When do you give teachers end of year gifts?

[momx2]

I have no idea. I don't, although I do buy one for each of my kids' teachers each year. Not because they expect them, but in thanks for all they've done for my kids.

That said, on the secondary level, gifts really are a rarity. But I do LOVE all the notes I got on my final exams (even all those "Please, please pass me!" kinds of notes. )It's nice of those kids who close the year with wishes for a good summer, and promises to come back and see me next year. I get to thank them and wish them well on the last day of classes; it's so nice when those sentiments are returned.

For the record: I teach in a Catholic high school. In our school, all the administrators teach, from the President to the Principal to the deans to the Chaplain. Since many are religious, they don't receive a competitive salary. But even the lay administrators don't receive the 6 digit salaries that some local public school administrators receive. And, also for what it's worth: my husband supplements our income doing photography (he also teaches in a Catholic HS.) I supplement it with freelance writing. This will be our first trip to WDW in 19 years, and our last for quite some time. We simply can't afford to go more often.

Forgive me for reacting; had I not been quoted, I would have deleted my response by now. But I hate the constant dumping on a profession to which I have devoted over two decades. I'm not sure why a question about gifts had to degenerate to one dumping on teachers, but it so frequently does.

My apologies to the OP for the hijack.

I'm the one that quoted you and I surely didn't mean to dump on you or your profession. I think teachers are great! I wouldn't have studied to be one if I didn't, plus I couldn't do it because I don't have near enough paitence to tolerate all the stuff teachers have to. My question was simply "why the expectation?"

I don't think anywhere I dumped on teachers. I have just seen threads like these started so many times here and I always wonder why is there an expectation from SOME teachers that they should get gifts. I know I give Christmas gifts and give to the teacher appreciation gift (when my kids remember to bring home the flyers...) and I donate food to the appreciation breakfast, but I do not give end of the year gifts. My kids sometimes buy their favorites gifts from WDW with their own money also. I just think all the gift giving to teachers are extreme and uncalled for, IMO. I just wonder why SOME teachers expect it? That's all......

Also, I really don't know why you feel compelled to post about your income or your husband's income or why/how you are going to WDW. It's really no one's business. Teachers are like lawyers, some make better money that others. Everyone thinks I must be rich because I'm an attorney. Just go and have a good time.

 

[dbelmo]

I would like to chime in as well,

I, too, am a public school teacher. We do have a summer vacation and many other days off during the school year. However I am constantly devoting any free time to my profession. On school holidays, I have lesson plans, papers to assess, and exams to grade and log into the gradebook. I am also expected to return parent phone calls and/or emails at the parent's request (my family time).
It breaks my heart when I see posts that bash teachers and the "time off" they get. Please keep in mind every school system is different but here is my experience as a middle school Language Arts and Social Studies teacher:

I see 55 students every day from 7:25 am till 2:25 pm, I am expected to not only teach them my content area, but to be a listener, give guidance, entertain (we have so much competition with ipods,youtube, etc.) and have them pass all state exams. Also throw in manners and hygene-- we are with them 7 hours-- sometimes more than they see the parents in a day!!!!

If you really break it down it probably comes to about 0.72/hour/child before taxes (plus we do not get compensated for all the work we do at home grading and lesson plans)--

Then there are the extras-- chaperoning school dances, back to school night, conference night and other events--- all not compensated but expected (again time away from the family).

I am not looking for a pity party, but some RESPECT for our profession. I did not enter this profession for the $$$$$$$, however a THANK YOU (note or small token) would be much appreciated.

dbelmo

 

[torinsmom]

I don't expect a gift, but a thank you card would be nice. I go above and beyond for many of my students, as well as their parents. I teach 3-6 year olds, and I am with their children more of their awake hours than they are. It surely is nice to know that they appreciate what I am doing.

I always laugh when people say teachers get paid for their 2-3 months off. We get paid for 10 months and can choose to get our salary paid over 12 months if we like. Here in NC, beginning teachers make around $32,000/yr. There aren't many jobs that require a degree that pay less than that. Like any profession, salary goes up with experience. Tell you what, if it was such a great job, there wouldn't be such a teacher shortage in states like mine.

I always have a few parents who go out of the way to make me feel like I have made a difference in their child's life. I choose to be that parent to my child's teachers as well. If you don't choose to do so, that's your deal.

Marsha

 

[lisaross]

I give it a day or two before the last day - just because the last day is so hectic - i send it in there backpacks.

