Ep 75: The Ultimate Back-To-School Guide For Teachers: Routines, Behaviour & Self-Care

0:00 I like to eat, eat, eat, eat apples and bananas. Oh wait, I'm sorry though, this is the podcast, not our children's nursery rhymes that live went free in our head constantly for 24/7. Oh, some of my madness. We are absolutely going crazy, guys. Hello, welcome back to another episode of Teach Sleep repeat. My name is Dylan and my name is Hayden, and it has been a short little while, hasn't it? Because we. Just couldn't be bothered, couldn't be bothered because we were just relaxing so much. I think it's been a three-week break, yeah. And I think people have been on tenderhooks. Yeah. Wait, is that the saying tender or tenderhooks? Let's die off strong guys. I'll tell you what, it's not the one you think it is. I don't know.

0:41 They've been waiting with bated breath for us to return. I don't know, it's baby breath. Don't talk to me about baby breath. I've got some news starting off really quickly. OK, I am now a gym shark athlete. Oh, I can tell, yeah, from the gym shark clothing that you're wearing. I am having a gym shark and I thought, you know what, I'm going to buy some clothes and I hate shopping. And I think you're the same as me. You mentioned this before where I don't actually ever, ever want in my life. I've never thought, you know what I'd like to do? I'd like to get out of my comfy, warm home. Yeah. Drive somewhere in horrible traffic. Lots of people. Lots of people try and park where it's really hard to park because everyone's going there for some reason. Leave my car, go into a shop which is absolutely rammed full of other people.

1:26 Lots of people, loads of people who I don't want to, don't know and don't want to be anywhere near and spend an hour picking up clothes, touching them, putting them back. That other people have also done that for the last however long. Going to a fitting room and try clothes on half of which don't fit. Get annoyed at. Myself up to that point I was going to say this sounds like going to school and sorting through the lost problem. It's changing, but I also don't like doing that anyway. I hate shopping essentially, and so when I decide I'm going shopping, I go cool, I'm going to buy 57 tops, have to come again for three years. So that's basically where we're at. I'm a Gym Shark athlete that is sponsored without any money being given to me. Instead, I give Gym Shark the 400% of what they're. Owed and you get to look really cool. I wish this is annoying me a little bit. You know what you know exactly why it's annoying me.

2:08 You know exactly. Why it's annoying me? I don't know at all why this is, because I. Wish we could do a little flashbacks on this, you know, like a little show. Because we can imagine. What is the past if not a figment of our imagination? I think what the past is you taking the Mick out of me for honestly, more like years, multiples of years because I had some gym shop clothing. You're like, oh, do you go to the gym? Are you go to the gym? That belly go to the gym are you? Doesn't look like it. Two things #1 sharp and #2 be quiet. Wow, I'm much more active than you are. How all the tables have turned? Anyway, so let's move it on. How have you found some holidays? Because I'm reading your notes because they're right there in front of.

2:53 Us. But you mean the notes that you've got on Instagram? There you go. Obviously empty. Find us on Instagram, by the way, at teach seek, repeat podcast. Oh, and find us on Blue Sky. But I'm going to talk to you about that in a minute. Anyone from Blue Sky Hi will come to you, don't worry. But why are you knackered constantly? Says knackered constantly. That's it. There's no, there's no, you know, you're not expanded on that at all. Like, oh, you're knackered because. There's a podcast you're like, gotta pretend I don't know why, as if I'm not living the same life. I'll tell you why I'm knackered, constantly dead and maybe you're. Gracious, you just don't know. Because we've got 2 little children, they're both under one year old and some holidays have been constantly knackered because she's up all the time. I saw a poster over there that was something like hands up if you're also a parent and therefore some holidays aren't remotely Restful.

3:36 This is the least energetic I've felt in my whole life. I'm. So good job of doing an episode about getting ready for September. Yeah, I know, I know. But even like Lauren and I yesterday were saying like kind of looking forward to going back to work. It's going to be. A break. It's going to be a break. I wonder if it must be the hardest summer when they're under one the first summer with them. Please tell me this. Is one of those moments where people listen to be like so naive. Well, my point is I went to London, my cousin was down visiting, so me and him went to London the other day and almost every opportunity I was like, I just can't wait for Rory to be older because I could bring him to this, you know, optical illusion museum, he'd love it. Or we went into Hamleys, just see if we get my toy. And I was like, oh, just nice.

