All I Want for Christmas Is ... [Admissions-Friendly Holiday Gift Ideas]

[hollyert]

I think buccaneer had a good point:
At the most stressful times, a parent's support can be most helpful when it's SILENT. At Christmas, the easiest way to silently support a student is to remind the student what it's like when life *isn't* stressful.

[HImom]

Oh yea, one thing my D really enjoys is a Wacom electronic tablet that she can draw on & the graphics go onto her computer. I'm not sure my kids would have been excited about a scanner. We bought D one the other year & it just gathered dust for a very, very long time.

One thing I bought S that I really liked when he was in HS was a combo scissors/tool all-in-one Gerber or Leatherman. He forgot it when he went off to college & asked me to find it & mail it to him--he likes the scissors for cutting his nails?!?!? He does find it helpful anyway.

It's probably best if you buy office/school stuff like a scanner/copier for the family & make it available to the child as the need arises during the app process rather than labeling it a holiday gift. My S likes the very slim, portable 3 hole punch that fits in the binder itself, as well as the paper trimmer that is equally slim. Most kids consider that school supplies & wouldn't consider it a "gift" either -- better to buy in for "back to school" in January or something.

[ellemenope]

I would get a copy of the book, The Gatekeepers. YOu really get into the lives of the applicants featured, plus it will give D a look into admissions.

[2by2]

This is probably not what I would advise to most people (especially juniors) but this year I am getting my kids rock band and xbox. The haven't had a game system in years because of such a tough schedule and love music but don't play an instrument so...even though my husband thinks I'm crazy I want them to have some fun and blow off steam! I just hope it doesn't end up erasing 4 years of hard work!!

[HImom]

I did get my kids a Nintendo system (they made me return XBox because they preferred Nintendo) when they were in HS -- figured they were leaving soon & wanted them to be able to blow off steam & have some happy "vegging together" memories of home. Worked out OK in our household.

I don't think most HS kids would want Gatekeepers as a holiday gift--it would probably be seen as pressure (tho I & both my kids did read it but not as a holiday gift--we borrowed it from the library).

[88888888]

A's on my finals

[mommusic]

Agree that for most kids, getting SAT prep books & the like would be like getting Mom a vacuum cleaner--she might "need" it, but it's an annoying present!

At some point, it is good for them to have books like "College Applications for Dummies" and Financial Aid for Dummies" as well as a prep book if they need it, but they're not the kinds of gifts that would be fun to unwrap.

[theredsmileyface]

I agree that Christmas should NOT be about college....

...but I did ask my grandma for my own electric kettle to take to my U.

can't live without chai or tea in the morning. *whistles*

[toadstool]

Perhaps the best, most subtle approach to inspire effort in the college process is to focus beyond college to that first job or apartment. This transforms the college app process into a larger continuum, decreasing stress of the short-term immediate, but wisely giving the long view. A calm long-term approach is more productive then a panicky teen flipping out over college app process.

This is really useful if your child is still of the "my parent wants me to study for SAT; therefore its the last thing I'd spend my time on." And then there is the old,"if you only score your way into to the local CC, you get to live with me. If you score your way to an good out of area school, you get to leave your evil parent behind."

Perhaps white goods or kitchen things clearly intended for thier own first post-college home. (plus some fun goofy stuff.)

[erhswimming]

My parents have gotten me all of the above lame Christmas presents and I hated every single one of them. Except for a Yale t-shirt, but that I did want and they weren't very supportive of me leaving the state to go there. I've been getting those kinds of gifts since 7th grade (i.e. almanacs, self-help books, etc.) and I don't know why they keep getting them because I don't use them.

[Dave_Berry]

Okay, then. If December 25 of the junior year--about 11 months before ED/EA apps are due and about 12 months before RD apps are due--isn't an "appropriate" time for college-related gifts, then when IS it appropriate? Maybe it's just the college-Christmas connection that's bothering some of you.

By the way, are we being un-PC by using the term "Christmas"? :-)

[vicariousparent]

^^^ Suppose your child is two years old and is due (maybe overdue) for one of her immunization booster shots around Christmas. Assuming the pediatrician is available, do you make the appointment on or around Christmas day? Okay, maybe that's the only time you can get around to taking your kid and you do take her for her shot on Christmas day.

But do you tell the kid that the booster shot is one of her Christmas presents? After all, the shot will be far better for her than the rocking horse she has been coveting.

You can giftwrap an SAT book, but it is still an SAT book. You can put lipstick on a pig......

[Sally_Rubenstone]

If December 25 of the junior year--about 11 months before ED/EA apps are due and about 12 months before RD apps are due--isn't an "appropriate" time for college-related gifts, then when IS it appropriate?

I think that parents have to decide for themselves if their child is someone who will welcome a college-related gift or resent it. Some kids will happily view such gifts as acknowledgment that the parents are allowing them to move on. Others may bristle, especially at SAT-prep and self-improvement books. (That's why I suggested gift cards earlier, not the books themselves.)

By the way, are we being un-PC by using the term "Christmas"?

You'll notice that I, the Original Poster, included "Holiday" in my thread title, although the initial question I received that launched this thread was specifically about Christmas. So Bah Humbug to you for even raising this issue, Mr. Berry

[SlitheyTove]

^Now I'm tempted to tell the D's that they're getting vaccines for Chanukah.

Some of the stuff mentioned here has value beyond college apps, e.g. high-speed internet access, a scanner, a video camera. Things like college guides and SAT study books fall into the same category for me as AP study guides and 3-hole paper. They're all needed school supplies. I know there are families that have a tough time paying even for the basics, and in those cases a teenager might be honestly grateful to get something that would normally be outside the family budget. For everyone else, just buy them the books they need when they need them.

Another possible present: an mp3 player. For listening to/watching sample lectures, or listening to books on tape or the NYT or some NPR programming as a way of boosting daily reading. One of my siblings mentioned a few years back that there are more and more college lecture materials available in mp3 format, and that something like an iPod can really be a useful study tool.

And one more: a gift certificate good for mom or dad's help typing a paper at the last minute or running out to the one post office open until 8 or 9 PM or paying for express shipping or getting out of regular chores for one day.

[vicariousparent]

I totally agree about the high speed internet access at home. But I suspect most people on C.C have it.