Q: Our school district discourages holiday gifts to teachers and bans any gifts costing more than $50. I think the policy is very "Grinch-y." My daughter loves her teacher, and we want to give her a spa day certificate. Should we?

A: No. It's a nice idea, but it may cause discomfort for the teacher. Spa services are very personal. A mani-pedi may be on your Christmas list, but what if the teacher hates having her feet scrubbed?

There's the district ban to consider, too. Unless a spa day in your town costs less than $50, which is unlikely, you'll violate the policy and put the teacher in the position of explaining why she can't accept.

While gift bans are appealing -- especially as many families struggle with household budgets -- they can stifle kids' holiday spirits. "Good teachers are beloved and kids want to show their appreciation, so many schools encourage a class-wide effort. A parent collects from those who wish to contribute and chooses a gift all students can put their name on so that no one is left out," says Sharon Paul, a Massachusetts elementary teacher and mother of three.

What do teachers want? A-Plus Advice Teacher Board members offer Santa some ideas:

-- Gift cards that will help teachers buy materials for their classrooms. Teachers spend an average of $500 out of pocket for books, teaching resources and supplies, such as tissues. They'll appreciate gift cards to office supply stores, bookstores or big-box stores such as Target or Wal-Mart.

-- A donation of time or money to a teacher's favorite charity. Involve your kids; design gift certificates that kids fill out and decorate. For example, "The Rodriguez Family volunteers to work three hours at the Happy Tails Animal Shelter during Christmas break in Ms. Rauch's honor."

-- Show genuine expressions of appreciation. Create a personalized memory book from your daughter or the whole class. (Conspire with a teacher's aide to obtain class pictures.) Include quotes or drawings from students. Add photos of the year's highlights, such as the day they made rockets. No time to create a class memory book? Craft a handmade card that holds your daughter's heartfelt message.

-- Host a holiday appreciation lunch or tea. Many parent-teacher organizations organize a buffet in schools with restrictive gift policies. "It's a festive way to thank teachers," says Tim Sullivan, president of online resource PTO Today (ptotoday.com). If you have the time and budget, add gift bags for each faculty and staff member. Local businesses, such as bookstores, grocers and coffee shops, often wish to chip in with gift cards.

"Personal gifts are only appropriate if you know the teacher well and have a unique opportunity," says Paul. "One year my daughter's teacher got a puppy, so parents chipped in for a bed, chew toys and other things she'd need. It was a big hit, and the kids were very captivated by the puppy's growth."

(Do you have a question about your child's education? Email it to Leanna@aplusadvice.com. Leanna Landsmann is an education writer who began her career as a classroom teacher. She has served on education commissions, visited classrooms in 49 states to observe best practices, and founded Principal for a Day in New York City.)

Q: My holiday tradition is to give my grandkids books as stocking stuffers. Now most of them have tablets. Is the pleasure of choosing and wrapping books for them over? Please give me guidance on selecting e-books. How does the transaction work?

A: What a wonderful tradition! Studies by Clemson University reading expert Linda Gambrell show that having access to books outside of school and owning books both increase children's motivation to read.

You don't need to give up your tradition, says Carl Harvey, library media specialist at North Elementary School in Noblesville, Ind. "If there are early readers on your list, you can't go wrong choosing a classic print book. Most love a great picture book or chapter book. While they certainly enjoy digital/e-books, there still is something about having a book in your hand."

As young readers grow, they like to choose their leisure reading. "It's motivating to select books based on their interests or a series that really hooks them," says Harvey. If you want to add titles to their tablets, "know that devices are designed for individual use, so it is hard to buy for another user. The best route is gift cards. They allow the child or parent to load them onto the device and purchase as needed."

Before purchasing, learn what type of device your grandkids have, says Harvey. For example, iPads use the iBooks app, so books can be purchased through Apple's iTunes store. If your grandchild has a Nook, books can be purchased through Barnes and Noble. For a Kindle, they can be purchased through Amazon.