4:17 When he's like 3456, he's going to love it here. It's going to be like all these things unlock because at the minute he's just, he could barely like pay attention to the Gruffalo for more than 3 pages. So it's just not a point where I can take him out to do stuff. And all it is at the minute is just can you just keep him alive? And also can you pick him up every time he rapidly sprints off crawling into somewhere where he shouldn't be? Wait a minute, I've got 7 lovely toys my parents talk out for me. Or I could go and head butt the radiator. Yeah, and I tell you what, that plug looks real juicy for my fingers. I think instead of my clicky toy, I'm gonna click the on off switch on that little plug over there behind this over. No. Oh my God, it's relentless. It's mad, isn't?

4:57 It yeah, I've always thought that like cuddly toys, right. I just that's just a staple thing for babies and kids, isn't it? So like we've got bought loads when she was little. She honest to God, so far has not been interested in them. I put at one time I made a ring of cuddly toys around thinking, oh, this would be nice. She would like go and play with one. She literally just moved them out the way it went straight to the rad again. Don't worry about the rad because she wants to play with the Valve and I was like these toys here, these little cute little rabbits and stuff like what? What's wrong with? You they should sell model radiators at toy shops, Yeah, just so the kids and then then maybe then they won't like it because they've been bought specifically for them. I was a toy, now I. Always remember a baby group and they were like, they, they, they're not clever enough yet. They can't manipulate you. They don't they don't, they're not going for you. They just do stuff because they're babies. They're going for you.

5:39 They're going for me. When, when I layout 10 toys like, oh, I spent to combine £250 on what's on this little map, which was also 100 LB of this website that someone said was really good for babies. Why don't you crawl off it as quickly as you can, out of the door into the part that's not flawed. In our house, there's no floor. It's dirty. And and he becomes transfixed by this little bit of black fluff. If there's any black little bit of fluff or rubbish or anything on the floor, he whizzes to it and he just starts, like, stroking it with his finger. Is it to say, look, Dad, look what I found? Yeah. Have you done that? I'm not supposed to be here AM? I, I know in the matter of time just to pick him up, turn him around and he's like, I want to go where I'm not supposed to go, Macarie. Anyway, there you guys love baby. Love them though. Love them, love them as you can tell. Got it at the end, yeah.

6:20 You do, you have to say now, but I think people don't think it. No, no, we do. We do love them, but hilarious. Anything else happened recently? No. I think Blue sky was gonna talk briefly. I'm on blue sky. I set up blue skies like a teach the repeat thing. So that'd be a nice way to, you know, get a podcast of this, get out. And I was like, because Hayden does absolutely nothing in terms of the socials. Obviously that's nice. Just move the camera more onto him. And so I'm out of shock now, so. No, no, I wasn't fully out of shock. Brilliant. That's how we wanted it. A bit like. Blue skies. I was trying to do it subtly and you've made a big point of it now. Well, started blue skies like a joint account yeah put like the podcast cover as the display picture TC repeating Dylan and Hayden. I was like gorgeous, both of us and I got like I got 2 posts in and I was like Hayden's never going to log into it. So I just thought, you know what I'm going to do a personal blue sky account.

7:07 It's going to set up just me, get rid of the dead weight, just call it THT repeat but have my name there as. Well, you've got you and Alastair Campbell, You're hoping still. Exactly that. So we've got Blue Sky now and basically we never got into Twitter. We never ever got into Twitter. And this whole thing of Edu Twitter and it seemed like Marmite. I don't know. There's some people who seem really sad that Twitter's dying for obvious reasons, won't go into, but Twitter's like just fallen off a Cliff. Some people seem really sad about that because they've obviously built up a community. They've got a lot of people, yeah, followers and, and just people they've bonded with. And there was like a safe space for them to talk about books and get excited about things. And it's just been this big exodus over to Blue Sky.

