# Help...I've already bought a gift for my child's teacher

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-ive-already-bought-a-gift-for-my-childs-teacher/606341>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [December 15, 2011, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-ive-already-bought-a-gift-for-my-childs-teacher/606341 "2011-12-15T21:27:46Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\
**Post date:** [December 17, 2011, 7:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-ive-already-bought-a-gift-for-my-childs-teacher/606341/21 "2011-12-17T07:47:08Z")

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I don’t recall having ever given a teacher a gift while growing up. As an undergraduate, I did give an professor I liked a book filled with H.P. Lovecraft stories.

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**Author:** ![Chef\_Troy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/85f322/32.png) [@Chef\_Troy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chef_Troy)\
**Post date:** [December 17, 2011, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-ive-already-bought-a-gift-for-my-childs-teacher/606341/22 "2011-12-17T15:57:50Z")

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Wow – I can’t even imagine what that room mom is thinking. That’s WAY too much multiplied by twenty-plus kids (I’m assuming based on the average class size at my daughter’s school) – I think most teachers would be very uncomfortable about getting such a huge gift.

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**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\
**Post date:** [December 17, 2011, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-ive-already-bought-a-gift-for-my-childs-teacher/606341/23 "2011-12-17T16:36:56Z")

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> [@monstro](#):
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> I don’t even know what the hell a “room mom” is. We didn’t have one of those in any of my classes, and we certainly didn’t need one to make us bring the teacher presents. Is this a new-fangled thing or did I just go to bad schools?

I’m in my 40s and my mother was my first grade “room mother”- 1972ish and that was the specific term. Pretty common in my parts.

I was for my daughter’s Kindergarten and all it meant was that I helped organize the hallowe’en/valentine’s/etc parties so the teacher didn’t have to.

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**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\
**Post date:** [December 17, 2011, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-ive-already-bought-a-gift-for-my-childs-teacher/606341/24 "2011-12-17T16:40:24Z")

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> [@monstro](#):
>
> I don’t even know what the hell a “room mom” is. We didn’t have one of those in any of my classes, and we certainly didn’t need one to make us bring the teacher presents. Is this a new-fangled thing or did I just go to bad schools?

You may well have had one (or more) and not been aware of it: it’s really a K-2 thing, I think. It just means a mom or moms that have volunteered to help out.

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**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\
**Post date:** [December 17, 2011, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-ive-already-bought-a-gift-for-my-childs-teacher/606341/25 "2011-12-17T23:40:19Z")

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> [@Rand\_Rover](#):
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> I would just chip in the $20 and have your kid give the gift you already bought.

Why should the OP effectively give two gifts?

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