What Teachers Really Want for the Holidays
It seems as though every year, I see another post asking for ideas on what to gift their kids’ teachers. The answer is very simple! It’s cash in a card. Seriously. That’s it. Dilemma solved! Any amount is totally fine (even $5!!) but, if you are struggling, then just the card, and it can absolutely be homemade!
Teachers love to feel appreciated for the amount of time and effort they give to their students and school on not a huge salary. If you take the time to write a genuine card, it is always really nice to hear you’re doing a good job or making a difference. If you do have money to give and you find it difficult to only give cash, then throw some cash on their favorite candy bag or attached to a fresh coffee.
The answer will always be cash.
Gift cards are great and of course appreciated, but a lot of times those gift cards get spent on someone else (i.e. Amazon gift cards always get spent on household/classroom items or gifts for others, it never gets truly spent on the teacher). If you really want to give a gift card to a spa, those can do well because teachers tend to neglect self care or don’t have the time to go. However, make sure you know the teacher likes a massage or a manicure before gifting. Believe it or not, some people don’t like being touched or massaged (that will NEVER be me; I could spend a whole day being massaged. But I do have coworkers that feel this way!). Or, if you truly know the teacher or pay attention to items they have complimented on or things they have said in the past, then that item will probably do well as a gift!
I’ll never forget a parent gifting me a handmade large Colombian weekend bag that I told her I loved and asked where she got it when she dropped off her child one time. I found that gift to be really meaningful because she remembered I even said something at all! Again though, I would have been equally as happy for the cash she spent on that bag.
Trust me, cash is king, and it doesn’t have to be some absorbent amount (unless you want it to). We will always find something special to gift ourselves. Teachers are after all known for “loving a little treat.”
