No More Apples

A couple of years ago we asked teachers to tell us about the best -- and worst! -- holiday gifts they've ever received. And, wow!, did they tell us some good stories. We included many of them in Gift-A-Rama! The stories were so good, they deserve another telling.

What did the gifts include? Coffee mugs. Lots of coffee mugs. Lotions, bath soaps, and body sprays. Ceramic figurines, embroidered pillows, wall hangings, scrapbooks, Beanie Babies, stuffed puppies, a wooden box clock and a handmade quilt.

Other gifts were... well, how should I put this?... let's just say "strange" or "unique": a see-through nightie with two show-girl tassels, a broken guitar, dead baby birds, used soap, a tattoo parlor gift certificate, and one earring - her teaching partner got the other.

Here's my favorite, from Dawn Rankin of Centerville, Ohio:

My most interesting holiday gift was given to me during my first year of teaching some 15 years ago. As the students gathered around my desk offering me several homemade and purchased gifts for Christmas, one student came up and offered a small package wrapped in wax paper. I gushed about receiving another gift and proceeded to unwrap it. What a shock to find a mouse skeleton inside! She was quite proud and had found it underneath her bed. This skeleton showed no signs of fur or flesh and was totally intact. I stammered on about what I would do with such a "unique" gift. Finally the child asked if she could keep it for me. What a relief! I can honestly say that I have not received a gift as unusual as that since.

Check out more stories from teachers.

If you don't want to leave gift-giving to chance, DonorsChoose.org is a great resource. This Web site, pioneered by teachers at a Bronx public high school, collects donations from charitable individuals and uses the proceeds to fund classroom projects and purchase supplies. You can establish a project for your classroom on the Web site -- e.g., "Dictionaries for At-Home Use" -- and establish a monetary goal. Instead of coffee mugs, body lotions or risqué lingerie, have parents and students donate to a worthier cause: their own classroom.