Xmas present to help my Dd be one of the teachers favourites

[Justlookatthatrain]

😂Joking-sort of

But seriously, what do you buy your child’s teacher at Christmas?
I worked in a school and there were 100% the mums/kids who bought the flashiest presents-good perfume, champagne, huge bouquets and it did have an effect and everyone knew who those mums were
I’m sure teachers will deny this 😅
A good, thoughtful present does make a difference

Aibu?

Teachers teaching at a Catholic school may not be practising Christians themselves, beyond what is required by the school, so a religious based gift may not be particularly welcomed.

I mean in fairness two of my daughter's teachers said they wished every child in the class was like her but I always assumed she either
a) was holding a loaded gun under the table while smiling sweetly at them; or
b) has some serious blackmail material

🤣 not even been told just once or twice, it's often.

Maybe the teachers should get that poster gift 🤣

I thought it was going to be a joke post but no

Mine are now young adults, but nothing.
I did contribute towards a big gift when the children left and when DS (who went to a SEN school for secondary with amazing support) left I got his team presents and cards, but nothing aside from Christmas cards.

Here's my approach...

A homemade card with a proper, heartfelt message from us (parents) explaining why the teacher has made a difference in our child's life and highlighting some special things. A smaller message from child on said card.

A generous vouchers for Amazon or John Lewis where there's plenty of choice.

Have always done this and has been well received. DD is non-verbal and we owe a LOT to the wonderful teachers in her life.

As a teacher I can honestly say, if a parent is a “difficult parent” (and I have many!) buys me an amazing present, I’m grateful for the gift but still think they’re a pain in the ass. Similar with kids, we can have adorable, endearing kids who may not buy us a gift, and we still adore them. And some hard work kids who buy is great gifts, but we still think they’re hard work 🤣
Maybe some teachers feel differently but for me, the gifts they give don’t form or change our opinions on them as people!

All that said… the best gifts I always think are either vouchers or candles or nice smellies. I’m grateful for anything but care less for the “best teacher ever” mugs and coasters and diaries!

Charity shops are full of best teacher gifts, that's how much they are appreciated. I agree that a homemade card is better than any other supposedly thoughtful gift.

My Ds's teacher in about Y3 sent a message saying please no presents and he didn't drink wine. He added that if anyone really wanted to buy anything what he would most appreciate was Pritt Sticks or colouring pencils for the classroom. Of course, he got loads.

He was an outstanding teacher, one of the best my DC ever had.

Nothing. I never bought a Christmas present for any of DD’s teachers when she was in primary.

Her teachers all loved her, though.

My mum once got a piece of toilet paper with 'sorry I am sometimes naughty' (with the word naughty spelled wrong). She has kept it and still laughs at it.

We will buy a Costa voucher for my daughter's teacher and stick it in the card she made at Brownies.

Omg no. This is my nightmare

One box of chocolates is lovely. One box each x 20 kids starts to become quite an overwhelming amount of chocolate! Same as mugs - one is nice, 15 is a fuckload of mugs.
Now as the daughter of a teacher I loved the kids who gifted chocolate because some would always come my way!

I assumed it was a classroom gift and not a personal one…as a religious school, it would be put on display, I imagine.

I would occasionally send an email to the head about how much I appreciated the community at the school - the dinner ladies, the caretaker, the lunchtime librarian from the little things that the kids had mentioned about their days.
It generally got forwarded around the school and despite having a slightly wild child it was known that I backed the school and appreciated the care they took with my kids.
I still think back very fondly to all the school staff and what an amazing impact they had on my children.

Their favourite? I'm not too sure anything other than simple genuine keeness to learn would suffice.
I have always been told that teachers love handmade gifts from the children.
I have always purchased gifts that I think the teacher would use, like a mug, pens, choc, that sort of thing.

Maybe... t'shard to tell really. But this thread is about buying a teacher a personal gift, so I think this was probably a personal gift.

I bake for the staff a few weeks before the holidays (very small school). I am known for a few particular cakes and always get lovely personal thanks from the teachers/staff.

Yes, I checked that it would he welcome first, and again after covid).

I also include a card for the entire staff.

I give class teacher/TA small consumable gift at end of the school year.

As a previous primary teacher, yes you can't walk in with a bottle of champagne and gift card, but be a twat the rest of the year and be well liked by your child's teacher.

A supportive, understanding and just nice parent goes much further- it also doesn't effect how we view the children.

However a nice gift goes soooo far, teachers are paid poorly, get no bonuses, spend a lot of our own money on the class, and so receiving a £25 voucher or a nice bottle of wine (Not bright red gross rosé) really did mean a lot.

It also meant a lot when maybe you knew a family had less money and they still went and bought a candle from Lidl (fab btw) or a box of chocolates.

AVOID tacky 'favourite teacher' 'no 1 teacher' crap that no one really wants.

A couple of children went and painted me a mug from one of those pottery cafes once and i still use them!

Terrible gift anecdote- a partner teacher was once bought a giant garish blanket with five of the children's names printed all over it, what in God's name were they thinking.

Are you serious?

you buy them ... nothing. There is absolutely no need, Teachers get a salary to do their job they do not do it for free.

Ds brought in wine gums and a homemade card and his teacher gushed over it. I do not try to think of the best present ever anymore because they’ve probably got it, I just go for tins of biscuits or sweets and a Christmas decorations

I worked in a school and tbh the flashier gifts wouldn't make me feel any different about the children. It was in an area that had people with very little in tower blocks and a stones throw away there were mansion-esque estates too. The weekly Teddy bear the kids took home when they were star of the week started the year at the park and ended up at Disney world by the end, they tried to one up each other so much. He was often posed in front of an Aga or on the bonnet of the family range rover etc 🤣gave us a good laugh.

I remember when I left the very young mum of one of the more boisterous but lovely little boys handed me the group gift and the more economically able mums made sure to come and tell me that it was from all of them and SHE didn't even put that much in! It just doesn't matter to the teachers tbh, it's lovely getting thank you gifts and yeah champagne is amazing but it shouldn't and wouldn't change their view of the kiddos.

That would be a them problem.

In choosing to apply to a Catholic school for a job, they are saying that they will support the ethos and curriculum which includes preparing for and celebrating Christ’s Mass. I never asked them if or how much they supported the Catholic faith. I just expected that they did. Therefore, if I, in consultation with my dc, decided to gift them a prayer book, a Rosary or a statue of Mary, I would expect them to say thank you.

As it happens, we found a really sweet Nativity which the teachers kept and used in years after us.

It was often the worst parents, who spent the rest of the year insisting that their angel could do no wrong and any fault in their achievement or attitude was my failing as a teacher, who turned up with lavish gifts- and you're quite right, it did not make up for it at all!