The Twenty-ninth Republic - lockdown light continues & good news for Welsh students

[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 staffroom password just in case it attracts the wrong sort

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 booze is stashed - Thirsty Tuesdays, Fizz Fridays now in operation.

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

@Neuro and to everyone feeling it at mo 💐

Well, I had the lesson from hell yesterday. Half the class were taking their exam in the classroom late so I had prepared work the rest could do quietly. Two very active and angry wasps came in and started divebombing students. One lovely girl turned out to be a complete screamer. The boy next to her went to whack it and everything not glued in to his book flew across the room. I put my mask on and went in to the danger zone to sort things out calmly. Wasp no.1 decided to fly into my jacket and on to my bare arm. Suddenly, I am also not so calm. Meanwhile, a different boy reaches into his bag, stabs himself with an unsecured compass and lets out a very loud expletive (was very apologetic afterwards).

Absolute chaos.

I knew today was a crappy day when toddler woke me 2546billion times in the night.

Ds1 closed bubble. I know if several in other local schools too.

Cases may have 'stabilised' here (though we are 200 more this week than last) but anecdotally they're definitely spreading into communities, families and children. And schools.

Lockdown will actually show that schools do spread this!

Oh nellodee that made me laugh, sorry. It sounds utterly awful, but completely out of anyone's control. Neither you or the pupils could possibly be at fault there. Just truly bad luck. I hope nobody actually got stung?

neuro I'm sorry you're feeling so down. I hope today turns out to be better than you're expecting.

I’m another one who was awake all night - like all my worries had been dumped into me in one night. Great pit of despair that I can actually feel in my middle.
Self isolating and trying to teach closed SEN class at home - few of whom have parents able to support (not criticising - they need all their energy just to look after their children, but I’m trying to offer something to help occupy them).
I’ve got enough to keep me busy to keep the anxious thoughts away. Can’t even go for a walk though, which is what would help.
I love reading the stories of people’s days on here. Our job is so incredibly varied and we have so, so many skills.

Oh bloody wasps. I had one and the ensuing chaos in a year 8 lesson last week. Head of maths heard the commotion and came to the rescue with a lunchbox lid and a sheet of paper.

Neuro sorry you've got the useless feelings. I was feeling like the worst teacher, colleague, mother and human on Monday. It's eased off a bit thankfully. Hope you feel better soon.

Today is my hectic day and now involves teaching 3 periods in a row with no break so no opportunity to go to the toilet or get more water. There was a plan for people to be on duty to let those of us effected to nip to the toilet but apparently it wasn't fair for some reason and has been dropped with nothing in its place.

Have a good hump day everyone

Day ‘off’ today (but will need to work anyway). Child 1 has been a close contact with a positive so is home for the rest of this week and all of next so I’ve got company.
Had an email telling staff to pause the T&T app when in school as we ‘are not close contacts’

Had an email telling staff to pause the T&T app when in school as we ‘are not close contacts’

That's a shocker of an email! We've been advised to turn it off at work because lots of use leave phones in offices etc so it is probably incorrect data. I can see that logic tbf.

The government advice does not say teachers should switch their app off : in fact, the opposite. it recommends its use in schools.

I think they are hoping you will forget to unpause it and so not be stung by the app at all. We have 5 staff SI because of the app pinging them.

I'd report instructions like that to the union tbh.

I am not sure the exam thing is really about being fair. it is about Welsh gov realising that absences continue to have a huge impact and absences form exams will also continue to have knock on effects. Nothing will be totally fair but this does seem at least more planned and less in denial!

I am not going to hold my breath expecting anything 'robust' from DfE!

If you are not a close contact then there’s no problem with leaving the contact tracing on is there. Because you won’t get told to isolate by it unless you ARE a close contact. A probably not even then because they’ve had the settings wrong all summer.

Look at this from a school near me. It’s hilarious and sums up school life as well.

Has anyone's school actually publicised (to staff at least) the official guidance encouraging teachers to download the app, and pointing out that students may suddenly get a notification, also that they may input symptoms hoping to get told to isolate and consequently be sent home? Ours hasn't and I'm quite surprised.

Oh @Nellodee that sounds awful. They'll always remember that lesson!

Sorry to hear about @NeurotrashWarrior, @TheHoneyBadger and others struggling.

Anyone hear about the content of Matt Hancock's letter to GPs re vaccine delivery, telling them to prioritise, be prepared to work evenings and weekends, and heroically save the nation? Familiar tone maybe?

OK they're being given money to fund extra staff but what's the betting it's not enough and anyway there's nobody extra to be recruited?

I don’t think availability of staff is going to be the big issue with a vaccine that needs storing at -80. If I were them I think I’d be focusing on how to stop Brexit making the whole thing a non starter.

@Augustbreeze Definitely not at my school.

Well that has prompted me to download the app. That is dodgy advice that I would not follow.

Yes @RafaIsTheKingOfClay I heard them talking about the -80 element on R4 this morning, but at no point did they tell us what availability of that kind of storage was like and sounded rather vague on how long it was stable for if warmed up! But apparently it's dry ice temperature, so nightclubs might be able to help.....

Yesterday Matt Hancock was saying that it could be kept cold but not super cold for 48 hours before administration so I guess they’d need regular deliveries to GPs.

I’m wondering what it would be like to be injected with something that cold!

More Spike Milligan quotes for usernames.

Week from hell!

No head
Acting head now shielding
KS1 lead not shielding but basically locked in her bubble
No TA support in EY at all
SENCO not OK from a MH perspective, so in and out
Me and other at my level basically dumped in it
Behaviour insane
Work for SI children a nightmare
No MN staffroom to play in

Would have resigned on 31st October had I known what this term would be like - knew it would be bad, didn't realise it would be this bad.

Then today, the WORST THING HAPPENED...

.. had a sex dream about a colleague. I feel like I need to resign

OMG! That is the worse thing ever. I had a dream a few weeks ago that my HOD told me he was secretly in love with me and wanted to leave his wife for me. There is nothing in the actual real world that would suggest this is likely I can just about look him in the eye again.

Lock down definitely not working in open schools as the number of staff needing to be off here for SI or child care due to closed bubbles is growing daily, some schools locally fully closed.

Cases round here shooting up.

I don't think that children are particularly safe in school - not from a covid perspective, but from a 'being generally safe' perspective.

If a 1-1 TA is off, should the child be at home? We don't have cover for that sort of support.

If a child exhibits dangerous behaviour that might harm other children or adults, should they just go home?

This is our key issue at the moment.

Without being too specific - yes, I agree. Both of those are issues in our school at the moment.