I am in the interesting position of being both a parent at this school...and also a teacher. However, I am an "enrichment" or "specials" teacher rather than a classroom or homeroom teacher. That means that I see more students, but for a shorter time. As a classroom teacher, they sometimes spend more time with my children during the day than I do at home. They are able to develop a relationship with my child, see their behavior, learn their quirks, and also observe their strengths. They nurture and correct, guide and, of course, teach. For this, I am infinitely grateful. My girls have been blessed to have had wonderful, nurturing teachers throughout their time in school, from when they were two and in preschool for the first time to the present time.
Every year, as a parent, we tried to show appreciation to their teachers with some form of small gift. My favorite gift for teachers (when I had much more time) were these pinecone ornaments, with letter beads that spelled out the teacher's name, what they taught, and my child's name. I used real pinecones collected from the trees in our community. It was quite labor intensive, but I loved making them (with the help of my daughter), and I've heard even years later that it was something the teachers really remembered as special. Unfortunately, as life got busy, I wasn't able to repeat that gift the following year, but I do remember giving something small that was handmade to the teachers, and each year, I'd try to remember the teachers with something, whether it was a mug filled with cookies, a picture frame (with a photo of the teacher with my child), a card with a big chocolate bar taped to it, a teacher's devotional...we've done it all. One thing that we've tried to do most years is to remember all of my children's teachers, including the "specials" teachers, and sometimes also the coaches, dance teachers, and teachers for extracurricular activities. It gets to be a lot of people to remember to appreciate--but they all deserve acknowledgement!
So, now I'm also a teacher. So I now see it from another perspective. We all work so hard, and the days are sometimes long, other times too short. When we receive something, it feels so nice to be appreciated. The parents who make fudge, or bake cookies, give a gift card or even give a card with a candy cane -- are truly appreciated. Their thoughtfulness means so much. It is really nice to be remembered, and it's really nice to feel appreciated. You see, we don't have the opportunity to spend as much time with each child as their homeroom teacher, but we see more children. This year, by the end of the year, I will have taught every single child in the school, which is over 200 students. It's a lot of names to learn, a lot of children to try to get to know in a short time. But it's so rewarding and wonderful to be able to see each child and know their name and have them greet me.
The room parents for my children's teachers here at my school do such a great job of remembering the birthdays of the classroom teachers, and also for coordinating contributions for holiday and end-of-year gifts as well as some special activities for teacher appreciation day. When I see the e-mails asking for contributions coordinating these gifts and activities, I am glad to do it, as I know how much my children's teachers do for my children. However, it's also when the green monster of envy starts to creep in...and say "hey...what about my birthday?...what about my class gift?...I like (insert gift here) too!" It's when I feel a little left out...and almost like an afterthought. (However, being in a good reminder for me as a parent to make sure I remember all of my children's teachers--including all their enrichment teachers and coaches)!
Then I get hugs from my students, and I receive wonderful e-mails, comments, and cards from parents telling me how much their child enjoys my class, or that they were coming home speaking Chinese! These are the gifts that I receive from some of my students and parents that are most heartfelt. And I remember why I'm here. It's not about the stuff. It never was. If I wanted stuff...I never would have gotten into teaching. It's about helping to touch a life. Knowing that I had a positive impact on a child is the greatest gift of all.