Gift Giving for Teachers

I tip everyone for good service, the mailman, the guy who pumps my gas and so on... A token gift is not out of line and I'm sure it will be appreciated.

As long as the request came from the office and not the teacher, it is perfectly acceptable.

We give a small gift to my son's teacher at the end of each school year. Usually a gift certificate to a bookstore. As little as they pay teachers, I hate it that they have to pay for a lot of their books & materials out of pocket.

IMHO, $20 may be a bit much if she only attends a couple of days per week.

Sheesh...tell your husband to calm his ass down. It's completely appropriate, and it's not an easy world for teachers right now. I suppose that back in the days, a good apple would do, but I don't think you are out of line on this.

Maybe compromise and get a $10 certificate. Coffee and donuts don't cost that much anyway.

Thanks, cav, I agree. I realize how hard it can be for them and they get paid peanuts. I was considering the thoughtfulness of the gift, not the monetary value. I think my husband is upset because he does not think they are teaching the children up to his standards. I tried to explain that this is Pre-K not high school so play is a large part of how they learn. He is just the type who does not look at the big picture and sees only certain results. He does not see the little touches, like when the teacher will style my daughter's hair for her or put a band-aid on a cut that does not need it because my daughter says it hurts.

Since there are two teachers I though $20 would be better and my husband really does not need to know as I usually take care of these things any way. He probably wouldn't have any way other than I asked his opinion of what he thought I should get.

Yikes. Go with your instincts, Linkat. My mom still teaches, and has for decades. Any token is appreciated, especially if YOU recognize that a teacher is good. Tip for the future: Keep that standards thing in check...kids don't always respond to that sort of thing. I should know, I'm a product of it.

I'm curious Cav, what do you mean by keeping the standards thing in check and that you are a product of it? Do you mean being too stringent or too easy?

Erm, sorry for being unclear. I was raised by folks who set very high standards for me, and my brother. We spent so much time trying to please mom and dad, we forgot how to live, except through vicarious parental fantasies levelled on us. I think your husband may be too strict, just by what you posted about his reaction to the gift-giving. I see you as more reasonable and instinctive, and I was only intimating that your temperment could be a good balancing factor in the future, when it comes to making decisions regarding your daughter. Hope that makes more sense.

Makes lots of sense and you are very perceptive. You have my husband and me down. And yes I do counterbalance his strictness and set him straight when needed.