And now the end is near and so I face life as a teacher……..

This last three months of working my notice has been tough. The NHS is a very difficult place to work at the best of times but when you are exhausted and physically in pain, with the excitement of a new challenge awaiting, 12 weeks can feel like a lifetime.

There are many characters within any institution, but I think I have found one manager who has the answer to all public sector problems, NHS, education, brexit

Marie Antoinette: The new manager – who only seems to use buzz words and cliches when in meetings but never actually says anything other than ‘ let’s have cake’ the implication that eating cake, together as a group will solve all problems (waiting list breaches, Staff shortages, upcoming mergers and job reassignment). I for one, get very frustrated that as a professional woman who takes my job, colleagues and health seriously, the implication that a sugary treat with solve world peace is a bit of a joke.

Rant over

So I have heard this week that going forward the QTS skills test is being scrapped!!!!

WHAT!!! I feel a little cheated.

I worked hard to pass mine and feel that it is a right of passage to getting my QTS.

I know we are in a recruiting crisis but we should still keep the basic standards and literacy and numeracy.

I do agree that the numeracy exam is tough but surely one skill we need as teachers is to think on our feet.

I’d be interested in others views on this

🤔

I have spent the last few weeks taking a look through my summer reading list, finding social media resources and signing up to various websites to help with my journey and hopefully make my training a little easier.

I have firstly signed up to TES (its magazine and its resources website) and with this a weekly magazine pops through my letterbox. This may seem a little tragic but this little piece of education arriving on my doorstep has helped me get through the final weeks of my notice. It has motivated me and has felt as though I have still been in contact with the education world whilst waiting to start.

Secondly apps!!! I’m not really tech savvy but I have found these to be a great help. They helped me plan my interview lesson and I have done some revision with my own Year 10 children using them. Twinkl is a good UK version.

Websites – well where do I start !!! This is a big one for me and I will do a separate blog listing which I have signed up too not only for teaching but also for science (WARNING, there are a few) Here are my favourite: RSB (royal society of biology); Teachitscience.co.uk ; cultofpedagogy.com; AQA; Teachwire are to name but a few.

Twitter, instagram and Facebook have many many teachers who are more than happy to share their knowledge and expertise. It’s like having a million mentors and advisors 24hrs a day. Please beware not everyone is happy smiley (it is social media after all) but sometimes to know that others have similar questions or anxieties, does help.

Hope this helps a little, and remember technology can be your friend.

Teacher planner

I have always loved lists!! Maybe deep down I have always been destined to be a teacher.

Planners, notebooks and stationery get me a little bit excited 😜. So after a little research and whilst watching one of my favourite YouTube motivational subscriptions (‘for teachers’, I’ll talk more about them in another blog), I came across a little lady from Leeds (my home town) called ‘The Positive Teacher Company’. She has been a teacher for many years and using her experience has create something kinda special. Pop along to her site and take a look.

There are so many planners and note books on the market and it was difficult to choose when you have no idea what to expect, so the fact that this is recommended by so many people and is geared towards the UK school year made this it an easy choice.

I’ve had an email to say that it has been shipped and as soon as it arrives I will post some pictures and give you a small review.

Can’t wait Mr Postman!!!!

Once I started to seriously think about a career change into teaching, my first thought was to try primary school teaching as the one thing that scared the life out of me was secondary schools, well more so teenagers, groups of teenagers!!!!

Yes I have 2 teenagers of my own that are great. They can hold a conversation and don’t get too moody, and on occasions have been known to be good company 😂

But I believe my fear has been bred from the media, they paint a horrendous picture of our young people and to my shame I had been sucked in. They tell of how schools are violent places, with constant acts of abuse both verbal and physical against teachers and each other.

With this in mind I spent the day in a primary school with a group of year 6’s. Well you know that feeling when you know you have made a horrible mistake, that was me.

I left at the end of the day feeling very low and was ready to put the whole teaching thing behind me.

My other half sat with me and we talked about what I really loved and it’s science but I had already written off teaching in secondary schools due to the misguided view I held.

I contacted my local SCITT whom I had met previously at a teaching event and had a chat about spending the day in a local secondary school to ‘test the water’.

