subject: Gifts That Won't Blot Your Copy Book [print this page] Buying gifts for teachers can be a genuine minefield for both students and parents. In respect to children, the teacher can be an important presence in their developmental years and, as such, it is only right that a good one is rewarded on occasion with a gift. However, this can be met with derision from other students who may mark out the child as a "suck up" or "teacher's pet". If the teacher is a rather attractive female, however, it is quite likely that at least all the male students will attempt to buy a gift for her even those whom she does not teach! In the case of parents, buying gifts for teachers is also fraught with peer pressure as there tends to be an unwritten and unspoken code of how to go about the task. In short, buying gifts for teachers is not as easy as A, B, C.
In the golden years of schooling, it was a standard practice for headteachers to cane youths who stepped out of line. Nowadays, it seems that students can almost literally get away with murder. Nevertheless, the lack of humanity that was inherent in the old school system also meant that the biggest and best reward a teacher could expect from their impoverished and terrified cohort was an apple. In contrast, a good teacher today can expect a range of varied and exciting presents from students. Of course, as students no longer have the fear of a public caning hanging over their heads (or somewhere a bit lower), it ought to be accepted that some gifts will be a little cheeky or naughty in nature. The aforementioned attractive female teacher, for instance, can expect to receive a variety of anonymous gifts from the Ann Summers catalogue (which must be met with sheer contempt and anger, regardless of whether or not they will be sneaked home when nobody is watching).
Nevertheless, there are many thoughtful and mature students around who will want to buy only the very best gifts for teachers. Furthermore, unless they are celebrating an end-of-school term, nobody will want to risk blotting their copy book with vulgar and distasteful gifts for teachers. One of the more acceptable gifts for teachers available includes the superb personalised framed certificate. As teachers have grown accustomed to their star pupils receiving certificates for good attendance, excellent group participation and so on, students can return the compliment by addressing just how brilliant their favourite teacher is. Indeed, with a framed personalised certificate the student can make up their own award description including the teacher's name and area of expertise, which will usually take centre stage on an office wall or even at the teacher's home.
Other gifts for teachers that students can purchase without fear of being inappropriate include personalised mugs, which will usually feature the teacher's name alongside messages such as "world's best chemistry teacher", "best ever teacher" or something less palatable, such as "teacher wiv da bestest legs". In fact, these mugs are often displayed as trophies in staff rooms throughout the country, so even the most inappropriate will be paraded around with glee there is, however, an unusually high incidence of broken mugs in such environments.
Personalised cards and boxes of chocolates will normally suffice as gifts for teachers, although many parents and students will feel that these cannot always do justice to an exceptionally good teacher. Perhaps a student has struggled with a particular section of the curriculum and a teacher has made extra efforts to help them through it. Indeed, there is nothing more damaging to a child's learning than a teacher who simply does not want to do more than the bare minimum somebody who marks work in a generic manner and cannot spare additional time or resources to helping those pupils experiencing problems. In fact, the only present that these teachers deserve are mugs with messages such as "world's most useless teacher" emblazoned across them.
Furthermore, some gifts for teachers must be of a personal interest to them. For instance, as can be found in any school, there is always at least one teacher usually of English who is entirely eccentric or, as many people would observe, drunk. Accordingly, a bottle of personalised whiskey would no doubt go down a treat, whilst most other teachers would likely appreciate a bottle of personalised Champagne. Moreover, gifts for teachers can be chosen on the subjects they teach, so an English teacher might receive a favourite book and a P.E. teacher might receive a personalised football. In fact, unless it is unreservedly offensive, any gift that is given to a teacher will no doubt be very warmly received.
