How many teacher gifts throughout the year?

[nomnom]

I'm just wondering what's customary. I've gifted for Christmas and have given small chocolates for Valentine's Day. Do parents also gift again at the end of the year?

[ahisma]

Christmas, Teacher Appreciation Week, End of year.

[MamaMolly]

Christmas and end of the year. This year I'm roped into the Teacher Appreciation bring XYZ each day nonsense. Honestly? I'm thinking the 30 homemade bookmarks are going right in the trash tomorrow afternoon. :irked: Why not just let us send in $$ for a snack for the workroom?! Ah, the good old days.

[klwa]

Christmas & end of year. I also send in supplies throughout the year if the teacher asks for anything.

[SnuggleBuggles]

Christmas & end of year. I also send in supplies throughout the year if the teacher asks for anything.

That plus I usually do something little, like lunch, during teacher appreciation week.

[hellokitty]

Christmas, I always buy any other misc supplies needed if they let us know, and the last day of school, I have my kids write a thank you letter. I feel like teachers are overwhelmed at the end of the year with, "stuff," so don't really feel that a gift is normally necessary, although I am going in on a group gift with one of my sons' teachers with some friends this yr, but that's a somewhat unusual situation. They asked me if I wanted to do it with them, and it sounds really nice, so I said, "sure." Normally, they do not do class gift for teachers, which is too bad, b/c I'd prefer to do something bigger than a bunch of small stuff.

[carolinacool]

We do Christmas, and we're doing little stuff all this week. We'll probably give a small gift card to his teachers Friday and I'll sign up to bring something for the teacher banquet Wednesday.

He's in day care, so there's really no end of the year. They'll switch over to the summer program in June, but he'll be with the same teachers until the fall.

[westwoodmom04]

Teacher appreciation week has gotten out of control at my children's school. We have to do at least one thing each day, sometimes two.

[khalloc]

I feel like teacher gifts arent the norm around here. I give a gift for Christmas, something small. And thats about it. I've never had the class get together and buy an end of year gift. My DD's kindergarten class had a "Room mom", but that was the only year there was one of those. And I think its because this parent appointed herself. I havent given an end of year gift.

[kristenk]

Christmas, birthday, teacher appreciation and end of year

A lot of times I'll go in with the group if the room mom tries to plan a group gift. I'm always thankful when that happens!

For teacher appreciation week, we'll usually pick 2-3 days to participate in whatever the group activity is. That seems to work pretty well. We feel involved, but not overwhelmed and/or nickel-and-dimed.

It's getting more difficult now that DD has 3 teachers (they started changing classes for different subjects this year). DD wants to do stuff for her other teachers, too.

[belovedgandp]

Personally I do a holiday gift and then a second one during teacher appreciation week if I get my act together or at the end of the year - only the two for the year.

At our elementary school the standard is to collect funds at the beginning of the year to use for class gifts - holiday, teacher b-day and appreciation/eoy. I contribute to those and then do my own for holiday and EOY.

Appreciation week had escalated over the past couple of years. It's a pain to send in the one flower one day, wear a color the next, supplies a third, note another, candy another. Especially when you have more than one kid. Our school changed it this year to have the room parent only ask for every student to do something on Tuesday. A note and maybe a small item. So much easier. The room parents are still coordinating meals, chocolate fountains, and all that kind of stuff for the entire building, but not asking every single family to do something every day.

[ZeeBaby]

We do two gifts a year and participate in teacher appreciation week. DD1's school is doing wear the favorite color today, favorite candy etc. I don't do an end of the year gift and teacher appreciation. I usually do one gift. Just too close together.

I also do gifts for the aides. This year our PTA got the teachers a Keurig. I am going to get some K cups instead of gifts for the aides this time.

[emily_gracesmama]

I just bought a Cheryl's cookie voucher off living social 30 for 12.25 after the in app purchase coupon 15may or may15 can't remember which. I got their 24 frosted cookies with free shipping and I am going to split them up and send in 6 per teacher and keep some for me. I saw some cute notes that say thanks for making me a smart cookie. I usually do Christmas gift cards and end of year gift cards but this year I got myself somewhat together to get the cookies in by Friday to the teachers. There is no real pressure at our school to do anything.

