Teachers Pressured by Appreciation Week Performance

“Whenever a kid gives me a Christmas gift or a teachers day gift or something, I mail them a thank you card. I teach eighth grade so I don’t get many, but I always take the time to write a thank you card, even if it’s something small like a chocolate bar or homemade Christmas card. We have all the student addresses in our system. I put the school address for the return address. I get thank you cards in bulk and they last years. Stamps are cheap. Over the years, I’ve ran into former students who a”

“I'm trying to keep good vibes, but all these posts and my own experiences are depressing me. I have a handful of students that I feel are actually learning... The others are roleplaying as ChatGPT's unpaid interns with parents that are backing them up or at a loss themselves as to how to help them. submitted by /u/mochabear93 [link] [comments]”

“Just wondering how common it is to be annoyed at colleagues for the things some of them give to students during the day. I work at the alternative school for high schoolers who got bounced from their regular classroom over behavioral issues. So, for obvious reasons, I try to be pretty cautious about the stuff I let students have access to. I don’t have things available that would obviously cause disruption, or could easily be weaponized when a kid is having an outburst, etc. But our science teac”

“I teach in a 3A rural school in Arkansas without much school spirit. We have a door cover contest and this is my door. My curriculum is Face Your Monster and we just finished Beowulf. I'm just looking for some love. https://quickshare.samsungcloud.com/wcgxXk85NUX7 submitted by /u/baldmisery17 [link] [comments]”

“A mini-fridge on a dolly. Bonus points if you actually plug it in your classroom and keep a couple drinks cold. Kids will lose their minds over it. [re: “Bring anything but your backpack to school” day ideas?]”

Mailbox [re: “Bring anything but your backpack to school” day ideas?]

“The school that I work at has a “bring anything but your bag to school“ day next week and ofcourse the teachers are asked to participate as well. I am looking forward to this day so much and am very excited to see the creative ideas and really want to come up with something fun and not too “standard” (since I’ve heard several people talk about a laundry basket.. which when talking about having the space for all your stuff is great, but I want something a bit more unique) I do need something that”

submitted by /u/jakemhs [link] [comments]

“What was she thinking? I can't turn round quickly in the kitchen without elbowing two "Best Teacher" mugs off the counter. I can't carry a ladder through the house without deshelving three more. I can't fight Cyrano de Bergerac over a cup of tea without him hooking one with his nose and flicking it at me. submitted by /u/Jonseroo [link] [comments]”

“Any teachers on Fall Break this week or this past week? I am so thankful we have a week off! This first quarter has been a long one! 11th year teaching for me & 11th year doing 1st grade!! What are your plans: trip or just RELAXING, as you deserve? submitted by /u/WinterFly9930 [link] [comments]”

“Fellow teachers, how do you manage your eating and wellness? I just started teaching middle school theatre, and while I really am happy at my job, (found a great school!) I'm so busy while at work that I don't each lunch and then I'm too tired to cook when I get home so I just order out and then immediately go to sleep. Not to mention I have no idea when I can find the time to work out. I know this isn't sustainable, and I wanted to know if any other teachers have this struggle a”

submitted by /u/Maleficent-Aerie2652 [link] [comments]

“I do the same thing especially when they've been out for a while. Not only because I want them to be welcome in class but I genuinely missed them. Every kid is part of the dynamic in class and when one is missing, it's weird!”

“I told mine ages ago, I’m 31 weeks and was talking about it with one of my students and her classmate turned to me and was like “wait…you’re pregnant?” My guy I am MASSIVE and not wearing oversized shirts. It could not BE more obvious that I am very pregnant. Your classmates have known for months. These are ninth graders.”

“You’re a great teacher, welcoming him back and being so kind. What an honor he trusted you like that. This is why I love teaching middle school. They just want to be seen. They are so tough and vulnerable all at once.”

“You make a list of theme days (ie: Monday-blackout, Tuesday-anything but a coffee cup, Wednesday-twinning, etc) and email it out to the staff, but don't tell the kids, and you see how many of them notice what's different or similar amongst the staff.”

“Very not proud of this one: English teacher kept Twinkies and PB and J in her desk. She stepped out. I helped a friend distribute sandwiches to the class. (My room fridge held nothing but drinks and Snickers because Snickers are my weapon of choice against low blood sugar attacks.) Zero school consequences for that however Grandpa found out and there were definitely consequences outside school. Basketball coach found out too. From Grandpa.”

“And you felt the need to post this comment? I work for a private school and we can redecorate our rooms as long as they are "Pinterest-like" and can be returned to original condition when requested.”

