The Forty Second Republic - Lockdown 3 online learning struggles continue

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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

I once made a butternut squash curry and that was when I discovered that butternut squash is an absolute bastard to chop and definitely not worth the effort.

Never. Again.

The chopping means I earned gin. Toasted the seeds in the oven too. Domestic goddess, moi 😂

January , sending love. I hope your brother is comfortable when the time comes. Glad you got to Facetime him. Look after yourself, grief takes time to process.

To all of us feeling as if we are messing up.... I'm sure we are not doing badly. I have done my fair share of forgetting to hit record, forgetting to turn my camera off, entire lesson crashing etc. this week. I do think that most of the children appreciate us being there, no matter what bloopers we make. It brings some sense of normality and human interaction to their lives.

I have a very sore shoulder and spine from sitting at my desk all day, think my body is a bit twisted. I have my chair from school, but am sitting in the corner of the room at home. My desk is circular as well, which I don't think helps.

We had an email from ds3's head teacher. Reading between the lines, I think there have been complaints about not enough live time. He gets a 30 min morning registration and a 1hr live lesson a day and 2-3 pieces of work, which is all marked and returned by the next morning. I think it's the right balance, tbh. He is Y5 and is able to get on with most of it by himself. It's made me think about sending a couple of cases of wine to school!

Our Head sent out a brief survey to parents, asking about the quantity of work we are sending out.
Results: 10% said too much, 10% said too little and 80% said just right.

I'm no statistician, but can we just say that the two 10%s cancel each other out?

All this food talk is making me hungry. Am on a January shake diet which is making me obsess about food . Only 2kg to lose, but it's definitely easier to lose in lockdown. We get a free lunch as part of the job and I can never resist the hot option.

And out of around 30 local primary schools, it's around 50:50 who's doing any live lessons at all. And one of the ones that did do some, no longer does, after some sort of "incident."

So, lateral flow testing has picked up our first asymptomatic positive ... and the test of the keyworker kids in that room are having daily serial testing while remaining in school. Fuck's sake.

Salty can you formally protest (union?) citing MHRA???

@SaltyAF

So, lateral flow testing has picked up our first asymptomatic positive ... and the test of the keyworker kids in that room are having daily serial testing while remaining in school. Fuck's sake.

Have all the parents consented?! I’m guessing they are mainly there as their parents can’t have them at home though?

Which is, after all, what the government are using them for, I suppose.

Why can the bloody government override the MHRA on this?! I am bloody cross-it’s so wrong.

So sorry to read your situation january

Guys... (well, Archers listeners)...
Sorry to break it to you but Joe died a while ago. A beautiful episode but a heartstrings tugger. Edward Kelsey the actor died in real life as well. Really sad.

So sorry January

Really sorry about your brother @JanuaryChillways be the best decision.

Thanks again peeps (another salutation I like to use...)

Oh no ulelia, we (I think) know the character died because the actor died, just reminiscing!

Great editing by my phone, sorry.
I said:

do whatever you feel best about, and what's best for your MH. That will always end up being the best decision.

Yeah I realised it was probably that as I pressed post. It's not been a good five minutes for me

Just read that the army were drafted in to help test staff at a big Tescos following an outbreak.

I wonder if they got the webinar and phone number.

Yes. If only one could predict how one was going to feel about something done/not done. And also whether one would be infected...

I suppose I've got used to not seeing him since last March, in a way. Have seen him only once for a walk in August, twice when he was in hosp in October (bizarrely was allowed to visit him and have close contact there, non-Covid ward of course) and for 10 mins in the home on Christmas Day.

Honey do you have heat and hot water yet?? Am trying to think if your non mention of it is a good or bad sign!

@DreamingofBrie My back and shoulders are wrecked too! I think it's from spending way more time than usual hunched over the desk. I took a cushion in on Friday to try and boost myself up a bit, which helped (I'm quite short and my desk is high; even with my chair at its highest point I have to sit at a weird angle to reach everything).

I bought a lumbar support cushion for my chair and a riser, external keyboard and mouse for my laptop when working at home. I was getting a really sore back at the start of lockdown one, and it disappeared once I had those in place.

Please try and look after your backs all: I had a slipped disc in my early 30s and still have to be careful what I do.

In theory/legally you should be doing work station assessments (you know the diagram with the angle of the wrists/screen etc etc?) and employers should be paying for anything necessary - stools to raise feet, anti glare screens, wrist supports.

Thinking about it, am surprised the unions aren't onto this yet.

As evidenced by the previous post to mine, m'lord!

I think I would be the only one to object to teaching close contacts. I'm not in until Weds. Be interesting to see if there any more +s on Monday.

January given that the vast majority of people in your DBrother's home have caught covid, it would suggest that it is an exceptionally risky environment.

I'm surprised that you would be allowed to visit when so many families have not been allowed in similar circumstances.

I know there's been a lot of discussion about these LTFs and I'm probably late to the party but THAT IS ABSOLUTELY OUTRAGEOUS!!

EVERYONE ELSE in the nation is instructed to isolate if they've been in close contact with a positive case. Why the HELL is it any different in a classroom?!