Routemasters and Other Things...

 

Things have been  'mid-term' chaotic here -

 

400 effort grades and levels to do...

130 Year 8 reports to write...

Endless coursework to mark (to the rigorous detail of a new specification)..

The final weeks before a school show (in which I'm playing the piano almost continuously for hours every evening)...

AND Ofsted are now 7 TERMS overdue..!!!

 

Then....

My Mother-in-Law came to stay for three days at the end of last week to celebrate her 70th Birthday..

and Mark's been really ill (but is fine now)

 

So it's the little things that are making me smile...

like my husband's deeply eccentric ways of showing affection.

At the end of last week I was moaning that our lunatic schedule of commitments was making it impossible to get any real exercise.

"If I keep on like this, " I moaned "I'll be like the back end of a bus!"

"Never mind," said my husband supportively "You're my cute little Routemaster!!!!!"

 

It's a good thing I share his sense of humour!!!

Jx

Fabulous Free Functions....

I love the way digital photography and the internet make such fantastic partners.  Recently I have become a complete 'PicMonkey' addict.  I find it incredible how much I can do with the free on-line functions.   I've had hours of harmless fun creating retro-style posters with the 'Posterise' effect!  Here's the process that I used to create my latest header...

 

I started with a view of a stile, taken on a walk above Crickhowell (in the Brecon Beacons) last April.

 

 

This is the 'Posterised' version - plus text...

 

 

I then started to add other effects - to give a rather more vintage feel.

This version ended up looking suitably sepia, but way too over-exposed..

 

And this is the finished item - hopefully looking just like the front cover

of a Bartholomew Map from the 1920s or 30s..

 

I can confirm that cars 'posterise' nicely - but people end up looking a little demonic!

 

For some-one who used to spend a ridiculous amount of money on one hour development of 24 exposure films, I can't help delighting in all this wondeful FREE stuff!

 

Also -all my lovely Year 11s left today - Sob!!!

This is my 24th summer of saying goodbye and I still can't prevent a bit of a cry for the ones that went the extra mile and made me proud.

What a softie!!!!

What a Day!

Much as I love my job, I never seem to sleep that well the night before term starts.  I'm not exactly stressing about things but frequently I find that I just CAN'T sleep.  Last night was no exception - the more I talked to myself calmly about the fact that I had to get out of bed at 5.45; had to drive myself round the Motorway; had a meeting before school, and a full teaching day and two meetings after school, AND that my Mum was coming for tea.... - the more sleep eluded me!

I was, shall we say, not exactly at my sparkling best.....

Having said that, after two and half weeks holiday, the kids weren't that great either...

Today I really needed something to happen that would make me feel good about my job... and it did!

At the beginning of the third teaching period the charming young man on the right walked walked into my classroom!   He's a former pupil, now signed with a major record company in the US and touring all around the world.  His band (which play very hard British Metalcore) are really making a name for themselves.  He gets in touch every six months or so to keep me up to date with their progress.  The presence of a real 'Rock Star' in the classroom was just the thing to get my 13 year olds motivated.  To be honest, seeing the next stage of his success was just the thing to get me a bit more motivated again too!

I thought about putting a Youtube video in this post - but Metalcore is a VERY acquired taste.  If you're interested the band is called 'Oceans Ate Alaska' and my pupil is the drummer.  This style of music is completely built around incredibly complex drumming patterns and my pupil writes most of the songs. 

He'd actually come into school to give me a copy of their latest album.. how sweet is that!!!! I got him to sign it.  If they really make the big time then it could supplement my pension!!!!!!!

My line manager is also a very proud Dad today - one of his daughters is playing an acoustic stage at Glastonbury.  What a nice way to start the term.

I am gleeful....!

It's fair to say that this particular teacher - even though she loves her job - loves an unexpected off as much as the next kid!

The heating has been shut down due to a gas leak.  As a result - NO SCHOOL!  Woop, woop!!

Sadly the decision to close the school was taken after I'd started the commute with Mark.  As a result I had to take him to work, then drive the 30-odd miles back home again.  This afternoon I'll have to drive back over there to get him.  Expensive and time consuming - but there's nothing else I could do really.

So what am I going to do with my unexpected day of freedom...

