Going back to school-from a teacher who has Covid

[minxthemanx]

I worked flat out for 17 weeks, through Easter holidays etc, running key worker/vulnerable group at our primary. The kids had an absolute blast- we were outdoors pretty much all day every day, and scrupulous about hand washing & hygiene. First week of the summer break I had what I thought was sinusitis: the pain in my face and head was excruciating and several times I nearly called an ambulance. My own teenage DS were worried about me. Eventually it cleared up with a week of anti biotics, but my stuffed up nose and lack of smell continued so I went for a test, and am positive for Covid. No normal symptoms, had no idea. My younger DS has also tested positive and we are isolating.
By the time we finish isolating I'll have one week, then be back in school. This time not outdoors all day but squashed in a room with 30 year 6 kids, v little space between us. I haven't admitted this to anyone, but I'm shit scared. If I managed to contract Covid in a mostly outdoor small group setting, how much more prevalent will it be in September?
I'm lucky. I'm otherwise very fit and healthy. Yet that week of illness was like nothing I've experienced before, and I suffer from sinus problems every summer. I really don't want to go through it again.
I don't know what the answer is. We need to get our children back, I want to be back teaching, but I am now very very wary.
Just thought it might be interesting to hear my perspective; this virus is horrid.

IceCreamAndCandyfloss

I agree entirely. I am fully expecting to be teaching remotely by half term.

And although the government has no plan B the school that I work in has. Although they haven't fully released it yet.

Northernsoullover

We already know that people are not going to "play ball", those gong on holiday and not SI on return etc. should tell you all you need to know.

What's to worry about? You've had a relatively minor Illness!! Your a primary teacher and should be used to picking up bugs, colds flu etc.... now if you told me you was in intensive care or required hospital treatment I would be telling you to worry but seriously I don't think you've anything to worry about.

@madcow88

What's to worry about? You've had a relatively minor Illness!! Your a primary teacher and should be used to picking up bugs, colds flu etc.... now if you told me you was in intensive care or required hospital treatment I would be telling you to worry but seriously I don't think you've anything to worry about.

I don’t think she’s worrying for herself

And madcow88 wins the prize for spectacularly missing the point. You could look for it in the same place as your empathy.

Shutting everything down apart from schools won’t help as even more will just cease to follow the guidelines and socialise with no distancing etc and transmission is higher that way.

I am not sure about that. Lockdowns have been very effective internationally in reducing virus transmission. Not only that, it has worked in Britain too and continues to work where we have local lockdowns.

The only way for schools to be back in is with PPE/SD/smaller numbers.

I think that would be a disaster. We need to make sure that the rate of transmission is low (R below 1). There are lots of routes of transmission: shops, pubs, cinemas, schools etc. For everyone route you shut down you reduce R. In my view schools should be the very last thing to be shut down.

I'd think that you'd have immunity. I was with my colleague who had textbook symptoms- in fact she was very poorly. We had been with our EY group. She tested positive as did a child in the group. I didn't get any symptoms but I'd had mild symptoms just at the start of lockdown so appeared to be immune?

And so it starts...Scotland's schools have been back less than a week.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-scotland-53680331

What happened to the world beating test and trace app? Other countries have theirs up and running.

OP I understand your concerns and hope you’ll be ok. And your colleagues too.

Personally I’d rather see social distancing in schools. Sending them back full is unambitious, stubborn and madness. It’ll lead to more closures not less. I wish the gov had bothered to think this through.

OP I am sorry you have been so unwell. Please take as long off as you need to feel back to normal. Hopefully you will have some immunity for a while now. Also, at least you know that whilst CV was unpleasant, you got through it, no reason to think you wouldn't again if you were unlucky enough to catch it again.

I’m sorry you’ve been unwell.

I actually take some comfort from this. You’ve tested positive and strongly suspect you contracted it at the school yet it clearly hasn’t made its way through a large number of the other teachers and pupils. I actually think that’s a good sign, it indicates that it won’t necessarily infect whole bubbles (and wider).

[quote IndiaPlace]And so it starts...Scotland's schools have been back less than a week.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-scotland-53680331[/quote]
What are you talking about? Scottish schools went back on Tuesday. There’s no way this is linked to them actually being in the classroom, it’s too quick. This is them mixing outside of school during the holidays.

IndiaPlace If you read the article properly you will see they didn’t catch it at school, they just happen to all be pupils at the same school which didn’t go back until Tuesday. They weren’t in the school at all.

