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Move over grandad

Purton Church, as I couldn't find a school photo
As I mentioned a couple of days ago, I had an excellent day earlier this week at Bradon Forest School in Purton. (Here's a little factoid for you - the church in the Wiltshire village of Purton is one of only three in the country with both a tower and a spire. One of the others is only a few miles from Purton in Wanborough, while the third is at Ormskirk in Lancashire.) I was on the go pretty well all day, and, though satisfying, it was quite tiring.

It does make me really appreciate just what teachers manage to do, day in, day out. A visiting speaker like me is roughly in the same relationship to a teacher as a grandparent is to a parent. You generally cause a bit of excitement, because it's someone different, and you have a great time for a brief period, then you hand them back, and go back to your quiet life while the teacher has to get on with it.

Don't get me wrong, I've nothing against grandparents (or visiting speakers). But I think few would argue that parents have a hard but essential job, and the same goes for the teaching profession. Anyone who feels like moaning about teachers getting the long school holidays should consider that, not only do teachers have work to do over that period, not only are they limited to going on holiday during the school break, so have to pay more for their holiday, but also theirs is a job where you really do need some time to recover.

So as the Christmas break looms and teachers heave a sigh of relief at the thought of only another week or so to go, let's raise a virtual glass to the profession.

Image from Wikipedia
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