I was so nervous heading in but that soon disappeared once I met the team. I was spending the day in the science department, following the biology teachers and observing a class in each year group.

All I can say is to spend the day laughing and talking about science (something I love) was and is my idea of a heaven.

I was encouraged to join in and help out in every class and my preconceptions were soon blown out of the water.

My mind was made up, Secondary science was for me and today’s young people are intelligent and fun.

I am 8 weeks into a 12 week notice period and as much as I still enjoy my job, it’s getting harder and harder to stay motivated. I am soooo excited about starting my ITT and just want to read and prepare and watch @for teachers and other vlogs to get the best advice.

So with this in mind and my teenagers having just finished mock exams, we decided to take a family break during half term, and ended up in a little holiday park on a lake.

Today I tried my hand at windsurfing and after a shaky start (literally), I could stand. But at that precise moment the wind dropped! We thought that was it and would have to call it a day, when a sudden gust took me by surprise and carried me across to the other side of the lake (without falling in!!!) Wow, I felt like I was travelling so fast and the wind felt so powerful but my only problem was getting back. We had been taught how to turn but the wind dropped again and I was left doing a ‘self rescue’, which is basically kneeling on the board and paddling with my arms. Luckily for me I managed to sweet talk a lift back to my instructor on a speed boat, which was much more fun!!

I love trying new things but I won’t be making a bid to join the World Series and will stick to a career in teaching for now, but who knows!!! I will certainly be using this in my lessons. #lifelonglearner

So after much searching on the internet including the likes of amazon, it’s safe to say I was more than confused by the choices of planners on the market. Luckily for me, after watching a vlog from ‘for teachers ‘ about what your mentor will be on the lookout for during your placement.I came across a little pop up recommendation for ‘the positive teacher company’, this is a lady from my home town of Leeds who after years of teacher and based on her experiences as a mentor, has developed the most beautiful teacher planners and other accessories.

What caught my eye was the trainer teacher planner and after waiting very patiently, well 4 days actually but in the instant world we live in (that was a lifetime for me😂), it arrived.

The first thing I noticed was the amazing statement stuck to the front of the fully recyclable packing, this lived up to the company name and made me feel a bit warm and fuzzy, as well as excited to be joining the amazing group of people who teach and motivate people on a daily basis.

After ripping open my package the first thing I saw was a personal message telling me ‘good luck with your training ‘. Wow, now that brought a smile to my face.

This was followed by an A4 ring bound book type planner. It is a beautiful floral pattern which reminds me of joules and will certainly brighten the most difficult of days.

Once I start using it in September I will let you know my thoughts, but for now I just love looking at it, in pride of place on my desk.

I could not have gone through the process of applying for my teacher training without the website ‘getintoteaching.education.gov.uk

They have a step by step guide and when you register you have your own check list, they provide all the links and some webinars to help you along the way.

So I decided to pop along to the local get into teaching event and find out more. At this point I thought I wanted to try primary teaching and so made a beeline for one of the primary school stands for a chat. As I walked towards them an older lady introduced herself to me.

That was the best part of the conversation!!!!

It kind of went down hill from there…….. Why on earth would you put someone who quite obviously didn’t want to be there or didn’t like teaching anymore, as a contact for people who were going to use this experience to make the leap into teaching.

She asked me a few questions, and we talked about my work in the NHS and the qualifications I had but she tried to make me feel inferior, saying that although i may have ‘this and that’ it didn’t mean I would pass the QTS skills test!!! And asked what i knew about ‘Box and whiskers’. At this point my moral support who had gone with me made a joke about cats (which didn’t go down well) and walked away. After that she seemed to use me as a kinda sound board/career adviser for her son who was about to apply for medical school. I made my excuses and walked away.

At this point I was feeling very deflated and wanted to walk out and give up. But on the way out 2 very nice guys approached me and asked if i would like to have a look at what they had to offer. These guys were part of the Teacheast SCITT and unbeknown to me were to be my lifeline.

OMG!!! it was fate, they were enthusiastic, they listened to me and helped me see the different routes I could take and even better made me feel like I had something to offer. It was a no brainer I took there contact details and left feeling excited.

Thanks for joining me!

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton