Snow day, no way!

Well this was a very up and down week. At the start of the week, I found out my mum had norovirus and had collapsed in the hospital only to receive a phone call Thursday night saying that she was going home the next day. Having been in hospital since the end of November this has been a difficult time for all of us, however I am so happy she is home now.

So at the start of the week was incredibly hard for me, although I'm a performer, put on a show and despite my mood swings I don't think my class noticed.

As our topic has been on mountains, our English writing has been linked closely. So we wrote about Ben Fogle and Victoria Pendleton climbing Mount Everest (Seale, 2018). I think newspaper reports can be interesting to write and they have given it a good shot. Having talked through what Fogle and Pendleton undertook, the children had a chance to plan and write their own reports. Next week they will again plan and write a report. I'm hoping they will be able to do this independently encompassing everything they have learnt. Let's hope they were listening.

In our Maths lessons, we've been identifying adding and subtracting money. Teaching them about money you find out what the children do or do not know. I think it's fundamental to have an understanding of money which is an important part of life. I sometimes think that this knowledge should be taught at home before they enter the classroom. Why do some children not know what types of coins or notes we have? (Martin, 2016). I recognise that this an area that we need to cover again and I'll encourage my class to go shopping with their parents so that they become clearer.

I have an observation in Maths next week, so my weekend will be spent preparing. I still have four observations to go before I pass my NQT year (TES, 2019). I know it will be ok, you just put the pressure on yourself to be better than the previous one. Fingers crossed it will be ok. Just depends on the day.

So coming to the end of the week and most schools are closed for a snow day, that did not happen here. The snow actually wasn't that bad and despite a depleted class it was a good end to the week. No, I didn't build a snowman - I don't really like the snow.

So with only 2 weeks to go until half term, the inevitable is getting closer. I just need to go with the flow and see what tomorrow brings.

With February here I need to start reading my next book, so I best make time for it. Until next time...

Steve Maull. An NQT

References: Martin, (2016) Online at https://www.businessinsider.com/what-kids-should-know-about-money-2016-11?r=US&IR=T

Seale, (2018) 'Our Everest Challenge review – Ben Fogle, Victoria Pendleton and some vertiginous cliches' Online at https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2018/aug/30/our-everest-challenge-ben-fogle-victoria-pendleton

TES, (2019) Online at https://www.tes.com/articles/newly-qualified-teacher-faqs