Gifts for Childcare Providers?
Posted on December 3rd, 2008 – 4:51 PMBy Kay Krhin
I just checked our Cribsheet in-box and we’re getting several questions about what to give your child’s provider for the holidays.
We had a lot of great ideas and discussion on this topic last year (read here) - but it is always worth revisiting this time of year.
What to give your daycare providers/teachers/teachers assistants for the holidays.
A few inquiries we’ve received:
Between my two kids, we have about 15 gifts we need to give, so I’m
unable to afford nice gift cards. And I’ve heard that teachers get weary
of getting sweets (seems crazy to me!).
Does anyone have any fabulous and inexpensive ideas?
Are you supposed to tip daycare workers for Christmas? If so, how much? Is
it per worker, or can you do one tip? And can a gift work as well
(especially baked goods) or is that cheap?
What about the giving a gift equal to one week’s daycare rate to a home daycare provider - does this unwritten rule of thumb still exist?
Please share your thoughts and ideas. What are you doing this year for your provider(s)?
39 Responses to "Gifts for Childcare Providers?"
I’m glad you posted this again this year. I’m sure there are several readers who will find themselves in a different place financially than they were last year.
One thing that I was thinking about for this year (haven’t yet decided if I’m going to do it):
Donation(s) to Heifer International on behalf of all or some of the childcare providers. You can designate donations for (for example) a hive of bees, a flock of ducklings, a goat, etc., all of which are given to families or communities to help support sustainable agriculture and grow more food. Gifts range from $10 to $5,000 — with lots in-between — so you could, for example, give a “knitting basket” — 2 llamas and 2 sheep — for $500 in the name of the whole daycare center! They even have lovely printable gift cards.
This would not only benefit people in need (unlike an extra scarf or xmas ornament), but it’s such an inspiring organization that it will make the giver (including the kids) feel great! We did this for family Hanukkah gifts one year, and (with only one, expected exception) everyone loved it!
Read more at: heifer.org and check out their gift catalog at http://www.heifer.org/site/c.edJRKQNiFiG/b.204586/
To me, the one downside of this kind of gift is that childcare providers are generally not paid very well, and they are surely just as concerned in the current economic environment as the rest of us, if not more so. So I worry a bit about the daycare folks kind of counting on some additional holiday cash and then getting a card that said some goats had been given in their name to someone halfway across the world. (On the other hand, if I got such a card for Hanukkah or my b-day, I’d be thrilled!)
We’re giving our nanny a pair of tickets to the Nutcracker, knowing it’s something she would like.
[…] Cribsheet – […]
We will be giving our in home provider a weeks pay and her assistant 1/2 of that amount. They work incredibly hard and I hope the cash will make their holiday season a little less stressful.
We are doing Target gift cards again this year for all the teachers, day care teachers, etc. It’s easiest and they can choose to spend it on themselves or on holiday gifts for others. Still, there’s a lot of them and it gets costly, but I wouldn’t feel right skimping on this because of the wonderful care and education my girls are getting. They at least deserve this. So stressful!
Whoa, a gift equivalent to one weeks pay? Am I the only one that thinks that seems like a lot?
Last year (our first year using our home daycare provider) we got her a gift certificate to a restaurant, then movie theater certificates for her three kids. Am I being cheap?? 
A gift equivalent to one weeks pay is just about what I am spending on presents for my friends and family, including my children. There is no way I can afford to spend that much for my daycare providers. My girls go to a center and my older daughter just switched rooms so I don’t know her teachers very well yet. I’ll probably just buy some cookies for each classroom and call it good. I’m already scrimping and saving to be able to send my kids to daycare at this center because it is great and they love it, so I really don’t have room for extravagent gifts. I’m not trying to be cheap, just realistic. I can’t go into debt just to buy gifts. Plus, there are so many people that work with them I wouldn’t even know where to start with individual gifts.
I think a week would be fine for home daycare providers, since you are basically providing them with a paid vacation.
For centers though, their paid time off is included in what you pay the center, so I think it seems like a bit much. We’ll do as much of a gift card as we can afford (which isn’t much), for some place like Target or Starbucks. For the rest of the staff (not our main teachers) we bake.
I may also this year have my daughter make something for them, even if it is just a card.
I get personalized stationary for my son’s teachers. Teachers write a lot of notes and everyone needs grocery lists, etc…It is not that expensive (about $10-15 a set if you buy it on online) but shows a personal touch over things like candy, candles or lotions which seem to be the other fall backs teachers receive a lot of. Speaking as a former daycare assistant I received a TON of sweets, and while the thought is nice there is such a thing as sugar overload.