I always write a note and besides chipping in with the class if they do a collection i send a little something extra - i gave the crossing guard and gym teacher a box of chocolate the teachers i gave some body soap with a scrubbing pad type thing and a airfreshner for there car! i also sent a para in my son's class a box of stationary!

 

[momx2]

I don't expect a gift, but a thank you card would be nice. I go above and beyond for many of my students, as well as their parents. I teach 3-6 year olds, and I am with their children more of their awake hours than they are. It surely is nice to know that they appreciate what I am doing.

I always laugh when people say teachers get paid for their 2-3 months off. We get paid for 10 months and can choose to get our salary paid over 12 months if we like. Here in NC, beginning teachers make around $32,000/yr. There aren't many jobs that require a degree that pay less than that. Like any profession, salary goes up with experience. Tell you what, if it was such a great job, there wouldn't be such a teacher shortage in states like mine.

I always have a few parents who go out of the way to make me feel like I have made a difference in their child's life. I choose to be that parent to my child's teachers as well. If you don't choose to do so, that's your deal.

Marsha

I understand the desire to be thanked. Trust me in my 14 years I have been cursed at more than thanked in my job. When you do get a thank you it is all the more special, but I have come not to expect it or I would be disappointed my every working day. The beginning pay you state does not suprise me. Here in KY I have new lawyers that come to work in my office for $34K and that is after their undergrad, plus 3 years of law school. Most have student loans around $100K. Really that is less than the teacher salary you quote since my lawyers have to work 12 monts with 2 weeks of vacation leave. I have people who want to be in public service, but have to leave to try to make more money (we aren't allowed to have a private practice). I have had attorneys working at stores in the mall at night and weekends to pay their loans. So, I understand about not being paid what someone is worth. I just think there are too many expectations being put on the students and parents. Things are tight all over with the bad ecomony. $10 there, $20 there, really adds up over the school year. I know you all deserve rewards or gifts, but it's the expectation that has always baffled me. Teachers always reply here that they don't expect it (and I'm not saying you expect it) but if you read one of the first replies in this thread it talks about being so disappointed because only 6 gifts were given. To me that is saying that there is an expectation.

 

[roadtripper]

Just got home at 6:30PM after doing professional development all day, which I have been doing all week. Woo! Love that summer vacation!

I am a high school teacher. We get no gifts, and I don't expect any. I have my kids fill out a (names optional) evaluation at the end of the year. My favorite gifts are the little comments, like-- "It's been quite a ride." "Your class made my brain hurt." My other favorite are the letters and emails that show up years later, thanking me. WAY better than Yankees tickets (although I wouldn't turn down Sox tix!) Peace.

 

[torinsmom]

I understand the desire to be thanked. Trust me in my 14 years I have been cursed at more than thanked in my job. When you do get a thank you it is all the more special, but I have come not to expect it or I would be disappointed my every working day. The beginning pay you state does not suprise me. Here in KY I have new lawyers that come to work in my office for $34K and that is after their undergrad, plus 3 years of law school. Most have student loans around $100K. Really that is less than the teacher salary you quote since my lawyers have to work 12 monts with 2 weeks of vacation leave. I have people who want to be in public service, but have to leave to try to make more money (we aren't allowed to have a private practice). I have had attorneys working at stores in the mall at night and weekends to pay their loans. So, I understand about not being paid what someone is worth. I just think there are too many expectations being put on the students and parents. Things are tight all over with the bad ecomony. $10 there, $20 there, really adds up over the school year. I know you all deserve rewards or gifts, but it's the expectation that has always baffled me. Teachers always reply here that they don't expect it (and I'm not saying you expect it) but if you read one of the first replies in this thread it talks about being so disappointed because only 6 gifts were given. To me that is saying that there is an expectation.

I was the teacher who was disappointed, but I specifically said that I didn't get ANYTHING from most parents, not even hand made cards. It's not a money thing to me; it's just a matter of saying thanks, and teaching your child to be appreciative as well, IMHO. I guess that was how I was raised. My mom used to make sweet potato bread and blackberry preserves for my teachers, LOL. We didn't have much money, but we sure made those teachers smile!

Marsha

Marsha

 

[luvmy3]

For those teachers that don't recieve end of the year gifts or thank you notes, do the school, students, pta and parents do anything for teacher appreciation? In our school the pta organizes a breakfast with parent volunteers. The students buy flowers provided by the pta and give them to the teachers. Many parents often send in gifts too. This all happens about a month before school ends. I'm just wondering if those of you who are expecting end of the year gifts or that are disappointed that you don't get at least a thank you, have teacher appreciation week at your school?

