I would much rather a note of appreciation or handmade card. Cookies would just get thrown in the trash.

My kids went to a "poor" school with high FARMS and ESOL rates. Our PTA was not very rich and membership was low. However, the PTA did an amazing job of Teacher Appreciation Events through the year.

They did many week-long cookie-stands, snack-stands, protein-bar stands, fresh-fruit stands at the staff lounge through out the year. Baskets of packaged cookies, snacks, snack bars, breakfast bars, were laid out each working day and locked in a closet in the evening. A very helpful office staff/PTA mom would do that for the PTA. Most parents were happy to contribute.

Teachers could grab what they wanted, when they wanted it. They also did a lot of fresh fruit stands too - whole bananas, apples and tangerines. It was a big hit with the teachers, volunteers and parents.

Anonymous wrote:Not a teacher but I work in a police station. We will eat cookies that a coworker brings in but don’t eat homemade cookies a citizens brings in. Too much risk. We say thank you then throw away.

How do you know how and where your co worker made the cookies?

The nicest gift is a note of appreciation from the student or the family.

Anonymous wrote:I would personally prefer a gift card of some kind

+1000

Amazon or Target or something similarly easy to use.

Please no Starbucks.

My favorite gifts from students are cards and letters from the kids themselves, and appreciative notes from parents. I would also be happy if parents would make a donation somewhere in my honor. Cookies are kind, but these days I'd rather the effort and money go somewhere it was really needed.

No, please don't make any cookies not because it's a not a nice gift but because today ... there things like allergies of the teacher, teacher's children may have allergies, it's flu season and in a post COVID world hand made treats are not acceptable, a teacher might be trying to eat healthier (restricted diet)

If you want to insist on picking up a bakery item, consider a pre-packaged item.

But honestly, an email to the person's administration expressing gratitude can go a lot further and mean wayyyyy more than a gift card.

Anonymous wrote:Not a teacher but I work in a police station. We will eat cookies that a coworker brings in but don’t eat homemade cookies a citizens brings in. Too much risk. We say thank you then throw away.

I am a teacher who eats food from student houses. My DH was a cop for a long time and there is no way I would eat what you describe. I would sometimes send extra cookies to work with DH, and they got eaten because I am a known person.

Teachers are just regular people. Some would eat the cookies, some would not. People who come to school bake sales certainly buy home baked goods. Others don’t. We have a neighborhood cookie exchange. We eat the cookies in our house. I have never gotten personally sick from a cookie someone baked, but some people have allergies or diets or fears of lack of sanitary conditions or whatever.

Anonymous wrote:They'll just get put in the teacher's lounge and then get tossed when the custodians clean at the end of the day.

Plenty of teachers eat home baked goods at my school. You should ask the teacher themselves.

I eat cookies that students bake and give me. Or I take them home for my family. I’m touched when a student gives me homemade stuff

Not a teacher but I work in a police station. We will eat cookies that a coworker brings in but don’t eat homemade cookies a citizens brings in. Too much risk. We say thank you then throw away.

I would personally prefer a gift card of some kind

They'll just get put in the teacher's lounge and then get tossed when the custodians clean at the end of the day.

Teachers and school staff: Do you eat cookies your student said they/adult baked at home? From what store or bakery do you want the cookies?