What do you do for your DC's therapist(s) for the holidays?

[Anonymous]

My 2-year old has been in weekly speech therapy for 3 months with a private therapist and with a county therapist. As I'm planning out gifts for preschool/daycare teachers, our cleaning service, etc, I'm wondering what is typical in terms of showing appreciation to special needs professionals around the holidays?

[Anonymous]

The ones I feel particularly close to, I send our family holiday card to.

[Anonymous]

Our DS has many teachers and therapists in his public school. We give $50 gift cards to the teachers, and $25 to each therapist (2 speech therapists, OT, psychologist, IA). We do this during the holidays and again at the end of the year. They have all been so wonderful for DS, and we're very grateful. Also, FCPS hasn't been giving much in the way of raises during the past several years, so I think the gift cards are much appreciated.

[Anonymous]

I thought public school teachers were not allowed to accept gives valued over $25?

[Anonymous]

Oy vey. My DS has a teacher, 3 different aides, 2 special educators, 3 therapists (varies how often he sees each, but they average 1 time every other week), and a room assistant. I was going to give $20 to the teacher and the aides, and $10 the rest. Now I feel cheap.

[Anonymous]

PP: Don't feel cheap. Our specialists/teachers number 10. After all of the therapy and other medical bills throughout the year, what you have in mind is along the lines of what I'm doing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP: Don't feel cheap. Our specialists/teachers number 10. After all of the therapy and other medical bills throughout the year, what you have in mind is along the lines of what I'm doing.

This ^. The people who say you must give a lot are either teachers hoping to get bigger gifts, or grateful people with the means to do so. Do what you can afford. The important thing is you are showing appreciation. The card is enough to be honest.

[Anonymous]

Do you also give a gift to private therapists? Ugh, this didn't even occur to me.

[Anonymous]

My child's private therapist has made enough off us to pay her kid's college tuition and I'm not even joking. She makes a lot more than I do. I make a little tea cake or pumpkin loaf or cookies and I give a card, but that is all.

[Anonymous]

15:14 here.. what I meant to say is over the past 4 years she has made enough to pay for at least one year of college tuition at a state college, if she invested well, much more than that. We are very grateful, but we cannot afford to show gratitude with large sums of money.