to feel put out about pregnant teacher?

[SoChangingMyNameForThis]

I'm more after a reality check from your lovely ladies than a rant, honest. DD1 is in year 2 and her teachers have a job share, one Mon to Wed and the other does Thur to Fri. No major issues there but we've just learned that the teacher doing Thur & Fri is pregnant, baby due in April. I can't help feeling a bit put out because she knew she was pregnant when she started the job, but at the same time I feel IABU because such is life and teachers are entitled to have children too!!! So, whilst I battle with the different thoughts in my head, could you please help me put this into perspective? I mean, they're going to have a new part time teacher for just three months at the end of the year, it is SATS as well, what value can the children extract from this? Can this change affect their learning negatively?

BeenBeta - why waste good holidays on mat leave? Best thing to do is to time it so that paid at leave runs on on last day of term - and then get an extra 6-7 weeks of holiday leave at full pay - surely?!

MillyR - I agree, job sharing (and specialist teachers) are the way to go for primary.

My DD has, thank goodness, always had more than one teacher - a French teacher and an English teacher. And this year the French teacher is a jobshare of two teachers - so she has three regular teachers, plus a specialist music teacher. Fab fab fab!

TFP - parent leave for either/both parents would be ideal for DP and I. It seems so old fashioned that men get 2 weeks and women get up to a year. Many women are the higher earner in a couple and would like to share the leave between them I'm sure. I know this is way off topic but v. interesting point.

Come to think of it, DD had a change of English teacher two years ago (when the English deputy head went on maternity leave and DD's English teacher had to cover for her and couldn't teach anymore) mid-year. If anything, it was enriching for DD. I couldn't see any problem with it at all.

Hula - I was only teasing - just couldn't resist you know those part time staff are so inferior to the full time ones, and look - there's someone proving it by not being able to spell properly

PMSL @ disruptive to a 7 year olds education. Are they dissecting War and Peace, or studying quantum mechanics? Never mind, you can do kids japanese on a saturday.

Precious in the extreme.

"When schools start advertising to have 2 teachers working half the week for all classes because they think it's better than having 1, then I'll believe that it's a "win win" for everyone." says spidookly. Who clearly knows very little about how primary schools work nowadays - all teachers have to have 10% of their time not in the classroom - which means that every single primary class in the state sector has more than one teacher.
In lots of schools this means having TAs supervising the class (am not knocking TAs, but I think teachers should be teaching) for 10% of the time. Jobshares usually mean that this does not happen - the class have qualified teachers for 100% of the time.
And I always find it interesting - in private schools (which I agree are not necessarily better, but in many cases may get higher results) it is rare for children over the age of 7 to be taught everything by one teacher - far more specialists are used.
It always amuses me that people complain so loudly about something that other people pay a fortune to get!
As for maternity leave - to the OP - yes it is a pain, but please don't do as a parent did to me and tell me how unreasonable I was to consider getting pregnant in the middle of the year - as if I could have chosen...
Your DD will be fine, and IME there will be lots of handover/ discussions between new and old teachers to minimise disruption.

it is difficult - but if their level of education is not being enormously disrupted then everything should be fine.

There is one particular teacher at my DS's school who who is on her third pregnancy in as many years. Whilst I admire her stamina (she also has a 19 year old daughter) I do not admire her job ethics. She took two full years off with her first two pregnancies and returned after her second already nearly 6 months pregnant - without telling the school (which if memory serves she was legally obliged to do). If she were a half decent teacher then that might just be ok - but she is a really dreadful teacher that has caused the school to drop in numbers as parents take their children out of the school to avoid her teaching their children.

well i had my first kid in the summer and NEEVR again
the deal with pay is that you are paid for so many weeks, but they spread it out so that you fet teh same anoutn all year IE you are NOT NOT NOT paid to work in august

OK

so i have to take maternity leave in AUGUST

so next kid was born punctually on spet 5th and i STILL got my august pay which i had SODDINg well worked for

so if teachers are supposed to coincide giving birth with the summer holidays, does that mean they can only shag in certain weeks of the year?

You will wake up tomorrow and realise what a doughnut you are being. YABU.

Your child is in year 2. They have only just starting introducing stuff slightly more challenging that cut and stick.

It will not affect her life chances in the slightest if one of her teachers has the last 3 months of the summer term off to have a baby.

Don't worry.

We're too knackered the rest of the time Mardy

Perhaps the autumn halfterm holiday should be specifically timed????

Funnily enough, we did try to time it so that I would start mat leave during the hols. Jumped the gun a little though so had to leave a month earlier!

"Perhaps the autumn halfterm holiday should be specifically timed????" and that is when the clocks change so there is an extra hour to BD - hopefully leading to summer babies for teachers - brilliant - lets put it in the pay and conditions for teachers!

Actually sorry to plonk a fly in the ointment but lots of teachers at least try to have offspring born in the autumn term, because of the disadvantages perceived for summer-borns.

women shouldn't be allowed to work until they are past childbearing age
that would sort out all the problems we are in atm
then there would be enough jobs to go around and our children would be properly educated
yanbu at all

But trying to conceive in the autumn term will affect little Beyonce's involvement in the nativity play. I just won't have it.

or cos you lose your sodding august pay

Baroque - well, us PTers are just too lazy to work FT really, you know how it is?!

Of course, loads of teachers have 1-2 days out of class due to extra responsibilities eg SENCO or deputy head.....

OP
I'm really sorry it was quite a reasonable OP and people have been unecessarily harsh and very bitchy .
I donnot like to the idea of job share main teachers anyway - im sure i'll be jumped upon ...
I would feel the same way, I sympathise but i'm sure it will be ok.
Off now to pick up