Daycare teacher Christmas gifts?

[bubbaray]

This is our first Christmas in a large daycare.

DD#1 and DD#2 were in the same room for two months this summer with four fabulous teachers (and various subs). DD#2 is still in that room.

DD#1 has moved to Kindercare. I can't even keep track of the teachers. There are at least three main ones, with about 6 extra for before and after school hours (when there are drop offs, pick ups and more kids so need more teachers).

I have NO CLUE what to get all these people. I can NOT buy $25 for the 15 or so teachers in total.... DH will FLIP out.

I'd love to do a group gift, but have no clue. Most of the teachers in the little kids daycare do seem to drink coffee, so I could do a Starbucks day for them I guess. The downstairs teachers, not so much.

Help!

[MamaKath]

I have done a group gift of a food item like a fruit bouquet or a few boxes of candy or cookies that can be shared. Another year I got a bunch of $5 or $10 gift cards to Wawa so they could use them on coffee/sandwiches/even gas. DH freaked, but he had to admit, some of the people in the daycare made an extra effort after that, they realized they were appreciated.

One family where I work send breakfast in one morning to the daycare. They prearrange it so that even those who are off can come in to participate. It is simple- good coffee, bagels and spreads, danish, fruit. It is a neat thank you to those staff members without being super specific.

[HannaAddict]

Is there a room parent or can you lead an effort to do a group gift? Our preschool and elementary school collect some $ from parents and do a nice sized gift card from a local nicer shopping mall (nice stores, both chain and independent) or independent garden store for the green thumb teacher. It is soooo much easier to do the group thing than try and do something for everyone on your own and go broke doing it!

[bubbaray]

Nope, no room parent(s).

The problem with bringing in food is that there are different "shifts" and the early folks are not around when the later afternoon folks are. And, if they overlap, its when DH and I aren't there, KWIM?

I could do food for DD#2's group of 4. But, DD#1's group, I can't see a way to make it work. Bringing in food is also problematic b/c everything has to be peanut/treenut free. And, they discourage parents from bringing in food for events due to food allergies.

Sigh. I have no idea how to handle this.

[egoldber]

The problem with bringing in food is that there are different "shifts" and the early folks are not around when the later afternoon folks are. And, if they overlap, its when DH and I aren't there, KWIM?

Yup I feel your pain. Fortunately Amy only has four teachers, two main and two assistants. But some kids have 6, 2 for before care, 2 for preschool and 2 for after care.

I do gift cards (usually Michaels or B&N) because it is easier and then people get what they want. I do $10 for everyone. Maybe I'm cheap, but there it is.

A note to them is also appreciated. One of Amy's afternoon care teachers was also her summer camp teacher. She wrote a little note once a week with a funny little anecdote about your child and what they had been up to that week. I told her at Back To School Night how much I liked those notes and I saved them for her "baby book", She was practically in tears that I noticed and appreciated them. So I think just letting them know they are appreciated is the main thing.

[WatchingThemGrow]

Thanks for starting this thread, Melissa. This year, I hope to actually do something for the teachers we have. DD's teachers are so sweet. She only does 6 hrs/week with them, so maybe the $10 GCs will be enough and easy enough on our budget.

[bubbaray]

Well, with subs and DD#2's 4 teachers, plus the 6+ downstairs for DD#1, it works out to about 15 teachers! $10 seems too little, but DH will completely FLIP out if we spend $150 on Christmas....

[vonfirmath]

Honestly, if there were that many teachers? I'd just do cards to all of them. It doesn't sound like there is a special relationship between any of them and your child, so no need for a special-relationship type gift.

[MontrealMum]

I'm watching this thread closely because we are in a similar situation. DS has one main teacher, and one aide. And one Friday teacher. So, that's 3. Then there's the teacher that does the am shift because DS' teacher is the one that stays late. OK, 4. And then there are all the random subs that fill in for sickness and family emergencies. I think I'm looking at about 10 people, and that's just too many to do an individual gift for everyone.

Last year, I did gifts for everyone who cared for DS in any way - but it was more clearcut. I had considered bringing a plate of gourmet cookies or something, but one of DS' main teachers was diabetic, and the daycare also discourages food from home as it's entirely nut-free, although if it's for the adults only or for a room that does not have nut-allergic kids (would still be nut-free anyway!) I've heard of this rule being bent a bit. So I could ask the directrice about that.

So, I'd like to do a group gift too, plus maybe something extra like bookstore or craft store g/c for his main teachers, but I'm just not too sure what to do.

[rhettsmom]

Here's a website I just found last week, and I thought it had some great homemade gift ideas. I bookmarked it. Maybe if price is an issue, you could find something on here.

http://www.homemade-gifts-made-easy.com/index.html

[ha98ed14]

Honestly, if there were that many teachers? I'd just do cards to all of them. It doesn't sound like there is a special relationship between any of them and your child, so no need for a special-relationship type gift.

:yeahthat: ITA, if DD1 has more than 6 teachers, she cannot possibly have close relationships with all of them. Maybe I am cheap (Beth, I don't think $10 for everyone in the room is cheap at all!), but I don't think you are obligated to buy for everyone who works in the room.

If there are two shifts, do an AM coffee/ croissant run when you drop off one moring and and then for the PM people who are there when you pick up, bake some cookies, wrap 3-4 in saran wrap with a bow and take them when you go pick up DDs as a "to go" gift. Then whoever is there in the AM gets something and the PM people get something too; I think it is fine.

If DDs have a teacher they talk about, then maybe give that teacher a card with something inside, but you would seriously go broke buying for everyone who touches your life in every way.

Not that you want to be like me, but I will share what I do for my neighbors, the people at church who I want to remember, my letter carrier (same guy for 3+ years), and will use for DD's big daycare staff: I bake. I actually got a recipe from a mom on this board for Banana Bread. OMG, it is so good. So I make it and lots of it. And I buy individual half size disposable loaf pans and spend a whole weekend baking. It spreads out the cost and it is personal and it is not junk that accumulate clutter. You could easily change it to Choc Chip Cookies or whatever you want. You'll never please everyone, and it is the thought that counts.

[boolady]

I don't think buying for subs is necessary, either. DD has 1 lead teacher, 1 assistant, and then at the end of the day, her class and the other 3 y/o class are together for the last hour, and it is usually a combo-- DD's lead teacher and the other room's assistant have the kids together.

I will buy for DD's two teachers. That's it. I don't think that the other assistant (who also subs in her room, as needed) would expect it...sometimes the subs are in lots of different rooms. One time, we did buy a gift for a sweet "floater" or sub who is also the lunch distribution teacher who was really kind to DD and spent a lot of time in her room while one teacher was out for an extended period of time.

The only other thing we will do is I will make 1 or 2 loaves of pumpkin chocolate chip bread and bring that into the kitchen/teacher's lunchroom with a Dunkin Donuts coffee box and a Happy Holidays note. As far as I'm concerned, that will cover it.

[billysmommy]

Ben has 5 preschool teachers ~ we'll get a couple different teas for the classroom since they all drink tea while they're there and we're getting them each a pair of these socks from ON in their favorite colors (they were all talking about the super soft socks the other day and gave me the idea) http://oldnavy.gap.com/browse/product.do?cid=46056&vid=1&pid=699059&scid=699059002

Billy's 1st grade teacher is getting a story he writes about her and one of my girlfriends makes custom handbags and he picked out the fabric to make her a little fold-over clutch

We always give the teachers some of the frosted sugar cookies that we make too