It’s been so badly reported for scaremongering purposes.

I agree with @madcow88 but do you know what it is blindingly obvious that's some schools want to shut as soon as possible until there are the strongest possible measures in place. That won't happen so it obvious that will be sooner rather than later. As much as I dread a return to home schooling I'd feel better if some thought was put into the frankly woeful provision my own kids got during lockdown and how two full time parents are supposed to educate and keep a roof over kids heads. But again no video lessons or explanations will happen just a few work sheets and frazzled parents left to get on with it whilst sacrificing the education and socialisation of millions of kids and putting mostly women out of work who will be unable to find childcare.

You’ve tested positive and strongly suspect you contracted it at the school yet it clearly hasn’t made its way through a large number of the other teachers and pupils.
How would she know? I have no idea of the health state of any of the pupils I last saw in July.

This is them mixing outside of school during the holidays.
Yes, almost certainly. But nonetheless an issue, as they stream into a community hub to mix at close quarters with hundreds of other pupils with little to no SD. And this will be exacerbated in England by all those getting straight off a plan from Spain (or one of the other likely countries about to be on the quarantine list) and head back to school, thinking the rules are stupid and don't apply to them.

some schools want to shut as soon as possible until there are the strongest possible measures in place.
Which measures do you think are unreasonable then?

But again no video lessons or explanations will happen just a few work sheets and frazzled parents left to get on with it whilst sacrificing the education and socialisation of millions of kids
Don't assume that because you appear to have your children at a possibly shit school means it's the same for "millions" of others.

The problem is kids have to go back to school, all of them, full time or their education will suffer to an irreversible effect.
I am only a TA but in the class I work we have had engagement with home learning from 8 out of our 31 children. We don't know whether the other 13 have even looked at the work that has been sent home they certainly haven't all watched the video lessons that accompany our activities, the videos haven't had enough views. We have made weekly phone calls, not all parents have answered those that have many have made he right noises but still not sent us any work or helped their children respond to group discussions.
When we go back in September we won't know whether to teach last years work or the new years? The attainment gap is going to be so wide and that is before taking into account the more vulnerable children who have been more or less looking after themselves making their own choices and are going to really struggle to be told where to sit and what to do.
I understand people are worried, numbers are going to go up, people are going to get ill but remote learning does not work for the majority of children - it really doesn't.
Here on mumsnet it is hard for a lot of us to see that because we are the parents that put the effort in, that support our children's work and have made sure they are still learning.
There are so many children that even from reception don't read their reading books let alone engage homework - they don't have the parental support for normality those parents are never going to engage with a remote learning program.
Yes it's scary, yes it's not going to go according to plan but we have to do it.

@CallmeAngelina do you not think if there was a suspected out break linked to a school with numerous positive children then the school would know about it? Track and trace has been around for a while now.

And the OP said none of the other teachers had tested positive.

Stop trying to create issues when we don’t know there are any!

23 not 13. That's why I'm the TA not the teacher

Yes it's scary, yes it's not going to go according to plan but we have to do it.
The point is, rushing back to normal full-time as if Coronavirus never happened is not the best way to achieve the best long-term provision. All that will happen is that infection cases balloon, and schools have to shut down in a few weeks.

Well, let’s just see what happens in Scotland over the next few weeks.

I thought that tests only worked if taken within 5-6 days of first symptoms??

Stop trying to create issues
And how am I trying to do that?
I stated a fact - I have no idea who out of my class might have had Corona even when we were back in school during July., let alone since they all went off for the holidays. (I do know we had some children sent in unwell, however).

OP, I'm sure you're not the only one feeling like this. Lots of people in a tight stuffy space, which typically classrooms and halls are. I'm an MDS and in regular contact with two colleagues. They'll be three MDSs in the hall at lunchtime with one year group, nearly 100. I can't worry any more at the moment, but I know my colleagues are worried sick - we had paper thin gloves before, aren't allowed masks, will have to be within a metre of the children. I fully acknowledge we have to get children back to school one way or the other, but I'd be much more comfortable if it was part-time and on a two week rota (but that's my personal view and I realise parents have their own individual concerns regarding why their children need to be back in school)>

[quote IndiaPlace]And so it starts...Scotland's schools have been back less than a week.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-scotland-53680331[/quote]
NHS officials said the pupils at Bannerman High School in Baillieston all tested positive before the school returned on Wednesday morning

Does no one actually read past headlines anymore.