Gifts for Teachers

black-saturn

Just a thought - Are you sure the letter didnt say UP TO £10 EACH?

divadee

lots of charities do these vouchers now. I got mine from the salvation army. I found sendacow and oxfam were limited in choices cos of the cost of some of them.

The salvation army have gifts starting from £1.50 for a fruit tree up to £1000 for a boat!!

I think this is better for people on limited income, they can make a difference without spending a fortune.

crutches

i bought books for the library when my children left junior school(book people mean you can be very generous!) and they made cards etc.If younger children want a present its handmade or £ shop.
Teachers leaving get a book/plant etc.Teachers having a baby get my freebies and a small present.
this is a close school and the staff are fab.We have had 3 children through the school,3 more to go so we tend to give gifts to the school and teachers always seem very grateful for that.

Sallys_Savings

I didn't realise the salvation army did the similar gifts...I've just googled it and nothings come up ...divadee would you be good enough to post where you found the info on this..Many thanks

filigree_2

I never bought Xmas or end of year presents, but when my son left primary school I gave small gifts to both teachers (large class), the classroom assistant and the learning mentor. I used to work at the school so I was particularly aware of how much help they all gave him. Like some other Moneysavers I had a huge stash of freebie toiletries, I picked out the nicest ones and used them so I hardly spent a penny

Speaking as an ex-classroom assistant I would be appalled if the school sent a letter like that to the parents, and if I knew about the letter in advance I would make a protest.

I wonder if the support staff even get a sniff of those M&S vouchers? If parents feel inspired to give a wee pressie to their child's favourite dinner lady then they should be free to do so.

I can understand why the school might want to limit the endless boxes of chocolates because even that can cause divisions when some kids bring presents and others don't. Perhaps the solution is to ask the parents to contribute to something that the whole school can enjoy, maybe plant a tree for shade in the playground.

jellyhead

for christmas my son bought books for a school in ethiopia, i think it was through worldvision and cost around £7 including a really fab card which was personalised on the front and also inside. it also meant he'd written a card to the teacher and to the whole class (personalisation lol!) so he didn't feel the need to send individual cards. the head did suggest on the newsletter that a card to the whole class might be a good idea instead of lots of individual ones.

the teacher thought it was great and showed it to the class, making quite a fuss, she also showed it to the head and to other classes, spud was quite chuffed. teachers get loads of choccies and althought they are grateful they couldn't possibly eat it all :rotfl: also here at our school the teachers really don't give a monkeys who doesn't bring a gift.

divadee

Sallys_Savings wrote:

I didn't realise the salvation army did the similar gifts...I've just googled it and nothings come up ...divadee would you be good enough to post where you found the info on this..Many thanks

have a look here. They are fantastic come really quick with a nice gift card as well as a card to show what you have bought.

I like them the best as other charities can be very very expensive. Here you can buy a fruit tree for £1.50 a chicken for £6 etc.... Somthing for everyones budget.

I would call them on the number listed and get them to send you the catalogue there is more in the catalogue than online as that is under development. The catalogue comes really quickly as well.

Sallys_Savings

Thank you divadee....I'll definitely send for a catalogue

ruthyjo

My mum was a headteacher in a primary school in a fairly deprived area when I was growing up. We always used to find it really sad when she got loads of totally unwanted gifts she would never have chosen from families who couldn't afford to buy them, but I think it was a matter of pride to a lot of families to give something. I would hate to think of people who struggled to do this having their efforts demeaned by such a grasping letter. Teachers should smile at whatever horrors they receive and never take them for granted and I'm sure most do.

In recent years I've taken to sending a fruit platter and/or some cakes from the local farmshop a few days before the end of term for all the staff to share. I hope they appreciate having that kind of thing in the staffroom and it ensures I don't leave anyone out.

It always annoys me that the teachers get loads of pressies and support staff who work very hard for a low wage get nothing. I remember when my son left the infants and I gave a bottle of champagne to each member of staff in the unit. The support assistant was astounded and said no one had ever given her something before. The teacher meanwhile was loaded with goodies - how unfair is that?

bootman

My neighbours are both private school teachers. They too expect presents from the pupils. They even have the cheek to mock some of them for not being as good as they expected!!