[TwinFoxes]

Christmas, Teacher Appreciation Week, End of year.

Same here. We did our own thing for Christmas, one DD's room mom organized TAW collection (I'm in charge of buying gifts, love spending other people's money!), the other DD's room mom didn't. The school has little activities all week. But they're all mellow, like wear your teacher's favorite color. I'm not sure what will happen at the end of the year, but I plan to get something.

[BunnyBee]

Our old school collected once at the beginning of the year and it covered class celebrations, December gifts, and EOY gifts. During Teacher Appreciation week, they asked for volunteers to bring the teacher's favorite coffee-type drink at dropoff that week. You were welcome to do whatever you wanted, but it was low pressure. They also sent out emails for unusual things like a teacher's mom dying suddenly (the class made a donation to the requested charity) and an assistant teacher getting married. It was a Montessori school, so you typically had these teachers for 3 years and really got to know them, so the "special" things did not seem overreaching (not quite the right word...) at all.

[ang79]

Christmas and end of year. I think our PTO is in charge of doing small gifts or activities for the teachers during teacher appreciation week, at least that is what I was told last year when DD1 was in kindergarten. I'll probably have DD make a card or picture for her teacher this week if we have time after school (forgot to do it over the weekend).

[Seitvonzu]

in preschool it was "group" gifts. we contributed to that (holidays/end of the year) and then i sometimes sent in random (very minor, like homemade candy/jam) things. the random stuff was a little easier than in the public school because i feel like the teachers were really open to it.

this year is K and i sent in giftcards at christmas (classroom teacher, specials, and reading teacher), i sent in a bear of local honey this morning (it's "coffee break" day)/i'll bring a lime chiffon layer cake/work the teacher luncheon wednesday/send in some PINK flowers of some sort on thursday/giftcards for specials/classroom teacher (maybe reading).i send supplies in all the time when requested , so i'll sit that one out.

i also sent in a totally random thing 2 weeks ago before easter. i was making "pinata eggs" for our easter party and my little daughter wanted them for EVERYONE IN HER CLASS. so i did that (candy free) and then i did them for her teacher, reading teacher and the 2 aides that are in their classroom all the time. The teachers all were really impressed with those, so that was kinda fun :) they let me know when i volunteered the following week :)

[Seitvonzu]

i haven't really decided about the end of the year yet. my daughter LOVES her teacher with the force of a thousand suns, so i'm sure she'll want to make a card or something. plus, teacher is having a baby-- i might knit her something if i find the time :)

[baileygirl]

I just bought a Cheryl's cookie voucher off living social 30 for 12.25 after the in app purchase coupon 15may or may15 can't remember which. I got their 24 frosted cookies with free shipping and I am going to split them up and send in 6 per teacher and keep some for me.

Thanks for posting this, I bought that deal and a chess class that I wanted to sign my kids up for.

We more or less do Christmas, birthdays, teacher appreciation and end of the year for gifts. After reading a blog by one of my favorite teachers re the stuff that they have to buy (we send in donations through out the year) I'll probably give his next teacher a gc at the beginning of the year.

[Ceepa]

Personally I do a holiday gift and then a second one during teacher appreciation week if I get my act together or at the end of the year - only the two for the year.

At our elementary school the standard is to collect funds at the beginning of the year to use for class gifts - holiday, teacher b-day and appreciation/eoy. I contribute to those and then do my own for holiday and EOY.

Appreciation week had escalated over the past couple of years. It's a pain to send in the one flower one day, wear a color the next, supplies a third, note another, candy another. Especially when you have more than one kid. Our school changed it this year to have the room parent only ask for every student to do something on Tuesday. A note and maybe a small item. So much easier. The room parents are still coordinating meals, chocolate fountains, and all that kind of stuff for the entire building, but not asking every single family to do something every day.

I wish our school would scale back. Reminds me of the other theme weeks throughout the year that sound fun but are more like homework assignments for the parents. We participate because we do appreciate the teachers and staff but l have talked to many parents who feel the same.

[Ceepa]

Forgot to add that we also do a winter holiday gift and end of the year gift in addition to sending in classroom donations all year.