If your DC's teacher suggested this as a Christmas present?

[LynetteScavo]

So as we were driving to school I ask the DC "which grown ups at do we need to think about buying a small Christmas present. (In the past there have been mulitple class teachers, mulitple TA's and multiple after school club helpers).

DD says, just her class teacher and one TA.

DS says just his class teacher, but apparently he has requested vouchers, specifically John Lewis or next, rather than chocolates.

He's a newly qualified teacher, who is trying his very best, but is very green, in a "bless him", kind of way.

A teacher friend suggested I give him a Next voucher with only £2 on it. (She then got quite excited about getting 30 X £2 Next vouchers, and buying a whole new work outfit )

I would have just bunged them all a decent sparkling wine.....

Erm, hmm. I'm speechless!

Hmm. Teacher isn't writing a list to Father Christmas, so should be thankful for all offerings IMO. Send him chocolate. Sainsbods sell basics bars for 30p, a couple of those will do.

Surely the teacher is joking! I would say that to my students in jest "ooh I would like some John Lewis vouchers..."

OK, thinking about it. If it were me, I'd want to not give him JL or Next vouchers because he had asked for them. It's very cheeky IMO, even if it was well meant. I'd get DS to draw and decorate a pretty card and write something nice in it and that would be it. I'm a teacher and would never never never do anything like that (unless someone specifically asked me, like if parents gathered together to get one thing from everyone, which btw has never happened, but then I'm at secondary so it's a bit different). It might not be the teacher planting ideas though, he (the teacher) genuinely might have been asked by one of the children what he wanted for christmas in a chatty way and that was his response only it's sort of been taken a bit out of context by your DC IYWIM. It's hard to know.

At DDs school most of us used to club together to get a present, part of which was often vouchers (ie whatever left over from getting a 'thing'). So maybe not that odd if he's come across it elsewhere.

DS is Y5, and usually quite good at repeating exactly what the teacher has said (apart from when it comes to anything to do with homework)....but I can see why the teacher might have dropped a hint if he thought he might be getting a collective gift from parents.

(Something about him tells me he has spent some time at an independent school, where that might have happened.)

While I think it is a bit cheeky, one of my friends is a teacher and just gets piles and piles of bath stuff and chocolate.
It must be quite frustrating to get all this stuff, that you don't really like or want, even though the thought is lovely when if everyone just put the money they had spent on some next vouchers then you couuld buy something lovely for your house that you have been wanting for ages!

Its probably worse for male teachers as probably wont get 'bath stuff' (or if they do, most for men is vile). If he doesn't like chocolate...probably wouldn't want to ask for wine ... what else is there? A cupboard full of those 'best teacher' type mugs?