ADs and their very long lists!

[LivinLaVidaLoki]

We were up to 999 posts so thought we needed a new thread!

Official letter has come from school about the closure. It includes the line “We will expect all children to engage with remote learning; join in with registration each day, complete tasks and communicate with adults as required.”

I’m going to email on Monday to ask what allowances they are planning to make for children who are unable to do this due to their SN. I’m definitely going to apply for an EHCP for DS. This has highlighted to me that he may function well in school without additional support in normal circumstances , but the moment those circumstances change it all falls apart. It’s made me realise that his autism affects him more than I’ve been able to admit to myself before. What really brought it home for me were the class video calls when his school had to close early at the end of last term; he would only agree to take part if his camera was switched off and he kept wandering off or trying to hang up because he was so stressed, so I had to sit with him throughout Seeing all his classmates chatting away amongst themselves and with his teacher, following social cues, not flipping out because they found a lighthearted Christmas quiz to anxiety-inducing and with no parent having to supervise made me realise just how behind he is socially.

@TabbyStar I could cry. I didn't know this. Thank you! Where do you find this information please? So many rules

That’s a very good point raised by Livin earlier about us non dementors having our choices taken away. If people are scared then fine, take your child out of school, barricade yourself in your home or whatever you need to do but stop making your fear affect everyone.

If anyone dares say anything about how this situation is affecting them negatively they are immediately pounced on and shot down by the self appointed Covid Harbingers of Doom. Apart from this thread there appears to be nowhere to express an alternative viewpoint in a sensible way.

chocolatesweets it's from here www.gov.uk/guidance/tier-4-stay-at-home - you might want to do a bit of research to double check its interpretation but it doesn't appear to specify that it's specific educational establishments.

Thank you everyone. My anxiety was really bad yesterday thanks to a "helpful" D starting the new year by sharing information about two people she knew who had tested positive for Covid - one with no symptoms and one with what had appeared to be a mild cold. So, of course, we must be especially 'mindful' that even with no symptoms, we "could well be responsible for putting someone in intensive care".

In the last two weeks, I've been to the supermarket once, and played the organ at our local church three times (can't see anyone else let alone sit within 2 metres of them). Haven't left the house otherwise. DD, who has been out even less than I have, has contracted a mild sniffle, as have I.
DD's school is opening and I'm desperate to send her back, but that bloody message just about did for me. It bugs me that I'm scrutinising everything for 'ooh, are you feeling tired? Is that Covid tired or just that you went to bed late last night? Should we order a test to be on the safe side, and can I face isolating for 2 weeks again?' I had a period of slight paranoia about lung cancer after losing my mum to the same, where every cough was second-guessed with a 'hmm, is that a persistent one?', but this is in another league. It scares me that we're effectively being told that it's our fault if we get sick, every person who gets sick is putting a strain on the NHS and if we'd only given up on human contact altogether we'd be fine. (and we have Zoom doncha know!!)

Sorry for the rambling incoherence, I hate starting the new year like this but don't feel I can say it anywhere else.

Thanks, @TabbyStar. That will help.

I'm with you @permanentlyexhaustedpigeon - I was overanalyzing everything - particularly since the neurotics have now added everything under the sun to the "MN bumper book of covid symptoms my Auntie Doris had"

My anxiety is horrendous at the moment - absolutely off the scale - not from fearing Covid, but fearing what they'll take away from our kids next.

Someone shoot me now - I lost my temper and put something on a school thread. I do desperately hope that not everyone on here who says they’re a teacher really is one, it upsets me to think DD might be taught by someone with that level of fear and loathing.

Just been "over there" and someone raised an interesting point about school closures/teachers not going to school.

Whether it's morally the right thing to do for Teachers to utilise a keyworker place to enable them to work when they are screaming that schools aren't safe. So, either they are safe or not?
They are stating that they are not there to provide childcare whilst at the same time, expecting other teachers to provide childcare while they work.

@ProfessorRadcliffeEmerson

Someone shoot me now - I lost my temper and put something on a school thread. I do desperately hope that not everyone on here who says they’re a teacher really is one, it upsets me to think DD might be taught by someone with that level of fear and loathing.

I used to be a teacher - and I'm not full of fear and loathing... they may have driven me to the brink of despair on occasions, and hometime and that moment the classroom goes silent was always sheer bliss... but like most I went into it because I loved the kids and the buzz from being in front of a class.

Just spotted you there @ProfessorRadcliffeEmerson

Also, how the fuck does this work. If the neu are stating that their teachers should only be available for keyworker and vulnerable child places, how the fuck do we know what union our teachers are in? Do people just turn up at school on Monday and wait to be turned away?

