The Eight Republic - half term over - primaries under pressure- solidarity

[StaffAssociationRepresentative]

You are most welcome to this school staff support thread to get us through stressful times. It is meant for school staff. Baiters and bashers can jog on somewhere else.

If you are NOT staff and just have a general education query please start your own thread.

You can play here only if you are a member of one the following groups-

-ABBA - anti bashers and baiting association
-SWAB - school workers against bashers
-SWOT - school workers opposing teacherbashers
-STARS - schoolworkers together against ranting + slurs

Other requirements for staff room entry include the ability to find the staff room, the ability to find a clean mug in the staff room, knowledge of the photocopier codes, and the ability to sniff out where the toffee vodka is hidden.

If you are fed up with cakes and biscuits there is now a cheeseboard on offer

TrickyWords gosh that sounds very muddled.

Well havingt had most of the week off due to a migraine that just wouldn't go I have now caught up. I don't know whether to be relieved or disappointed, but it didn't take long as only 4 students submitted work that was actually worth marking. Out of 4 classes. Next week's work is set to go out on Monday and I've made it quick and easy to get some engagement back.
I've also looked at our year 19 plans. Seems reasonable but it looks like they will be in for 4 taught lessons each day they are in. Which I'm not sure is what was intended in the guidance.

@TrickyWords - that sucks. I assume you are primary age? If you are only reminding the children about social distancing when they are not social distancing, you aren't doing anything wrong.

I wonder if the books from a general pool just makes it easier to keep track of them rather than books going in and out from several classrooms, although I would have thought it better than each bubble only used the books in their class rather than take one from a central pool which is being used by several bubbles. Sounds like it hasn't been thought through properly.

@whynotme40, I am sure my DD1 must be giving her DD's issues over the quality of her work. It's her first year at secondary and I went over some of her work and made her resubmit it with full sentences instead of one word answers. She's just doing it as quickly as possible so it gets done I think, rather than putting any real thought into it. It's a shame as I know she is more than capable.

Although I am still concerned about going back in, I do feel that the HT is doing what they can to ensure the safety of everyone.

Our place looks OK on paper, except for the fact that numerous staff members are dealing with each bubble. Some of my colleagues are working with 3+ pods a week. That can't be right or acceptable.

Personally, I am in a slightly better position, in that I am only teaching the one KW pod each day I'm in, but they are in turn interacting with other adults. And I'm getting really anxious (most unlike me) about what happens on 22nd June. I suspect my HT will open more widely if she possibly can. I am dreading it - but what can I do? Can't really refuse to go in, when I have been to date.

That's the tricky thing, isn't it? I'm okay ish with being in with the numbers we have but frankly a bit scared about all the others returning.

I have very mild asthma, enough to warrant being given a flu jab and inhaler on request but not to be sent a letter telling me to have a jab, and not enough to need daily inhalers. It gets a bit tricky when seasons change, around grass cuttings, with exercise and when ill. The rest of the time it's easy to forget I have it. I felt the pressure to return last week as all other staff from our school, although not the federation, (inc more vulnerable than me) have been in throughout and I figured v mild asthma x v low numbers should be low risk.

But not happy about increasing those numbers.

My husband had what we think was a dose of it and really struggled. It hit at peak time and judging by the way the 111 call handler reacted on being told he still had symptoms on day 9, I think he would have been sent in to hospital for at least a test and monitoring at any other time. But we were managing at home, so at home we stayed. He scrupulously self-isolated in my son's room and used the downstairs bathroom only, with us cleaning a lot. I didn't get it - or maybe I did, and was asymptomatic? On one hand I think, if I didn't get it then I should be okay in school and if I did then there should be immunity. But on the other hand, I saw how he struggled and he is fit, healthy, no underlying conditions. I could be hit much worse.

