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

So sorry to hear of the loss of your lovely MIL, DrMadeline, sympathy to you and your family

So sorry DrMad. Lovely to see our little community on this thread being supportive ❣.

I have achieved very very minor DIY involving a hammer, nails and a hacksaw today!

I am sitting on my hands on the Scottish threads.

Who knew education was so vitally important that we have to be open Monday 21st and Tuesday 22nd of December. Really.

I've been for a walk with my mum. It was freeeezing.

I had a walk today, too. Cold but not as cold as my classroom .

I look like a bandit in class now as I have taken to wearing ponchos!

I had my hair cut and marked some draft NEAs. Just chatted to dad: stepmother needs urgent physio as she can't walk unaided after her illness. They can't give her a date at the moment but it'll be at least 8 weeks.

Lovely DH bought me a heated pad on Amazon (sorry). Just 6 pounds, tucked under my sweater plugged in to a USB charged battery. Definitely helps keep me warm so will try it out in the classroom on Monday (the first cold day I'm teaching).

I tried to shop in Waterstones today and the whole town experience was so unpleasant that I came home and ordered from Amazon. I'd like to support the high street but there are too many people!!!

So sorry for loss @DrMadelineMaxwell.

A question for secondary school colleagues...

Have any of your pupils (or you!) found any cunning ways to keep warm at school in a classroom in a howling gale? My DD is coming home like an ice block-it’s really having an impact on her emotions at the moment-she’s pretty miserable. They’re allowed a coat over their blazer but it’s not really doing much. Wearing crappy school shoes, tights and a skirt is just not very warm.

In my primary, the windows don’t actually open, so whilst the ventilation is shit, it’s not cold. She is struggling!

I don’t want to hassle the school about it as they’ve got enough on, I just wondered if you’d seen any kids with a magic heating pad that weighs nothing, isn’t likely to get her told off and has a charge that lasts for 6 hours

So sorry for your loss @DrMadelineMaxwell
@Appuskidu is she wearing thermals or skins under her clothes? They make a huge difference

@Appuskidu I'm wearing a thermal vest, thermal tights, thermal socks, wrist warmers, gloves, jumper and if it's really freezing my bobble hat too. I'm also wearing boots or thick shoes too.

What about a big scarf that couldn't be draped over her legs? I wear thermals under my clothes and often my coat on the top. I haven't reached the point of hand warmers etc yet but they might help! I've seen a body warmer that was rechargeable, looked like a normal gilet but it heated up!
I don't think schools should complain whatever they've on just now to be honest.

Yeah, two pairs of tights with skirts or one pair of tights or skins under trousers (or PE kit), vest, v neck sweater, is what ours are wearing. Then, scarfs, fingerless gloves, keeping coat on, face mask on, all helps. Small blanket/scarf/hoodie to drape over legs under desk, too. I don't ask kids to remove coats but do expect them pull hood down in lessons.

Wearing crappy school shoes, tights and a skirt is just not very warm.

Can she switch to trousers and put leggings underneath? I’m wearing two pairs of socks.

One of my pupils had a supply of those chemical hand warmers that you boil to reset each night. He put them in his shoes!

My mum wears an electric gilet to play golf and swears by it.
I want something sleeveless - partly because a) I have shit temperature regulation so I have hot flushes all the time, and partly because b) 95% of my work clothes are sleeveless because a)
I wear a scarf constantly now, and think I need another to drape over my knees like a nanna

I've ordered thermals to wear. And I've crocheted fingerless gloves (buying them would be significantly easier!) I was bloody freezing yesterday, and the kids are feeling the cold as well. A lot of the older girls seem to be wearing a "scarf" that's as big as a blanket and they wrap that round their legs in lessons.

And yet the head is still telling kids to take their coats off because the heating is on so that should be enough to keep them warm. It isn't!!!! We were told kids could wear coats at the teacher's discretion, but the preference from SLT is for them not to be worn. Yesterday, they went round classrooms and over ruled teachers about whether the kids could wear their coats. Literally teachers wearing coats and saying "this room is really cold if you sit in here for an hour, so I'm allowing them to wear their coats" and the head replied " I'm overruling that decision because I am not cold in here". Of course he's not cold, he's walking around the school wearing a decently thick suit, which is a lot more than the kids blazers, and they have to sit still so obviously get colder. The Union reps are going to see him on Monday to let him know our feelings about this. If the rule is "no coats" then this needs to be communicated clearly to staff, pupils AND PARENTS. The parents need to know that classrooms are cold but the kids aren't allowed to wear coats, so they can hopefully provide thermal underwear or buy a school jumper (nobody ever wears these as they are an optional extra under the compulsory blazer). If the kids are cold then they can't learn!!!

So sorry for your loss @DrMadelineMaxwell

My feet are the worst bit of me. I come home and make a hot water bottle for my toes! I might have to start using the one in my desk at school at this rate.
Our SLT are the same - swanning about in their big coats from their nice offices, ordering the plebs about and telling us we can't possibly be cold 😡

@Appuskidu

A question for secondary school colleagues...

Have any of your pupils (or you!) found any cunning ways to keep warm at school in a classroom in a howling gale? My DD is coming home like an ice block-it’s really having an impact on her emotions at the moment-she’s pretty miserable. They’re allowed a coat over their blazer but it’s not really doing much. Wearing crappy school shoes, tights and a skirt is just not very warm.

In my primary, the windows don’t actually open, so whilst the ventilation is shit, it’s not cold. She is struggling!

I don’t want to hassle the school about it as they’ve got enough on, I just wondered if you’d seen any kids with a magic heating pad that weighs nothing, isn’t likely to get her told off and has a charge that lasts for 6 hours

Tights under trousers, vest and drapey scarf..

We relaxed our uniform policy quite early on due to windows open and I had at least 3 pupils (different year groups) who were bringing in a blanket to keep warm. I was very impressed!
Not so much with the teens who just come to school in their blazer (often not even a jumper) in Nov/Dec then complain about being cold!

It's actually great not to have to bother telling them off for not taking their jacket off. I wasted so much time on this.

Physical jerks but everyone keep their mouths closed so no droplets?!

@Augustbreeze

Physical jerks but everyone keep their mouths closed so no droplets?!

Maybe the PE dept could lead that since they're not actually doing any teaching at the moment!