The Forty Third Republic - Lockdown learning continues - when is half term?

[Staffdontblowitnow]

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 am finding trying to do online and teaching in school really challenging. However worse is the thought of being back with full classes, little notice and no safety measures; it is causing me enormous anxiety.

Sorry I'd meant to say that the challenges were probably greater in primary than secondary, for practical and pedagogical reasons.

Well if anyone's going back straight after half term he's got to announce it by the end of next week if he means two weeks of term time.... (Naïve? Moi??).

But with this new variant and all the concerns about it, plus hospitals being under such enormous, dire pressure, I can't see it myself.

I have a question about lateral flow tests and wonder if any of you wise colleagues know the answer??

I've Googled, read the guidance sent out by our Head and I'm still none the wiser..

We're expecting our LF kits for staff next week (primary).

I tested positive just before Christmas so would the LF test still pick that up? I read somewhere that you can still test positive for 90 days after a positive test.

Anyone know? I just 🤷‍♀️

Our Head was looking into that for the staff who have had Covid recently, TheLuckiest. No one seemed to know!

DS had Covid at uni. He was advised not to do the 'end of term' LFT because it could have given a false positive since he had had a true PCR positive less than 90 days before.

HOWEVER, that was in the days when the true number of false negatives with LFT was not yet widely known, so my hunch is that LFTs won't pick up an 'old' Covid infection simply because they are so insensitive,.

Our head emailed Friday and said guidance had changed so anyone with a positive covid test within 90 days could now join the lateral flow testing too.

In our hospital trust, staff that have had a positive PCR test in the last 90 days don't do LF tests.

Rafals that was the guidance school had until Friday according to the email we got. But don't know if it's changing in health or just education.

These threads go fast. :)

I thought the thing about LFTs was that they picked up infectiousness, so I would have thought extremely unlikely to pick up Covid from an "old" infection! So confusing!

Anyone else been lolling all day at the story about Heathrow airport?

It looks less crowded than your average school canteen or corridor AND everyone is wearing face masks in the airport. Don't understand the big deal personally .

They pick up high viral load. I'd think it would be pcr tests that were sensitive enough to pick up traces of a previous infection.

Thanks to a comment in another thread planting a seed I've been researching adhd in adult women and patterns in their childhood and adolescence and it rings a lot of bells It's true that you don't tend to think about it in females.

I tested positive just before Christmas so would the LF test still pick that up?

I think it’s the PCR tests that pick up evidence of previous infections and can show positive when you aren’t, and LFT that pick up high viral loads that may however be asymptomatic so perhaps not. (But I might be wrong.)

Oops X post. Though we seem to be saying the same thing, good.

Yes it reassured me born

@RandomGrammarPun

Anyone else been lolling all day at the story about Heathrow airport?

It looks less crowded than your average school canteen or corridor AND everyone is wearing face masks in the airport. Don't understand the big deal personally .

I thought this earlier

Hope you're feeling OK with those thoughts honey.

I’ve just seen that my speech therapist friend, who has worked from her home office since last March, had her first vaccination yesterday. It does piss me off that some people get rainbows and claps (and vaccinations) whilst WFH, yet we just get shedloads of crap from people and told we just need to get on with it!

Sorry, that’s probably really mean-but it just doesn’t seem very fair

@Appuskidu

I’ve just seen that my speech therapist friend, who has worked from her home office since last March, had her first vaccination yesterday. It does piss me off that some people get rainbows and claps (and vaccinations) whilst WFH, yet we just get shedloads of crap from people and told we just need to get on with it!

Sorry, that’s probably really mean-but it just doesn’t seem very fair

I know what you mean. We haven’t had a speech therapist step foot into school since the start of the pandemic.

@Appuskidu

I’ve just seen that my speech therapist friend, who has worked from her home office since last March, had her first vaccination yesterday. It does piss me off that some people get rainbows and claps (and vaccinations) whilst WFH, yet we just get shedloads of crap from people and told we just need to get on with it!

Sorry, that’s probably really mean-but it just doesn’t seem very fair

Felt the same recently. DH's relative (not front line NHS younger than us) has had both jabs.

Yes, I have two speechie friends. Both doing Zoom consultations only. Both had vaccination.

Yes, my friend works in an nhs office with one other person, admin only, never sees patients or doctors. She's had her vaccination. I'm vulnerable, 50 and going into a bubble of 20-24. I had to bite my tongue when she told me.

Sorry, that’s probably really mean-but it just doesn’t seem very fair

Oh I'm full of 'mean, but it's unfair' opinions and feelings atm. I feel quite guilty about it. And then I get angry, and don't feel guilty. I'm having an angry week.

@JanuaryChill Yes, I don’t pretend to know anything about secondaries but in primary it will take a fair bit of planning and prep to have them all back. Planning and lesson delivery is completely different online than in person.

Secondary teachers who are doing live all day, you are legends. We only have two lives a day (others prerecorded videos) and even as an experienced and well respected teacher I am struggling with judgy parents watching in full view of the camera and sending me endless ‘quick questions’ afterwards...

Yes the people complaining about not getting the 2nd dose for 12w is annoying me.
It just sounds so ungrateful. Obviously its a concern it may not end up at successful. However it is better than nothing. so for all the parents and teachers exposed no distancing or masks to some hundreds of families in the bubble. We need nhs staff but giving priority to some wfh and under 50 is surely questionable. And it may not make it safer for patients if it doesnt stop transmission.
Im glad hcp are getting protected but they are going before many over 80s and certainly the shielded. Some of which will be much more exposed.

A .member of staff has it at dc school this week. There are a third of kids in.

Another person complaining about when will bubbles stop bursting at schools (as theyve had their vax ffs)!!