How the hell are parents meant to work?

[worzelsnurzel123]

With this latest blow from schools and yet further delays, I predict employers will cease to be “ fair” and they will run out of the patience BJ vaguely muttered about hoping they’d have. So what are the options?

1. Resign from jobs? This could have massive impact on income, likely to affect women and the future of women’s’ rights and progress in the workplace, creation of mental health issues and socio economic problems
2. Will some parents be pushed in to feeling the have no choice but to leave kids home alone? Esp those who are borderline age group eg 8-12. Not ideal at all. Clearly this will impact on MH, safety, parental work performance.
3. Leave kids with grandparents who are likely to be over 70 in many cases, shielding or vulnerable. Risks of passing the virus on would lead to guilt , worry on both sides.
4. Wait for everything to fuck up work wise, scrabble for child care here there and everywhere, lose employers good will due to time off needed and eventually get dismissed for poor attendance, breach of conduct and or poor performance

This is a disgrace. An absolute disgrace

Haha 🤣
I never cease to be surprised that people are unable to see things from others perspectives

I'm a single parent, not sure what Devlesko would expect me to do! Quit work and just go on benefits?

@Paska

Don't bother, devlesko doesn't understand that other people are in different situations than her. She thinks everyone can let by living off the state as part of a travelling circus or whatever.

Traveling Circus if only I had a talent I'd be off!

I've read through a lot of previous posts and what makes me sad is that some people still think that women should give up careers just because they have had children. Actually we need people to have children. They will be the key workers of the future. Why on earth should mothers not work if they want or need to.
The lack of child care/ school needs to be sorted out as soon as possible and all of those saying that women should give up careers should ask themselves whether they would be happy if their DD was dependent on a partner who may or may not treat them with respect.
Also, as others have said, if you go part time or give up work, it is very difficult to jump back in at a later date. This really is a sad situation, but mothers really should not have to justify why they need adequate childcare/ school as would normally be provided.

Laurie

Have you bothered to look on Twinkl or assess your child's level against the end of year learning targets? It's not hard to support one child, finding the time aside. Sorry to burst your bubble but your child's teachers aren't creating resources specially for them. The tailoring is in the choosing and they've probably been using identical resources for years. And yes, I actually do this and work. It's disappointing you clearly haven't taken the time to find out what's out there. Colouring worksheets aren't really where it's at.

What is an accurate descriptive term for working from home while trying to look after children at home at the same time? I am sick of being told we are all just ‘working from home’ when actually we are having to do six million other things at the same time as work and basically just to neglect our kids for hours at a time each day to try to keep them quiet while we try to work and take work calls at the same time. Which also makes it impossible to cover all the work that needs doing in a day, so it’s failure on both fronts, while stressing about work piling up. Pre COVID if your kids were off school on a work day (like say they had an inset day) you weren’t expected to work from home with them there, you find childcare for them or booked the day off. What is the solution here? I feel exhausted and stressed out pretty much all the time and it feels terrible for the kids.

All I know is I am just grateful ds is 15 as although it is a horrific age for moods and gobby flare ups at least he can easily be left to his own devices. It is the noise of the PS4 that I find deafening. Ds has agreed to lower his voice but this is easier said than done. I have always kept the PS4 in the lounge for safeguarding reasons so I can find out what he is up to. I am a single parent with no family support and the ex 100 miles away so hard enough as it is to get on with other tasks which always build up e.g. house stuff paperwork admin then work admin let alone work earnings. Impossible to be fully up to date at the best of times with no help' let alone now. At least I can get on somewhat. Still horrific mind.

The lounge is open plan so the noise trails up the stairs and I just feel a trapped housewife as there is way less working coming in as I am self employed. I don't see myself losing my home or my business however. Just tired of noise and tired of poverty. Although I know things will improve financially and there will come a time when we are all through this I am tired of never being up to date enough with endless admin/paperwork associated with running the home. As always working/busy raising ds/everyday housework holds me up enough as it is. Work and raising children does take up an awful lot of our time. As I have to be mum dad and grandma to my son as we have nobody.

Bless you PollyPelargonium. Keep going. Your son will be a better man with you as his role model. I feel your despair and it's not going away anytime soon.

Sorry to burst your bubble but your child's teachers aren't creating resources specially for them. The tailoring is in the choosing and they've probably been using identical resources for years

Oh I’m sure you’re absolutely right. So yet again, I wonder what’s the point of them?

As I keep saying, if we want to talk about moving to a centralised resource based system rather than class based teaching, then let’s have that conversation. It’ll save us shitloads of tax that’s badly needed right now.

As good school leaders know though its rarely about the resource but the delivery of the resource. I provide centralised resources in my large department to save staff workload. Do all children do equally as well with every teacher? They have a centralised provision after all. Of course not...

As good school leaders know though its rarely about the resource but the delivery of the resource.