Question related to the concept of paying one week’s pay as a gift and it being basically “paid vacation.” We already pay 15 paid vacation days plus paid holidays to our home daycare provider. That’s not to say I have a problem with this - I think they need and deserve paid vacation days just as much as anyone! But if that is the concept behind a gift of one week’s pay at Christmas, then where does that leave me? In the past we have normally done restaurant gift cards as Christmas gifts. I also always buy a birthday gift. In total it’s usually around $100/year. Maybe I am being cheap? We certainly value her as a part of our extended family and want her to know how much we appreciate her.
Maybe I’m cheap too but I think a week’s pay is too much. I don’t spend that much on one single family member. We have two kids in daycare (in-home) and we pay close to $300/week. She gets 10 payed holidays and 3 sick days a year. We usually just buy her a $35 giftcard to go out to eat and bring her soem Christmas cookies and a Christmas picture of the kids. I’m sorry but I’m only spending $50 per child (my own children), I can’t afford another $300 to give to my daycare. I mean we do value her and what she does for us. I really don’t think I’m being cheap.
When my daughter was in a daycare center and the teacher kept changing. I did get the whole center a gift certificate for a pizza day for everyone. Now I have an inhome daycare provider that I am spending more money on than some of the family members in my family. My daycare provider spends more time with my daughter than other family members. He has a thankless job, works hard at teaching my daughter, puts up with her when she does not have a nap, and has helped with toilet training. It feels like it is more than I do sometimes. I am digging deep for my daycare provider because if anyone deserves a little extra it is him. My in-laws only see my daughter 4x a year and not that involved in my family and yet they expect bigger x-mas presents which this year they are not getting. (they give us a list that we are supposed to comply with) I would rather spend all my money on someone who truely loves my daughter! Sorry I am ranting but I finally have a wonderful daycare provider that I can not say enough nice things about. I am trusting him with my most valued possession my daughter for 8.5 hours a day. I am spending a little more than a week’s worth of pay.. I am getting a gift certificate for a night out and cash.
I’m one of the askers above. I didn’t have a baby last year, so I didn’t pay much attention to this before now.
If I spend a week’s pay, that’s more than we are spending on gifts (Christmas and Vi’s B-day) for all of our families. She’s in a center, and that’s 300 a week. She has three regular care providers, as well as 2-5 assistants. I have no idea what to do and, frankly, she’s only been there about a month now, so I’ll admit I’m feeling a little resentful about the whole thing. I have no Christmas spirit I guess.
I liked the pizza party idea above, and I think that may be what I will do. Did you do them as gift certificates that they could divvy up if they wanted, rather than buy a whole lunch at the center? Other ideas of a single gift that can be shared would be welcome, too.
I don’t spend one week’s pay on Christmas gifts for my own family, there is no way I could afford to pay another week’s worth to the daycare provider as a gift. She gets paid 52 weeks a year no matter if our son is there or not or if she is closed.
I think she will get a $10 gift card to Starbucks. It’s supposed to be the thought that counts right?!
In my opinion, you do what you can, honestly. Some years I have gotten all the teachers (24 of them!) small gift cards, while in other leaner years, I have gotten bigger gift cards just for my kids teachers at the time. I try to do things throughout the year as well to recognize them too. They know our family appreciates all they do!!
Well, I was the one that posed the original question last year (DG in Burnsville) and have found myself pondering the same thing this year. With the economy the way it is, I think a lot of us are trying to figure out how to make it all work. I am again wondering what is “right” and what is “enough”. I’ll be honest here - one week’s pay seems like a lot - and like others have said - that is about how much we are spending on our ENTIRE family/friends/etc - It’s not that I don’t think our in home daycare provider deserves it…She does! She’s a saint…but I also know of several other deserving folks that I’d like to give such a gift to but can’t do it at the cost of paying my mortgage, groceries, etc.
So where is the happy medium? Am I coming off cheap if I get her a $50.00 gift card for Christmas (and another one in January for her bday).
As it is daycare rates are increasing the first of the year and I’m having to rework my budget even more than I was just last week!
