How the hell do I teach with laryngitis?

[HarrySnotter]

From a sore throat at the weekend to a bit croaky yesterday, I now have NO voice at all. Not even a squeak. I don't know what to do. I stayed home today but it's not showing any signs of getting better. I'm drinking loads, trying not to talk etc., but I feel so bad if I don't go back. There's no way i can stand and teach so what the hell do I do?

Call in sick. Or ask work if they would rather you come in and do some desk work but that you can’t teach.

You seriously risk damaging your vocal chords if you force it with laringitis.

Mime, and PE whistle.
Spend today googling amazing on-line seminars/tutorials for what you need to teach tomorrow.

You seriously risk damaging your vocal chords if you force it with laringitis.

This what I'm worried about.

I work in a school with really challenging behaviour so I'm not sure my 13 year olds would respond well to mining and a whistle. 😂

You need to rest your voice. You can’t go in with laryngitis.

Surely if you are too sick to do your job you don’t go to work?

My dad was a teacher. One of his colleagues had to take early retirement due to ill health because teaching had damaged his throat so badly.

I used to find that even my most challenging classes would cut me a bit of slack is they could see I couldn't talk! I did lots of miming, borrowed various percussion instruments from the music department to get attention (varied them to make it interesting) instead of a raised voice, and showed more video clips than usual.

You don't. You stay home.look after yourself.

I lost my voice the other week. It was totally gone on one day. I whispered a bit, put documentaries on in some classes, did textbook work in others and used a lot of gestures and miming. Luckily our students are generally very well-behaved and when you’re not at your best they will be on their very best behaviour. It helps that I’m relatively senior too. If I worked in a school where behaviour was really challenging then I would have called in sick.

You're not alone OP. I've got laryngitis at the moment too. I called, well croaked, in sick this morning and did some paperwork at home. I don't feel anywhere near as ill as I sound, but there's no way I could've taught a class of children today. I don't have a teaching commitment today but haven't decided if I'll work in my office at school tomorrow or do more work at home.

Hope you feel better soon

Pleaae don't try. I seriously damaged my voice through trying
For about 6 years every time I got a cold I would lose my voice as a result of forcing it. Completely debilitating. Do as above. Offer to go in on desk duties but explain you're not well enough to teach. Lots of fluids and take off as long as you need for it to come back. Don't go back with it on 50% either. You need to be well.

I, too, damaged my voice at the beginning of my career. I really wish I hadn't pushed myself to go to work back in the day - your voice affects every aspect of your life. There are no medals for martyrs!

One of the most difficult classes I ever taught, were absolute angels on the day I had no voice. A colleague came in at the start of the lesson and explained that I had no voice, and told them what they had to do. At the end of the lesson quite a few hoped I would get better soon; Y8 middle school.

You don't.
You stay at home and you rest up until you get better. With laryngitis you can't go back as soon as you have a whisper either.
Forcing whispering is really bad for your voice.
With laryngitis, I take the approach of generally better plus 1 day to make sure no damage is done.

Quizzes.

Instructions written on the board.

Swap quiz papers to mark. Answers on PowerPoint.

Or they have to split into two and quiz each other on the topics of the term. You are just there to keep score. Give the most sensible one the instructions to read out.

I had this last summer. I had a sick note for 10 work days. Dr was insistent that going back was potentially ruinous. Guess what? School coped without me. Take the time. Your voice is an important tool of your trade.

Absolutely don't go in. I had laryngitis once, like you no voice at all. I had a note for five days IIRR. Later I was told that the utter bitch of an deputy HT went round saying loudly that a good teacher could control without speaking.

The upside of it was that as laryngitis doesn't make you feel ill of itself, I got all my Christmas shopping done. :o

Take the day off but go to the doctor to get signed off, else you might be tempted to go in before your voice is ready.

Stay home. Why do you feel really bad about it? You are ill and need to get better.

Been to the docs - have a respiratory infection. Got antibiotics and told to rest for a few days.

Call in sick. I'm a GP, like most Drs I work through most illnesses - pretty much my only days off sick in the last few years have been a couple of times when I completely lost my voice

I had this earlier in the year and was off work for 10 days. There was absolutely no way I could have taught a class of 6 year olds. I don't know why anyone would be even consider working with laryngitis.

You're a health and safety risk as you have no way of communicating (presuming you and the kids you teach don't sign). Teacher voice is so so important to get attention if someone is doing something dangerous.

I had a bit of vocal training during my itt from a drama teacher about the importance of doing voice warm ups and how to preserve your voice. It was very helpful stuff (even though I still lose my voice when I get a cold which never happened before I trained as a teacher in my late 20s!)