Thanks @TheHoneyBadger I'll give that a go

Urgh I’m hiding over here to stop my fingers twitching at tonight’s idiot who thinks if we’re only going to bother offering part time school we should all get a pay cut. Ffs

50% pay cuts unless your just made redundant on there. I want things back to normal. I'm sick of being nice to kids for submitting shit work, just because they've submitted something and we're supposed to be looking out for their mental health. I want to tell them to get their bloody act together, but I can't focus on anything either!

Saying I'm lying grrrrrr

Oh yes, that's so rude!!

I like the comment about getting the teachers 'lost to poor retention' back to teach! Yeah, they'll run back!

And what on earth is a Nightingale School?

Has anyone else seen news on blood group types and susceptibility to covid? DH mentioned it earlier as group A apparently are quite susceptible with a neg having a reportedly 45% increase in likelihood of respiratory failure.

I've found odd reports here and there but nothing which has been deemed 'newsworthy'. It's surprising as if this has been found, why is guidance not being made to those who could be otherwise healthy but at high risk of issues? Or is it just because the worst hit would be a mere 7-14% of the population.

There's a few really poisonous posters around. I tried to run back to tes but I've lost my password and the reset link doesn't seem to be coming

She's still implying it's a lie with the link to the government document right there. Fucking idiot

We are only missing two of the big names on that thread, I wonder if a call has gone out.

I'm A. I remember when I was pregnant they told me that was an excellent blood group... can't remember why!

I'm losing faith in humanity. NHS should have their funding cut as well ffs. And 10x the death rate would be an acceptable price to pay for schools reopening.

I think it's time for a MN free day tomorrow. Maybe permanently.

It's the same posters hunting around for threads with the word 'school's or 'NHS' in them.

I am starting to enjoy that they are backing themselves in to corners and the bullshit answers that they are coming out with.

I think I agree, Beawill.

Mn threads are making me anxious in a way that nothing else is at the moment. Even return to school with the risk that brings to my (shielded) husband.

I've never felt hated so much in my life before.

@minisoksmakehardwork

Has anyone else seen news on blood group types and susceptibility to covid? DH mentioned it earlier as group A apparently are quite susceptible with a neg having a reportedly 45% increase in likelihood of respiratory failure.

I've found odd reports here and there but nothing which has been deemed 'newsworthy'. It's surprising as if this has been found, why is guidance not being made to those who could be otherwise healthy but at high risk of issues? Or is it just because the worst hit would be a mere 7-14% of the population.

Interesting. I’m A negative. I have a privately sourced antibody test on the way because I was really ill in January. A friend and her partner passed it onto me but of the three of us I was the one floored by it and had to sleep sitting up to avoid chest crackling loudly and feeling like I was suffocating.

That thread is hideous. They don’t give a toss about community spread and the increased deaths it would bring.

Me too. I’m A- and I was really ill beginning the week before lockdown. I was under the oncall and couldn’t walk hence the username!

I have been very down the last few weeks and I have actually put it down to getting overly involved with the awful threads on here. I got such a pleasant surprise in school this week, when the Head showed me a number of lovely grateful emails from parents praising our provision and thanking us for everything we're doing.
I think I'm going to have to severely curtail my MNing, apart from this thread. Posters like those on that other thread now are doing terrible damage and they probably know it but really couldn't give a shit.

I keep blocking MN for a few days because it genuinely gets me down. Over 25 years of constantly trying to improve my practice, constantly thinking about work, long hours, to be lambasted by people who can't see beyond headlines or anecdotes.

I've stopped opening threads that look as if they'll make me angry. I open light-hearted threads, but NOTHING about schools other than this thread, and one or two where the thread title sounds like a parent who's struggling with a teenager.

If I'm having a down day, I don't open any threads other than this one.

I'm going to bed as I think I'm about to be deleted for the second time today. It is actually unbelievable what some people write. I've been told if someone was grieving a parent that wasn't an excuse for no online work to be set (that's not my situation by the way; it was an example)