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The staffroom

Whether you're a permanent teacher, supply teacher or student teacher, you'll find others in the same situation on our Staffroom forum.

Original poster

This is a bit sad, but anyone looking forward to going back?

46 replies

CatKisser · 27/08/2014 18:26

I am!
Been a skint holiday (hate you, car!) and I have a great bunch of kids coming up to year six. My classroom looks great and I'm so happy with the lessons I've planned so far.

There's going to be a ton of shit going on with leadership due to a new head and current management feeling extremely resentful, but I'm intending staying out of it all and getting on.

I've given up evil wine and am joining a gym this Friday so looking forward to an improved life all round!

Anyone else quite looking forward to going back?

OP posts:
Wait4nothing · 27/08/2014 18:52

I have to say - even though I love my job, I could easily take another week or two!
We are due ofsted and I've had a nightmare about it already! My new class has a few characters and I want to be settled with them to be able to show our best!
But I have spent 7 hours fighting with a stable gun sorting the 9 display boards in my classroom and still have 2 more to do in a shared area so that may have tainted my view!

teachymcteacher · 27/08/2014 19:00

Yeah, I'm quite looking forward to it, but very nervous too. I'm starting at a new school and it's a lot more pressured than my last school. I really should be doing some planning now...

Original poster
CatKisser · 27/08/2014 19:05

wait I feel for you - backing boards is truly the worst job ever! We are due ofsted too but due to circumstances I have a suspicious feeling we're fated to do poorly despite very good results. Angry
teachy exciting being in a new school - how come more pressure, if you don't mind me asking? I've only started planning this week!

OP posts:
DoctorDonnaNoble · 27/08/2014 19:09

I'm looking forward to it! A problem from last year looks like it will be resolved. I'm moving up to be a sixth form tutor and have an excellent form room (the drama studio - there's also a piano :) ). Oh, and I learnt just before the holidays that you can write on glass in liquid chalk so the English rooms now look ace, if I do say so myself!

Original poster
CatKisser · 27/08/2014 19:17

Doctor, YES to the writing on glass! Once I dig out some glass pens and remember mid-lesson writing on one of the windows. The kids were so shocked, it was hilarious! Very envious of your drama studio form room!

OP posts:
MoreCrackThanHarlem · 27/08/2014 19:26

Yes...I am really looking forward to it.
Will be like a new school with almost a third of teaching staff leaving before the summer and being replaced by (hopefully) positive and motivated teachers.
Not looking forward to Ofsted...due in September, most likely.

2kidsintow · 27/08/2014 19:42

My general diet and my bank balance will be grateful when I go back. The structure of my day and, more importantly, that of my DCs who've had too many lie ins and can't sleep at night as a result, will improve.

I have a small class coming up and look forward to teaching our topics.

However... we also have Estyn due at the drop of a hat and everything will be geared up to that.

teachymcteacher · 27/08/2014 22:41

catkisser my last school was terrible in many ways, most of the kids were not expected to pass many of their GCSEs, if you could control the class you were doing well, academics came second to that.
My new school is an outstanding school with very high standards and keen teachers. If you're a rubbish teacher the kids will let you know pretty quickly. Everyone is expected to pass my subject, even the bottom third who really struggle and hate it. I've worked here before as a TA so know what to expect.
It'll be a good experience for me but I'm pretty scared!

trinity0097 · 28/08/2014 06:58

I am looking forward to the start of term, purely because I think my life will be easier than it is now. Currently badgering builders to get our meant to be done at the end of June new build finished in time for next week! We are opening a new section of the school next week too, with older children, so lots of new staff for me to sort out, new routines to create etc... All this has meant I have had 1 week off this holiday and worked 8am to 5pm at school the rest of the time! Roll on Thursday when the kids come back!

Original poster
CatKisser · 28/08/2014 07:27

teachy that sounds heaps better. A mate of mine went from a decent enough secondary to one in a really bad town near here. They offered to put him up from m5 to UPS1 and gave him a huge TLR. however he says not a lesson goes by without him being called a cunt! And there's absolutely no effective discipline policy. It sounds immensely stressful.

OP posts:
DoctorDonnaNoble · 28/08/2014 08:19

Sounds awful. I'll never forget my training year. Apparently my first school was difficult, the second easy. I found it the other way round. The first had a clear discipline policy and expected high standards. The second didn't AND my mentor taught the wrong text to his A Level group and needed me to point out (they tried to fail me!).
Anyway, off in to school today to meet with my trainee and check she's feeling ready for the first week - she's a Schools Direct trainee so straight in at the deep end (Sadly, I used to teach her!).