 

[torinsmom]

We have teacher appreciation week in February. We asked the PFA to move it a few years ago, because Jan/Feb is usually when teachers need a little boost. I never understood why it was right before the end of school?

Anyway, our PFA does a staff luncheon and this year they gave each class $100 to spend on an item for the classroom. Other than parents who are active in the PFA,our parents didn't really do anything for TA.

Marsha

 

[momx2]

Torinsmom, thanks for all your answers. Our teacher appreciation is toward the end of school. I think in today's world most parents are just not going to make something to give. So, it usually does come down to buying something. I think that a lot of things that happened when we were younger are long gone, kinda sad. I honestly think most parents, me included, believe buying a Christmas present and then a teacher appreciation present is enough. I wouldn't think I was less appreciated if I didn't recieve another gift at the end of the year. Parents probably think giving one or two gifts a year is enough. I think with the economy tanking gifts will become more scarce in the upcoming years.

 

[momx2]

For those teachers that don't recieve end of the year gifts or thank you notes, do the school, students, pta and parents do anything for teacher appreciation? In our school the pta organizes a breakfast with parent volunteers. The students buy flowers provided by the pta and give them to the teachers. Many parents often send in gifts too. This all happens about a month before school ends. I'm just wondering if those of you who are expecting end of the year gifts or that are disappointed that you don't get at least a thank you, have teacher appreciation week at your school?

That's what our school does also. I think it works well because the children who can't afford or who have parents who won't give don't feel left out. I'm not in our PTO but I always give $ for the gifts and contribute to the breakfast.

 

[scrapquitler]

Considering that you are a taxpayer like the rest of us and the teacher is about to get a three month paid vacation for the Summer... I think you, me and every other taxpayer in the country are giving them one hell of a gift that last day of school... its called a 3 month vacation.

Here's the secret: Its NOT a 12 month paycheck. When I was teaching, the salary is XXX dollars per school year. There were two choices of how to get your paycheck, which came out every 2 weeks. You could elect to get your salary divided by 26 and get a check all year long. OR You could get your paycheck as your salary divided by 18 pay periods and not get a check all summer long. Almost all the teachers I know have a summer job.

And the summer vacation is nowhere near 3 months long. School just ended here yesterday (June 24th), and the teachers go back on Aug. 25th. And most take summer classes (here in CT they are requried to get a masters degree, and most work on it during the summers).

 

[chocovrdmicears]

I read this thread...started to type a response..changed my mind...shut down my computer for the night...thought about it over the past hour..now I am back.

I spent 18 hours making homemade gifts for my childrens teachers. Yup 18 hours...(DH clearly noted this when he had to order dinner )
DD6 had 1 kindergarten teacher. She had 20+ children at the beginning of the school year...Because of budget cuts she had to run the class alone. She asked for parents to help out if they could. I did, happily, two hours a week.
Things she dealt with... one child in her class CLEARY needed to be in Special Education....another child did NOT speak at all....another child had a headful of lice the entire year because his parents refused to address the issue...a set of beautiful twins came to school every day with NO snack because of family "problems" ...And through all this she managed to teach my daughter to read and write and enjoy her kindergarten experience. The absolute least I could do was thank her at the end of the year.

DS4..diagnosed with autism when he was about 2...been in a special education program for 2 1/2 years with the same team of teachers. These folks were my sons voice when he literally could not speak...(now I can't get him to stop talking! ) They held him when he would hit himself in frustration. They changed his diapers for 2 years. His teacher, knowing my son, went and bought him a little set of dinosaurs to help him through his day...They taught him to spell his name!!!!!
He is moving on to an integrated kindergarden next year...this is truly nothing short of a MIRACLE and it is because of the dedicated angels that have invested their lives into growing special little people. Very important point here...sorry to be so long winded.
The moral of my story is teachers are a tremendous, often unappreciated gift, in the lives of our children. As I told the director of my son's school...I would have written a check for a million $$$'s to my sons teacher for the impact she had on my sons life...but I can't...so the very LEAST I can do is spend a day or two making them a heartfelt homemade gift.

Until you do the job teachers do...for goodness sake!! get off their backs about this nonsense of a 2 or 3 month paid vacation!!!! Are you all crazy???!!!!??? I dare you all to do what these folks do for one month...heck for one week!!!! Unbelievable!