"Often gift cards work for other purchases on the device, such as games and other apps. If you want to focus on reading, make sure to let the child -- and parents -- know that you'd prefer it be used for books," suggests Harvey.

What makes e-books especially appealing to children is the ability to enjoy rich content. "Both Android and Apple iOS devices also have apps you can download for various books that expand the content. They have added features such as links, read-alouds and games. Again, gift cards allow children to buy the ones they want."

Annual publications, such as almanacs and atlases, are also available in e-book format. "It really is a personal preference whether to buy a print or an online version," says Harvey. "Come January, some children love to tote to school the almanac Santa brought. Others love the added features of the e-book, such as interactive maps and graphs and search functions that might make the online version preferable over the print."

When it comes to price, most e-books are the same or a little cheaper than print books.

If your grandkids are nearby, suggests Harvey, take them to a bookstore and browse together. "Family members don't realize that kids want the gift of your time. If they aren't nearby, arrange a Skype or FaceTime session where they read to you.

"Both will show your grandkids that you value reading. That's an important gift to give a child."

(Do you have a question about your child's education? Email it to Leanna@aplusadvice.com. Leanna Landsmann is an education writer who began her career as a classroom teacher. She has served on education commissions, visited classrooms in 49 states to observe best practices, and founded Principal for a Day in New York City.)

Q: Our first-grade daughter brings home sight words to practice, so I ordered sight-word flashcards. When I showed the teacher, she said the flashcards were based on a "Dolch" list and preferred that we practice the words she sends home. What's the difference?

A: Sight-word practice is one of the best investments a parent can make in an early reader's progress. Knowing them by heart builds young readers' confidence and frees their brains to decode more challenging words.

"There are a few 'little' words that hold the English language together," says Dr. Marilyn Adams, one of the nation's top literacy experts. "I call them 'glue words.' They are so basic that nothing can be written for or by children without at least some of them.

"The good thing is that most of these words are short. The bad thing is that most are badly spelled."

Adams explains that the influential 220-word Dolch sight-word list, created in 1948, was "compiled during the 'look-say' era of reading, before research established the critical importance of early phonics instruction."

Why does the teacher prefer that you not use Dolch flashcards? "The Dolch list contains lots of decodable words," notes Adams. "Because the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) emphasize phonics instruction, children have tools to decode words such as 'big.' What they struggle with -- and where phonics skills don't help -- are high-utility words that don't follow basic rules, especially articles, prepositions, helping verbs and pronouns, such as the, there, of, to, my, you, is, are, does."

Children have to learn these from memory. "They actually have to 'overlearn' them," says Adams. "The goal is to make sure these words help a young reader, rather than get in the way. If children try to decode the word 'the,' for example, every time they encounter it, they slow down their reading, break their train of thought and become frustrated. Learning high-frequency irregular words by heart propels them forward."

Primary teachers encourage parents to help kids master high-frequency words, says Jessica Kelmon, reading editor at GreatSchools.org.

"Mastery takes practice, and there's no way that teachers can give each child enough practice time during the school day," she says.

Working with California reading specialist Jen Kaufman, GreatSchools editors created "Snap Words" worksheets for preschool through first grade. "We call them 'Snap Words,'" say Kelmon, "because kids have to know them in a snap! Parents love them because they can squeeze in some practice when they have a few extra minutes. All of our Snap Words worksheets are pegged to CCSS for kindergarten and first grade." (GreatSchools.org will soon offer parents Snap Words games to download on their smartphones.)

Don't toss the flashcards. Instead, cover them up and each week write the teacher's word list on them. "And don't forget that children need help using these words, too," says Adams. "Have fun, for example, with rebus play, such as 'the mouse is in/on/by the house.'

"Emphasize the words when you use them in sentences, so children see their role in our language."

(Do you have a question about your child's education? Email it to Leanna@aplusadvice.com. Leanna Landsmann is an education writer who began her career as a classroom teacher. She has served on education commissions, visited classrooms in 49 states to observe best practices, and founded Principal for a Day in New York City.)