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Let me begin by saying that teachers Do Not Expect a gift at the end of the year, nor will they penalize your child if you don't send a present. However, I get gifts from about 32 of my 37 kids at Christmas time and again at the end of the year and the ones who don't have something to give me often feel a little left out. Some will even come up to me and say, "I didn't bring a gift for you" with a very sad look on their face. I can usually cheer them up by asking for a hug and sometimes they'll say, "Okay, here's a hug, but I'm going to make you something during center time." And they'll draw me a picture or something. So yeah, maybe you weren't thinking about sending a gift for the last day of school, but maybe now you are. So here's a few tips.
Teachers have a lot of stuff. Older teachers, who've been teaching for more than 3 years, have a lot of "teacher" stuff - apples, world's greatest, etc. (I liked getting stuff like this for the first few years - then it got old and I ran out of places to put this stuff.) Teachers get a lot of candles and lotions. Some teachers are very sensitive to smells - so be careful here. A high quality candle or lotion or soap is very nice. Something that you've picked up at Walmart for $5 is not.
Here's a list of some of my favorite gifts. I will start with the most expensive and end with the least. Any combination of these would be great.
- Dish soap, lotion, dish towels from Williams-Sonoma. Sounds crazy, but most teachers will not spend their own money on "luxury" soap or nice dish towels. Include a gift receipt in case the scent you've chosen causes the teacher to get a headache.
- Gift certificates: Starbucks and bookstores are my favorite. I also get a lot for Target and used to end up just using it towards toilet paper - how fun is that? This past Christmas I kept the gift certificates and used them to get myself some clothes, nail polish, and other things I don't normally buy. That was fun. I would LOVE for the mom's in my class to get together and buy a gift certificate for a spa - a good one. That would be nice - enough for a message or mani and pedi.
- Donation to a charity. One year I did a charity walk and word got out that I needed money donated so a lot of moms donated to that and then just gave me a card letting me know. I loved it - I didn't need any more stuff or any more gift cards. Find out if there's a charity your teacher supports and make a donation in her name. Or - just pick a charity - Breast Cancer Research and Autism Research - would be two of my picks. I'm willing to bet that most school teachers would support autism research or any type of children's charity.
- Flowers! I love when a child walks in with some fresh flowers for me! Love it!
- Plants! - one year I got a beautiful collection of outdoor flowers/plants to plant at my house. It was perfect and the child painted the container they came in.
- Hanging flower basket - great!
- Teachers get a lot of cookies and baked goods at Christmas - and almost none at the end of the year. Can you think of something to bake that would a fun gift. How about these?
- Fruit basket
- Have your child draw a picture for the teacher - she might not keep it forever, unless she's a crazy scrapbooker like me, but it will mean a lot. Especially if your child draws a picture of something they've done at school or something they like about the teacher. Write down what your child tells you his/her picture is about OR have your child write on the picture.
- Write your child's teacher a note. I love when I get a nice note from a mom letting me know how much she's appreciated all the work we've done through the year. Of course, if you don't feel this way about your child's teacher you might want to just say, "Thanks for a great year!" or "Have a nice summer!" or "I'm so glad we're done with you."
Did you find this tip helpful? Do you have some tips you want to share? Are you a teacher? What would you like as a gift?
10 comments:
Wow 5 months and 24 days? You got that thing up quickly. I'm getting excited. We leave a week from Saturday.
I personally didn't get anything good as I taught in very low income areas. I would've loved gift cards, school supplies to off set all the money I shelled out...
I totally did not find this helpful. But only because my kids aren't in school yet. I'll keep it filed away for next year when Dylan starts preschool, though!
:0)
all good points. I'm a volunteer teacher and my favorite gift(s) so far have been a gift certificate for a pedicure, one for a funky little shop full of chatzkie-type stuff including eclectic jewelry, and some for local restaurants.
Personalized stationary is a lovely gift, too. (one that need not be expensive.. just the teacher's first initial can work, too!)
one thing I've been considering is taking a picture that my daughter has drawn, and made into note-cards.
this site does them, but you can easily scan the project, and make note-cards with an online service like shutterfly, kodak, etc.
http://kidoodlekreations.com/
I like the baked goods idea, too. (thanks for the link, btw!) I'm surprised I didn't think of that! hah!
Anglophile - Have fun! I can barely wait - and I've got six months left to go.
Mom of 2 - Yeah, that's okay.
Carrie - What great ideas! I love the stationary - I got a nice think pad of paper last year with my name on it and love it!
Well i just have to say DON'T FORGET YOUR CHILD's SPEECH TEACHER!!!!!!!
I NEVER got gifts at Christmas time or at the end of the year. I mean, I only help children COMMUNICATE, I don't need a gift.
No, no. Don't mind me, wallowing in pity after all these years of being giftless.
I have to say watch it with the starbucks cards--I am not a coffee drinker and I get a lot of those, but never use them or give them away to friends.
I also think it's always nice when a parent organizes and buys a class gift--I got 3 gift cards at christmas (Gap, Eddie Bauer, and B&Body) it was a great treat!
Amy
Great list, Cathie! I usually get my children's teachers gift certificates for coffee (at least the one's I know drink coffee). Hope you receive your hoped-for spa visit. :)
Okay, this is my first year of preschool and I did not even think of an end of the year gift. Thanks for the reminder and the great gift ideas.
i am a student and i am really thankful to all my teachers. i want to give them all a gift. what do u think i should give which is not too expensive and not cheap either?? ( for all the teachers i have 6 of them)
Thank you so much for this!! This is my first year having to worry about this. My daughter is only in Pre-School but it's in the elementary school she will be attending for the next 5 years. Her teacher has been amazing! To this day (i'm 36) I have the fondest memories of my Pre-K teacher.
Side point: I am also getting a little something for the Teacher's Assistant and the office receptionist. (my daughter has been tardy quite a few times this year...oopsy)
After I drop her off today I'm off to TJMaxx! haha
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