Why do people give apples to teachers?
In the days before refrigeration and interstate shipping, apples were one of the few kinds of fruit that could be kept for a long time, and they grew in many states. If you think about what fruits are native to the continental USA, most of these are not “keepers”, and apples themselves were imported from overseas. When public schools were established, sending an apple to the teacher was a way for families to say thank you to the teacher, as well as a way for a student to apple-polish, or to apologize for misbehaving, or to let the teacher know the student liked the teacher.
