The Twenty-Seventh Republic - rules or guidelines - Pandemic or Pirates of the Caribbean

[StaffAssociationRepresentative]

You are most welcome to this school staff support thread to get us through stressful times. It is meant for school staff only – a sort of room of requirement. Baiters, haters, goaders 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 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

Do not give ‘The Every twat for Themselves mob’ the staffroom password as a number of them are operating in an alternative reality.

No DfE muppets allowed

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

If you come with a stick to goad us then that is not allowed in the staffroom and you will receive a detention

You’re thread is right at the top of the trending now list, noble. What could go wrong?

I’m beginning to think we created a monster when we asked for the Coronavirus board. Maybe this will be the last virus board we ask for.

Not actually that many posts though, given that it's top of trending. Rafa

So people are opening it, reading and then thinking 'well I can't argue with that'.

I pre-empted a lot of the usual arsey responses in my OP too.

after half term they’re sending Home Learning Packs home with each child and we are NOT TO OPEN THEM unless told otherwise

I wondered about doing this too. They are ready to go for my class, named envelopes that would have to be picked up by parents from the school, but it might be better to have them home already. Our parents are NOT helpful in that department though - most will be lost by the time they need them.

I'm going to photocopy stuff for two of my classes that can't remote without resources. I've been posting stuff home for kids isolating so cna continue with that.

@ohthegoats

Oh I got some stick yesterday for daring to suggest that children from deprived backgrounds are more disruptive. This isn't a problem, it's just a fact in the vast, vast majority of cases. It's why schools in deprived areas are challenging to work in. This isn't rocket science, it's just a fact

That was me. Sorry. I am currently lucky enough to be working in an independent school but in an area that is top/bottom of every single chart/perspective you can think of when it comes to disadvantage. My state sector experience was at an average school and I worked across the area on supply for a few years. There are some devil children, don’t get me wrong. But by far the vast majority will sit happily in a classroom and do what they need to do and work hard and try hard. We can’t control what happens out of school - and that is where the problem lies.

I get pissed off when people look at children by postcode or PP or FSM or knowledge of the family and label them ‘problematic’. In my opinion, children labelled as such live up to the expectation because no one expects better of them or for them. They don’t get a chance rather than the more frequently heard staffroom talk of they don’t stand a chance because of circumstances.

I also guard against disadvantaged children are ‘bad’ because my own children are PP due to me being single and a short period of unemployment- I literally claimed FSM for 8 weeks! They are still PP, 5 years later and wouldn’t dare misbehave or cause problems in a classroom! They do, however, struggle due to type 1 diabetes, dyslexia and dyspraxia so are far from easy to have in the classroom and without serious input on my part, would be playing havoc with their teacher’s value-added/Progress 8 scores! But their disadvantage isn’t because we have a dodgy postcode or I am a single mother, it’s just luck (or lack of). I have heard colleagues refer to PP children in negative terms, I have heard ‘what do you expect, with that single mother he lives with’ and such deep, unpleasant prejudice that there is a need to challenge it.

Anyway, I’ll jump off my soapbox. Didn’t mean to offend. We need to stick together in these trying times!

[quote motherrunner]@noblegiraffe There’ll be someone along soon who’ll tell you your data is bollocks and you need to resign due to your anxiety.[/quote]
You called it, motherrunner!

Just posted on there

Someone on the news had a good analogy of it. It is like locking the door when you leave the house to prevent burglars entering, but leaving the windows open for fresh air ...

Perfect description I thought

@noblegiraffe I’m just surprised it didn’t happen sooner 😉 Just waiting for the ‘fan girl’ comments to creep in now!

The u4t gangs will be out in force - gird your loins.

Stay in the Staffroom if it gets to much - there is some Baileys behind the photocopier

#solidarity

No no no ..... not fan girls but mean girls

Good news to the Bailey’s but where is the gin?!

I too reckon the U4T will be out in force to try and preempt anything for schools that may differ from ‘school as usual’.

Didn’t mean to offend.

Nor did I. I choose to work with 'disadvantaged' kids. I was thinking more back to the summer when middle class folk on MN were harping on about 'vulnerable' children as reasons for opening schools, when what they meant was 'my kids are driving me mad and I normally wouldn't give a shit about the vulnerable children'.

your data is bollocks and you need to resign due to your anxiety

Your data comes from the official reports though, right? Idiots.

Bugger this. Wondering what Nicola will do 😭

www.watfordobserver.co.uk/news/18769542.coronavirus-outbreaks-england-spreading-mostly-schools/?fbclid=IwAR3wK3uVoYK8llUuD8krbUra4EI-sbc3ku2BK9XtYr6Pl5jBL-2zeLfG0Vs

And from the Guardian

Teaching union calls for schools to close
The National Education Union (NEU) has called for schools and colleges to be included in any lockdown.
The Union says that schools should only remain open to the children of key workers and vulnerable children during such a general closure period. Boris Johnson is expected to say that schools, universities and colleges should remain open in a four-week lockdown.

I know this is completely unimportant, but dd and I have a haircut booked for Tuesday and I'm really hoping it can go ahead. Haven't been since January and it's a little thing that always makes me feel better (my hairdresser can work miracles).

I understand the pain @Brie. I take DS to have his haircut every holiday but couldn’t go this week due to his isolation. Looks like he’ll be sporting an indie cut for the winter.

I’m not sure whether I agree with the NEU on this one. Parents will automatically blame the unions. I wish the NEU would push for PPE and when that obviously doesn’t work hopefully everyone will take their heads out of their arses and see the truth.

Who was it that said there'd be a thread about the Morrison's discount?

I have long needed optician appointment booked for the 11th. My glasses have lost their pads and are actually breaking my skin, the lenses are cracked and they aren't strong enough.

Sigh.

I understand that completely dreaming. I had my hair cut on Wednesday, first time since February and I feel amazing. I have gone from chin length (having grown out from fairly short, luckily the really unkempt stage was during lockdown) to a pixie cut (on my dh this exact haircut is called a short back and sides, but apparently I've got a pixie cut). It's brilliant! I love it. I would have been so sad if I'd had to cancel the appointment due to a lockdown (I really would have taken it off myself with dh's clippers!)

@RafaIsTheKingOfClay

Who was it that said there'd be a thread about the Morrison's discount?

It’s as though discounts based on employer/ union membership are a new thing, the idiots. NHS and Unison have given discounts for years. When we bought new cars the dealership had a sheet with all the employers on that would get you the extra money off. My paper payslip used to come with codes for working for my Council for all sorts of things. My Dad’s employer gave me a non means tested bursary for University nearly 40 years ago! It’s to encourage customer loyalty above everything else.

I’ve spent a cheery afternoon watching The Omen and Dawn Of The Dead (remake). Bit of light relief from everything!

Congratulations marple on the baby news lovely

noble we sent home the whole class when we had cases and expect that to happen when we go back.

piggy ds has already said if they go into lockdown all the kids at uni will be coming home. I honestly don’t see how they can just sit in those awful rooms and study online doing nothing else.

We had some really sad news yesterday the landlady of our local pub passed away from covid.
Also one of our good friends is very poorly with it.

I just can’t believe that we are all expected to go back as normal on Monday. The anxiety is very real.

Congratulations @marplemead! I told my head the day after I found out second time around - being diabetic I knew I’d have appts every week practically - to be fair though they were lovely!

Oh that's sad starry.

Grimly, the deaths are going up. People will start knowing more very ill people and their attitudes may soften.