Simone Beach

💗
I’m being well supported by lots of people including NAHT.
We are in temporary modular buildings on two sites so better than this time last year.
The children have been amazing.

‘Our school has been homeless for two years’: a rotting Cumbria school counts the cost Pupils at Sacred Heart Catholic school in Barrow-in-Furness are in temporary classrooms and education is suffering

www.theguardian.com/education/20...

Excited to read The Snow Girl!

Oooh snap!
Attendance challenge 😊🎄 (not a new carpet unfortunately)

Feeling a little bit down in the dumps.

This is our third Christmas since the evacuation. The third one where we have not been together as one school.

Thankful to all the people who are helping us but still sad we can’t get excited about the Christmas countdown together.

Really like the advice around students who may be anxious 👍

I think one wouldn’t just appear. The decision to use one would need careful consideration and planning from all parties. I don’t have a classroom. I like that a child in hospital could stay connected with the class. It would definitely need agreeing with the teacher to avoid any anxiety for them.

We have had them in our county for a while. You can loan them from the LA.
The LA SEND team came to our senco cluster to give us a demo a couple of years ago.
I’ve never used one.

Not in Barrow 😂 or at least not in my little school.

I believe it’s good to stretch avid readers, but it’s even more important to ensure that ALL children leave school as readers. Every adult should have fond memories of books they discovered at school.

Primary
Not banned because it’s not really made its way to our town yet.
I’ll let you know in a year’s time when it does.

No idea. Super late to the party so never part of edutwitter. But I really appreciate everyone who shares their work and thoughts on here. It has made a big difference to my development as a teacher and school leader.

I was late to the social media party.
This yr I joined Bluesky and Substack looking for expert advice and best bets. An act of desperation tbh when my school was evacuated.
I don’t know about the twitter glory days, they passed me by, but I am thankful for the generous educators who post on here.

So exciting! Really looking forward to reading it.

This is great 👍
It got me thinking about autonomy in a multi academy trust. I get the need for us all to move in the same general direction and have a shared vision. How do you get that balanced aligned autonomy? For heads like me it’s so important to have some level of freedom to meet local needs.

Some MATs might even email heads about their bluesky accounts when there is absolutely nothing controversial on them at all.

They might ask for things like the acceptable use of ict policy or say directors are unhappy / nervous about what you might post or comment.

Enjoyed every minute of this informative conference today.

Great conversations and even better company.

Really lovely spending time with governors from all across the Diocese of Lancaster.

What's the key to unlocking teacher development? With Adam Robbins

NEW EPISODE

This week, we are joined by leadership maestro @mrarobbins.bsky.social, looking at the tensions and difficulties in leading schools and driving change. Not to be missed!

Tune in and share if you can 🙏🙏

open.spotify.com/episode/0320...

"Coaching should NOT be a punishment!"

Have you listened to Matt Stone and Oliver Caviglioli talking to Tom Rogers about Coaching WalkThrus? Catch up here! www.youtube.com/watch?v=i__N...

#coaching #schools #teachers #cpd #observations #accountability #trust #teachersoftiktok

“Be kind to yourself during the slump”

When your professional life feels like a perma-crisis but you find a blog that gets it 💗

When did this happen??? My child is at a gig whilst I’m in my pjs with a share bag of crisps.
The tables have definitely turned.

My little school is good at doing odd. We currently live in a temporary modular building on the high school tennis court. Year 7 past pupils love this but my biological Year 11 child not so much 😂

It was the high school leavers awards night this week. Always a lovely occasion for the primary heads.

I really enjoyed spending time with St George’s School this afternoon.
Vital we get the children’s voices about what they want for their community.

#FridayFive is missing people.
1. Never Forget You. The Noisettes.
2. So Far Away. Carole King.
3. Maps. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
4. In My Life. The Beatles.
5. Half the World Away. Oasis.

Missing. London Grammar
Hinterland. AIM
Missing. The XX
Lost ones. Lauren Hill
Come home. James

What does a 60-hour working week do to a teacher's brain?

bit.ly/4ibpjfi

On tough days when I feel like my face just doesn’t fit or like I’m a royal pain in everyone’s a*** I take myself off to share a story at the end of the day with the children.
Pure joy.

I’ve definitely experienced that ebb and flow!
I’ve found that belonging and mattering between school, parish, community (inc town council, MP, local charities, other local schools) comes easily when the place is in your DNA.
I’ve found it more complex with other stakeholders from further afield

Housewife, 49
Part of it filmed in my town, in my in-laws street