The Forty Fifth Republic - Can I get a hair appointment before the summer term starts?

[StaffRepFeistyClub]

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

My goddaughters LOVE LOVE LOVE the outdoors but are addicted to barbie/ some strange mermaid thing / anything they can get on Netflix or on their kindle fire. It's hypnotic stuff.

Is it Mako Mermaids? That's coming round in popularity again haha.

I'm also amazed at how little oversight some parents have with their kids and the internet. I am 30, we got the internet at home when I was 13, but only connected by a cord so I could only go online in the living room in full view of my parents. In fact my parents would do random checks when I was on the computer to see what I was doing, which was in line with what my friends' parents did. iPhones etc weren't really popular with people I knew until uni. I'm glad I didn't have a device on me to go online all the time. There was definitely cyber bullying amongst some of the people I knew, although I wasn't involved on either end of it, and I wouldn't want that to follow kids right into their rooms all the time, you know?

I think parents generally didn’t have smartphones at that age ourselves so we don’t have any ‘rules’ as structure if that makes sense. Also then kids say everyone else has one. Add into that parents often aren’t aware/don’t understand parental controls and it’s a big mess.

Ah yes Mako Mermaids is def a thing too.

All the boyfriend/girlfriend stuff and bullshit about Barbies being mean to each other etc, is a bit too advanced in my opinion.

It's either that or Ladybug and Cat Noir. Child likes to think she's some sort of ninja, and genuinely opens conversations with children in the park with "I like fighting".

She doesn't like fighting. She cried when her cousin called her a bum cheek last week. We've had to tell her that most adults don't go around yelling at each other and fighting.

She sounds pretty darn ninja, Rule

Mako mermaids is referred to as manky mermaids in our house - utter tosh

Ah I sigh for the days of Ladybug!

Dear Diary. I am a ninja.

Written on Disney princess 'secret diary' paper.

@RuleWithAWoodenFoot Absolutely love that!

Today DS created a ‘secret notes’ box out of Lego. Inside are post it’s with lyrics from various Queen songs (we watched ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ last week).

Loving the secret boxes and diary ninjas.

We went to the library today as you can finally choose your own books. The maximum number of people allowed in a room twice the size of our classrooms is 7

Still only one person allowed in our pharmacy at a time - twice as big as my classroom.

I will not stop moaning about this

The pharmacy in our village is ok, but the one in the nearest town questioned whether I really needed to be bringing the 2yo in with me earlier this week. I refrained from asking them where precisely they think I should have left her.

Must admit the numbers to go I to ships seem random, some allowing 4 being huge yet those allowing more being smaller not sure how it's worked out.

Currently very excited about haircut tomorrow and seeing my mum for first time since Aug on Fri!

I've had my hair done, hurrah!! Feel v swishy and ladylike now. No more greys for a bit. Thank god. Was beginning to look a bit like Cruella de Ville 🙈

I also had a surreal experience at the library today, compulsory hand gel, screens, masks, anxious looks, scanned my card on entry...happily I found two new books by authors I enjoy, they’ve clearly got new stock in over lockdown. (Books in question are by no means improving literature but fast paced American thrillers, I’m ashamed to say.)

Dd2 is watching ladybug and cat noir again, I think it's quite popular again for some reason. She also watches an insane amount of YouTube, of channels we have pre approved as being relatively age appropriate (utter tosh, but child friendly tosh, mostly people playing Roblox). She's had a tablet since she was 3 , but it was very, very strictly regulated until about age 9. She does now have a smartphone as well, but I do random spot checks on what she's been up to, and it's always very innocent on her end. She also asks for help if she sees anyone doing anything she doesn't like (swearing and being a bit mean to her friends).

I haven't been out shopping yet, other than a garden centre which was open anyway (this gardening thing is quite expensive!!). I did have to go to the vets, where 3 people were allowed in the waiting room which is not quite as big as my classroom but almost.

I love fast paced American thrillers.

I liked Ladybug and Cat Noir, now it's endless Teen Titans.

My kids have had tablets since probably they were 2-3 so their position in the job market is assured. We are not an outdoorsy family!

Teen Titans here too.

I look like a badger - so streaky, dark, blonde, grey, white. Roll on Friday.

Ahh nice to hear about sweet little ones. I on the other hand am mother of a 14 yo who is subject to a school investigation into an incident involving a member of site staff being hit in the back of the head with a moam ball

Ds got an iphone halfway through the first term of secondary when I relented on agreement he pay for it himself because it was an unnecessary amount to spend imo. I helped him sell a load of old lego (we got crazy money from that) and his old ds and games etc plus he had a bit of birthday money left and could afford a refurbished iphone. I am that mean parent.

DD is 4 (and a half) and I hate the vapid Barbie shite she is drawn to. I miss Duggee and Puffin Rock. Now it's all Glitter Force and other bollocks. It's a good day when I can convince her to watch My Little Pony instead.

I wish you get the apps to filter out anything with 'teen' or 'high' in the title. That would help massively. Or just block vapid bollocks.

My son likes these Japanese videos with Anna and Elsa dolls having a bath. It's bonkers but he loves it and he's 4. I got a tablet during lockdown and he used it quite a lot in full lockdown so we could work etc. Now he gets 30 mins 3 times a week and that has to be earned!

My kids have had tablets since probably they were 2-3 so their position in the job market is assured. We are not an outdoorsy family! Dd1 didn't have a tablet at that age but that's only because she's too old for tablets to have been a thing then. She did get a game boy at 5. Dd2 got a tablet for Christmas when she was 3, but obviously at that age I was always in charge of which apps she had. We used it mostly for bedtime meditations (she's never been a good sleeper, and these helped) and audiobooks. My family is not outdoorsy either. I love the outdoors, but have yet to persuade any of the rest of them that they would like to join me.

Oh if you’re in the market for My Little Pony (and even if you’re not) then episodes 1 and 2 of season 5 are the most extraordinary piece of political propaganda masquerading as children’s programming I’ve ever seen.

In fact, if you’re teaching Animal Farm it would be a good thing to compare (all animals are equal...except the one in charge of course). Skip to 5 minutes in.

www.dailymotion.com/video/x6gsq4z

Oh, I remember that one, it's full on propaganda!! I think back fondly on the days when my house was overrun with my little ponies. We had them all!!! Dd2 was simply obsessed for about 3 years, it was all she would play, all she would watch, and she had my little pony novels which got her reading more independently.