I think the group gift that benefits the center or care facility is a great idea! Maybe there is a new toy or play activity your child’s room needs? Or maybe you’ve noticed certain things are very popular and you can give them new items to restock? I have a friend who provides in-home daycare and one of the parents gave her a membership to the Zoo (you could do the Children’s Museum, too) so she was able to take the kids (and her kids on the weekends) on field trips without cost. These memberships aren’t too expensive and would be used all year long. I had a nanny last year and she didn’t get paid vacation because we only used her 2 days a week. So, I let her know we wouldn’t need her the week between Christmas and New Year’s, but I paid her anyway. She was so appreciative, she thanked me a thousand times.
The families at our daycare each chipped in $25 or so and are getting a spa gift certificate for our provider. It’s amazing how fast a small amount of money from each family can add up to a really nice gift.
I think one weeks pay on a gift is WAY too much.
I was thinking of getting my provider some blank silk scarves and packets of koolaid with instructions of how to dye them to make playsilks for the kids (or just her son). She thought it sounded really fun when I told her about it. But now I kind of like the stationary idea!
I absolutely wouldn’t spend more than probably $25 on it. That’s our family member budget too outside of the immediate family. Besides, we already pay for her vacation, holidays and thousands of dollars a year!
I am making gifts (sewing really cool bags) for all 8 teachers and while the supplies don’t cost much, the time spent hopefully impresses upon them how much we value them. I am also giving small gift cards. Frankly, my son has lots of toys and if he gets one less from us, so his teachers can be properly thanked, I don’t think that is a bad lesson. They do a wonderful job and I don’t know what I would do without them. I don’t think if you spend more money that it means you are more thankful or grateful. Do something thoughtful that each would appreciate and write them a really nice thank you card. We can’t afford to be generous with our money, but we are trying to be generous with our thoughts.
As a home childcare provider I would just like to chime in with my 2 cents.
I appreciate the kind comments from several writers. As a provider, I alone care for the children in my care. I spend each and everyday with them. I spend more awake time with them than most of their own parents do. I care for them with colds and through teething, and when they just don’t feel well. I potty train them. I love them as my own. My parents are grateful to drop their children at my door come Monday mornings after they have spent the weekend with them. Yes they pay me some holiday pay, no sick days or paid vacations. That being said…. I think a weeks pay is too much! The best gift I’ve ever received was a $100.00 cash. I really knew how much that family appreciated me and because it was cash, I got to chose something for myself that I would never have treated myself to. For those who feel $10.00 is enough, my suggestion to you is maybe you need to search for a new provider.
When my boys were little, I had all three of them at a daycare center. Each year two to three of the families would supply and server a really nice lunch for entire center staff, including sandwiches, salads, beverages and home made treats. It was always well received.
I also think a weeks pay is way too much. I’m thinking of doing a gift certificate to Olive Garden or Red Lobster. Our daycare provider is single with a grown child, so I figure she’d like to be able to go out to dinner with a friend.
As a former teacher I can say that a small gift is always appreciated but teachers and daycare providers also value a card from the parent with words of appreciation. List specifics.
I always valued this more than a bottle of lotion, candle or an ornament. It is something they can pull out on rough days when they need to be reminded that what they do is important, valued, and appreciated.
We give $50 gift cards to the kid’s lead teachers and $25 gift cards to the teachers who float in and out of the room (e.g., the woman at drop off in the morning, the women who close at night). We’re in a center. We are okay financially right now but many kids have left the center because of the economy. My philosophy is that $25 is relatively less meaningful to me than it is to my childcare providers (sort of like an extra dollar tip). All told, the cards will still cost less than a week’s tuition. I like some of the ideas about giving a treat to the center or for the teachers - I think what I’ll do is offer to buy some books for the classroom through Scholastic so that they can pick out what they like.
A gift should always be given from the heart. It is not a duty to give anyone a gift at Christmas or any other celebration. A card and a personal note of appreciation will be more valuable than a gift card. If gift giving is going to be a burden don’t do it, but do express your thoughts and if you have a culinery talent by all means share that. I have been on all sides of this issue as a daycare teacher, care provider, parent with children in child care and appreciation comes in many forms and always welcomed and cherished.
RE: in home daycare and a week’s pay
I think the bottom line is that we would all LOVE to give that to our dcp’s! Some people are willing to make the sacrifice, others cannot justify it. In our family we instituted a $20 per person limit this year, so the $50 gift card I’m getting for our dcp is still a lot more than my family gets. I like the reminder about a personal note on a card- everyone wants to know they are appreciated and I’d like to think that dcp’s know that the economy is hard on everyone this year hence the smaller gifts.
