If you're a teacher, how do the kids seem at the moment?

[JesusInTheCabbageVan]

In light of all the reports of children's mental health and development suffering during lockdown, I've been wondering about this a lot. Have you noticed a big change in the kids you teach? Was it as bad as you feared?

My DS9 seems to have come through it all more or less OK, though according to him he's currently getting told off a lot 'for no reason' so reading between the lines, he's being a bit of a PITA. Hopefully it'll settle down.

I know this sounds like a very 'journalist' post... all I can say is I promise I'm not! Been around for years and would make a crap journalist.

The thread title is "If you're a teacher..."

Every time I go onto threads about teachers, there are people moaning that threads about teachers feature posts about teachers.

[quote year5teacher]@Fembot123 ok? No one is disputing your job is difficult. You don’t need to be defensive and try and one-up people. I’m sure no one is thinking “ONLY teachers have worked hard in schools!!”
We’d be fucked without (some of) our support staff at work. Truly fucked![/quote]
Where have I tried to one up? I’m fed up with us being forgotten across so many of this threads and discussions over the past year. I’m not saying I’m the only one that has it hard but I am one of them and to be told, well this is literally about teachers is frustrating. I’m extremely well placed to be able to answer this OP.

@bananamonster

The thread title is "If you're a teacher..."

Every time I go onto threads about teachers, there are people moaning that threads about teachers feature posts about teachers.

Ok.

So answer it, instead of picking a fight.

"I'm not a teacher but I work in pastoral care so have insight into this..."

[quote IHeartKingThistle]@Fembot123 that's not fair. You must have seen all the threads bashing school staff. 'Not just teachers' is what we've heard day in day out. You didn't explain your point so you got misinterpreted. This is a thread full of people trying to be kind. [/quote]
What’s not fair? To feel a certain way, with all due respect that is the opposite of kind.

@bananamonster

So answer it, instead of picking a fight.

"I'm not a teacher but I work in pastoral care so have insight into this..."

I already did, my response to King Thistle (that you chose to wade in on) came after that.

OK, I'm not doing this. Like I said, @Fembot123, I hope you're OK.

The children who were in during lockdown are really struggling to adjust back to large class sizes again. It has made me realise how awful it is that we cram 30+ children into small rooms without enough money for proper resources either.

Why do we accept this or think that one teacher alone can make all of them make fantastic progress? They each only get a few seconds of my time per lesson

Saying not just teachers isn’t picking a fight to someone who isn’t looking for one.

I’ll say though all the teachers have been fabulous. I’ve spoken more to my reception teacher obviously.

I’ll admit the oldest yr7 with the whole phone thing makes sense and even seeing them outside of school they definitely feel billy big balls compared to how yr7’s normally are because year 9 tend to of put them in their place.

Can you give us some insight into the children, please? This is about them, not you.

Lots of headache, migraines, stomach aches, seizures, stress related? Maybe. Lots struggling with noise in class. Year 11's either completely disengaged or super stressed about assessments.

Pastoral team thinks it's just beginning.

Also, super unfit and can barely run in PE.

@IHeartKingThistle

OK, I'm not doing this. Like I said, *@Fembot123*, I hope you're OK.

There is no this, answering you’ve points isn’t me arguing with you it’s just a discussion with two sides. Not really tbh but I don’t think many of us are right now, the emotional state some of the kids are in is pretty upsetting

EYFS TA here - I was responsible for welfare checks and online learning plus classroom care for the vulnerable kids (which were half of our year group!). By and large the ones who stayed in are naturally ahead. A few who stayed at home clearly did nothing while assuring me constantly that their child was doing all the work, which makes me feel like I let them down. A couple leaped up 5 or 6 book bands in reading but the huge majority who did home learning have lost all their fine motor coordination and hand strength. They clearly haven't held a pencil or scissors or play dough for months. And they have ZERO attention span. They can't sit still for even a five minute input or sound out three letter words without getting distracted. Only one or two were that bad before lockdown.

