what are you buying\making teachers for xmas

pinknfluffy28

last year we did snowman soup in mugs for teachers, and they went down very well as nobody had seen them before! this year we will be making mini chocolate sleighs (a cardboard sleigh filled with chocolate bars, some hot choc satchets & a little santa tree ornament to drive it!). I try to choose unique gifts where dd's can do them up themselves, as i like to think teachers appriciate a little thought & time! i worked as a nursery nurse, and then childminder for 11 years, and although grateful for every gift i ever recieved, there are only so many bottles of wine or boxes of chocolates one person can get through!!!

milliemonster

liz-paul wrote: »

I buy gifts for my kids teachers/coaches because they are having a huge impact on my kids now and forever in the future (for better or worse) & I want to thank them and have them realise that I recognise that. I don't give a gift to the postman (just as an example) as pretty much whatever he does he's no having a massive impact on my life in the same way (obv I do like to receive my post though!) and nobody in my family is spending muc time with him (the way the kids do with their teachers. In a similar vein I usually give my hairdresser a bottle of wine at xmas (not this year because I can't afford a cut/colour). I would also buy gifts for medical staff if either of my kids were long term sick and we were seeing the same nurses/doctors a lot & I would buy gifts for staff if I had elderly relatives in a care home. Again I think for me it is do with the amount of time I/my family spend with a person and/or the impact they have on our lives.

Does that make sense? Also, if I was unhappy with a teacher then I wouldn't buy anything as I wouldn't have any appreciation to show.

As a nurse myself I have to say we are not allowed to receive gifts from patients or families, it's completely against our code of conduct and we would be disciplined if we did so and probably sacked and struck off, of course we can accept things like a tine of chocs between everybody (although even that has to be recorded now) but nothing else, I'm surprised it's allowable for teachers to be honest, my kids have never given anything to their teachers apart from a thank you or a card, my sister is a teacher and it's obscene the amount of stuff she gets.

picnmix

I tend to gift something that can be used in school, have in the past bought "great work" sticker packs when DD1 was in reception, staitionary ie post it notes, note pads etc that the teachers can use. I was going to do snowman soup this year, as know the teacher has 2 little kiddies who might think it cute, however after reading the other thread am not so sure.

I always buy a lovely box of chocs, or biscuits for the office staff, they are always incredibly grateful and state that they never get anything donated directly to them, although do get a share of others biscuits etc. Last year the lady in reception was really touched that we had thought of them.

Forgot to add that I also get my postman and bin men biccies and booze to share - we live in a rural area and the posties did an excellent job when we had the terrible snow, and binmen are great, I don't get the people in the supermarket anything though!

fannyadams

Nothing
I usually get them 'something nice' for end of term (usually a very small box of chocolates) instead, although last year they got a mention on a website for outstanding teachers and a £5 book token for all 3 teachers/TAs (bought with DS#1 money he saved up himself - bless).

We did get a goat for one teacher one year but she was leaving and the whole class contributed.
No, you're not mean if you do it. I REALLY don't see WHY we have to be peer pressured/guilt tripped (a poster on this thread wrote something similar to "imagine your child going in empty handed when everyone elses child has a gift/card/something spectacular") into giving something when we clearly can't afford it and from most accounts it'll end up in the bin anyways!
HTH
FA
x
PS Teachers who get stuff they don't like - is there anything stopping you from taking it round to the local old people's home/homeless shelter and giving it to them? I KNOW the local homeless shelter will take all your unwanted smellies/toiletries etc.

themull1

Bella73 wrote: »

Sorry to hijack your thread but can I ask why do parents feel the need to buy or make gifts? Is it just not yet another area for one upmanship for the parents??

I am really interested or do all you parents buy for everyone you see such as your postman, your hairdresser, the lady who you see every week in the supermarket etc etc?? Just wondering why you pick out teachers out of all the people you see regularly who are doing their jobs?

i give a gift to my hairdresser, a present for my daughters teacher, a tenner to my postman, beer to my binmen. they do a good job, and i think that they deserve it!!

hopeful17_2

A token gift of A tin of roses for the staff room. When you have job share teachers and a teaching assistant for one class it comes heavy on the purse so we don't do gifts.

wendall

Bella73 wrote: »

Sorry to hijack your thread but can I ask why do parents feel the need to buy or make gifts? Is it just not yet another area for one upmanship for the parents??

I am really interested or do all you parents buy for everyone you see such as your postman, your hairdresser, the lady who you see every week in the supermarket etc etc?? Just wondering why you pick out teachers out of all the people you see regularly who are doing their jobs?

I understand what you are saying but as a 43 year old i can still remember the teachers who made an impact on my life, but cannot remember the postman, hairdresser etc, children spend such a huge amount of time at school. I work in a school now and a card and perhaps biscuits or sweets for the staffroom is always good. I do give to my postman and binmen as i live in a rural area and both have tredged through the snow to get parcels to me at Christmas and my bin emptied.

fannyadams

A different mindset

Angelfeathers

Thank you for all the interesting responses to this thread. I think we're going to stick with a homemade card with a nice message in it this year, and then the usual gingerbread 'teacher and DS' at the end of the year.

pavlovs_dog

I'm a secondary teacher so we don't get much in the way of gifts (nor do we expect it). Things that are well received

*hand wash/moisturiser sets
*nice biscuits/chocs/sweets for the staff room
*tea/coffee/hot choc for the staff room
*nice stationery

The most precious gift of all (and the thing most likely to be kept) is a card/letter with a thoughtful message. I keep mine on a pinboard in my cupboard. I like to read them when one of the little cherubs is making me question the sanity of my job choice...