 

[DisneyKT]

I had to respond to this also. Im not a teacher and we get my DD teacher and aide a small gift and a thank-you card from my DD and I write a little something in the card. I don't think any of the teachers are asking for a gift but a thank you would be nice. There were 24 kids in my DD class 4 with some serious issues but I never felt as if my DD missed out at all. I would like to thank all the teachers out there I know I couldn't do it.

 

[torinsmom]

Until you do the job teachers do...for goodness sake!! get off their backs about this nonsense of a 2 or 3 month paid vacation!!!! Are you all crazy???!!!!??? I dare you all to do what these folks do for one month...heck for one week!!!! Unbelievable!

A few years ago, I had brain surgery. At the time, we had 25 kids in the class with 2 teachers and an assistant(what I'd give for that now!) We also had a very involved group of parents. I didn't want to take away from the kids while I was out recovering, so I put out a request for parents to come in for 2 hours one morning or afternoon if they could to help the other teachers out. Almost every parent volunteered. What I found funny was the parents who told me they volunteered for the first two hours of the morning, so they could go into work at lunch. They told me after two hours, they had to call in; they were pooped!

I think teachers need that 6-8 weeks to recover enough to go back another year, LOL. Otherwise, there would be an even higher teacher turnover rate. Sometimes I just sit in my screen porch and enjoy the beauty of SILENCE

Marsha

 

[DisneyFan32WI]

I got the teachers each a $20 gift card to our local book store. I put it inside a nice "thank you" card and had the girls deliver it on the last day of school.

 

[LIBLULA]

My DD8 gave her teacher her gifts at the last day of school. We got her various gift cards and she made her a thank you card.

 

[thomas998]

Here's the secret: Its NOT a 12 month paycheck. When I was teaching, the salary is XXX dollars per school year. There were two choices of how to get your paycheck, which came out every 2 weeks. You could elect to get your salary divided by 26 and get a check all year long. OR You could get your paycheck as your salary divided by 18 pay periods and not get a check all summer long. Almost all the teachers I know have a summer job.

And the summer vacation is nowhere near 3 months long. School just ended here yesterday (June 24th), and the teachers go back on Aug. 25th. And most take summer classes (here in CT they are requried to get a masters degree, and most work on it during the summers).

Here's the fact.. The contracts are for 12 months... by your own statement a teacher has the option to take the pay over the 12 months or over a 9 months... If a teacher doesn't wants to take a summer job that is there choice it isn't a requirement. In my Fort Worth Texas the starting salary for a teacher is a little over 43,000 a year... the average salary of the average worker in Fort Worth is a little over 32,000 a year.... Now if the average joe can make ends meet on 11,000 less than a teacher... then I see no reason why a teacher would HAVE to take a summer job unless they are just very poor at budgeting.

 

[disneydeb]

why is everyone here starting to rag on the teachers? my grandson has 2 of the most wonderful pre-k teachers i have ever met, and i am truly appreciative for all that they have done for him this year, we have a wonderful teachers store in our mall which my daughter will pick out something for each of them, and i will get each of them a gift card from applebees.

 

[stephbillalec]

Here's the fact.. The contracts are for 12 months... by your own statement a teacher has the option to take the pay over the 12 months or over a 9 months... If a teacher doesn't wants to take a summer job that is there choice it isn't a requirement. In my Fort Worth Texas the starting salary for a teacher is a little over 43,000 a year... the average salary of the average worker in Fort Worth is a little over 32,000 a year.... Now if the average joe can make ends meet on 11,000 less than a teacher... then I see no reason why a teacher would HAVE to take a summer job unless they are just very poor at budgeting.

Teachers get paid for the days they work. They do not have paid vacations or holiday pay. They are paid for the number of school days plus staff development days they work only. In my district that's 186 days per year. Considering the amount of schooling necessary to become a teacher and then maintain your teaching certificate, average teaching salaries are not nearly what they should be.

To the person who mentioned that all the "bad" teachers seem to be gravitating towards special education...as a special education teacher, I am offended by that comment. I put 110% into my job each day as do all the other members of my department. I'm sorry you've had bad experiences.

To the OP...I'm a high school teacher so I don't really ever get many gifts; however, I did get one wonderful gift on the last day of school this year. One of my students who was graduating, gave me a handwritten letter. It said how much I had helped him over the past 4 years and how much he would miss me. In my 10 years of teaching, that will go down as one of my all time favorite moments.