7:48 But I never really got into Twitter. I I felt like sometimes it was a bit clicky, a little bit, a little bit so hard to kind of get your foot in the door if you're not already there kind of thing not already established. Smaller voices were kind of not pushed out, but the big voices were amplified, Yeah. Because it was around for a long time. Yeah, of course. And the people with historic, you know, followings and stuff and just just, it felt like their opinions had more weight and you couldn't really, you know, I'm not not trying to take over the website, but you just want to put your point across and have discussions with people. I find it hard to do that. Yeah. Anyway, we're on Blue Sky now and I don't know if it's the algorithm. I don't know if it's people that's attitudes. I don't know if it's the type of people who've left and come over to Blue Sky, but it feels way more collaborative, way more open. I've spoken to people. I've never spoken to before.

8:30 There might even be some people listening now who've literally listened to the podcast. We've not posted two weeks, 2-3 weeks, but we've had like that listens every single day as if we've been posting in an episode. So there's obviously new people out there. So grateful if you come along. But I just felt like I could post a question about education or homework or whatever it might be and I'd have 15 other fellow teachers just give me their opinion. And it was really nice to not just be in the echo Chamber of me and you, because we think very similarly I'm. Gonna stay in the echo chamber. Just saying that I can't wait to not go on Blue Sky. I'm staying right here. I'm here for you guys. Listen, I'm committed to you, the podcast viewers. I don't do anything outside of this podcast. I only speak here. You get raw opinions. Yeah, absolutely. The only place where you can't possibly anyone talk back to you.

9:11 It's where you're comfortable. I don't know, Mr Talkback. That's why I'm here to keep you accountable. But yeah, anyway, Blue sky, big shout out for Blue Sky. We're on there. Teach sleet, repeat. That's it. We didn't need to do anything else because it was like new. So teach sleet, repeat. So another handle. Hey, but at least we've got at least we've got the handle. This Yeah, I know, I know right. But there is 17 handles on all the different things. I don't, I don't think one. Handle the same Teach Sleet Repeat, Teach Sleet repeat pod and we've got Teach Sleet repeat podcast. Good, good. Just teach, sleet, repeat and hope for the best wherever you get your stuff from. But yeah, anyway, I've been really enjoying it. I've been posting on now I'm going to post about this and yeah, if you're you're listening from Blue Sky, let me know. Let me in. Blue Sky and Hayden won't see it, but I will.

9:52 No. Yeah. Nice. Nice. Yeah, That's good. It's funny, I zoned out while you were talking because all I was thinking about was how I'm saving the. I just can't stop thinking about. It this is the last people we get in, right? Can't stop thinking about it. Hayden, I know what you're going to say. Oh, do you? What is it? Go on. Look. What have you done? Dylan, I mean, you guys probably understand Dylan doesn't get it, but I've recently sold both, well, both our cars, me and Lauren. Would you both your massive gas guzzling cars that you've only got were? Destroying the planet? Sold them. Sold them was it? The ones where you both have your own car but go to the same place of work But Dr separately because you need 10 minutes apart. So double up, doubling the impact of the environment. Is irrelevant, right? OK, But the point is, I sold both cars. We went electric. We're electric cars because I looked at you actually, and I thought that man is really destroying this planet for his own benefit and is really selfish. So we thought let's not be like him. And so thank you for being the catalyst to our thoughts. But we've got electric cars now.

10:46 Catalyst. Catalyst Converter. Yeah, thanks for being that. So I drive electric cars now only and I don't bring it up. I'm not going up all time, but I just, you know, just think about the planet next time you drive around in your big car, all right? Just think just. Think about it. Winds me up, winds me up because we all know it's important to look after the planet. But you now you do have a high horse to be on now because electric cars are obviously better. Not the battery, no, it doesn't matter. But the battery goes at the end. Doesn't matter. What matters is whilst I'm driving. It it's that big massive toxic battery which can't be recycled, then at the end just goes into a landfill, Yeah. Goes into, goes back to Mother Nature. You're taking this seriously. How often do you water your grass in your garden? Just a lot more now there's a massive battery buried in it, because the first one's already. I posted something about air con and just to just to be straight to everyone listening.

