The Thirty-First Republic - oh the joy of on-line parents evenings

[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

I think anyone who phones in sick with any kind of illness should be told to get a test. But instead cover organisers are discouraging those with actuals symptoms form testing!

Yes. We feel SLT have no idea what they are doing as they don't understand the most basic of protocols around isolation.

We are also told to assess our own risk when having taught a kid who has tested positive. Teachers then don't isolate.

It's an absolute shit show.

We went to get DS from uni two weeks ago awesome. This was more to protect DH,a s DS had just done a stint of SI sow e knew he was clear. But I don't have qualms about it once I saw the amount of traffic on the roads, to be frank.

Safe driving today dragon.

I think we might be unusual in that we've only had 3 staff test positive but loads of students.

Woken up feeling blue. Then went downstairs to find ds asleep on the sofa and everywhere a mess.

Have stuffed the washing machine and put it on and am going to give myself the length of the quick wash cycle to wallow in my bed and drink coffee. Then I have to get on and sort the state of this house and get ds to do a couple of remote lessons because they all came through later in the week and he hasn't stayed on to of it.

I'm really not feeling Christmas. Keep getting asked what does ds want for Christmas by family members and it seems so trivial and far away but I am going to have to start thinking about presents and decorations and all of that

Sorry boring outpouring

I am happy single but sometimes it just feels like there is a lot on my shoulders.

I've been juggling worry about money, ds's general disengagement with school, work and Covid since September and sometimes I'm on top of it ish and other times it's on top of me.

Given all the worry I'm doing ok really but need to make sure it doesn't build up and suddenly overwhelm me. Today I need to focus on the house and ds's school work which is a battle I'm not feeling up to. Hopefully coffee will help

I left school yesterday feeling as if I'd been hurled from a fast-spinning merry-go-round. I spent the entire evening in a catatonic state, staring mindlessly at the TV, whilst dh and kids brought me various drinks/food, bless them.
The house is like a bomb-site, but that is for later on. In the meantime, I think I might force myself outside to take the dog for a long walk with dh.
I usually make sure all my planning is on the system at work before I leave on a Friday, but simply couldn't face it this week. So that's my Sunday gone.

Dd is not sure she wants to come home today. Her flatmate was rushed into hospital yesterday and she doesn't want to leave til she's seen they are ok. Which is understandable. Hopefully they'll be home later this morning and I'll still have time to go get dd (she's relatively local, it won't take all day)

Honey I'm not single yet feel like it's such a lot. Lord knows how you're managing alone.

DH and I have come back from a 4 mile walk. Other DS is coming over today for a walk in the afternoon. Will be nice to see him. He works in TV and thankfully has been busy over the last few months so that's kept him going. Hope everyone is ok x

Big thumbs up for children already home from Uni and morning walks, hugs for everyone who needs them - especially Izzy, your SLT sound horrendous! - and hoping dd's friend is OK, MsAwesomeDragon.

Every day at work this week felt like a week-I am just bone tired today :(

It really does feel like a slap in the face when you’re told that schools are to carry on as normal and are banned from closing early, to read headlines like this saying we should be isolating for 2 weeks before/after Christmas.

I don’t know why I torture myself checking them really.

The temptation to keep my own kids at home that last week is growing-it’s spreading like wildfire through their secondaries.

Since September we have been isolating year groups when we have had a positive case. We are now moving to using seating plans - I think HT is being pressured from LEA or DFE because of the volume of kids who have had to isolate.
God knows how this will work with options, sets, forms and having to now find a way to separate kids within the same year group at break and lunch.
Anyone found a way to get square blocks to fit into round holes yet?

We use really strict seating plans. Ks3 are taught every lesson in form, so that's easy (maths hate it, but the rest of us are used to it). We send home whole classes in ks3 for one positive case (plus anyone who was close on bus or best friends in other forms). Ks4 are obviously set in core and have their options but seating plans must be always kept up to date for contact tracing.

I just woke up. Friday night was me doing my planning for Monday. Meant loads of dreams about it all though. Mostly focussed on how I'd get year 4 autistic Ahmed, working at year 1 with a mouthful of pencil shavings, through a teams lesson.

We use seating plans to isolate, Crackle and don’t do any of that.

Teachers decide seating as normal and just upload seating plans centrally. If there’s a case the head looks through all their classes and takes out the kids within 2m.

Th kids themselves are expected to report any other close contacts from break, lunch.

@Cracklefraggle we do it that way. Just those directly nearby on seating plans (which we store centrally so are accessed by those that need).

Student asked who they spent time with outside of lesson in the two breaks.

Teachers of student informed (but only them, and not allowed to share name of student). To make sure seating plans on relevant days were used etc... and to make sure they know who to speak to if they feel they might be at risk and need to isolate.

Morning all,

I've been reading this thread but have only commented a couple of times. Just felt the need to say that you secondary colleagues are amazing (I'm Primary). It sounds utterly hideous and I just wanted to thank you.

Primary is slightly less hideous but just feels like we're constantly on a knife edge. Another bubble burst yesterday (yet another child whose whole family were positive, had been for tests but who decided to send child in anyway as 'child had no symptoms.' 🙄 Yep, he's tested positive too...)

I just KNOW that my bubble is going to pop in the last week. I have a horrible feeling about it. Which, of course, would mean self isolation for the whole 2 weeks, not even able to go out for a walk. Utterly, utterly shit.

Chin up all.

We do the same as nobles school. I'm allowed to change seating plans whenever I want as long as I update them with the central admin person in charge of them. The kids still have yeargroup areas for break and lunch, but they are outside so the kids are trusted to identify their own close contacts there. At wet break/lunch they have to be in their form rooms sitting in the seating plan (and we have to supervise our own forms, which is causing some ill will amongst the staff).

Yep, I have the same feeling.

I had a horrible feeling I was going to have to self-isolate over half term, then on the Friday before half term one of my front rowers, def

I've been mindlessly reading mn threads including one on having no pension in your mid 40s. That has not helped.

I'm 45, have only been paying into my pension for a couple of years and at part time rates and stuck renting as I don't earn enough to be considered for a mortgage. Constantly have a low background hum of anxiety about this hence keeping on trying to get my hours increased to no avail.

So it's not just the schools threads that can do my head in. It's definitely too early to drink isn't it?

Oh Honey don’t do that, read Classics instead if you must read MN!

Or put down your phone and do something more productive. Says me who is very bad at that.

I am continuing to try to find emotional stability by spending far too much loney in the Black Friday sales.

Being single sucks. If we don’t finish early I’ll be doing Christmas on my own. Currently in a manic tiredness so the crash will hopefully come then and I can sleep and slob about.

Yeah I'm going to switch to researching what to do with my hair whilst I drink my coffee and then try and sort my pigsty out and wake up the boy and have a fight about school work and cleaning.

At least it's a change of pace from worrying about ending up destitute in a care home sat in my own piss lol. Cheery thoughts