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The staffroom

Whether you're a permanent teacher, supply teacher or student teacher, you'll find others in the same situation on our Staffroom forum.

Original poster

The Fifty-second Republic - Beware of Education’s ides of March

999 replies

StaffRepFeistyClub · 06/03/2021 13:13

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.

Do not give the staffroom password to non-staff as it attracts the wrong sort of crowd.

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. Do not sit on the chairs and do wear a mask.

OP posts:
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7
WhenSheWasBad · 10/03/2021 22:48

@StaffRepFeistyClub

We had a member of staff resign today having decided to take early retirement. She told the Head during lunch duty and he (apparently) ran to his office. The department was notified that the advert was out mid afternoon and the school would prefer an NQT.
That’s just rude.

Might apply for it if it’s near to me 😂

I’m sick of my schools stance on behaviour. It’s all “relationships” - which probably works ok ish when you have 5 years experience at a school. But in your 1st year as an NQT it’s not much help.

I’m meant to have break time / lunch time duty plus keeping kids in for poor behaviour at lunch and dinner. I have 20 lessons but only 10 breaks / lunch’s.

Year groups are split into bubbles. I literally can’t get round to all the detentions I’m meant to. Sorry for complaining, I’m seriously thinking I might have picked the wrong career. Or maybe it’s the wrong school? Or maybe it’s just Covid measures making things 10 times harder?

RuleWithAWoodenFoot · 10/03/2021 23:43

Covid is making things harder.

I had to teach in three different bubbles today after an 'issue' on the day I'm not in class. I kept my mask on, but who knows.

My old head did that to a colleague of mine - he was an expensive pain in the arse, we needed him to go for the school to just work better. It was his time. He'd handed in his notice before then retracted it, so this time we got an advert out straight away the next day.

HerdyGerdy · 11/03/2021 06:29

@StaffRepFeistyClub

We had a member of staff resign today having decided to take early retirement. She told the Head during lunch duty and he (apparently) ran to his office. The department was notified that the advert was out mid afternoon and the school would prefer an NQT.
I’m sure that made your colleague feel brilliant. God some heads are idiots.

We have, and have had all night, gale force winds. Supposed to continue all day. That’ll keep everyone settled then...

Beachhuts90 · 11/03/2021 06:34

We have, and have had all night, gale force winds. Supposed to continue all day. That’ll keep everyone settled then..

Same. I am really ready for some nicer weather. Tuesday was lovely, I'd like some more of that!

SansaSnark · 11/03/2021 06:52

Testing going smoothly, started teaching yesterday, my y10s who are often a nightmare were pretty good, tried hard, did their best, weren't even that chatty.

With my y11s, a significant minority of the class very much gave me a "can't be arsed" vibe. A couple of girls also queried having been put in for the foundation tier (having done 0 work over lockdown and having been warned this would be the case). I told them I would happily discuss it at 3pm. Of course at 3, they weren't seen for dust.

Piggywaspushed · 11/03/2021 06:53

This is the first day we have all students back in and it is blowing a gale. Of course it is. Ideal for trying to persuade them outdoors at break. Ideal for movement between lessons. Ideal for behaviour. ideal for open windows!

It's the perfect combination!

Appuskidu · 11/03/2021 07:02

At UPS3, it worries me that some head is going to find me an expensive pain in the arse at 45/50/60/65 and think it’s time for me to go, but I’ll need to keep working till I’m 67 Sad. What then?

motherrunner · 11/03/2021 07:07

@Appuskidu

At UPS3, it worries me that some head is going to find me an expensive pain in the arse at 45/50/60/65 and think it’s time for me to go, but I’ll need to keep working till I’m 67 Sad. What then?
This is why I choose my battles, so, so what that our bins for the used tests and PPE are uncovered? I just keep processing and smiling (and whine on MN).
MsAwesomeDragon · 11/03/2021 07:29

@Appuskidu

At UPS3, it worries me that some head is going to find me an expensive pain in the arse at 45/50/60/65 and think it’s time for me to go, but I’ll need to keep working till I’m 67 Sad. What then?
Me too. I'm in my 40s now, and on ups3. And I'm standing my ground and telling people when things aren't right (nicely, but I wouldn't have raised my head at all when younger). So I'm definitely expensive, and becoming more of a pain in the arse. I'm still decades away from being able to retire though. Of course, teaching maths means I'm relatively safe, because finding new maths teachers is difficult, so they want to keep anyone half decent (I'm more than half decent even if I do say so myself). Almost all of my department are now on ups, as we're all pretty experienced. There's only one who is still on mps, and she's the youngest having "only" been teaching 4 years
TheHoneyBadger · 11/03/2021 07:49

Morning. Blowing a gale here too.