• I went to my parent's house and had a second breakfast with them.
• I've caught up on all your news.
• I'm going to do some paperwork that would otherwise hang over into the 'holidays' - probably some Year 9 reports.
• I'm going to finished reading this months 'Handmade with Love' and spend some time on the internet seeing if I can source the 'Washi Tape' that they're raving about.
• I'm going to do some more work on my 'Spring Flowers'-themed crochet project.
• I'm going to select photos to go in a collage for the back bedroom. (A job I've been putting off but now needs to be done - my M-i-L is arriving on Saturday and she bought me the frame for Christmas!!!)
• I'm going to finish sorting the Easter eggs and presents for next weekend - probably on the way out this afternoon.

Sounds like a plan...!  My only worry is that this closure may last longer.  Basically we were only doing a three day week anyway and I had epic amounts of Btec paperwork to do in a fairly short space of time.  I also intended to go into school on Thursday, just to keep up and get ahead a little for the summer term (when Ofsted WILL land). 

Mark has suggested that - should the school be closed for longer - we go and collect all these folders on the way home tonight.  I don't think he realises the scale of the problem.  All the coursework from 62 candidates is more than a couple of carrier bags!!!!

Oh well - I think I'm just going to have stop being such a control freak and 'chill and enjoy' for the moment.  What will be, will be....!

You couldn't make it up..

I have just come home from the set of 'Waterloo Road'!  (For any non-UK readers, this is a secondary school based TV soap with the usual daft story-lines).  I wish I could tell you all the gory details but - for professional reasons - I've got to be a bit careful.

So... here are the edited high-lights.

A member of staff has been making wild e-mail allegations about a piece of blu tac and her handbag.

Many staff are refusing to talk to each other.  One member of staff has been hiding most of the day in my classroom.

Some-one actually walked out of school and is talking about refusing to come back.

As a sub-plot another member of staff has completely alienated their area of the faculty through a sequence of highly inappropriate comments.

Music seems to be the only area where any sense of sanity reigns....  Although it has to be said that we DID briefly consider making a few small blu tac figures and placing them outside the office of the offended member of staff.  (Common sense has prevailed since then and we're keeping our distance.)

More seriously, a Year 11 class have rebelled and my boss is being 'hauled over the coals'.  I'm just waiting for the cameras to start rolling.  You really couldn't make this story up!

Two more days to half-term.........!

Busy Times..

It's been a pretty 'full-on' week so far.  There was a concert on Monday night then a Parent's Evening on Tuesday to help the Year 8 pupils (and their parents) through the options process.

I was especially chuffed with Monday's concert.  I decided to try a slightly different approach and we had a 'New Music Evening'.  All the songs and pieces were written by pupils and 'premiered' to their family and friends.  There were 80 pupils involved (in various vocal groups, bands and soloists) and around 200 people came along to listen.  The atmosphere was great.  The songs were in a huge range of styles - anything from Music Theatre though Folk and Acoustic pieces to Rock. 

Last night was really busy too.  The current Year 8 are a very musical bunch and they are very keen to take my subject as an examination course for the next three years.  I was talking for three solid hours - repeating my little talk over and over as new families arrived in front of my display!  When it came to the end of the evening my colleagues in Drama and Dance had packed up and left and I was STILL talking.....!

I gave myself a little treat today and actually drove out of school 10 minutes after the bell.  I actually needed to get to the Post Office to get some passport photos.  My old passport runs out this year and I need to get the application in for the new one urgently.  I have plans to go and see my best friend, who lives in Geneva, at Easter so things have got to be sorted.  It's the first time I've used one of the new digital 'Photo-Me' booths.  The photo is NOT flattering!!!!!!

Crochet, cooking and a bit of red wine this evening, I think...

In praise of 'snow days'!

I've been really ill with flu since early last week.  On Thursday morning my breathing problems were so bad that we ended up at the emergency out of hours surgery at the hospital.  I haven't been able to keep food down and I have lost 7 lbs in weight since Tuesday evening.  I seem to have lost a few days of my life somewhere. 

I'm on the mend now.  The antibiotics have kicked in and the blinding headache has eased.  I still feel weak because my body doesn't really want to eat but I have stopped any more weight loss. 

My school isn't especially nice to people who have time off for ill health.  You probably know how it is... Nothing is said exactly - but there's a definite atmosphere that you've 'let the side down'; 'could have come really'; 'I had your bad cold and came in..' etc  As a result I was planning on dragging myself in today.

Divine intervention has come in the form of a 'snow day'.   My school is closed to all pupils and staff - it says so on the website!  Never has a snow day been so welcome.....

