The Thirty-Fifth Republic - Covid - the gift that keeps on giving even during the Christmas Break

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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

for Gleaming, Guy and Riga

I’ve had enough.

DH has his usual end of term lurgy but of course we’re having to treat as though it may be Covid. So he’s spent the last 2 days moping around being useless (he’s a nightmare when ill, has this thing that he has to be up & dressed but then just mopes around irritatingly sniffing spreading his germs 😭😠).

The DC have been awake since 4am because they are so excited. I am dreading tonight, they probably won’t sleep at all.

My goddaughter is in hospital really poorly and as a result every single one of our (small) socialising plans has gone out the window plus more importantly I’m really worried about her.

And from Boxing Day we’re tier 4.

I have had enough.

Just found tis on Twitter. Have no idea where it came from but it is so high mindedly unrealistic in terms of workload (also patronising) . Daily feedback . 1:1. Phone every day ? Have the people who came up with this taught any remote lessons?

Hello, thanks staff.

That poor baby :(

@RigaBalsam

Thanks Staff

I am going to sound off now but I hate this government. My sister who has a non verbal 8 year old and a toddler is struggling with her mental health. Her oh is in construction so has lost contracts due to covid.

She was so looking forward to the one day of mixing for the break as our nephew is hard work. Today she got the letter. He has to isolate until the 28th. She regrets sending him the last week, she is in tears it was what they were aiming for. Looking foetus to.

She is at breaking point and I don't know what to do.

Both parents are upset.

It is a shit year.

Riga I'm so sorry about your sister.

SI can have a massive effect on mh if you're just about keeping it together. It's very different to lockdown. At least you can go out and about.

piggy I also don't think some of the points aren't actually helpful to students. I think what I have provided for my y12 is high quality online teaching (both through last year and what I'm planning this time). I'm massively helped by the fact that y7-10 is group planned and set so I'm only trying to plan a small number of lessons per week. So I do record videos, give 1-2-1 feedback, contact students who aren't doing the work (albeit via email rather than phone). But my online lessons are different to how I would teach in class and I'm teaching different content to leave the trickier stuff for in person teaching. The lessons are definitely structured differently as I think that will make them better for individual work.

Bad proof reading... I meant that list was not good for students' learning.

GleamingBaubles GuyFawkesDay
 KnowingMeKnowingYule

Eitak too

Ah this is all so shit.

Would stupid memes help? I have a ton.

Good morning! 🎄I’m all about The Christmas for the next couple of days, if I can possibly manage it. The proper, original Midwinter pagan attempt to chase out the darkness and celebrate the light. We all need that, I think.
Weather here is playing along with crispy brightness, the teenager has asked to be woken for an early walk (the restorative power of Pringles?) and I have some bells to ring this evening on the doorstep at 6pm. Never did the Clap For The NHS after the first one, but if one child stands outside or opens their window and hears the tinkle of bells then that will be fantastic

Just thinking another layer of removal these decision makers have is they're not reliant on public transport so won't have to be crammed into a bus or tube with known contacts of a positive case.

I wonder how the gen pop will feel about it? In many places it's only the poorest or youngest reliant on public transport without much of a voice but in London that's not the case is it? And what about bus drivers and other transport staff? They presumably have unions?

Bus drivers had awful infection rates in the first wave now being told they have to transport even kids who are known contacts is surely infringing on their safety at work too.

I hope our unions are communicating with their unions and finding ways to have a united response to this.

BIG love Riga, Guy and Gleaming. It’s utterly shit.

Noble I’ve nicked that letter and sent to MP, do you mind if I screenshot and put it on Twitter?

If I was on another board , I'd ask for evidence that bus drivers are now more 'endangered' than other workers (sorry , not having a pop but I think those old figures are clung on to to suggest we are safe.

I am bit about bus companies and bus drivers. The ones that serve our school do not clean the buses, do not ventilate the uses, never have tired to control student seating and behaviour and the drivers don't even ask kids to put masks on . When I mildly castigated one, he said 'well, I'm behind my perspex screen now so I don't care. Let them crack on.'

Big nudge in The Times today to prep people for schools closures.

@noelgiraffe have sent it too. 4th email now to MP. One reply for the first email. 2nd email sent beginning of November.

Piss poor.

@Piggyinblankets can you screenshot the Times please? X

No, because I ahve hard copy and no camera... sorry!

It basically has a headline saying the virus will run wild if schools don't close. It's also unis.

I think this must be why they didn't meet yesterday. They are gathering data over 'the next couple of weeks!

I guess this comes form the modelling done by the London School of Hygiene and tropicla medicine. On twitter. Will see if I can link.

twitter.com/PeterHorby/status/1341851684713209858

Wish I lived 1/2 mile away. I'd have a better MP to pester.

My MP is crap. I've emailed him anyway. He won't do or say anything about it though, I'm fairly sure he'll delete it without even reading it. He usually votes for the exact opposite of what I want him to vote for.

Yes yours may be crap but mine is Nadine Dorries. She'd screenshot the letter on Twitter so she could slag me off and invite all the covid deniers to laugh.

She links to Fail articles slagging off teachers.

She is one of those (in her case, ex)'NHS workers' like you get on MN who hate teachers.

for you @HailFairy and everyone else who is having a rubbish time.

Today I am focusing on last Christmas prep. It seems strange that it will be small compared to normal but it will be ok.

[quote KnowingMeKnowingYule]@Piggyinblankets can you screenshot the Times please? X[/quote]
Hoping this works:
www.thetimes.co.uk/article/88c402cc-4561-11eb-901d-af02e798b787?shareToken

I've screenshotted the first bit.

Ok piggy you definitely win with her. Mine is literally just crap, he wouldn't ridicule anyone on twitter.

@DreamingofBrie and @Piggyinblankets thank you! Still can't bear to read those words by Jennie Harries though