Whatever you buy. Don't get your kid's teachers any of these.

Everything that teachers do and don’t want.

When it comes to presents, teachers have received every single gift under the sun.

Trust me, I’d know.

By the end of my first year of teaching, I had perfected the fake smile of gratitude as kids handed me everything from rocks, to pieces of plastic jewellery (which they then asked to have back, true story).

And the weeks before Christmas is when most of the tokens of appreciation start to flood in. So if you’re planning on getting your child’s teacher a gift, please take it from me, there are some things that teachers don’t want.

We’re not ungrateful, I’m just being honest.

1. One word. Chocolate.

For the love of God, I beg of you, please resist buying any form of chocolate. I know it’s easy to pick up a box of Cadbury Favourites on the way out of Woolies, but please hold it right there while you consider this.

We have staff luncheons, end of year class parties, Christmas fairs and fetes. We have already consumed so much food that the last thing we need is to be swamped with every form of sweet sugary goodness you can imagine.

2. Perishable foods.

While cakes and sweets are lovely to receive, there is just no way we can get through that amount of them. Cakes end up usually being left in the staffroom, or given out to neighbours. Anything which can only be kept for a few days generally isn’t a good idea. You heard it here first.

3. Bubble bath or any form of body pack.

It’s pretty horrible being made to feel like you need to bathe more regularly. Team it with anything where the label reads “soothing”, “relaxing”, or “de-stressing” and there my friends, you have a recipe for disaster.

You’re pretty much telling us we’re highly strung nutbags who need to take a bath and a chill pill.

4. Potpourri or candles.

Ask yourself this. When was the last time you bought yourself potpourri? (Minus for use in a bathroom). If the answer is never, then it’s easy to understand why we don’t want the stuff either. And you can only handle smelling that cookie scented candle for so long.

One thing I do know is that teachers are usually practical. So if you buy them something that saves them from getting it themselves, they will very much appreciate it. I'm talking about things we can use in the classroom.

What can I say, we're teachers after all.

Have you got your child’s teacher a present this year? What did you get them?

SCROLL THROUGH the gallery for gifts your child's teacher would like...

Want more? Try these:

A beautiful note from your child's teacher about exactly how much they care.

"Dear Parents. We need to be nicer to teachers."