End of Year Teacher's Gifts:

Teachers are people, too - I think they understand that money can be tight at the end of the school year, and I think they are appreciative of any kind of appreciation. That could be a gift, or it could be a letter/card from the child. This year, we made cookies, and then also put the dry ingredients for the same cookie recipe in a large mason jar, decorated the jar, and included a copy of the recipe on pretty paper. Then, on the label, we wrote, "Thanks for making me one smart cookie!" I think the whole gift probably cost $10 or so, and all of my kids' teachers loved it. Like my 7-year old said, "Who doesn't love cookies?" :)

Nope, not at all.

It's not expected by any means. A nice handwritten "thank you" is much appreciated! I have had families bake cookies and brownies, which are loved in my household! If you want to do something "cheap and easy", bake a boxed mix of something and send it in!

I always do the end of the year gift and rarely do the others. Never ever the birthday gift, is that regional or a new trend nation wide?
I wouldn't worry about it at al, maybe send a letter to the principal praising the teacher if you really want to do something. theywill share it with the teacher and he/she will be very pleased.

I work at a preschool and I never expect a gift at any time. I was very surprised that so many parents did give VERY nice gifts and I always write a thank you card, but the end of year gift I was not able to obviously. I would love hand made gifts or letters just as much though :) Gifts don't need to cost any money. I would even love a picture they drew.

I am a teacher and I never, ever expect gifts. I feel that there is no etiquette to be concerned with here.

Quite honestly, the best gifts that I receive and still have to this day are the letters or notes written to me by my students. THAT is what means the most to me. Anything above and beyond is a lovely bonus, but certainly not expected.

You are right, the letter is great- be sure to include your child's picture, too!

We have only ever done a Christmas gift and an end of year gift. They are never more than $10. This is more than enough. Gifts are not required at all, so any gift received is a bonus!

I did very nice gifts for Christmas and Teacher Appreciation with handwritten notes.

I did not do anything else for end of the year, but I did go up to the school the last day and personally tell my son's teacher what a huge impact she made on him. I thanked her for all of her hard work and told her that my son was better for having been in her class this year.

I am impressed with what you've already done!

I am a high school teacher (have been for 9 years). I have yet to get a gift or gift card from any of my students, and this is pretty standard for all of the teachers in my building. I think that families reach a point where the whole teacher's gift thing goes by the wayside (and I can understand that it is more expensive to get gifts for 7 or 8 different teachers as opposed to 1 teacher).

I say that no one should ever feel like they need to do ANY gifts for teachers, BUT the hand written letter from a student is a pretty powerful and inexpensive way to thank a teacher. :)

I don't think it is bad etiquette at all. A letter that comes from the heart is far more meaningful, anyway.

I truly do find it odd that Teacher Appreciation week comes at the end of the school year...I just don't get it, it's not that convenient for parents. Anyway, I don't think you failed, epically or not! ;) If you did the other stuff and wrote a letter, I think that's awesome!

We do Christmas and Teacher Appreciation/End of the Year. The PTO really takes care of Teacher Appreciation for us, so really we do Christmas and End of the Year.

As a teacher I love it when parents show the appreciation for what I do for their children outside of teaching. My JOB is to teach however, I put in extra time breaking up cliques that I could ignore, having bottled water for thirsty dancers when we go out to perform, drop dancers off at home and pick them up, etc.

A $5 Starbucks card or a $10 Target gift card is the leaast that their parents can do at Christmas and at the end of the year.

I'm kind of floored by this culture of gift giving that has developed in our schools! When I was a kid in the 70s, I don't remember ever doing this, except for a baby shower that was organized for a teacher going on maternity leave. I remember writing notes to my teachers and I think I brought homemade candy a few times. But between my two kids, we had 5 teachers, a tutor, and a choir director. Thank goodness I'm the cub scout leader and the girl scout leader, or I would have had more to buy. For those seven people, Christmas, teacher appreciation, and end of school, I spent about $250 this year in gift cards. Honestly, my MIL is a teacher and usually ends up giving me the pens, journals, mugs, and other things her students give her. She's thankful, but she can't hold on to them (and I usually end up saying No, Thank you, because I don't have room for them either). Many teachers have told me they love the letters. So I still give gift cards and then letters. I'm grateful, but this is a little ridiculous.

I've taught preschool, 3rd grade, and elementary music. Teachers get many gifts from very inexpensive but creative, to quite extravagant. Sometime it depends on the type of community one teaches in. I've taught in the 2 extremes and one in the middle. My most valued gifts have been notes of appreciation from parents AND students. I've treasured several notes for years in a scrapbook. Not that I don't appreciate other gifts, but words of encouragement and appreciation go a long way.

Please remember your children's "specials" teachers as well. (Music, art, P.E., reading specialists, etc.) They work hard and go the extra mile just as much as regular classroom teachers, yet they often get overlooked.

No epic fail.

We do: Christmas, Teacher Appreciation, and an end of year letter/card. I did put a gift card in with a couple of the end of year cards, one for one of my daughters daycare teachers that really made an impression on her, and one for one of my son's pre-k teachers that was particularily caring towards him.

We have never done birthday.

As a teacher, I see about 50/50 split between Teacher Appreciation and End of Year. I expect neither, so it is always a lovely surprise. What means more is the small, handwritten notes or pictures. I have three bulliten boards behind my desk that I have filled with the ones that went beyond the "Thank you for being my teacher". They were extremely thoughtful, and provide a great pick-me-up when I am having "one of those days". :)