Nancy, I find $50 extremely excessive. And guess what? At the end of the school year, the room mother will send a note out for the end of the year "gift" to show appreciation. I'm glad my child is in middle school now. In elementary school, I dreaded the letter twice a year. I'm more than happy to give a gift, but the handing over cash upset me and we only had to give $25. This is a really interesting topic. I'm glad you raised it.

That is OUTRAGEOUS! Are you sure they didn't accidentally throw in that extra zero? Wow. I would send $15 and be done with it. That is ridiculous. I personally think a plate of cookies is good enough.

Wow---that's totally too much money. At my daughters school they ask for $5.00 and if you can't afford that then they ask that you give a few hours to help out at the holiday party. I would speak to the room mom and ask her what's up. What school is your child going to Harvard prep??? Don't be affraid to speak up and say that you would prefer to buy a gift for the teacher on your own. Then you can do what I did for my daughters teacher last year. I purchased an $8 coffee travel mug (the kind you can personalize) and I had my daughter decorate it. She put #1 teacher-best teacher-etc...That way the teacher will have a nice thoughtful & personalized gift from just your child!!! I'm telling you, $50...that's just way too much!!! Good Luck!!!

Instead of a letter, I got the phone call just yesterday about this very same thing. They wanted $38--$25 is going to the main teacher, $7 is for the helper (class size is waaay over mandate, but that's another post) and the rest is going to some of the resource teachers and the custodial staff. This is my first year in the school so this is all new to me. I was going to give a $25 gift card to Target and be done with it. Apparently, this is how all the classes in the school do this. Like you, I wonder that if I don't go in on the group gift, will I be a marked parent?

To the one who mentioned about the plate of cookies, I doubt they'd allow that. I know that the schools in Palm Beach are against anything homemade, so I'm sure Broward is too.

I agree. 50 dollars is way too much. You need to speak up. I am sure you would be speaking on behalf of other parents as well!

Phew. I'm glad I'm not the only one. My son doesn't attend Harvard Prep, LOL, but it is a great preschool and he loves it. I think I'll end up doing my own thing at a price that I can manage. I guess what bothered me the most was that there seemed to be no consideration for families on a budget. To the person who suggested I speak up -- I'm just afraid of ruffling feathers. Hopefully they're not reading this blog (or maybe I should hope they do!)

Pay the $50 or don't, but don't complain about it. $50 once a year (or twice) a year is nothing for the amount of time and effort that teacher is putting in to help your 3 year old and probably 20 other 3 year old kids get a good start in life. If you are on a tight budget, then get a gift on your own, but don't bring it out into the public over such a trivial amount. It makes you appear petty and cheap.

Wow. If you'll re-read my posting, I think you'll see that this was not meant to be a rant, but rather a forum to seek advice and hear about the experiences of others. I would sincerely hope it did not sound petty, and I think I expressed my thoughts that I wasn't sure if I was being cheap or not. And by the way, $50 may seem trivial to you, but I assure you that it's not to many, many people.

Once again, public school teachers line up at the trough. They never get paid enough money, they claim to slave and work year round, and they somehow have convinced these non-teaching minions of theirs to drink the Kool-Aid that there is more we could be doing for them. I could fill an entire blog with examples like this.

Are you kidding? When my children were young enough to be in kindergarten, etc., that would have been a lot of money. However, now that I am the granny, I can and do give more than that to my grandchildren's teachers. I have the means and I do want to show my appreciation. HOWEVER, I don't know who put the ones asking in charge of everyone, but, it should never, ever be a mandated or even suggested amount of money. That is just so tacky.

I'd like to remind folks that there are THREE teachers that they are collecting for. So actually, they are asking for approximately $17 per teacher. Now ask yourself if this is too much money. I am both a teacher and have a son who attends a preschool. There are 4 different staff members who care directly for my son at one point or another. And they make a pittance - even less than public school teachers. So usually get them gift cards of around $15-20. For me, $50 for 3 teachers would be right on. Think about the amounts that you tip or spend on others at the holidays (hairdressers, mail carrier etc) and then remember that this person cares for YOUR CHILD. However, if you can do something thoughtful which shows your appreciation for $10 each, no reason to have to go in on the group gift. I am employed as a teacher, so I know that money can be tight. Don't feel badly not going in on the group gift, but I wouldn't make waves either. Many people that I know spend about that amount on thier child's teachers ($15-20 per person not $50). As a teacher of children with autism, I get gifts anywhere from $10-25 (and sometimes not at all).