If school's don't return on March 8th what will you do?

[cottonwoolbrain]

I am goign to be completely honest. I can't handle this anymore. I'm not sure what I'll do. I'm in tears every day now and the rest of the time just feel completely and utterly numb as if I'm doing everything on autopilot. Keep shoutinbg at the children - rate its going they'll get Stockholm Syndrome being coooped up with me as I am

DS (8) needs almost constant supervision to get him to do any work at all or even to sit in his chair. HIs school have great distance learning but I'm exhausted trying to get him to do it even with online classes. DD is 15. She's great at doing the work but is understandly stressed and lonely and worried about next years GCSEs and I feel like I'm getting the brunt of it.

I work part time and its the sort of job that requires high concentration levels. I can't just stop to answer questions about everything under the sun (including the flipping sun).

I'm breaking. Half term starts tomorrow. Hopefully a week of not home schooling will help and then I''ll be counting the days until March 8th but I'm so desperately worried they won't go back and I'm not sure what I'll do or how I'll cope.

DP helps as much as he can but most of its falling on me.

Sorry don't knwo what I'm saying except that i dont thknk I can hold out much longer and its messing up my children so badly.

Sadly those planning on taking up a Key worker/sen/vulnerable place may need to check first with their schools as many already have high numbers and may not have capacity. You should also prep your child that they may be placed in a different class, with different children and with a different teacher. This may not bother some children, infact we found lots in lockdown 1 were totally happy with it, but it may be something some children will need to be reassured of before they go back.

Sometimes that's the only way extra children joining at this late stage can be accommodated.

for you OP. It is awful. If they dont lift lockdown soon I hope people get out on the streets to protest. They should. There's no justification for it anymore and it is doing immeasurable harm to so many of us.

I am so fed up about people suggesting other ways to engage children in learning. “Get them to do a poster about shapes”, “go on a bug hunt”, “why don’t you count the birds in the garden”.

But my husband and i have full time jobs to do. We’re at our wits ends trying to maintain some sort of quality of work and keep ur children safe, never mind educate them too. And we’re seeing mental health issues in those children too.

Hate it hate it hate it.

@Emmylou292 that sounds very tough. I hope you will be able to see your boy soon.

As it's four weeks away and numbers (cases and deaths) have been dropping fast I am very hopeful that they will open. At the current rate I think cases will be about 4000 a day by then and hospitalisations and deaths should be a fraction of today considering so many vulnerable people have been vaccinated.

Be ultra relieved that the government aren't making the same mistakes as before

@OpenShop

What the fallout from all this ultimately amounts to is women pushed to breaking point, considering giving up their jobs, because they are lumped with the responsibility of homeschooling & working. So women & children are fallout victims, to whom the Govt. are giving no support whatsoever. It’s just a case of “crack on.”

This is a real tragedy I think, & this pandemic has really cast a bright light on the entrenched misogynistic attitudes that underpin our society.

This ^

I really wish someone who is making the decisions would listen to this.

@Katie1784

I will feel grateful that the government are finally listening to the scientists rather than doing what they think people want to hear.

Me too. It needs to be safe before return for everyone there and the families they go home to to stop spread.

I don't expect the schools to be opening on 8th March - it was a date plucked out of the air with an 'at the earliest' caveat attached to it. Having DD at home while trying to work full time is definitely not ideal, but it is why it is. I'll be happy when schools are reopened, but realistically I have Easter as the goal.

@dreamingbohemian

I completely get where you are coming from, My MP doesn't answer emails (or he doesn't answer mine) I am on first name terms with his secretary now.

I have a shit ton to complain about

Weep, and wave goodbye to my career, I expect.

I will just have to stop home schooling as I'm already way behind on work and really banking on them going back from the 8th March. I realise people are in worse situations but I really don't think I can take much more of this.

GameSetMatch

I’ll just carry on, what else can one do? It won’t help crumbling to bits even if it’s what we all want to do.”

This, really. Crying every day and shouting at your kids is quite an extreme reaction. Have you sought outside help?

I'd put a petition on the government website and go crazy.
After seeing my DCs school accept children for all sorts of random reasons (not key worker parents and not vulnerable children) while my child sits crying day in and day out why he can't be with his friends, I see no reason why he can't go either.

I haven't read the full thread, but to all of you in despair hang in there!! Here in Wales Reception - Year 2 are going back from the 22nd. Everything suddenly feels doable again. Surely England won't be too far behind. Hang in there, don't give up, and hopefully it won't be too much longer

Emmylou

@GalesThisMorning

I haven't read the full thread, but to all of you in despair hang in there!! Here in Wales Reception - Year 2 are going back from the 22nd. Everything suddenly feels doable again. Surely England won't be too far behind. Hang in there, don't give up, and hopefully it won't be too much longer

I think that’s been delayed already for some parts. I think Wales will have the relent and follow England.

@JustGotToKeepOnKeepingOn

I don't expect the schools to be opening on 8th March - it was a date plucked out of the air with an 'at the earliest' caveat attached to it. Having DD at home while trying to work full time is definitely not ideal, but it is why it is. I'll be happy when schools are reopened, but realistically I have Easter as the goal.

It wasn’t plucked out of the air. It’s 3 weeks after all category 1-4 have been vaccinated, ie have the majority of the protection.

IMO, the government are going to have a bloody good reason not to stick to 8th March.

My area are already onto over 65s (category 5).

How do you know what the scientists will say? We've not had the review yet.

Until you see this - how do we know?

Wales have published the advise from the technical advice cell - as in England they feel there is enough headroom for a partial opening

Why would people be relived to see the science to say schools should stay shut? Surely we are all hoping for the advice to support us to start a path back to some semblance of opening.

They definitely won't all go back on the 8th March - it will be on that day that the schools will start to re-open. I do think it will be by the end of March or the end of April at the absolute latest.
I believe the school staff will go on strike if it is any longer.

Cry.……alot

Cry

I’ll carry on like we have been doing so far and be glad that we’re playing our part in saving lives. What else can you do? The best example you can set your children is to remain positive and pragmatic and focus on the good (even when it feels like it’s all bad news). They’ll take their cues from you.

thewiseoneincognito I hadn't heard that, but then saw the article on the BBC website

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-56021968

Enjoy half term with them - can you take some time off work?

Don't be hard on yourself @cottonwoolbrain lots and lots of parents are feeling the same way. Do what you can and that's enough.