I dimly recall when my daughter was in elementary school we went and picked out some school-type supplies, about $10 worth, of different colored pens, cards of stickers, and a couple other things that teacher could use in her classroom. (since I read teachers often spend their own money for classroom things).
Personal wish lists or for the classroom?
Personal would be…icky.
BTW, I’ll add…any time I get gift cards for book stores (I live in the city of Powell’s!), I always buy books for my classroom.
Personal, as in -so many of you parents have been wondering what to get us teachers for Christmas that we decided to help you out-.
There are things like “$5.00 Starbucks card” on some of the lists, that’s not for the classroom, right?
One gift I’ve gotten for my kids to give seemed to be a hit (but is probably on its way out, thanks to Netflix. . .) is “Movie Night In a Box”; I’d get a $5.00 gift card from Blockbuster Video, two envelopes of hot cocoa mix, a packet of microwave popcorn, and put it all in a Christmas-themed tin.
I do believe that this year, mudgirl will give each of her teachers $5.00 gift cards to Panera Bread. Since she’s in middle school this year, $5.00 is what I can afford without stretching the budget! 
I will also ask her to write a short note to each teacher stating what she thinks is special about them. I never realized that kind of thing meant so much to teachers!
I would never give a teacher a coffee mug, scented soaps/lotions, or anything with an ‘apple’ theme. It’s my impression that most teacher’s homes are either crawling with this crap, or if it’s not, it’s because the teachers are donating it to thrift stores as quickly as they get it.
Speaking in an entirely impartial and unbiased way, in no way related to the fact that I would be involved in using it if a particular teacher got this, I say the best possible gift for a teacher is Celtics tickets.
More seriously, my humble opinion is: if you want to give a teacher something like candy or baked goods, don’t do it right before Christmas when they’re already overloaded with similar things. Give them a cupcake or plate of cookies in February or October when they can appreciate it. Something that doesn’t immediately go bad might be nicer for the December holidays.
I agree. I never accept gifts or invitations to parties when they are from present students or their parents. I do occasionally go to holiday parties when invited by graduates.
What gift do you buy a zombie, anyway?
But now that it has been reanimated, I have to mention one of my Debate Moms. Apparently she has an in at Office Depot, because her daughter has walked in and delivered to me, in the last month: 2 cases of printer paper (not reams, cases), 6 printer cartridges, rubber bands, paper clips, multiple rolls of tape, several sizes of Post-Its, a gross of pencils and other useful stuff. Now that’s what you give a teacher!
My mom jokes that, between the body washes and lotions and bath salts and peppermint candies, her students must be telling her she’s smelly! (She’s not.)
The very *very *best gift is a personal visit 10 years after you’ve left her classroom, with a hug and an update on your life and thanks for what an awesome teacher she is. And please, remind her what your name is and what year you had her - even if you were her favorite student, you were 12 years old when she last saw you, and you don’t look like you did back then!
But in terms of Christmas or end-of-year gifts (yes, this is an old thread, but it’s a good time of year to bring it up again), gift cards really are the best thing. They don’t get stale, clutter up the house or smell. They allow the teacher to get herself a little something extra, or to get things for the classroom. Mom especially loves gift cards to Office Depot for school supplies or Starbucks or Panera for herself.
In some places, the gift that teachers enjoy is when students abstain from slashing their tires.
I don’t expect anything from any of my student; if I receive anything, even something wildly inappropriate (like the cheap peach-scented oil I got one year that got recycled into a hilarious gag gift), I’m grateful.
That said, I’d be lying if I said that all gifts were equally awesome. Gift cards to a place with a wide selection of merchandise are some of the best. Best Buy? Barnes & Noble? Woot! Equally good are gift cards to local good restaurants (I’ve been fortunate enough to have parents who run restaurants, and I love getting those gifts). Homemade cookies are hit-or-miss; I’m not overly worried about sanitation, but a lot of those homemade cookies are not especially to my taste. Those little shrinkwrapped Teacher Appreciation Mug/Hot Cocoa sets from Target will go to Salvation Army still in their shrinkwrap.
Again, I don’t expect anything, but if you want to get something that’s appreciated for itself, not just for the thought behind it, go with a gift card!
We generally have our kids write notes, because that is what most teachers have said they treasure the most. We also give a small gift card (our school has a low limit - $10 or something) for somewhere that could be used EITHER classroom or personally. Target. Barnes and Noble. If the teacher wants to blow it on candles and coffee mugs at Target or a supernatural romance at B&N, she can…if she wants to buy kleenex, supplies or books for the classroom - she can do that too.
As long as it’s a zombie: We have a friend who’s getting her master’s and is pretty sure she’s getting a job teaching middle-school English. Gift suggestions? I really don’t want to give her just a gift card. I was thinking about a nice leather portfolio, but what if she gets three of those?
Middle school English? How about a nice big bottle of bourbon? Failing that, a massage.
I was going to suggest an economy sized bottle of Valium for snack time… 
Or failing that, a gift certificate for a lobotomy.
Middle school? :eek:
They aren’t human at that age.
No, I’ve heard of these people- the stray debate parents who love all the coach does. My one just brought ribs to one of the tournaments for me, but I feel like I’m working my way up toward ink cartridges.
My husband is a middle school Language Arts teacher. I thought he was nuts too when he said that’s the age range he wanted to teach. It must suit him though as he’s been doing it for 10 years now.
The absolute #1 gift he likes best is a note from the kid - he’s actually gotten some very sweet ones and he saves those. For a kid too little to do that, a drawing along with a thank-you from the parent would do fine.
We get a metric assload of candy, cookies and other junk food and it’s the last thing in the world we need to be eating, especially at that time of year when there’s just so much of it around anyway. So please, NO FOOD.
Not a teacher, but found this a funny experience. After decades of giving our teachers cookies and random gifts, my mom did restaurant giftcards this past Christmas for my youngest brother’s teachers, enough to get them a nice dinner for two. He handed them out after his class with each teacher on Friday.
We saw three of the teachers (and their spouses) at the restaurant that same Friday night. So I guess it was well received!
With all the food allergies anymore, I wouldn’t give a food gift at all.
Yep. Since I posted in this thread originally, I’ve discovered I can’t tolerate gluten. So, no cookies, cake, pasta, bread, cupcakes, or what have you. And considering how much gluten can get into food by cross-contamination, I can’t take the chance on most other stuff.
So, please, no food.