Normal posts will resume once I've started doing something other than sleep!   Stay warm and safe (or cool and safe - if you are reading this from the Southern Hemisphere).  Jx

We Will Remember Them

I just wanted to share a few photos from Tuesday's concert. Each year I set my new Year 9 classes the task to create a performance around the theme of 'Armistice Day'. I challenge them to maintain the core spirit of remembrance while creating a 'son et lumiere' of images and contemporary songs. This year I have a really thoughtful and reflective group and it was a particularly moving performance.

Some of the girls performed their own setting of 'In Flanders Fields'

 

 

The boys reflected on the way greed can fuel conflict.

This is M. singing 'I need a Dollar' in front of a video sequence he had compiled..

 

They decided to create a timeline of 20th century conflict.

This is a section where they reflected on the conflicts of the 1950s and 1960s..

 

And at the beginning and end of the performance F. played the Last Post beautifully.

 

I don't think there was a dry eye in the house.

 

I was imensely proud of them.

 





I want to hide..

Normally I'm a bit of a 'Pollyanna'..

I try terribly hard to focus on the good things in life

and remain up-beat about the things that are getting me down..

 

 

The last few days have been a little more like this..

My school has been found liable in a Health and Safety court case..

Our Head now faces a civil action..

My Managers are pre-occupied and giving contradictory guidance...

Ofsted is looming...

Marking is mounting up...

My colleague is on Maternity Leave for another five months

Her replacement is getting very flakey...

There a performance tomorrow night..

Another performance next Tuesday..

AND my Mum's Huntington's Disease has made one of its sudden jumps for the worse.

 

 

I want to hide behind a very large teddy bear and never come out again..

 

Fortunately my pupils are still lovely and the teaching remains fab.

Things I can influence are fine...

 

I just need to find the mental equilibrium to handle the things that are buffeting me...

The Greens and Golds of Early Autumn

My next door neighbours' tree has inspired this post.  It's always gorgeous at this time of the year.  I'm hoping that it will survive the horrible weather that is due to start tomorrow.

 

 

Today's walk took us past this mass of orange berries.

 

I also spotted all this bright green young mistletoe..

 

At the junction of several lanes the leaves on one tree have turned faster than the others..

 

While there were many beautiful trees by the canal...

 

It's been a real bonus to have such decent weather for a whole weekend.  I've pottered around - buying more wool, doing a food shop and a couple of hours of school work.  Mark has spent the whole weekend outside - clearing a tree from the back garden (that had got way too big and unhealthy) and tidying up his garage and shed.

 

This week kicks off with a long day tomorrow.  My Year 11 Diploma students are putting on a Solo Recital Evening.  They've each got to stand up and perform four pieces, back to back.  To make it even more demanding, they also have to chat to their audience as they instroduce each piece.  It's one of those evenings where I know I'll get completely wrapped up in their performances and will be exhausted by sympathetic stress!

 

On the subject of stress - I had a very good conversation with the Deputy Headteacher last week which left me feeling a bit more re-assured about the whole situation at work.  I still don't trust any of them, but I do feel as if they took account of my feelings in the recent upset.  At this stage I don't really think I can ask for more.

 

Wishing you all a good week.

Catching up..

Here's a few pictures of my baskets and pots at the back of the house. I'm really pleased with them this time. Normally the plants look weak and feeble - this year they are surprisingly happy and strong. I suspect that the fairly constant rain has something to do with their success!

Thank you to everyone who left lovely and supportive comments on my last post.  I read everything that you wrote several times and it helped me immensely (especially when members of my family were being less kind!).  After a few days of uncertainty and roller-coaster emotions, Mark's consultant has now decided that he wants to hold back for a little before the next operation.  His rationale is that he wants Mark's face to heal as much as possible.   It's difficult because Mark had talked himself into the correct mindset for having the next operation.  Uncertainty is suprisingly exhausting!

The end of term is grinding on....  Year 8 are performing the outcomes of their Tribute Band project for the next two mornings (6 hours of live Music in two lots of three-hour sessions).  There are approaching 80 Bands/Vocal groups from the whole year group.  Every child gets up on stage and performs.  It's rather crazy - but a lovely way to end the course.  Confident pupils will work with backing tracks or live music, while less experienced pupils sing/play along with the full version of the song.  The focus is on developing performance experience plus all the personal organisation that comes with the rehearsal process.  I tend to be completely mangled by sympathetic nerves!

