Gifts of Gratitude and Support for Our Teachers
By Daphne Muse
As the holiday season emerges and families, friends,
colleagues and community members come together to celebrate let’s support our
teachers and what they bring to the table.
There are some very creative and practical gifts people can share that
may well take a bit of a load off your professional lives. With budgets diminishing on an almost daily
basis and the need for supplies and other resources growing exponentially, what
teacher would not appreciate a gift certificate from a retail or second-hand
outlet to bring more books, equipment or art supplies into the classroom? Along with major outlets, non-profits
including Goodwill, American Cancer Society Thrift Stores and Salvation Army
are good places to find every kind of supply imaginable for the classroom or
resource center from books to art supplies and furniture. As you purge your
garages, homes and storage units invite the teachers in your community to
select what might work in their classrooms or resource centers.
Almost every family has someone who is retired and
whose skill set would be a great match for some of your classroom needs,
including serving as a volunteer for a field trip, assisting with the
re-organization of your class or providing research to assist you with ideas
for teaching the curriculum. There are
numerous organizations that you can tap into, if you don’t have a family member
or neighbor who can assist including AARP, your local senior citizens community
center, fraternal organization or sorority.
There are also reputable
people who have to do community service.
You can contact the court in your local jurisdiction to find out how to
access people from that pool to access their expertise. College interns are often in search of
interesting and creative projects and your classroom could prove to be
one. Through the division of student
services at your local college or university, you may be able to connect a
teacher with an intern. While serving as
an editor for Children's Advocate News Magazine, I was able to secure the services of
two members of the Junior League who totally redesign of the publication. Other gifts that might prove to be welcomed
include:
·
Gel pads for shoes and gel cushions to
make the feet and chair more comfortable
·
Working recycled technology including
cameras, computers and DVD players
·
A Gift Certificate of a designated
amount of time from a retiree or working professional whose message and skills
can connect with young people
·
Donation of healthy fruits and snacks at
designated for special classroom occasions
·
A First Aid Kit, board games, books and
software
·
Funds to underwrite a classroom field
trip
As brilliant and creative as our children may be,
remember often they are taught into their callings by teachers. Cherish the gifts they bring to the table and the work you do in guiding them onto and along their paths.
Links: The
Junior League of Oakland/East Bay http://www.jloeb.org/
East Bay Depot for Creative Reuse http://www.creativereuse.org/
Oakland Cancer Society Thrift Store http://discoveryshop-oakland.org
Daphne Muse is a writer, social commentator and
consultant who blogs for the Alameda County Office of Education. You also can read her blog at www.daphnemuse.blogspot.com.
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