Pregnant primary teacher

[6Kolacubes]

Hi all,
I’m currently 20weeks pregnant and due to return to work as a Year 6 teacher. I work in a tricky school with poor results and have 32 in my class with a couple of morning support from a ta.
My major concern is teaching PE. The PE clrrdinator has set out for me to teach football for the first six weeks (2 hours per week) with the class on my own. I’m nervous about being potentially hit by stray footballs and have mentioned it to PE lead and head who have both said it’ll be fine. Head and deputy both worked income reception while pregnant so I feel that their experience may be slightly different as 32 10-11year olds are much more physical when playing games such as football etc.
In addition, I was planning on working up until Christmas (36 weeks) but reading other people’s experiences, is this manageable?!
Any help or advice would be really appreciated.

You should have a workplace risk assessment by now.Ask for potentially being hit by a ball to be added to it.

I went to see my deputy and head and told them I wouldn’t teach PE from 20 weeks due to SPD, we had it added in my risk assessment and they sorted out cover/sports coaches to cover it. They were great about it!

I’m not based in class in September and am doing 1/2 weeks to take me up to just before 39 weeks. I’ve been told I can do shorter days and they’ll help me get as far as I can before having to go off.

I’m super lucky to work in an amazingly supportive school though, I know not everyone is this lucky.

Your school should do a risk assessment. When they do so, bring up the football stuff and how they intend to mitigate them.
Schools can be notoriously rubbish though as they don’t have spare money. I had to spend a morning a week running a sports activity during the summer term while 15-24 weeks pregnant. The only people who cared about it being a problem were the lovely TA’s.

Yes definitely get an 'Expectant mother risk assessment' in place and add the 'flying footballs' element into it. My school were great and asked me if I wanted to add anything else onto it. I know that my desk chair is rubbish (we've swapped classrooms over the holidays and someone has swapped my chair!) and so when I go back I'm going to ask for a decent chair- this was mentioned on my RA- decent chair support. Not trying to be precious but we need to be looked after! I'm going back to be in year 6 in September and am also 21 weeks so will try and work up until the Christmas holidays.

Thanks for your advice. It’s myfirst and I’m aware lots of other people have gone through pregnancy and don’t want to come across as demanding or precious!
I’m hoping to pop in this week and have a chat with the head and mention my concerns again. She did say a risk assessment would be done by September so I’ll check that’s all complete. I’m hoping that now I have a bump the children will feel sorry for me and take it easy on me😂 I’m an optimist!
Thanks again 👌

Do you have a partner teacher? I teach year five and am pregnant and my partner taught my PE and I taught her Computing. You are right- 10/11 year olds play quite rough. I refused to go onto the court when they were playing dodge ball!

could you offer to do a straight swap - during your PE lessons you teach the PE Coordinator’s class and they teach yours?

Just to add to this. You need to be involved in the risk assessment and it should be being reviewed now not just being done! You've been pregnant for quite a while now and you do a very physical job. Added to which you are not the first teacher to have a baby.

I think you need to be quite clear with them that you see a risk here and what are they going to do about it?

Usually ime employers are much more focussed on sorting things out once they realise that the other option is to send you home on full pay if they can't avoid the risk (during pe lessons not full time!)

Also definitely get the chair sorted. I had to have a right old strop to get a decent chair. Basically took my files and worked from home until they got me something suitable. It took a day. Literally once I found the right person to sort it out.

But I am a senior employment lawyer and I went over somebody's head and was really quite clear about what was needed and that I wouldn't be staying in the office to sit on an uncomfortable chair!

I will be 20 weeks when we go back next week and am aiming to finish at Xmas hols. I’m an upper key stage 2 teacher but from Sep my head has put me into Year 2. Really not looking forward to all the bending down and tiny chairs!!