Friday is the day that all the 'nice' Year 7s, Year 8s and Year 9s are shipped off to the West Midland Safari Park, Drayton Manor and Alton Towers.  I normally go to Alton Towers but this year I've elected to stay at school - largely because my foot is still uncomfortable and not great at walking distances.  I've yet to find out what I'll be doing with the 'interesting' characters that have been left behind.  At least I'll be able to make a quick getaway at the end of the day.  For the first time in a very long time, Mark and I are going away for the weekend.  We are REALLY excited....!

Term ends on the 20th July... "So near and yet so far...."!

Role Reversal

Back in May one of my Year 11 boys asked me if I would drive a group of them to the Prom in the school minibus.  I was really amused by the idea that they wanted to be so 'anti-establishment' so I agreed to help out.  I decided to surprise them on the evening by dressing as a Year 11 Prefect (a special tie and badges).  I also amused myself by wearing my uniform as incorrectly as possible (shirt tales out, buttons undone and blazer sleeves rolled up).  As it got closer to the time I wondered if I'd really done the sensible thing.  I started to panic that wearing school uniform was a step too far and that the senior teachers would have a sense of humour bypass...  I needn't have worried.  The evening went really well and the senior teachers were just amused by my uniform prank.

Here I am with some of the boys by the minibus.  I. - the tall lad, second from right - had the original idea of going to the Prom in an old LDV!  All of these boys have studied Btec Music with me over the last three years.  They are great characters and I miss them...

The whole group on I.'s drive.  They look really self-conscious in their brand new suits!  A couple decided to go for the fancy dress option...

Here we are outside the Botanical Gardens in central Birmingham.  My school has used this venue for a few years and it seems to work really well.

Here I am with another of my lovely Music students - A.  Normally she is quite a 'tomboy' but this evening she looks beautiful and glamorous.

Here are a couple more of my Music girls.  The girl on the right was also in my form.  She is a lovely, kind-hearted chatter-box and form time is really quiet without her....

The boys gave me a bunch of flowers and some wine to say 'thank you'.  The roses are gorgeous -  they are clearly a special breed that will stay in this 'just open' state for several days.  Mark and I enjoyed the wine when we finally got home on Saturday night.

The whole evening was great fun.  The pupils were amazed that I could find my old Prefect, Duty Senior and 'Service to the School' badges (from the 1980s) to wear on the blazer.  I don't think they realise quite what a 'magpie' I am!

Moving On..

This is the lovely Marilyn on crutches.  Sadly I've looked decidedly less glamorous as I've hobbled round school for the last week.  There was a low point on Thursday evening when I had to hang around for four hours to play one short piano accompaniment in the Key Stage 3 Prize Evening.  There was an even lower point on Friday morning when torrential rain got the better of me somewhere between my classroom and the Head's Office.  I staggered into the meeting, apologising for looking like a bag lady...

"My Dear Jan," the Head replied smoothly.  "Bag Ladies don't wear Berghaus!"

It didn't make me feel much better... The coat in question was a present from Mark about seven years ago.  It is well-used, much loved and well on the way to being extremely scruffy.  The Head was just being polite ~ bless him!

Anyway, things are looking up in our household.  Mark went back to work today.  I also did most of today off crutches.  I have an immensely busy next few days - concerts, parent's evening, a fashion show and the Prom - so it's been a relief to be able to move around unhindered.  In all this chaos I haven't been posting much, but it's been lovely to read everyone else's news.

Departures

Welcome to my new followers - amasmi20 and Louise.  If you haven't done so already, please could you leave a little comment?  It's the only way that I seem to be able to find my way back to your blogs as my dashboard doesn't make the link.  Grrrr! 

I haven't been near my blog for a few days this week because work has been seriously busy again.  My Year 11s did their Leavers Concert on Tuesday evening.  There was a real sense of occasion as they all played together one last time.  There was a surprise item right at the end - a 'thank you' song that had been written to the Finale of Bugsy Malone.  Yesterday a group came round at lunchtime and presented me with a copy of the words in a card that they'd all signed.  They also stuck a photo of the performers from the night before on the front.  I keep things like this in a scrapbook.  It's nice to have all my school memories in one place.

This is my class (there are two Year 11 classes) in their final Music lesson this morning. You can see how excited they are about the whole 'Leavers' thing!

These are my lovely Year 11s in form.  They really liked their cards and photo frames.

Here are the whole form.  The older pupils are at the front and the younger years are stood behind them.  My classroom walls are covered with photos from all the performances and shows that we've done in the last 18 months.

There was also a Year 10 Parents Evening last night.... another late evening.  Fortunately Mark is happy to turn his hand to a little cooking and ironing, and he was doing both when I eventually got home last night.  He's a lovely man!!!

