Teachers! What small thing might be nice for a new PGCE starter?

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Ds’s girlfriend is about to train as an English teacher. Maybe a book voucher?? Or something hefty on caffeine and sugar 😬

“Teacher pens” those with 4 different colours to click on (my teacher friends and family are irrationally excited by them!)

A good, non leak water bottle wiuld probably be good. Even if she favours hot drinks, once you are teaching you don't get the opportunity to savour them. Sipping water is a good shout.

A food flask. Perfect for the colder weather and means that you can avoid the queue in the staff room.

Secondary teacher here and I love a manicure: I do a lot of modelled/shared writing on my visualiser and so my hands and nails are huuuge on the board!
Also mints. I have the huge heebie jeebies about breathing coffee breath onto them (I drink a lot of coffee!)

😂
I have my eye on a dragonhide one

I'm pleased, I suggested that and they're lovely! My daughter is delighted with hers. I'm a secondary HoD who has trainees every year and although we do get given planners and our trainees have to use a specific lesson plan, there are many different sections for notes, to-do lists, reflections and all sorts. I'm sure she will be delighted, it is nice to have your own, personalised planner and I bet she'll use it every day and keep it forever. What a lovely thing to do.

A blue power suit and brown shoes. That's what all SLT are wearing at the moment. If she wants to be one of them... I would suggest Matalan vouchers.

Alternatively, if she wants to be an actual teacher and not one of the cnuts who run about the place making everyone shit scared of their own shadow I would suggest a huge feckin bag of valium. Just about got me through a 27 year career in teaching. (but only just!)

@MyShyCat and a hi-viz jacket 😬

Definitely a Yeti mug as they are great. The more you spend on an insulated cup the longer it keeps the drink warm. Perhaps pair it with a Yeti water bottle.

Dont bother with a planner as the school will most likely provide it.

I don’t get the insulated mug thing. I want to drink my drink now not in 4 hours when it has finally become cool enough to drink.

A good water bottle - yes. But I wouldn’t use an insulated mug.

i think the trainee planer is a nice idea. They have extra section to a regular planer and while planing might need to be in a specific format I love being able to see my whole week on a page at once and keep the detailed planning elsewhere (now on a spreadsheet in a format I find useful).

That's nice. I'm glad someone places still allow a bit of individuality.

When I was teaching I rarely had the luxury of drinking my tea straight away as there were always other things to do during breaks. My school issued us with insulated mugs but they were plastic inside and horrible.

I don't either do you aren't alone! I don't drink coffee at all so not part of that culture, I guess. Tea tastes dreadful if not freshly made.

I fear this makes me ancient.

When I first started teaching, no one drank anything in classes. The insulated mug trend wasn't a thing and generally open cups and mugs weren't allowed. My friend used to drink water out of plastic cups and I was always knocking them over!

Now that we allow/ encourage/ tolerate students drinking during lessons , I guess teachers hydrating during lessons has been normalised.

I like a mug. They have more character.

I make a coffee and I drink the coffee then I go about the rest of my day

True but even for PGCE students? What if she's doing two different placements? I trained with School Direct and was given a planner by the school but I was there the whole year, from the first INSET day

Oh I absolutely need my insulated mugs! One reusable lidded stainless steel just for a hot drink and one with a flip lid I usually put water in. I can never just sit and have a whole cup of tea in one go but the two days I was at school this week, I didn't have time to eat the whole day and I'm in my first trimester with a toddler - definitely need access to drinks in the classroom!

We are on two sites so often have to commute between lessons. With an insulated cup you might, sometimes, be able to make a drink in the 30 spare seconds you have, when you definitely wouldn't have time to drink it.