DH says I am crazy packing all gifts

[Anonymous]

OP you should do what you are comfortable doing. DS is in 4th grade and we contribute to the class present. We contribute to the class present because I don't want the Teacher to feel like we are asking for her to play favorites and because I don't want other parents who cannot contribute to feel bad that others give gifts. But that is what we are comfortable with. I have no idea what we will do when DS gets to MS and he has a number of Teachers and there are no room parents.

Plenty of people give gifts, some write cards, some do nothing. There is no right answer.

[Anonymous]

I have been more generous this year than in other years. I cannot imagine being in the classroom day and and day out with covid looming over me, and spending a little extra is the least we can do.

[Anonymous]

That is really generous of you OP, and people (especially those who most parents don't think about) will thank you.

I give $20+a handmade gift to my kids' teachers (including an assistant teacher and their two main aftercare teachers) and $5+candy to all the specialists that my kids have (some overlap, some don't). I also send in a box of chocolates for the front office staff. I am far more generous than most of the selfish jerks on this board.

Please keep doing what you're doing, you're so kind.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I gave nothing to my kids ES teachers. People do this?

—woman who grew up in the US

WTH is wrong with you that you don't give a gift to your children's teachers????

[Anonymous]

OP - you sound very kind and generous. I’m on your side here

[Anonymous]

As a public school teacher I usually got gifts from about half of the class.
As a parent I give gifts to my kid’s elementary teacher. (usuallly some soap, sanitizer, etc)
My kid’s’ OT and Speech teachers (same..as above)
My high schoolers teachers ($5 to Dunkin or Starbucks)
Sanitizer or Soap to the office staff.
Amazon/ Home Depot/ or Starbucks to the bus drivers ($10)
I also give to our private instrument teachers, dance teacher, tennis coach, etc. Usually something equal to $10
They all work hard for my kids and I am thankful at Christmas.

[Anonymous]

I did about the same for my elementary kids. By middle school it is a lot less. High school my kids wrote notes and included a Starbucks cards. Elementary is different in my opinion.

[Anonymous]

We mostly gave gift cards to elementary school teachers so as not to add to their clutter. We did give a few physical gifts and one ended being used in the classroom much to the delight of my child.

One gift we gave a teacher was a gift card to her favorite spot to get coffee. She had a long drive to work, and I thought she’d enjoy it. Another time, a teacher loooooooved bullet journaling, so we bought fancy pens and a journal.

In elementary school, we bought for the main teacher. In middle school, we mostly bought for the homeroom teacher.

[Anonymous]

MS specials teacher – I always appreciate gifts/thank you cards when I receive them but I certainly do not expect them even if I have received them from a family before. You sound like a very lovey and generous person and I am sure the teachers and staff will appreciate you thinking of them.