The final departure for my post today is a youtube clip that one of our friends has posted.  It shows 'The Kitten' leaving the Kit Car Show on Sunday.  It's pretty noisy, given that Mark was only driving on a light throttle!

Free.. and Really Interesting!

While we were on holiday near Crickhowell the other week we popped over the hills to visit the Blaenavon World Heritage Site.  We spent ages exploring the Ironworks.  The photo at the top shows the remains of the huge lift that moved trucks from the works to the tramway that crossed the moors.  The photo below shows Mark by the mouth of one of the huge furnaces.

My favourite part of the ironworks were the old workers cottages.  Some of them had been gutted and housed a display about the ironworks and the town.  The majority were intact and furnished as they would have been at various times since 1789.

There was mock up of the shop for the workers and a very interesting explanation of the 'truck system'.  (I'd learnt about this system of exploiting the workers when I studied O Level History but I'd completely forgotten about it since then!)

Some of the cottages had a 1930s theme.  The green doors are the 'privies'.  I started to tell Mark stories of visiting my Great-Aunt when I was a little girl.  She lived in a cramped cottage just like these in a small mill town near Mancester. 

I was just on the point of explaining about her 'kitchenette' when we walked into the next cottage and there was one right in front of us!  I just had to take a photo.  I remember that my Great-Aunt's had a small foldaway table and masses of useful storage.  It was perfect for her tiny kitchen. 

It took us about an hour and a half to read our way through the displays, listen to all the information posts around the site and walk through the cottages.   I was surprised that such a great site was completely free. 

We then walked the short distance down the hill to the World Heritage Visitor Centre. The old buildings on the right house further displays and an Art Gallery. The glass extension is a really lovely cafe.

This was the view across the valley from the cafe. The low buildings on the right are part of The Big Pit - the National Mining Museum. We spent quite a bit of time chatting to a few local people. They explained that visitors tend to come to The Big Pit but they don't tend to come down the hill and visit the rest of the site. We really enjoyed a fascinating morning.

Other news from 'Stand and Stare land'... My Lovely Pregnant Colleague had her baby at 1.30 this morning.  She's had a little boy.  Another colleague within the Arts Faculty had a baby girl last night as well - in the same hospital.  Apparently they were in next door beds!  They had joked about this happening before the event and it was amusing to hear that it actually happened.

I've got a performance with my Year 9 Btec class this evening so it's been rehearsals and keeping them all calm since lunchtime.  To be honest I feel really tired at the moment and could just curl up into a ball and sleep! I'm sure that this lack of energy comes from our ridiculous weather.  Never mind - almost the Bank Holiday weekend!

It's been a strange sort of a week...

This week has been rather emotional and challenging in several different ways...

My Lovely Pregnant Colleague has finally gone on Maternity Leave. She has decided to take the full 12 months off.  As a close friend AND half the Music Department staff she will be sorely missed.  I have been lucky enough to find a very capable Music Teacher to replace her for the year through an agency.  After a few initial reservations, I have found myself warming to her and I hope that we will develop a close working relationship as the year progresses.  Nevertheless, I have spent all my admin time this week making sure that she is OK and settling her into the department.

My timetable has changed significantly due to the Maternity Leave.  I have lost classes that I had worked hard to build relationships with, and have gained groups where I will have to do the work all over again.  It's not a disaster, but it has changed the rhythm of my weeks and significantly increased my workload.

My beloved Year 11 pupils are also coming to the end of their course.  I'm in the process of awarding their final grades (it's a Btec course so we don't have to wait until the summer) and I am immensely proud of them.  I always get emotional when the oldest pupils leave.  We always do one final 'Leavers Concert' just a few days before Study Leave starts and I sit with their proud parents and sob!

On top of this we have had difficulties with our commute.  At one stage this week I seriously thought that I would have to drive on my own every day.  This is not viable because, to be honest, we can only afford the commute when we share the lift and put the miles on a company car.  I was distraught on Monday night because I thought that I may have to look for another job.... or spend two and half hours every day in the car AND lose loads of pre and post-school admin time.

It's felt like a very long time since our lovely relaxing holiday - but most of these problems are in the process of being solved.  Mark has found a temporary solution to our commuting difficulties and I'm chipping away at the school issues.  I'm really looking forward to the weekend though!

Planning a Giveaway

Tomorrow is finally the last day of school before the Easter holidays.  My cat can't wait for a more civilised wake up time... neither can I!!!

