To ask fellow teachers are you ready for the new year?

[KTgirl88]

Are you happy with the class you have? or dreading the return?

I have found out I am pregnant over the summer break so who knows how I will feel.

I bought an automatic owl pencil sharpener.
May I ask where from? I'm a slightly obsessed owl fan.

Yes, iv missed the routine and the kids.

In short, no.

Nor will I be by the time we’re back on Wednesday.

Oh well.

I'm starting a new job, non-class teacher for the first time in a decade. I am so excited for it!

27 years at the chalk face and been back almost a fortnight. Dreaded it as usual but back in the old routine already.

My heart actually started racing reading this thread

I am still in denial.

Not really. I work in 2 schools. In one I have been moved to be a year 7 form tutor. Bleurgh! I can't abide the needy little beings and do my best to avoid them. However, I met them on induction day and I knew a few of them already so maybe it'll be ok, just a lot more hands-on than my current year 10s. In the primary school I also work at as a subject specialist , I don't have any timetable yet. If they are expecting well-planned lessons they can sod off. I can't do it all in 2 minutes.

I have been teaching for 25 years. I've been at the secondary for 17 years and the primary for 1. I would like another couple of weeks at home too.

I'm not prepared in the slightest. I was supposed to be doing loads of work on the new A Level topics I'm teaching this year, I haven't. Looks like I'll be doing a lot of that as I go then. I was planning on writing my subject comments for UCAS forms, again, I just haven't bothered.

I go back on Monday, having not set foot in the school building since we broke up, having done no planning or preparation. It'll be fine!!! I was diagnosed with some health issues at the start of the holidays, so have mostly been concentrating on those rather than school, but at least I've started to get my heath under control now so I won't have to take time off during term time (I've racked up 9 health appointments over the past 6 weeks!)

I've got a year 7 form, so I'll be nice and enthusiastic about meeting them on Wednesday, then i can crack on with teaching some maths to some teen-agers.

And I would like to know about the automatic owl pencil sharpener too please.

This will be my 27th year in teaching, but I still feel like going back to school in September is like being fired out of a cannon in front of a brick wall! Despite spending several days in school over the holidays and doing extensive reading and e-mailing 6th form pupils about their coursework, i still don't feel ready for Monday...

@Angrybird123 me too. 25 years and still bring home stuff I don’t do! Still - it’s always fine so I’m not going worry. It’s just the change of pace that’s a killer.

Im returnig after a 10year break from schools and keep getting The Fear. Its actually quite reassuring ti hear experienced teachers are still getting it and it doesnt actually mean I'm rubbish/will be awful!!

Id hoped to prep my 6th form too in advance too... oops

Well, my timetable is still a mess so not really! Most of the department are in a different room each lesson and teaching science in non-science rooms. I don't think we are fully staffed either 😂 Oh well, I'm not paid enough to worry about it.

I am, admittedly, planning my way out. It is getting too hard to so It properly without any of the tools we need.

I have however bought a lot of stationary because we don't have any money for it!

Dreading it. Been feeling a bit depressed about it this week! Will have a few difficult classes and some subjects that are new to me. Going to be a hard year!

This my second year so I'm bricking it about having a full timetable (and the PHSE class they shoehorned in to fill it up!)

I am vaguely organised though - I've filled my planner and my request sheet (science so techs need to know what I'm doing!) for the first two weeks and done my seating plans (except the PHSE class - not got the class list yet).

I've got a y7 form so trying to set and example

DH is away for the first two weeks, my daughter is 3 on the 15th and we're supposed to be moving house on the 18th, so I'm trying to get ahead.

I also know that most of it will go out the window first day back because SLT will have changed something random that messes up all my plans.

Weirdly I'm actually quite looking forward to it. Have done no planning whatsoever but I love my colleagues and the school is lovely. To be fair I'm only going back for 10 weeks though before my mat leave starts, and I do get REALLY bored in the summer holidays so that's probably partly why I'm not dreading going back.

This thread resurrected some feelings of excited anticipation I used to feel at this time of year. I'd have been in to plan with colleagues, (Sharing the load,) but as the TA hours were reduced they're not inclined to be in for the labelling of drawers and books, backing boards, putting new stationery in pencil pots etc. My own children were enlisted for such tasks!
However I'm no longer teaching. The 'job' has changed beyond all recognition and the driving forces seem to be box-ticking and targets rather than children and their needs. Perhaps this experience was unique to this particular school, (Primary,) as many left before and after me, but sadly I fear not.

done my seating plans

Aw crap

Any advice for surviving the first few days back?

Seating plans? I don't have class lists or even which of the 3 sciences I'm teaching to classes yet 😂

Thankfully I've been doing this for 15 years and I'm use to the bollocks by now!

I’m actually dreading it, am an out of class Inclusion leader and deputy head in a junior and will be taking on the infants as well from next week...have had my head in the sand all summer dealing with my own kids a-levels and GCSEs so now have The Fear at my lack of organisation!!!

Dreading it. I haven’t done half of what I planned to do over summer. But I’ve had a great break!

Any advice for surviving the first few days back?

Don’t waste time on INSET telling all your colleagues about your holiday in Cornwall when you could be grabbing new exercise books, the best textbooks, glue sticks and board markers.

24 years in and still get the same dream the night before I start teaching again:

I'm in a busy pub, all my students are there but in different places and I can't get them all together to explain what this year will entail, what we will be studying etc no one is really listening to me and it feels terrifying
I teach English to foreign students (adults 18+ mainly) and run 2 departments. The students are usually fabulous so goodness knows why this is a dream on repeat each year.

We've been back at work (college) since last Monday and it's already busy despite not teaching til September. New Ofsted paperwork (again) means changes to schemes too.

I'm looking forward to it in a way but the paperwork, targets etc will get me down again in just a mere few weeks from now.

Mine usually revolves around having the whole of the school sitting in assembly waiting for me to find my piano music - only I can't find the right book or right page.

Which then actually happened to me in front of the brand new ht a few years ago. I could not find the right page (in Come and Praise) for what felt like an eternity.
I've not had the dream ever since it came true.