. It would have been up to DD to get the information in her classmates' hands, then them to give it to their parents.



Must also say I'm a little surprised about the baked goods. I've done baked goods before, especially for DD's dance teachers. Several have had Christmas/dinner parties and have used what I've sent them with to keep themselves from having to bake something to put out -- one less step in their work. For her 2nd grade teacher, I baked a pound cake, and she put it out for when her sons came home that weekend for the whole family to enjoy. But, then, maybe it's because they know me and know I'm doing the baking?

This year, one of DD's teachers is into owls. We found some homemade plush owls at the local craft faire, then the Girl Scouts fall product sale had caramel-filled chocolate owls, and Walmart has soap and lip gloss in owl shapes. Pair that with a small gift card (not sure for where yet, though), and I think that will do. (Gotta make sure it's all less than $20, though...ugh.)

 

[dalyes]

As a former daycare assistant to a toddler classroom (9 kids between the ages of 12-24 months) I have to tell you...the assistants are the ones who do ALL the work. The teachers are the ones who plan the curriculum and oversee everything and get paid more, but setting up lunches, snacks, changing diapers, taking kids to the potty, cleaning up after potty accidents, cleaning up after every snack and meal, etc...the assistants do all of that. I know I worked very hard and spent 45 hours a week playing with and caring for each of the children and it would've hurt to see the teacher in my classroom get recognition and not me. I got to know the children one-on-one where the teachers often did not, because I got to spend more time with them.

With all the responses like this I must have touched a nerve. Very sorry!

I assure you that in my kids daycares the "head" teachers are with my kids every minute of the day, changing their diapers/taking them to the potty, feeding them, teaching them, kissing boo-boos, etc. The assistants I spoke of are floaters - they come and give the head/assistant breaks for lunch and bathroom. I wish I could provide them all with really lovely gifts however, my daycare bill is 1660. a month and it doesn't leave my family much to work with. But noted how much a token would be appreciated so I'll give them small boxes of candy at least.

 

[KayW]

I love the card stock idea!! I may do that with my students at the end of the year. Predictions, fun things they remember, interests. Awesome idea!

 

[RainbowBrite]

With all the responses like this I must have touched a nerve. Very sorry!

I assure you that in my kids daycares the "head" teachers are with my kids every minute of the day, changing their diapers/taking them to the potty, feeding them, teaching them, kissing boo-boos, etc. The assistants I spoke of are floaters - they come and give the head/assistant breaks for lunch and bathroom. I wish I could provide them all with really lovely gifts however, my daycare bill is 1660. a month and it doesn't leave my family much to work with. But noted how much a token would be appreciated so I'll give them small boxes of candy at least.

Thats not possible...Assistants cannot legally be alone with the children without a teacher present. I think you are misunderstanding the situation, or else you don't realize that some of the "teachers" are actually Assistant Teachers.

 

[doobie11]

I live in Ontario, and have never heard of "class moms" either, nor would I contribute if there was one. The teachers themselves coordinate volunteers for class trips and in the classroom. We do have "extra teachers" such as gym, and French, but we have always had one main teacher per class.

Generally people around here give individual gifts to teachers, usually Tim Horton's (coffee/donuts) or LCBO (Liquor store - we can't buy booze at corner stores or grocery stores). We JUST got Target here, so that might be popular now. I have many teacher friends, and they all appreciate gift cards the most. Even if they don't drink coffee or booze, they can re-gift the gift card! It will never go to waste.
Our board would never allow parents to "solicit" money from other parents for teacher gifts. I know it's just to help and it's voluntary, but it seems odd to me. Just asking can put people in an awkward position. It's really putting people on the spot, I think. Also, then one person (the class mom) knows how much everyone contributes. It would never fly here. We can barely do pizza days at our school due to the fact that some kids feel left out when their families can't afford pizza on those days. They are very sensitive to the fact that not everyone can afford all the extras. There are no cupcakes on birthdays, no treats given out on Halloween or Valentine's Day either. I'm OK with that. Then no one feels like they have to keep up with the Jones'.
I say gift cards - you know it will be used (either by them or given away) and it's easy!