11:34 We are, we obvious, we know climate change is a thing. We're not climate change deniers or anything like that. And it's really important to be eco and green and stuff like that. I get it. I posted something that said when are we going to concede the fact that in the UK we do actually need air con and a lot of other things because and, and, and the classic points people replied, they were laughing like, yeah, sure. There were people replying, oh, when it's more than three days a year. And I was like, well, it is more than three days a year now, isn't it? Because it was like 2 1/2 weeks in a row. But I get it. It's it's not enough to justify a big AC unit and. It's on the, it's on the edge. It's getting there. Yeah. It's going to get there at some point. And then someone, some people just replied really seriously, like almost annoyed at me for suggesting it. Like, do you realise that running an AC unit is what is for the environment? Anything else?

12:16 OK, I'd reply quarterly be going. That's a really good point. I guess so, but but like, at what point do you just have to be like, Oh, I know, but like until there's green energy that's cheap for me, I'm going to have to do stuff like this. Like it's AI know it's a self perpetuating cycle, but I don't think average Joe is the person who's going to be the person to change everything. So yeah. Oh yeah, sorry. I won't ever do that. I'll just live in horrible heat. Did Taylor Swift just do an 18 minute jet private jet ride? She did the 19th time this month. Yeah, yeah. That's fine though. That's fine. There's just so many other people and corporations and big things to go after. I find that I was about to take the make out of you, but I just want to jump in because I feel the same, you know? I do. But I find that really, really, really, really hit hard when it's the little personal choices that are maybe bad for anything. I'm always like, oh, but there is just a corporation out there producing my lifetime's worth of waste in any category in an hour and I just can't get over.

13:10 And I know every little bit helps, but it's so hard to think like I should. I'm going to suffer in the heat now rather than but or just contribute this miniscule tiny amount. It's horrible. Battle has to come from top down. I think there needs to be things in place like clean energy and things from the top down, like a big massive scale. Well, electric cars are literally twice the price some normal cars. Of course, average Joe is not going to do it. You did it because you're stupid. But I'm joking. I did it because the price. Yeah, I'm joking. Like after a year and a half, you're like all electric cars. Their prices come down really quickly. It's like, yeah, that's only because they're inflated at the start. It's probably roughly what it should cost. I'll tell you why they come down massively because I've realised now, now I'm in the game, it's because they're getting rid of all of the benefits for people of buying electric cars. It's not as.

13:51 It's going backwards, isn't it? Yeah, it's a big part was no Rd tax, right? Yeah, no Rd tax and like all EU less stuff, it was all free for that. And from next year, all of that's coming back in place and it's completely not even like discounted, it's just level with petrol. So what is what is the incentive to go well? There isn't an incentive anymore. There used to be an incentive in terms of they used to pay for the box that you put on your wall. Well, like there was a big grant anyway. And the tax and stuff. Yeah, and the tax? All of that's gone now. So why? Why though? Like I don't understand I. Don't know. I I think probably just money isn't it. They just need more money back. But I guess enough people. Are driving. Why? Why is it now? Why is it the green things that are rolling back? It's annoying, isn't it? Oh, it's 'cause they didn't really matter. We care in the 1st place did. They didn't really care about, Green did. They a lot of people do. Lots of people do sales. Oh, no, no, no. Yeah, the companies don't care, but a lot of people do.

14:33 Yeah, people. Do that's what I mean I. Mean the government really cared when they did this no but there's now enough people are driving electric cars they're not making enough in Rd tax they're like oh actually. You need the road tax. Yeah, don't care about green, we just want Rd tax. Now got to go all electric cars, got to go all in. Anyway, we've been chatting a lot. It's been a nice little catch up That's quite random. Should we get into actually why people are here? 15 minutes. Instead so so yeah, all. Right. Play the Jingle, Hayden. Tell you one thing we've never done. Please. How to get ready for September in the podcast. Never done that. Please. Don't rewind 12 months. Nope, Don't rewind, rewind rewind rewind this podcast. Is that when you have an orange you don't want anymore? Rewrite. That was quick. