Thanks, homeroom mom.

[Deleted]

She sent 3 different emails within an hour on Sunday that went something like this:

1) Miss E is getting married over Christmas break. She is registered here and here. The teachers are throwing her a little bridal shower on Friday afternoon, if you would like to join and bring her a gift off her registry, please do.

2) Miss E is requesting $50 in gift cards to this store, and $50 in gift cards to this other store for a class project in the beginning of the year. Please contact me about what you can donate.

3) I will be collecting gift cards for Miss E and Miss L's gift card ornament tree. Please get them to me by Monday.



A parent hit reply all with "So how much money do you want from me?"   :Y:

[lilafowler]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

And this was for parents, and not fellow coworkers?

Da fuq?

[Deleted]

That teacher has some damn nerve requesting $100 in gift cards for a class project.

Eta: is that $100 for the whole class or per kid?

[daisyheadmaizie]

Wow, and I was feeling guilty for requesting $2 and a box of graham crackers or tub of frosting.

[Deleted]

Yes this went out to all of the parents.

[Deleted]

Dec 11, 2013 9:27:22 GMT -5 cville said:

That teacher has some damn nerve requesting $100 in gift cards for a class project.

I know, what are they doing? And one of the stores is the Dollar Store. What is going on???

[shell403b]

Damn, vino. So who's Miss E? I'm a teacher and would DIE if somebody did that, even on my behalf, even with good intentions.

[Deleted]

Dec 11, 2013 9:28:09 GMT -5 frkls said:

respond with, "i will be making a donation in her name."

LOL

Yeah. To the human fund.

[callalily]

Dec 11, 2013 9:30:45 GMT -5 frkls said:

i feel like this is a good place to ask this and maybe get less flamed. at the beginning of the year, j's teacher required a $25 classroom fee. is that a thing?

Uh no. I have never heard of that, and I taught for 10 years. We did a "giving tree" at open house where we put up leaves with requested classroom items (crayons, tissues, hand soap etc...) and people could take and donate if they wanted to, but it wasn't mandatory. I wonder what the $25 goes to. Was it through the teacher alone, or the school itself?

[ProfessorArtNerd]

Dec 11, 2013 9:30:45 GMT -5 frkls said:

i feel like this is a good place to ask this and maybe get less flamed. at the beginning of the year, j's teacher required a $25 classroom fee. is that a thing?

Lucy has ab art/science fee of 25 and a school fee of like 50? No idea where the "school fee" goes.

[callalily]

Dec 11, 2013 9:23:54 GMT -5 vino said:

She sent 3 different emails within an hour on Sunday that went something like this:

1) Miss E is getting married over Christmas break. She is registered here and here. The teachers are throwing her a little bridal shower on Friday afternoon, if you would like to join and bring her a gift off her registry, please do.

2) Miss E is requesting $50 in gift cards to this store, and $50 in gift cards to this other store for a class project in the beginning of the year. Please contact me about what you can donate.

3) I will be collecting gift cards for Miss E and Miss L's gift card ornament tree. Please get them to me by Monday.



A parent hit reply all with "So how much money do you want from me?"  

As a teacher, I would be slightly horrified at this. The sentiment behind everything is kind, but whoa. The most I ever asked for was stuff that could be purchased for under $5 and only once or twice a year. 

[tacokick]

This is insane. I'd give you the bridal thing but asking for over $100 in various gift cards is nuts. What kind of project is it?

[Deleted]

Dec 11, 2013 9:30:45 GMT -5 frkls said:

i feel like this is a good place to ask this and maybe get less flamed. at the beginning of the year, j's teacher required a $25 classroom fee. is that a thing?

I feel like we had to pay a few fees for supplies and such back in August, and I'm sure some of that money went to projects. But I guess it wasn't enough. 

[Deleted]

Dec 11, 2013 9:30:45 GMT -5 frkls said:

i feel like this is a good place to ask this and maybe get less flamed. at the beginning of the year, j's teacher required a $25 classroom fee. is that a thing?

Our daycare handed out supply lists at the beginning of the year. If you didn't give supplies, you were charged a $10 fee.

[Deleted]

Dec 11, 2013 9:33:35 GMT -5 tacokick said:

This is insane. I'd give you the bridal thing but asking for over $100 in various gift cards is nuts. What kind of project is it?

No idea. $50 to Target and $50 the the Dollar Store, for a kindergarten class with 27 kids.

[tacokick]

Dec 11, 2013 9:36:10 GMT -5 vino said:

Dec 11, 2013 9:33:35 GMT -5 tacokick said:

This is insane. I'd give you the bridal thing but asking for over $100 in various gift cards is nuts. What kind of project is it?

No idea. $50 to Target and $50 the the Dollar Store, for a kindergarten class with 27 kids.

I could see it for the whole year maybe but it is December!

[steph196]

I highly doubt she's asking for $100 from each family. I'm sure it is just $50 to each other those stores, and seeing if there is anyone in the class who would help with those gift cards. If I were the teacher, I would be mortified to know that this is how the donation was being asked for though. Usually, my room mom copies me on emails to parents, so I can clear up any confusion. 
I really hope she doesn't mean $100 per kid!

As far as the 'fee' goes, it seems to be a trend starting to happen. We don't ask for that, but we do spend a ton of our own money on supplies. The fee that some teachers ask for can sometimes be to cover supplies, and other times be for future field trips. When we need something, we just ask for items or money when we need it…$5 here, a box of gingerbread mix there, etc.

[thebreakfastclub]

The bridal shower is just weird to me. I fully expect the teacher to have her own personal life, but I don't feel like I need to be a part of it as a parent? Maybe if the child wants to make her a congratulations card on his/her own, that would be cute. But I'm not buying your towels!

And what is a gift card ornament tree?

[joenali]

I would not want parents to join me at the staff bridal shower and I would in no way expect parents to buy off my registry. I also would not request gift cards to buy for a class project. If the project costs that much Ms. E. should consider another project.

Toooooo much money!!!!!!

[Deleted]

Dec 11, 2013 9:39:23 GMT -5 steph196 said:

I highly doubt she's asking for $100 from each family. I'm sure it is just $50 to each other those stores, and seeing if there is anyone in the class who would help with those gift cards. If I were the teacher, I would be mortified to know that this is how the donation was being asked for though. Usually, my room mom copies me on emails to parents, so I can clear up any confusion. 
I really hope she doesn't mean $100 per kid!

As far as the 'fee' goes, it seems to be a trend starting to happen. We don't ask for that, but we do spend a ton of our own money on supplies. The fee that some teachers ask for can sometimes be to cover supplies, and other times be for future field trips. When we need something, we just ask for items or money when we need it…$5 here, a box of gingerbread mix there, etc.

No it's total for the class, not $100 each.

[ginger]

Dec 11, 2013 9:30:45 GMT -5 frkls said:

i feel like this is a good place to ask this and maybe get less flamed. at the beginning of the year, j's teacher required a $25 classroom fee. is that a thing?

Very normal for some schools.

M's daycare has a yearly $60 supply fee.

[Jalapeñomel]

Damn, even going to public school is expensive.

[speckledfrog]

I'm wondering if the parent asked what Miss E wanted for Christmas and she said something like, "Oh, that's not necessary, but if you really want to a gift card to X or Y would be really useful for a project we have coming up" and Mommy Money Bags just took it and ran with it. As a (former) teacher, I would be mortified if I knew one of the parents was hitting up the rest of the class so hard.

[joenali]

Dec 11, 2013 9:47:29 GMT -5 speckledfrog said:

I'm wondering if the parent asked what Miss E wanted for Christmas and she said something like, "Oh, that's not necessary, but if you really want to a gift card to X or Y would be really useful for a project we have coming up" and Mommy Money Bags just took it and ran with it. As a (former) teacher, I would be mortified if I knew one of the parents was hitting up the rest of the class so hard.

This is what I'm thinking too.

[joenali]

Dec 11, 2013 9:47:45 GMT -5 Que? said:

This is all so foreign to me. I always thought you paid your fees for school and dropped them off, end of story. I had no idea people were buying school supplies and Kleenex etc. Is this a budget cut thing?

This home room mom, or whatever, is pretty tacky. I also don't even understand her function. Why does the teacher need a middle man to shill to handouts?

A room mom is nice to have. Mine usually just take care of class parties and birthdays, so I don't have to. They recruit the volunteers and get supplies and set up and take down party stuff. It's nice not to have to plan parties. I don't have to do much.

[eddy]

Our teacher sends out requests about every month.

Snacks, gift certificates to develop film etc. But it isn't a requirement and the cost associated is very small.

[sailorgray]

I was a room mom last year at son's preschool. All I had to do was show up at the parties with a craft and supplies and a game for them to play. It was fun. The other classroom mom and I paid for it all. It didn't cost much, but we should have asked the parents for a donation. The donation would have been $2/each tops. I know some classroom moms this year who are crazy. They want to be involved with decisions made in the class. My GF is a room mom in another class and she actually was lectured by the teacher bc she went to the school director over a policy issue. The teacher felt that as a "liaison between the teacher and parents she should have gone to her first." It was ridiculous.

At the start of the year, we had to bring in a can of Lysol, two rolls of paper towels and tissues, I think. We are also responsible for snacks every 2 or 3 months. No biggie.

[Deleted]

Dec 11, 2013 9:40:28 GMT -5 thebreakfastclub said:

The bridal shower is just weird to me. I fully expect the teacher to have her own personal life, but I don't feel like I need to be a part of it as a parent? Maybe if the child wants to make her a congratulations card on his/her own, that would be cute. But I'm not buying your towels!

And what is a gift card ornament tree?

I agree. I get coworkers giving wedding gifts but I think it's weird that kids/parents are participating.

[sailorgray]

P.s. I'd ignore all of those requests. I like my son's teachers and fully plan on contributing to the Christmas gift, but that would be it. I have a professional relationship and that is all. I know moms who are FB friends with their kids' teachers and its just not good for either.

[jennistarr1]

This actually doesn't sound too bad to me, why she couldn't space it out or just combine emails is weird...

But feasibly, you can buy a 10.00 gift to the shower from her registry or gift card to one of those stores

contribute 10$ to the gift cards for the projects

buy a $5.00 gift card to Dunkin Donuts for each of the teachers trees

so that's 30$ in gifts, not too bad, right?