I’m in London so DD’s is closed anyway, which at least simplifies matters. But I’m just so angry with the teaching unions, they’ve given up any pretence of caring about children’s education. And they expect their members to be able to stay at home on full pay, being serviced by the plebs who have no choice but to keep working.

@ProfessorRadcliffeEmerson

I’m in London so DD’s is closed anyway, which at least simplifies matters. But I’m just so angry with the teaching unions, they’ve given up any pretence of caring about children’s education. And they expect their members to be able to stay at home on full pay, being serviced by the plebs who have no choice but to keep working.

Exactly @ProfessorRadcliffeEmerson And I hate that their only defence is "we have to sit in a class with 30 people all day, no ppe no one else has to do that" I do. I spend most of my working time visiting children's care provision, including children and staff. Do I sit at home crying that its not fair and I should be allowed to stay at home? No. Yknow why? Because the risk to me personally is quite low. I don't live with anyone ecv and considering my parents are both dead I doubt I could pass it on to them. If I didn't do my job some of the most vulnerable people in society would bear the brunt of that and I honestly couldn't sleep at night if anything happened as a direct or indirect consequence of my actions. And also I do it because ITS MY FUCKING JOB!

I genuinely hope that most members don't take that action and just get on with it because I like to believe that most teachers are not like the hysterical ones on here. And if they quietly carry on, then it's been a massive own goal for the NEU

So teachers who don't turn up on Monday are not striking, it's something else. What does that mean in terms of pay? Will they still be paid or is it like striking and they won't be?

@110APiccadilly

So teachers who don't turn up on Monday are not striking, it's something else. What does that mean in terms of pay? Will they still be paid or is it like striking and they won't be?

At the risk of sounding controversial. I think it should be unpaid. They are choosing to not go in, so either take leave or unpaid.

Yep exactly it's not great for care workers and nhs but we carry on anyway. With a choice of put up or get out. Same should apply to teachers . Had an argument with a teacher the other along the lines of you are an essential worker so do your job like me. I need you to look after my kids so I can go work for the NHS.

I don’t understand why nurseries are open?

So under 4.5 year olds can’t spread it but 4-5 year olds in reception can? Or teachers matter but nursery staff on NMW don’t? Or parents of toddlers in nursery can continue to work but if your child was born a few months earlier and is now in school, you basically can’t?

Great, so will we get to find out at the eleventh hour (literally) on Sunday night whether our dc can go to school.
Do we turn up on Monday morning and find out half the classes aren’t running. (Tbf I don’t think that’ll happen at ds3s school but who knows 🤷‍♀️)

Maybe if the government could sort it’s arse from its elbow and get definate plans (that actually can work) into action before announcing/leaking them, it would help!

I agree it should be unpaid- they’re choosing not to work, which is their right, but employers are entitled to choose not to pay them.

Why do I let myself be sucked into other threads? You can’t argue with stupid, still less with an over-developed sense of entitlement.

I feel for everyone with children, how are you supposed to work out home education & childcare arrangements with everything so up in the air?

Sympathy for those with pre-schoolers because those groups & activities are a lifeline to so many mums.

I'm fortunate that my year 13 child can cope with online learning & be left unattended. That said, there is still no definite return to school plan. I don't blame the school, they are doing what they can. TBH I've disengaged a fair bit now with school stuff, but that's because DS isn't going to uni & is good at sorting himself out when it comes to future career plans.

Had this happened when DD was at school it would've been a disaster. Though to be fair, school was a dasaster for her anyway. She couldn't cope with being there, & certainly couldn't (& still can't) cope with remote learning. I sympathise with parents of children who don't tick the usual boxes. DD didn't meet any criteria for additional support but she needed it. It was hard enough fighting her corner back then. I can only imagine how hard it is fighting in current circumstances.

Re the radio 5 thing about wards full of children being irresponsible reporting, is it though?? Where I live retirement seaside area, we know it has swept through some homes, we know which hospital it has swept through locally. Not from the NHS Which is shrouded in secrecy, their behaviour rightly or wrongly makes people distrustful. Our faith in them is damaged

@ProfessorRadcliffeEmerson

I’m in London so DD’s is closed anyway, which at least simplifies matters. But I’m just so angry with the teaching unions, they’ve given up any pretence of caring about children’s education. And they expect their members to be able to stay at home on full pay, being serviced by the plebs who have no choice but to keep working.

This in spades. Why are teachers so special that they can get paid to stay home while forcing parents to stay home unpaid?

Willow2017 not to mention presumably taking advantage of others working to support that - delivery drivers, utility workers, manufacturers, supermarkets...

I'm sick of hearing about it (apologies to the many teachers who are just getting on with it). If two or three hundred people tested positive in a school, or three teachers died in a school, can you imagine? But that's fine in my industry because "they got to wear masks".