Dear Heloise: Classroom teachers do not make decisions about the curriculum. People should channel all their classroom complaints to:

1. Legislators, who think they know all about education.

2. School boards, who don’t trust the professionalism of teachers.

3. Building principals, who are pressured to focus on test scores.

They should also encourage parents to work in respectful partnership with their children’s teachers. — Lisa Nunlist, Retired Middle School Teacher of 40 Years in Three States

SOCIAL PROTOCOL

Dear Heloise: When one is invited to dinner at another’s house, one is expected to bring a favor or something. What latitude does the guest have in determining the favor? Can the host request an alcoholic beverage? Is the required favor kept by the host or shared with the dinner participants? — R.M., via email

R.M., contact the host in advance and ask what they would like you to bring. They are then able to do as they wish with the favor. If it’s an item that you’d rather be shared at dinner, clarify that and have a separate trinket to show appreciation for the host. — Heloise

PROTECTING PLANTS IN THE WINTER

Dear Heloise: I agree that covering plants with old quilts will help keep the frost off. If you have freezing rain in your area, you can add another layer of protection to your garden by covering the quilts with a large sheet of plastic. This will keep the rain from soaking into the quilts, which can end up freezing the quilts and plants. You can get these sheets of plastic at hardware stores or any big-box, home-improvement stores. — D. Hansel, Houston

Send a money-saving or timesaving hint to Heloise@Heloise.com. I can’t answer your letter personally but will use the best hints received in my column.

A CHEAP WITE-OUT FIX

Dear Heloise: If you primarily have white walls in your residence and happen to get some of the paint knocked off, particularly on the corners, a quick and inexpensive way to take care of it is to use Wite-Out. It’s about $1.29 in most stores, comes in a very small container and really does an excellent job of hiding the blemishes. Plus it dries quickly. — Barbara Hoch, San Antonio

FALL DECORATIONS

Dear Heloise: The letter from C.P., in Colorado, describing a fall centerpiece made from items found in the woods prompted a memory and a word of warning. One year, as a decoration, I picked some branches from a vine with beautiful red leaves that turned out to be poison ivy! The resulting itchy rash taught me never to make that mistake again! — Cheryl, Little Rock, Arkansas

CONTRIBUTING TO CHARITY

Dear Heloise: There are so many requests for donations lately that you may want to advise your readers to go to Charity Navigator before donating to check them all out. Since November, we have received over 50 requests in the mail.

Look for the salaries of the charities’ CEOs, which, in many cases, is over $300,000. The CEO’s salary is often paid by people whose salaries are only five digits long. It appears that some have turned charities into a very lucrative business.

There are some that do not provide Charity Navigator with their salary information. For these, one should be cautious. Donate, but just be sure that the money is going to help those in need, not fatten the pockets of those in charge. — T.R., via email