Teacher Appreciation Week

If there is an appreciation week, it’s an underpaid position.

Photo by Pixabay from Pexels

Everyone has an opinion on what an appreciation week means for different careers. Most in those positions would argue, that a raise would be preferred over an appreciation week. “Show me, you appreciate me all year long, not just two weeks before school is out”, is something I often say.

Teacher Appreciation week gets harder as you move up in grades. A student can have 4–8 teachers by the time they hit high school. A parent is not going to purchase things for that many teachers. So those teacher get lost in the shuffle and it falls back on the Admin or PTO to supply something.

What the pattern seems to be is wasteful spending. One year I got socks with a school saying. I promise you, no one has worn those socks, I don’t even know where mine are.

Photo by Yan Krukov from Pexels

What Do Teachers Want?

So, as the PTO President for my daughter’s middle school, I have tried to think of things that I would like to have.

1. A hot meal
2. Ask the teachers what top 5 things they wish they could have
3. Not have to cover for other classes
4. Time to eat during PTC

Now only a few of these things I actually have control over as the PTO person. Much of what I can do has to be regulated through the school's principal. Sometimes that can cause some issues, but you have to learn and adapt with it. Don’t plan on being in a PTO if you can not be flexible.

Making Wishes Come True

1. We brought in a food truck so that teachers could have a hot meal prepared per order. No one likes a cold deli sandwich ALL the time.
2. We brought in Roosters’ before winter break. A warm meal.
3. We have already started planning for teacher appreciation week, because I do not like to procrastinate. I tried some thing different for this year and created and Amazon custom gift list.

The Amazon Custom Gift List

I have found, over my years of fundraising that businesses really do no like it when we give them a range of money to donate. I believe they want more control over what they give, and will say no, if the value is too high for them. The gift list allows for them to choose what or how much they want to give.

I asked the teachers to give me a wish list of 5 items they wish they could have from Amazon with the link. I then created a public custom gift list and added those teachers’ wishes to the list. I then sent and shared the link to as many local businesses and social media sites as I could find.

I’ll be honest, I was skeptical. My glass tends to be half empty, so I wasn’t expecting much. What I have been pleasantly surprised to find, is that people and businesses have stepped up to the plate and purchased items. My home office is slowly filling up with boxes from Amazon and I can’t wait to bring them to the school to gift to the teachers. I have it delivered to my home, because packages tend to go missing at the school and delivery has not been reliable this year at the school with mail.

Here is the list to give any one an idea of what it might look like, to help with your ideas. I would also greatly appreciate it, if you saw fit to donate to the school and purchase an item off of the list. I know the teachers would appreciate it and it would help to make this the best year yet for Teacher Appreciation Week, at least as best as we can do, until society starts valuing educators the same way we do corporate business people.

Amazon Custom Gift List

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