I must confess I've been feeling a bit meh this week after my attendance meeting. Now I know I'm not going to be back at school again it feels more final. I've been messaging with some of my colleagues and I'm really disheartened to find out that nothing has changed. My class is still challenging despite full time SLA support and the acting Depute taking groups of kids out daily hasn't made a difference. No input from any specialist support services either. The teacher covering my class now only has 14 kids in the room and he sends the 2 main culprits to other classrooms daily. So he has 12 kids with an SLA full time. Big fat MEH!!! 😠
So I've been outside in my garden and on the plot thanks to a run of consistent good weather. Every single time I go outside I pull a few weeds or dead head a plant. No wonder retired folk have lovely gardens!!! 😂
I finally built the potting bench my Lovely Mum got me for my birthday last year. I just didn't have the oomph to do it last year. I've added the above pic to show you what it should look like with 2 wee drawers underneath the top 😂
The wee drawers just wouldn't fit together!!! So I put the support planks on the front instead 😂 Looks fine to me!! I'll stain it blue as I'll be getting some Cuprinol for the raised beds at the front of the house. My plan is to have lots of plants on it so it's really colourful! 🌸🌻🌺
I bought 2 more folding festival type chairs and created a wee colourful seating area. Much cheaper than buying a garden bench! I'll ask folk to bring their own chairs if they want to sit down.
I also put together my new garden hose. It was rather fiddly and the instructions were useless so I found a video online and that made it much easier. I had to cut a bit of the hose off and unscrew various bits to feed the hose through. None of that was on the leaflet that came with it. It's a Hazelock so it's a decent brand but at £39.97 it's their most basic version so I guess building it yourself is the price you pay!
I was in the mood for baking so made some GF cinnamon buns! Recipe HERE. It's the most complex recipe I've followed for a long time. They're fluffy and light but way too sweet for me. I shouldn't have added the icing. My teeth were on edge!! But it was fun trying something new and I enjoyed playing with yeast! Plus I had all the ingredients in my store cupboard 😊
Had the same problem when I bought a hose on a stand thing similar to yours - thought it would be simple but it made no sense - luckily eldest daughter was staying and sorted it all out.
ReplyDeleteYou must be so glad you don't need to think about school anymore
I am glad I don't need to think about it but also sad that nothing changes. If only the parents knew what was going on and complained as they're the ones with the power.
DeleteBuilding the Aldi bench was not fun last year and we did two! This year one of those drawers needs mending. When I left teaching it took me a while to get over it all. Years ago, one of my classes were a nightmare. All but 3 had additional needs most had behaviour issues too. I battled on til the end of the year and then found a new job. They were the reception class. I later learnt that every one of their teachers from year 1 to 4 had to take a block of sick leave... stress.
ReplyDeleteYep, this cohort of kids are going to be difficult all the way through school. Every year they'll get split up to avoid the personality clashes. But in the end they're all stuck with each other until high school and their poor teachers will be run ragged trying to keep discipline
DeleteI can understand why you feel a bit meh after your interview as your career in a role you once loved has been cut short. You are doing the right thing spending as much time as possible outside in your allotment and garden- you can use all the nurturing feelings on the plants that you once gave to your pupils. The staff who are being lumbered with the pupils who are disruptive need to say a firm NO and send them back. I don’t know what the solution is to the current crisis in education but sadly constant interference from Government and Local Authority, combined with an appalling lack of support from them is making working in schools a nightmare. Love your chairs-I think we have some similar ones. I hope you will feel more like a retired person come August when the schools go back and you are no longer on sick leave. Catriona
ReplyDeleteBasically it all comes down to money. To save money, councils have closed the old 'special schools' and behaviour units and put kids into mainstream classes under the guise of inclusion. I do believe inclusion is a good thing but there's just no extra support for already beleaguered teachers. Out of 16 kids I had 7 on Staged Intervention plus 2 more who should be. And that's Primary 1!! With a little bit of distance from it I should have protested louder at the time but my main ally in management was absent for 6 months. But yes, definitely looking forward to August :-)
DeleteIt's easy to say 'shout for help louder' but very hard to do, especially when there's a deafening silence. I agree that SEN provision is shocking but lack of support within the school is also a dreadful state of affairs and I am more sorry than I can express for both the children and the adults involved.
ReplyDeleteHopefully the 'meh' will go soon and you will be able to start enjoying the freedom
And those chairs are fab. xx
I just wish the parents in my school were more vocal about the right things. Instead of complaining that their child didn't get to eat all of their 3 snacks at play time (true story!) they could complain that their child is hearing foul language and seeing outrageous behaviour in their classroom every single day!!!
DeleteThey're just cheapie chairs. I didn't want to spend a lot of money on garden furniture as don't know yet if I'll be able to move to a house with a garden next year :-) xxx