“Oooh, the fancy gifts are no joke. Parents once gifted me an insanely nice bottle of scotch for my birthday. I was horrified (and darkly amused, internally, of course, lol) to see the 5th grader of said parents lugging a bigass bottle of booze across the quad & playground smack in the middle of after-school clubs, but I gotta say, it was pretty damn nice. This was in Texas.”

“I love my little presentations and worksheets I make too 🥹 so I get it! Was definitely not expecting making resources to be one of my favorite parts of the job lol, but here we are!”

“Another post on this subreddit got me thinking of parting gifts... One of my key inspirations to pursue my major and career is leaving at the end of this academic year. Thinking about it makes me really sad... Anyways, what would be one of the best gifts to give a teacher who's moving out of the state? This is my former chemistry teacher who I now cover from time to time as a substitute teacher. Whenever I'm covering the same school different teacher, we usually hang out and talk about w”

“Totally fine. I’ve got 30 grad announcements on the wall next to my desk and a file of cards/art kids have made me. I’ll have it all until I retire.”

“Hey everyone. I’m a high school senior and I’m about to have my last day of classes soon. I wanted to give one of my teachers a thank you card, because he inspired me a lot, partially because of him I was able to figure out that I wanted to become a high school teacher. The thing is I haven’t seen or heard of others in my school/area writing heartfelt cards to their teacher, and I don’t want to be creepy or anything especially since he is a male teacher and I am a chronic over thinker. Also not”

“I had a new one today — a student asked if they could take a midterm exam on an alternative date because on the scheduled date they will be out of town on a family hunting trip. Made me chuckle. I declined their request, but thanked them for their transparency. submitted by /u/aardpig [link] [comments]”

Also advertise no experience needed

“I've been missing my son extra at work lately and idk if i'm overthinking, but would it be too much to ask his teacher to send me extra pictures throughout the day? I know its a small thing but I also feel weird because i know she has enough to worry about and doesn't need to be concerned with how i'm feeling when theres like 15 toddlers she has to worry about lol submitted by /u/StatisticianGreedy53 [link] [comments]”

“I’m in agreement with you here, I always love this kind of engagement from students! There are levels of “my favorite thing” to “commenting should never have been invented” within my team and other teachers I work with so I’ve seen a lot of variations on how it gets handled. Here is how I would handle it to keep it engaging for students and not add to your burden of grading: -Allow the students to carry on with their current commenting activities, especially since you seem to be enjoying them. N”

“It gets really funny when you start SWAPPING stickers with students. I had a bunch of really sweet 12th graders and they saw some of my stickers and traded me their glittery MLP and cat meme stickers for them.”

“Fun fact: Where I teach (Germany) there are REALLY strict rules about teachers getting gifts. I remember a case that actually went to court. A teacher had apparently put in a lot of extra effort and her whole class AFTER graduation got together and collected money and gave her a Spa day or sth like it, which cost around 200€. A parent found out, reported her and she had to pay a 4000€ fine for taking the gift.”

“I saw a TikTok about cheap teacher prizes and thought I would compile a list together. I used these for my 4th grade classroom and they loved it, but would love more ideas! Examples: -Sit in the teachers chair for rest of class -Wear sunglasses inside for rest of class -play the teacher in tic tac toe -high five everyone in the room -draw a portrait of the teacher in 2 minutes -sit underneath the desk for remainder of class - tell the class a joke -15 seconds dance lead by the winner Anyone have”

“The theme of today’s thread is to share good things in your life or career. They can be small one offs, they can be good interactions with students, a new heartwarming initiative you’ve started, or anything else you think fits. I have no plans to tone police, so don’t overthink your additions. Let the wholesome family fun begin! As has been mentioned, these should be considered additions to the regular discussions, not replacements. So use them, ignore them, or start you own What the Fuck Wednes”

“Asking this because it seems like teacher potlucks are incredibly common, so there must be some other poor cooks like myself who have navigated this. I'd love to find a few go-to dishes; we have 4 or so potlucks a year, always at lunchtime. I'm happy to do something in the crockpot, a salad, etc. I did a search and got the good idea of BBQ meatballs from another post. Edited to add: OMG guys, I am overwhelmed with all your fabulous ideas!! Thank you so much! I definitely came to the righ”

“Hi all! It’s my first year teaching 4th grade. I’m expected to invite families into my classroom 3-4 times a year for things other than class parties. I’m trying to think of meaningful events related to academics. I can’t do a publishing party because they don’t have me for writing 🥲 what do you all do in your classrooms? submitted by /u/Viebee431 [link] [comments]”

“Several times when men have asked what I do and they find out I teach HS, their first reactions seem to be "those kids must be crazy right? do they mess around with you or listen to you?" and "don't the teenage boys mess around with you? I remember I used to or other boys did when I was in hs". I am in my late 20s so while I am younger than many teachers and subs I work with, I'm not that young and there are younger teachers out there. I feel like I dont even like to”