I'm staying in my bed for now. I have planning and marking to do for tomorrow but it can wait a couple of hours.

TheHoneyBadger · 11/03/2021 13:20

Have done some planning and made resources ready for a print-a-thon tomorrow but can't bring myself to mark.

My planner has my groups and what I'm doing marked in for a few weeks so I feel like I have some grasp of what I'm doing. Yesterday I felt useless - a video clip was really loud and I just sat there flapping having briefly forgotten where the amp was and how to turn it down.

Thinking about it I had been away from normal classroom teaching and logistics for longer than I would have been in September usually. Obviously I've been in for kw/v kids but not proper teaching.

Still really tired. No idea why as I only directly taught two lessons yesterday.

DreamingofBrie · 11/03/2021 13:57

Hi everyone,

I've been quiet but reading with interest. Very much enjoying having my day off with the cat. He has been a bit bewildered this week at where everyone has disappeared to.

It's blowing a gale here as well today and last night - quite scary actually!

I'm enjoying being back, if I'm honest. Nothing much seems to have changed except for masks in lessons, but it's so good to see colleagues and the pupils. Keeping an eye out for my own dc, I'm a bit worried about one of them, who seems to have a ball of anxiety in his stomach at the moment. Only a few weeks to go until we break for Easter. I feel as if February half term completely passed me by, so I'm aiming to have a proper rest during the holiday. We had rebooked a holiday in Europe from last Easter, which has now been postponed again, so nothing much planned except for lie ins and lots of flexibility during the day.

HarrietDVane · 11/03/2021 14:08

Home early as my bubble has burst and I have to self-isolate. Annoyingly, I needed to go to the supermarket tonight and now I can't, so it will be bizarre freezer meals until DH can get there at the weekend. It's weird being home in the day Grin

DreamingofBrie · 11/03/2021 14:30

Oh no, Harriet. That didn't take long, did it?

HarrietDVane · 11/03/2021 15:23

Nope! Three bubbles went in my school today. We are only 4 days in so I wonder whether the cases even stemmed from school. Goodness knows what next week will bring.

HarveySchlumpfenburger · 11/03/2021 15:29

Oh no,Harriet. Gutting.

HarveySchlumpfenburger · 11/03/2021 15:33

Couple of local primaries lost key worker bubbles over the weekend. I’d guess a lot aren’t stemming from schools at the moment but I guess that’s the risk with not leaving it a couple of weeks.

HarveySchlumpfenburger · 11/03/2021 15:36

I’ve timed this really wrong on the bus. It’s full of kids and I see what you mean about behaviour.

RandomGrammarPun · 11/03/2021 15:56

Oh no, Harriet!

Piggywaspushed · 11/03/2021 16:04

Oh no, harriet. Bummer.

DH's schol closed a week early before Christmas. His head told the staff today that they had over 100 cases reported to them in that week, mainly older students.

HarveySchlumpfenburger · 11/03/2021 16:40

Are you in an area that had a high proportion of the Kent variant before Christmas piggy?

Piggywaspushed · 11/03/2021 16:53

Yes but not like one of the famous ones!

It was high before tbh. Generally always been top 30.

TheLuckiest · 11/03/2021 16:55

Blimey Harriet!! That was quick.
What a ball ache.

WhenSheWasBad · 11/03/2021 17:03

Wow bubbles popping already. Bad luck harriet

Piggywaspushed · 11/03/2021 17:13

Not related for once to teaching but look what my beloved MP is up to now:

twitter.com/MyGineration/status/1369958952096702464