Back to school dilemma- what would you do?

[maudavery]

I am finding it so difficult to know what to do about dcs going back to school.

I am a teacher in secondary. Been wfh and very occasionally in school on key worker rota. From next week I will be in more regularly teaching y10 but only in one or two 2 hours slots a week which dh can cover, the rest of the time wfh.

Ds1 is in y4, and ds2 is in y1. Ds1 could have gone Back this week but I didn't send him back, mainly because of R close to 1 when they first went back, although lower now, in our area, and the fact that it doesn't make sense to me to have one child in school and one at home. I am a little concerned more about my eldest ds actually. At the start of this he was full of enthusiasm, dong loads of arty stuff, piano practice, playing with sports stuff in the garden. And now it’s harder and harder to get him to do much at all. I feel like he’s becoming withdrawn. He just wants to watch the telly. 😔 so I worry he'd be even worse without his brother around during the day to play with.

Obviously as every one knows, it has been very challenging to wfh and do homeschooling. I feel like I am just about managing most days, but when I was doing the centre assessed grades for example, I basically did nothing with the dcs all that week and they were left to their electronic devices/tv/toys.

Ds2 is also (IMO though school
Aren't that concerned) behind with his reading. I have been trying to work on this with him in snatched opportunities when I can, and I really think this is the big priority for him, and not sure how much of any one to one support he would get in school. I would still carry on with this were he to go back though.

I rang school up and was discussing this with the head, but said my reservation about having one in and one at home, and she said there is room in the y4 key worker bubble for ds1. So I could potentially now send them Both back (wouldn't be until
W/b 22nd at the earliest cos we missed the boat to book them in this week)

I'm just so torn as to what the right thing to do is?

Is it right to send ds1 in in a key worker bubble when I am mainly still
Wfh?

[LunaLoveFood]

I'm in a similar situation (work in school but working from home) with one y1 and a y3. Y1 went back on the 1st and has absolutely loved it. He bounces in every morning. Y3 went back 2 days a week in the key worker bubble on Monday as he was getting board at home in the afternoons without his brother.

It means I have 2 days of completely uninterrupted work time and both DC enjoy being at school.

[maudavery]

Yes by all accounts the y1s who have already returned have all had a great time.

[Littlebelina]

Not a teacher but qualify as keyworker. Sent ds back this week (dd had already gone back to nursery) as even though I can work from home a lot of the time there are occasions I need to go in and juggling was becoming difficult. If I was you I'd send him in, so late in term I would have thought most who desperately needed places would have already enquired and it sounds like your ds would benefit from being in