“What are you doing to preserve a sense of joy and whimsy in your classes? I’ve started putting silly pokemon gif’s in my presentation slides for the students. Feel free to share! submitted by /u/flying_lego [link] [comments]”

“We can all relate to this. I told my mom that giving gifts to teachers come off as bribery in America. It would not make them treat us any better or give us good grades, so they should just stop. Some teachers nowadays may reject gifts for safety reasons. I have also looked for my parents into the stage. They were never there so I stopped looking. It was crushing in elementary school. Instead, I got to know my friend's cool parents. In graduation, they showed up. Being asian it just makes mo”

“My public school district had a two for one where you could donate two to give one to someone else. My current private school doesn’t do that, but they are very flexible with the needs of the teachers. No one seems to abuse it bc they don’t want it to go away.”

Thanks!! I hope you are having a good year. Take care of yourself.

“My daughter's pre-K just gave out their October calendar and, surprise, World Teacher Day is there on October 5th with a vague reference to "celebrating our teachers." Do your schools/daycares celebrate this as well? If so, what have the expectations been like? I'm shaking in my boots and waiting for them to roll out some intense celebration plan a few days in advance. For context, our daycare is one of those places that does a full week for Teacher Appreciation in May; every d”

“I'm department chair and I get a small stipend but no extra time off and have the same class load as everyone else. I can't get another teacher's sub plans together and still get ready for my day which, as a science teacher, usually involves prepping for a lab.”

“I have school age kids so I am saving my sick days for when they're sick and my personal days for their fun stuff (field trips, performances, that sort of thing).”

“Go hang out from time to time. It’s nice to be able to shoot the shit in the halls and not just talk shop.”

“I take 0 days if I can help it. We get a huge attendance bonus of $2,000 per semester for not using any days. It has gone up significantly since I started in 2019 and so far I've gotten the bonus every year. There's a lot of mental health an extra $4,000 a year can buy as a single person with no roommates in this economy”

you’re not wrong, but I still won’t lol

“My students are required to keep a clean and organized classroom as part of their grade. So they can eat, but they’ve got Clorox wipes and a vacuum! The custodian that cleans my room thanked me.”

I’m a high culinary teacher so it’s kind of expected haha

“I taught elementary for 25 years but last year I did some subbing in high school. I was subbing a 10th and 11th grade French class. Around the 3rd period class students came in with full spread of food from home or even looked like take out. I asked them if they usually eat in class and they all said yes. Then told me to look in the ‘pantry’ cabinet. The teacher kept snacks stocked that students could purchase for nominal fee. And I will say they listened to instructions, did their work while ea”

School groups.

“A half day us usually for a doctors appointment. I want to keep my other days for actual sickness or vacation.”

“The theme of today’s thread is to share good things in your life or career. They can be small one offs, they can be good interactions with students, a new heartwarming initiative you’ve started, or anything else you think fits. I have no plans to tone police, so don’t overthink your additions. Let the wholesome family fun begin! As has been mentioned, these should be considered additions to the regular discussions, not replacements. So use them, ignore them, or start you own What the Fuck Wednes”

“Um do you know we only get a certain amount of days? In the past I would get pneumonia 2x a year, leaving me with no more time off. If I don’t need to take a full day I won’t.”

I would rather do almost anything than prepare sub plans.

“Last year I had advisory followed by two plans then academic enhancement in the morning and four sections of 7th grade science in the afternoon. It was weird how often I caught a 12 hour bug around lunch time.”

Gotta save those days for maternity leave. Every minute counts!

“I, personally, have just embraced unhinged teaching. Telling stories is my favorite part, so I just made it a permanent fixture this year. Every story starts true, but not all of them end true. And that's the fun of it.”

“Honestly a lot of people will give you a lot of tips and tricks that worked for them, but you kind of have to figure out your own deal. I tried everything suggested to me and nothing worked. In the end you kind of just need to ride it out, eat what you can when you can and stay as hydrated as possible. My fingers are crossed that you can find something that helps!”

“I’m a new teacher… and God I needed that today 😂 what a WIN! 🏆 submitted by /u/Loser-Back-Home [link] [comments]”

“Mine runs similar to yours. I have a slide presentation. I give parents time to look through their kids workbooks and bin. The way I view it parents want to get a sense of who you are and what to expect. No song and dance but I try to make them laugh and see that I'm fun and have high expectations!”

“My kid just started KG and I’m already bombarded with amount of fund raisers and the school year just started. Is this how it’s going to be till they graduate high school? submitted by /u/Just-Hippo-6582 [link] [comments]”