KinkyDorito · 28/08/2014 12:58

I left an outstanding across the board in Jan after 8 years and now I'm at an inner city school in serious weaknesses. I really like it at my new place. I am just gutted nobody gave me a whopping TLR for making the move like cat's friend Grin. Behaviour is interesting compared to other place, but there's so many positives too. There's good and bad wherever you go. Good luck to everyone starting new posts Thanks.

AdorabeezleWinterpop · 28/08/2014 20:49

Me! Starting at a new school and I'm so excited. I'd been at my last (outstanding) school for 7 years and I'm going to a school that got RI in its last inspection so it'll be very different. Really excited for the challenge!

aJumpedUpPantryBoy · 28/08/2014 21:14

I love the holidays but do love the start of a new school year.
My bank balance might start to recover as I seem to have been haemorrhaging money this last couple of weeks and hopefully my diet will improve.

Guilianna · 29/08/2014 08:51

No I am really really dreading it

DoctorDonnaNoble · 29/08/2014 09:01

I'm doing a cross country race this weekend and I've got a Sanctuary Relaxing set from Boots for the night before school starts. It's going to be an exceptionally crazy year for my department for loads of reasons and I'm going to be out of my comfort zone so much. But I'm still looking forward to it.
Even more since I found out one of my student's A2 English Lit when up so his plan of taking a year out and reapplying is going to work so he'll help me put together an Anglo-Saxon Norse and Celtic society :D

KinkyDorito · 29/08/2014 12:43

Doctor I want to join your society - love it. Poetic Edda anyone? Grin

Guilianna why are you dreading it? I'm having mixed feelings. I like my job but I dread how it takes over everything so intensively through term time. I struggle to manage my home and I feel the dread over that.

FuzzyWizard · 29/08/2014 13:47

Really mixed feelings here too. Excited to be back but also quite nervous. Doing an NPQSL this year and running a whole school project.. I think it's going to be a lot of work. I'll also have extra meetings and duties this year. All quite exciting but I'm a bit worried that it will all be a bit overwhelming. Eep!

toomuchicecream · 29/08/2014 14:15

FuzzyWizard - I started NPQSL in May. The whole school project I'm less worried about, but I've spent the whole holidays not getting rounds to doing any of the on-line modules. Like I'm going to have time to do it when I go back to school....

FuzzyWizard · 29/08/2014 14:25

Toomuch- how have you found it so far? Is it an awful lot of work? I've done a bit of reading ahead and am hoping the online modules won't eat up too much time... The course information seems to suggest 50 hrs per module which sounds a huge amount to me.

toomuchicecream · 29/08/2014 14:47

As my HT told me, with all the National College courses, you get as much out as you put in. You can get away with spending a lot less than 50 hours per module but then you'll learn less. I haven't yet finished the first compulsory module (whoops - that's what I should have done...) but I probably have spent a good 40 hours on it so far, not that I've counted. It just depends how fast you read!

I'm enjoying the face to face days - lots and lots of food for thought. I'm not regretting doing it yet...

missmakesstuff · 29/08/2014 15:03

Mixed feelings here, found out I was pregnant on the last day of term, really worried I'm going to be exhausted for the first few weeks and dreading coping with the workload plus being pregnant with #2! I struggle with the balance too, just need to make sure I don't overdo it.

I'm head of art and combined creative arts for ks3, teaching lots of New stuff again this year, there's always a project or something on the go in my place! Also under lots of pressure for results, they expect 50% a*a, which doesn't happen in art in a boys school, they are too lazy!
Think I'm off the hook a bit this year though, only 21 weeks of teaching till mat leave!
Just wish I'd felt better earlier, have done very little over the hols until this week and have a box of books left to mark this weekend plus classlists etc to sort, gaaaah!

FuzzyWizard · 29/08/2014 15:05

It's reassuring to know you have found it useful so far. Luckily I read pretty fast... Hopefully that'll help a bit with the workload. I just don't know where I'd find 200 hours between September and March. Am hoping about 120-150 hours will be enough to still get a lot out of it. I'm still a middle leader at the minute so have a fairly full-on timetable with lots of exam classes.

should · 29/08/2014 15:05

Me!! Can't wait to see my colleagues and the kids again :)

The holidays are great, but they wouldn't be great without the terms in between. That would be called "being unemployed"..... Ying and yang.

KinkyDorito · 29/08/2014 15:12

Fuzzy your situation sounds similar to mine. I'm angling after getting on the SL course and have just been given a big whole school responsibility with - as is traditional in teaching - zero additional time to do it in. I will be rocking in a corner come Christmas.