A follow up from my older asklemmy post, saying goodbye to a teacher who helped me a lot through my stuff, was thinking maybe chocolate, but one of the dudes said that it’s not a very good idea, I was thinking maybe a perfume/cologne? What do you guys suggest? She is in probably in her early 20s if it helps, and I am in senior high, damn this is getting weirder and weirder, I just want to run away lol
A greeting card with a note about how she helped you.
Material gifts will get used up and thrown out over time. But she’ll collect notes and letters from her students over the years, and they will help remind her why she’s teaching.
This, and if you really really wanna put a monetary gift in there, get them a gift card for coffee(go local fuck Starbucks) or honestly somewhere like target that sells school supplies. It’s a bit orphan crushing machine but they may really appreciate the extra cash for supplies.
A gift card for school supplies is a great idea
Concur. I have every card, note, poster, or coloring page I’ve ever gotten from a student. (I volunteered with kids younger than OP)
Misspelled words don’t matter (I guess maybe if it’s your language arts/spelling/writing teacher it would matter a little) because they thought of me and put time, thought, and energy into a gift for me instead of making a tiktok or whatever.
I got fired from my job, and while I was cleaning out my locker I found a folder in the back of my locker.
It had a note from an old lady I helped once. She wrote a whole note about how nice it was to work with me.
The other thing was a hand-drawn card from a coworker’s daughter, proclaiming me as her friend forever.
I also had a big stack of gift cards the company had given me to show their appreciation, and I just took them so I’d have food. I don’t feel the slightest bit of meaning from those gift cards.
Honestly an email from my boss saying “Hey good job on X” would have gone so much further than those gift cards.
As a teacher, just a letter or card saying how they impacted you is enough.
Not a teacher (but I work with people that sometimes want to give me gifts when we say goodbye) and I agree, card or a letter is great!
Either that or something I can share with my colleagues (chocolate, assorted sweets).
Fellow teacher here, I concur. I’ve never gotten a physical gift from a student, and I don’t think I’d be comfortable with it.
A card would be weird too, but better by several powers of magnitude than an actual gift. And perfume? WTF my dude?
“There’s no way perfume could be construed as romantic!”
@fastandcurious don’t give anyone perfume/cologne unless you know them well enough to know what they wear.
-
A card that has something meaningful about their teaching written in it.
-
Since she’s early career, give written feedback to the school about what a great teacher she is.
-
I don’t think you have to worry too much. A classic gift of a vibrator should probably get your point across and not get misinterpreted.
(Sorry, I had to, I know I’m dumb)
A fountain pen or a nice moleskin notebook with a note saying how her lessons will help you in your future life.
I think a perfume is too personal and might come out as a romantic gesture (and difficult to choose if you don’t know what she likes anyway).
A nice fountain pen seems like a good idea, Thanks!
As a fountain pen user, I would suggest against that unless you know it suits her personality. Fountains pens require maintenance, and certainly it’s easy maintenance, but it’s definitely more work than a ballpoint. They are a hobby, and if it’s is not her thing, she’ll never use it.
I would instead recommend a nice ballpoint pen set where the ink can be replaced when empty. Something she can use without having to think about or maintaining it.
Tbh I am kinda thinking of somehow giving some muffins, maybe go to school early, like ppl said, teachers have a lot of clutter so pen might not be the best choice
Speaking as a teacher here: do not buy any teacher anything, as in NOTHING.
I would be super weirded out if a student gave me something.
We had a student of more years than most, present the teacher’s lounge with a chocolate basket once, and everyone thought it was strange. So presenting a teacher with a personal gift would be even stranger.
But if you insist on getting her a gift, perfume would be up there with lingerie and jewelry … WTF dude?
what should you do? how about you decide what it is that you want to say. Like “you did so and so, that meant a lot for me because of so and so”.
- Figure out what to say
- make sure you don’t spend more than 30 or 45 seconds to say it.
Idk but judging from the username, maybe this kind of culture is there in nordic countries? Idk but here students give gifts all the time on teachers day, I just don’t know what is in those boxes lol, as I never attend these kind of events, and idk if ppl give them outside of these events
A heartfelt, handwritten thank-you letter telling them they’re a great teacher and how they positively impacted your life.
And an apple 🍎
As a former teacher, I’d never consider something a student bought me as a romantic gift, that’s just not a thing. Chocolates are nice, but echoing what someone else said, a nice card with a message is really special. I still have every thank you card my students ever gave me, and I once printed out an email a student sent me when they got their first job to keep. It just gives you fuzzy feelings to think you may have been helpful.
One thing I haven’t seen yet: if you can, loop your parent(s) in on this. They know the situation better than the Internet does, and if someone tries to turn the situation into something weird, they should have your back. And they’ve got some life experience to help you with your note.
Damn, that’s good advice.
However the sarcastic side of me is looking forward to the next post in a months time when they ignored this, etc…
“How do I propose to my old teacher?” And so on
A thank you card and a gift certificate for food. Everybody needs food.
“Good for one food”
As another poster suggested: muffins and a nice card go a long way. Especially since few students show appreciation anyway. She’ll definitely appreciate the card and gesture more than any particular gift that you might include.
And definitely don’t do perfume. It’s difficult enough to shop for yourself, much less for others. Just don’t.
I just love any scent as long as it’s not too strong ¯_(ツ)_/¯, but I know people can be very picky, but honestly as long as I don’t smell sweat, I am happy
Fragrance is a very risky gift. Some people do not want that shit and don’t even want it around them. I get upset if I’m sharing a room with someone wearing too much perfume for too long.
My coworker is very sensitive to fragrances. I personally love a nice cologne, but I can’t wear the strong stuff around her without it bothering her. So I don’t.
Red Swingline Stapler
That’s a great idea. Or something else for their desk at work.
The public presentation of the gift reinforces the idea that the gift is being presented for their teacher role.
a pineapple. Can never be seen as romantic.
Never say never. I’d go on a date for pineapple
Edible underwear
“I’d totally chew these right off your pelvis if you weren’t my teacher. Now that I’m graduating, I want you to know you had a great impact on me. I often think about you at night. No homo”
We had a wonderful English teacher in our college. And on the last day many students gave her some gifts. If I remember correctly, we gave a small bamboo plant that sits on a table, some squishy smiley balls aka stress balls, a custom printed tshirt, a book, and maybe a mug too.
A card with a well-written note would be the best. Take time thinking about the tiny things she did that meant a lot to you.
Yeah card is a given, I should probably start now because I suck at arts and some paper is gonna get wasted
I really think the most valuable thing to her is going to be your written articulation of the ways her work made a positive impact on the course of your life.