Naturally. However ‘via email, no feedback’ wouldn’t strike anyone as good delivery of that resource I don’t think.

Yet that’s what we’re getting.

When we suggest some volunteers can help with teaching over the summer we are told it’s an insult to the profession and that they are highly trained. Yet when we say the teachers aren’t supporting our children’s’ remote learning we get told to get on with it and teach them ourselves. So which is it to be?
Indeed

Even if I didn't work, I would not be able to teach physics, maths, chemistry at the level my children are at. Often they have questions and we have looked at videos but I don't understand the content. I am able to help with Spanish, French, Latin and history/RS and even biology but to say I could teach thr curriculum is something else. I wouldn't have a clue. I can read and explain but that is the limit.

I do think that people on here who lecture around how easy it is to tach, have very young children, not secondary school ones. It's a different ball game even if you exclude the work/no work scenario.

I've been beating myself up thinking DS must be having a terrible time with us both working and constantly trying to keep him quiet/entertained. He's been so excited at the prospect of going back to school.

However, I'm a governor at his school and last night we all agreed not to bring his year group ( reception) back this academic year. The school have done an amazing job but logistically they can't make it work. I dreaded telling him but his response was ' it's okay mummy, it just means I get to spend more time with you'. I'm going to be a bit kinder to myself and aim for happy and healthy.....

Happy to see this morning that the cost-benefit of social distancing in schools are being weighed up. Step in the right direction to reopening schools as normal.

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/06/10/scrap-social-distancing-schools-save-childrens-education/

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-53003046

I am sick of being told we are all just ‘working from home’ when actually we are having to do six million other things at the same time as work and basically just to neglect our kids for hours at a time each day to try to keep them quiet while we try to work and take work calls at the same time. Which also makes it impossible to cover all the work that needs doing in a day, so it’s failure on both fronts, while stressing about work piling up

I'm sorry but I really don't understand why you think that's any different for teachers? I am working a full timetable via internet at the moment and have to ignore my children to be able to do that. So there are children out there that are getting the benefit of my children getting sod all. I am also working in the evenings marking and planning. So again, my children being ignored for the sake of others. It seems to be that you won't be happy until I'm working 24 hours a day tailoring work individually to all 300 children I teach. You need to recognise that teachers are having to manage this situation at home just as you are.

I don't think anyone has says it's any different for teachers? Most of us are talking generally.
I'm a university lecturer. I'm spending my days teaching my students while not teaching my 5 year old.
It's a shit situation for everyone.

Oh look more teaching bashing * I was missing that so

Pandemic anyone?

This isn't a teacher bashing thread at all.
I can't speak highly enough of the staff at my son's school.

Wanting children to return to school and being frustrated that they can't isn't teacher bashing.

Where I live there hasn't been a single death. In the wider area used for reporting purposes there has been one death and this was back in March before schools closed - the death was someone who had travelled back from Italy and they had serious underlying health conditions.
In the district we 'peaked' at the start of April and there hasn't been a single case admitted to our local hospital for 3 weeks. Even at our peak we were reporting very low numbers. Despite knowing all this my son's school can't open as they have to follow national guidelines. We should move to localised approach.

nosnugglesforyou
Don't be dim, your post sounded like your kid wrote it, didn't you read Pinkbutterflies post?

beepbeeprichie to clarify, do you mean looking after & possibly schooling your own children is 'doing this shit' ??

This shit to me is what over half the country voted for a totally clueless selfish government, I agree with Miriam Margolyes

do you mean looking after & possibly schooling your own children is 'doing this shit' ??

I think she meant doing that at the same time as working FT. That is not lovely fun family time, it is stressful misery.

BeltaneBride Re the volunteers, I thought they were going to ask retired teachers and (??) people who had left the profession, can't see that working as surely they have new jobs, unless furloughed of course. I am sure there are some very well educated furloughed who might have a talent for teaching as well, not everyone can teach no matter how clever & well educated. If you can't explain something clearly etc then forget it..

I am concerned that some of you are really struggling and I do hope your situations get better. I have not been as sympathetic as I should have been. I live in a different era, when things were not as they are. Reading the comments on this thread has made me re-consider my thoughts. I suppose that I am a dinosaur, but you have definitely opened my mind. My last mortgage payment was for the princely sum of £4. 10p, which I was able to cover. My monthly wage, at marriage was £54. I do know what struggling is like, but it does get easier ,as time goes by. We, once had a mortgage rate of 15%, I believe it is a little bit less, now, but still has to be found.
You all have my admiration for your fortitude.
I will add that we are still not rolling in Champagne territory, but don't have to worry about where the next pint of milk comes from, which some of you are.
God bless you all, you deserve better.
PS. The first fifty years are the worst and also the best.

‘Reading the comments on this thread has made me re-consider my thoughts‘

@Viviand I think I was one of the people angry about what you wrote. So thank you for coming back on and saying this.