@Loshad no food! I’m allowed because they clean the stuff at the end of the lesson.

Science are doing practical though but they seem to be doing stuff that gets thrown away - they made parachutes for their pens the other day for forces.

We’ve got a big push at the moment on making kids enjoy school rather than catching them up to try and settle them in.

@bananamonster

Can you give us some insight into the children, please? This is about them, not you.

I have, further up thread. It’s pretty difficult for me to be too specific but Year 7: Unfocused, regressed behaviour eg running away and hiding, squabbling and lots and lots of wandering around classes with a general lack of focus. Year 8 seem a better some how, not sure if that’s because they had half a normal year when they were year 7, year 9 disengaged, bored and exhausted, year 10 lots of disruptive behaviour and Year 11 totally checked out. I don’t know about 12&13 as I don’t deal with them.

We've had some children who have found adjusting back to school very difficult. These are mainly the children who were anxious before covid anyway.

A lot of the children seem to have forgotten a lot of classroom etiquette. Lots of chatting over people and inappropriate comments.

Quite a few have found it tiring going back to working full on, full days again. Me included! I'm exhausted by a Wednesday.

But overall they all seem happy to be back and we're happy to have them back.

The ones struggling most are those who have been in all the time, adapting to noisier, busier schools is diffucult for them, especially our asn children.
Other children are tired, end of term and a difficult term for all but are loving being back and seeing their frienfs and most have fallen right back into the daily routine, even if not the class routine. Bahaviour is good overall. My own kids the eldest at 8 is struggling because their teacher has focused on testing 🤔🥴😩 rather than nurture and a few in her class are struggling to cope with the rigidity and stress of it.

I'm not a teacher either, I'm a TA. But I answered as I have as much insight into my class as my teacher does.

I’m not sure why this is but some of our kids with ADHD are coming in without taking their meds for several days too.

@SnargaluffPod

My year seven child tried to kill themselves a few weeks back. He is not ok. Nothing like this in the past and all down to COVID.

This is awful. I'm so sorry. I hope you are both getting lots of support x x

Tetchy with each other ( year five )
Not thinking about harshness of their words to each other
Noisy,taking longer to settle
Handwriting is TERRIBLE !!!

@HughGrantsHair

I'm not a teacher either, I'm a TA. But I answered as I have as much insight into my class as my teacher does.

I’d imagine you definitely would if not more.

I'm not a teacher but from chatting to my daughter's senco the kids who have struggled most (on a general level) have been those who were in throughout lockdown, they have struggled with the others returning and a return to normal school.

This is definitely the same for my kids school.

Very few Miss! Miss! things - most seem to stand there silently, waiting to be spoken to. I suspect they've been taught 'disturbing' somebody who is on a computer is a very bad thing.

Most look thinner and pale/cooler toned (of all ethnicities). Some look very, very thin (reports completed, obviously). Quite a few injuries as a result of very simple, normal movements. Back ache and shoulder pains. Very closed body language. Fewer 'please take off the makeup/nail varnish because it's against school rules' occurrences. But if they are doing something they shouldn't the vast majority are far more responsive to being asked to stop, rather than arguing about it.

There doesn't seem to be as many harmless, silly things happening (giggling in groups, running for the fun of it, cartoons on the whiteboards).

They seem to have lost all the ebullience they used to have, but even something as daft as the way I wave my hands around when I'm speaking or how my eyebrows waggle about (after all, they can't see if I'm smiling, I need to give them some clue) make them smile. I am having to get closer to a lot to be able to hear them, including bending down when they're only a few inches shorter than me and I am extra careful with my tone of voice, as I'm mindful that simply raising the volume to get through the mask upsets them.

Thinking about it as well, I'm used to coming back after half term to find that the Year 9s have shot up taller than me seemingly overnight. I haven't noticed that with the Year 9s this year.

They seem to be getting up earlier and sleeping worse - we get some that just look so tired now.

They will get some of it back, I'm sure, with PE and daylight and food, but to be honest, I think what many of them really need is somebody they love to give them a big hug.