In the meanwhile I'm in the process of planning a Giveaway to mark the 80th Post on this blog.  This is my first one and I thought that I'd share what I wanted to do before it goes 'live' in the week after Easter...

Firstly, I've decided to have a theme.  This Giveaway is called "A Little bit of Me Time".  I hope that the person who wins it will feel rested and relaxed as she (or he!) enjoys the contents of my parcel.

Secondly, I'm going to follow Anne at Marmalade and Catmint's example and double enter anyone who follows my blog before the Giveaway starts.  If you are just calling by and like the idea of pampering treats.. become a follower NOW!

I will post the details of my Giveaway properly on Thursday 12th April.  The lucky name will be pulled out of a hat on Friday 20th April.

I also owe a huge thanks to Anne for posting about Picnik.  I've had hours of fun creating collages for my blog.  If you haven't had a play on it yet, the site is live (and free to use) until 19th April. 

Getting home early..

This was the view from my study when I got home this afternoon.  All my lovely white blossom trees are out in force.  The one on the left is a Damson tree that has survived from the days when the whole close was an orchard.  It was badly beaten about and left for dead when the houses were built almost 20 years ago.  The builders even managed to errect a fence over its roots.  Nevertheless, it seems to have thrived and we get a fairly good crop from it most summers. 

All this blossom has been a bit of a surprise because I've had one of those weeks and I hadn't seen the garden since Sunday.  Monday night was a Year 11 Diploma performance (extremely proud of them); Tuesday was Year 7 Parents Evening (talked myself hoarse) and last night was a Year 9 'Once Upon a Time' Performance (really sweet!)

Basically I've developed a unit where the Year 9s devise a show suitable to take into Year 1 and 2 classses at our feeder schools.  They write the scripts and plan all the songs themselves.  Every year I'm always surprised and delighted by the outcomes.  Last night was lovely.  There are some very witty and slightly zany children in this class and their show was particularly clever.

Most schools are beaking up for Easter tomorrow.  Solihull continues until next Wednesday for the pupils and Thursday for the staff.  The only good thing is that we don't start again until the 23rd... The children get two and a half weeks, which will be lovely if the weather holds.

Yippee!

Today I have received seriously good news....  My school has been living with the threat of an Ofsted inspection for about 12 months. We've gone through the whole range of pre-Ofsted torture - training on 'quick fix' outstanding lessons; mock inspections; hysterical SMT, the lot.

During period 4 today an e-mail labled Ofsted landed in my in-box from the Head.  I opened it with that sinking feeling and discovered that an educational miracle has occured!  Ofsted have contacted the school to explain that they have gone through our results and feel that we are making excellent progress.  As a result they will not be visiting us until summer term 2013.

I ran into my colleague's classroom and started to do the 'teacher's hysterical celebration dance'.  Not particularly cool, but it amused her Year 9s.  I then ran down to see if my Head of Faculty had read the e-mail.  Cue more wild celebrations in the Art rooms!

Obviously - being education - there's always a bit of a cloud to spoil the suniest days.  In this case, the new no-notice inspections are due to start in September.  I'm just drawing some comfort from the fact that the inspectors will have done two terms' work in the new framework before we get 'done'.

Teaching can be a very strange job...!

Happiness Is..

..... sitting in the sun, in the car in the supermarket carpark, eating an extremely illegal chocolate eclair!  Yesterday I completely gave into late afternoon sugar cravings and it felt GOOD!  I'd stopped off on the way home to get some more rolls for sandwiches and found myself making a quite detour via the cream cake display.  Fortunately I went to Pilates later so some of the illegal calories were exercised away...!

Today my form and I decided that we're going to have 'Cup-Cake' Friday tomorrow....

 

My school has a vertical tutoring system so I have a group of 20 children ranging from 11 to 16 in age.  The smaller class size means that I've got to know them pretty well and I positively encourage a 'family' atmosphere.  I think it's needed because the school is very large - almost 1300 kids - and they need somewhere where they can be seen as individuals.  Anyway, my little 'family' has been having a difficult and very busy time recently. One lad has lost his Grandmother; another has just had to have his dog put down; four of the younger girls are involved in various shows across the West Midlands so they are exhausted; and my Year 11s are so strung out about 6th form entry that you play a tune on them..! After some informal chat at form time we decided that sugary products were the only thing that was going to see us through to the end of the week.

Obviously I don't treat them to cake all the time - but I think they appreciate the treat if it happens occasionally and with good reason.  Hopefully their lives are going to become a little settled again soon.  I hate seeing them struggle.