Schools in Wales to reopen for all year groups 29thJune.

[LittleRen]

By 29th June all year groups will be back in school but only a third in at any one time. Term extended to 27th July.

Sounds good... I wonder if England will follow.

Our schools (primary and secondary) have both said that they can’t make a plan until guidance is released next week.

I won’t be sending my children back before Summer and everyone I’ve spoken to today said the same.

Lots of schools in England have staff moving between bubbles because they don’t have enough staff to follow guidelines. My friends who teach in England have all been told it’s tough and one teacher per bubble isn’t workable.

One teacher per bubble is logistically impossible. I’ve worked in a R &1 bubble today. Our allocated toilet is too far away for kids to go on their own and that age can’t wait for a time slot. So one of us is constantly back and forth to the loo. We need a break for lunch otherwise you’re on 9 hour days without leaving the classroom. You might add into the mix the possibility of having high need children in your bubble too that could cause you to have to leave the room.

I’m all for kids getting back but you have to understand how it’s just not possible for most schools to safely do it.

To all you lovely folk saying but they can’t do this as it means teachers would have to work across the groups and therefore would be in contact with 30 children, please try not to forget that most parents don’t give a shiny shit about your health. As long as the children, who are very likely asymptotic or if they do get it will be effected so mildly they won’t notice, are ok no one gives a fuck about the lazy, work shy teachers. The fact that transmission is highest if you are repeatedly exposed to the same infected person in an indoor environment doesn’t count for teachers. You get 7 weeks unpaid holiday every year more than everyone else so you don’t count.

I guess we are lucky that are local school could probably do this a lot easier than most. It still won't be easy but the way the building is layed out and the fact the number of children in some classes is way less than 30 will make it easier.

I most likely will send my kids back at the end of the month and am interested to see the school plan.

@HairyToity

Over the moon with this news. I've been mentally struggling with schooling and working from home. Our children will be back for our sanity.

You do realise that children will probably be in about 4 times until the summer term?!?

Hang on though.... the reason they're having to extend the term is because there are only 3 weeks from w/b 29th June to Friday 26th July.

If they're having 3 groups of 10 instead of classes of 30 then presumably what we're talking about is at most 1 week's worth of school (or possibly 4 days to allow for cleaning, or possibly less to allow schools to "ramp up"....).

They could do 1 week each per group or something more complicated with days swapping around, but it still only amounts to a very short time. It's not "back to education", it's pretty much straight into summer holidays.

xpost ballsdeep

... and I meant 4 weeks! Gah!

I've been on the headteacher's webinar today after watching this announcement.

They aren't operating with the bubble model, like England. They are still using social distancing. So it's 1/3 of the class maximum, but could be further spread out. They made mention of some schools rota-ing the kids in over 4 days and having the 5th day as PPA/cleaning/online work prep and monitoring as we will have to to that too. So my class may each (if their parents choose to send them) have 4 days in; one each week for 4 weeks.

Unions are unhappy about the suddenly announced change in school length. And the minister did say that if a teacher had a holiday booked and was then in a position to actually go on the holiday (like those who have a uk break booked which may be open at the end of July) then they wouldn't be expected to cancel it and work that week...so I wonder who'd have my class for that week as I have a break in the uk booked at a place that is talking about being open for business again from 4th July.

This will be a nightmare for working parents as they will still have a lot of home schooling to do. It's being explained as a chance for their children to 'check in' and to try and make the online learning more consistent (and likely to actually happen in some cases) as they will at least see their teacher to provide some context/explanations face to face and expectation that it might actually get done. 5 of my class do the online work. 5!

@DrMadelineMaxwell
That's interesting, so basically keeping your own class and seeing potentially over 30 children a week?
Do the heads think this will continue into September?

@Tulipstulips

Wow. I remember being informed that extending term time into the holidays “cannot and will not happen” by a teacher on a thread a while ago...

They've increased the October half term from one week to two to accommodate extending the Summer term.

This is being set up ready for september so probably will continue in September, yes.

I think it's great, movement into the right direction.
I doubt anyone is thinking that all children will return full time for 3 weeks. But giving the children some time at school, with friends and their teachers will be lovely! They need to see their friends and they need some reassurance from their teachers.