Another idea: this weekend is the No Coast Craft-o-Rama at the Midtown Global Market. They have so many inexpensive, unique gifts, and you can support individual artists AND find the perfect small or not so small gift(depending on your budget) for your childcare provider.
More information here: http://nocoastcraft.com/nocoast/
Giving your childcare provider a week’s salary is a rich person’s practice that is beginning to trickle down to the middle-class.
If you can afford it, by all means, do it.
If you can’t afford it, by all means, *don’t do it* and don’t feel you need to.
My mom was a daycare/preschool teacher when I was growing up (the 70s) and she pretty much got ornaments from every kid every year. This new world would amaze her. But she’d kind of like it
Give what you can afford and what feels right. We all have different situations as everyone’s comments illustrate.
I think the pizza party for the center is fantastic. I also liked the idea for a group gift from parents at an in-home daycare. Maybe I’ll bring that up this year.
I have about 8 gifts for care-givers to supply. That’s a couple more than last year. In about 1/2 of these cases I feel I know something they would really enjoy and will get that.
I was glad to hear from Roz that teachers do like the heartfelt gift. We include a personal note–from both us and our daughter–with the gifts. Simple, “Jenny, I like it when you….”
O.k., I just had a new idea. Maybe this would work for some people.
If your care provider had kids of an appropriate age maybe you could give her babysitting as a gift? Personal. Super useful. And there’s a nice symmetry to it.
You could even give it early so she could have time to do some holiday shopping.
Our daycare provider gave us a night of babysitting after our 2nd daughter was born. I thought it was really sweet.
If you can afford a weeks pay, great. If not, that’s ok too. As to the daycare provider that made a snide comment about a $10 gift, I feel that was really inappropriate. Some people can’t afford more than that and to make a comment like that was kind of rude. I personally would always appreciate a heartfelt gift that cost nothing versus something expensive.
I was relieved when we switched to a center where one mom took the initiative to collect money from all of the parents in the center through a voluntary “the envelope’s here until x, put as much in as you want” system.
Then the money that was collected was divided equally between all of the teachers.
This way there was no concern about appearances and appropriate gifts, and the daycare providers received a sizable amount instead of a dozen cookies and coffee mugs.
It was a nice Christmas gift for me too, lifting a huge load off of my shoulders.
As a former nanny …
I would appreciate any inexpensive or small gift that was picked out especially for me - a large task at this time of year, I know. Ask the kids to help pick something out, you might be surprised at how insightful they are! Or how about something the kids made, like a photo ornament with a nice picture of the nanny and kids in it?
As a daughter of a mother who provides licensed in home daycare. My mother has received everything from nothing, to a weeks pay. Sometimes its a personal gift, as she’s a vikings fan, or sometimes its a giftcard to a restraunt or a movie. Nothing is ever expected & anything is appreciated. I think for home care provders, restraunt gift cards are nice, because on a typical day my mom is cooking 8 breakfasts, 6 lunches, & 8 snacks. I would think the last thing she wants to do is cook another meal.
Jackie made the comment about getting stationary on-line. I love this idea. Can you suggest a site to buy from?
I purchased my stationary from colorfulimages.com
I just got the ones I ordered for this year and the baskets some of them come in are a little cheat looking, but I’m adding a pretty ribbon to the handle and it will look fine.
Hope this helps
Another cool idea I saw on Wcco over the weekend is this site. http://www.goldstarregistry.com/
According to WCCO Gold Star Registry works just like a bridal or a baby registry. Teachers create an account and then select from over 6,000 products that are specific to there classroom needs. Parents and friends can then go on the registry and either buy those products, or make a donation.
The supplies are then delivered directly to the teacher’s school, saving them a trip to the store. Considering the average teacher spends about $500 a year of their own money, Gold Star has become a sort of Christmas in the classroom with parents and other donors playing the role of Santa Claus.
“If parents can help teachers out by donating either product or putting money into the piggy bank it is a greater alternative for parents to be involved in their child’s education as well as it helps the teacher,” said Pam Deters of Gold Star.
With the economy and job cutbacks, we aren’t doing any Christmas shopping this year. We can’t. I’ve been making jam and apple butter as gifts for everyone– family members, friends, our daycare provider, etc. I’m hoping that it’s the thought that counts.
We give gift cards for restaurants and/or movie tickets. She really appreciates it and uses it to spend quality time with her family.
We spend more money on her gift than any individual in our own family, but it’s worth it. She is sooo important to us and our children and we want her to know how much we appreciate her.
p.s. I love the stationary idea!
