To feel sorry for all the teachers who are about to be inundated with shite gifts

[Butterflyfluff]

My Facebook feed is full of utterly shit teacher gifts - mugs, glasses, baubles, sweet jars all with ‘Greatest Teacher’ on them.

Surely the vast majority of these end up in the bin - no one needs up to 30 odd of these every year?

What’s wrong with clubbing together for vouchers that would actually get used?

Apologies for lower case 'i' .....The kids would love that !!!! Why can't we edit any more ?

Alright, misery guts.

I found the plethora of mugs very handy, dh runs a building firm so they always had mugs on site!
I don’t drink tea or coffee or any kind of hot drink so would never have used them myself but they never went to waste. Also flowers, we usually fled the country the day the summer holidays commenced so flowers were donated to a neighbour- not wasted either.
Wine would always be drunk at some point, chocolates always welcome too.
Most favourite gift was always at Christmas and a child would always buy me a Christmas tree decoration, they always go on my tree. Luckily we have no theme, it’s anything goes, and I love putting them on and remembering the child. Much better than my colleague who was given a framed photograph of a child in her class - I mean, as much as we enjoy spending time with your dc we don’t want them on the mantelpiece with our own 😂
Best of all though, and the thing I kept every single one of were the cards with special messages in them, I’m not sentimental with most things but those cards and letters really meant a lot.
I left the job a couple of years ago and do something completely different now, no more mugs for me!

My utilities bills have gone through the roof but on the plus side, I don't have the commute.

My DC doesn't spend anything near that afaik. They do get each child a birthday card and a cupcake, plus decorating the classroom, stuff like that, but I'm pretty sure the basics are provided. Maybe buys pens the odd time.

I've got a theory about teachers - they start off with ideals and ideas, hopefully also suited to teaching - then after 2-3 years on the actual job, they get into a mindset that parenting is easy and more kids would be easier to teach with the teacher's ideals/parenting skills' in place.

With juggling a job with great Mat Leave T&Cs that on paper works well for school holidays they either go for dc2 like a lamb to the slaughter or cynically milk their 2nd ML for everything they can get. And quit/pause teaching by 5 yrs on the job.

Unless they're male teachers and the mother of their dc takes the brunt/career-hit - as is often the way; these men are then set to progress to SLT just by dint of hanging on to their jobs whilst also having dc, and certainly not by ability.

Hence in reality it's the crap, unsupportive SLT that undermines most teachers.

As regards to end of year/term gifts from appreciating parents and pupils - if you really don't like them then give them to a good cause or if you're too cynical/ungrateful about these 'tokens' then maybe best reconsider your position or even a more obviously self-serving job.

Every single year a thread like this pops up, every single year teachers in their droves comment that a card/note/email means the world to them, and every single year they somehow end up being mocked for receiving gifts (oh poor teachers, what will they do with all their gifts) or are told that they are being disingenuous for the aforementioned card comments.

Our year group collection (about 45 children across 2 reception classes in state primary is currently at well over £400, with several parents yet to contribute. This does have to cover 3 teachers (2 class teachers and head of EYFS) and 7 teaching assistants, so doesn't go that far. 1 parent gave £100! I did message her to check wasn't a typo and she meant to give £10, but she confirmed she was so thrilled with the support the school have given her son that that was the amount she wanted to give.
It's a very mixed school from a socio economic perspective, with higher than average FSM and SEN, definitely not a school full of rich parents, but a school where the parental engagement is huge.

As a teacher I would personally prefer no gifts at all. It’s a minefield. I would far, far prefer a card/ email with a nice message if you feel you’d like to. It means so much more.

I’ve worked in schools in really deprived areas and also private schools in very very affluent areas, the gifts I’ve received over the years range from out of date chocolates to designer handbags. The things I’ve always treasured the most are the lovely cards or the parents who’ve quickly popped in at the end of the year and given me a hug and told me I’ve made a difference. Honestly.

This is a BRILLIANT idea if people are desperate to buy something. I’ve spent a fortune on glue sticks this year.

It’s sarcasm my dear.

😂😂😂

Who told you this?

Of COURSE they don't, They are gifts

It's a great idea, but dont the children have to provide their own?
The school buys in bulk and sells 'kits' to each child at £5 per set - to include pencils ruler sharpener white board pens scissors and glue stick. They then have the responsibility of looking after their stuff and letting parents know if run out if something - teaches then responsibility for their possessions.

Look on the bright side. Hit your local charity shops in a couple of weeks and that's next year's gift sorted 🤣

Check your teachers' dietary needs! I have to admit I would be a bit sad to get biscuits, cake etc that I can't eat.

Best teacher paraphernalia is not the most useful, but it’s absolutely the thought that counts. Agree with pps that handwritten notes are the best, but if you want to get a more thoughtful gift than “teacher tat”, some of my loveliest things have been inexpensive fashion earrings with a note saying that the little girl used to notice my earrings, a lanyard, hand cream etc. No more expensive but definitely more appreciated.

Slightly off topic but our council makes teachers declare gifts over £10. I did wonder whether our PTA could put together an Amazon wish list for people to purchase things the school would need and pass on any messages to teachers/staff to read? Rather than teachers getting lots of gifts that are unwanted yet still having to put their hands in their own pockets for extra resources? Anyone heard of any schools doing this already and was it successful?

Vouchers need to be declared? I bought my child’s teacher a gift voucher for an experience (day trip out) but it was of a monetary value - have I caused them a problem?

I doubt that. They're a gift from the parents, not in lieu of wages from the employer.

Yawn. Vouchers need to be declared for the purposes of financial regs but not for taxes- they are not a benefit in kind, they are a gift...

In my kids secondary the kids themselves have done collections and all chipped in. At the one of year 11 the GCSE PE class bought the teacher some trainers and in Year 13 gave one of their A level teachers Monica Vinader vouchers as they knew she loved the jewellery. My DD bought a bottle of wine for her favourite dinner lady who had also been the after school club lady when she was in primary.

No

Ach, nonsense! Who would be arsed for a few vouchers maybe twice a year!!!!!

What has the first 2/3s of your post got to do with this topic?? I don’t think any women who happen to be teachers have had children for the reason you have stated.

This ^ I work my backside off all week. I’m not a teacher or a nurse. I would never expect gifts. I work in the public sector so get paid a lot less than my counterparts in the private sector. I don’t complain and just get on with it 🤷‍♀️

Yes it is but its usually only a handful people contributing tbh hence why so low! Class of under 30 in a highly deprived city centre area. More people do gifts, often very generous ones, but cash contributions don't seem to attract any interest. Similarly if we ask for contributions for non uniform day for school we get pennies but if we fundraise for an external charity people do donate. Not sure if it's just us but I'm not bothering with a collection this year.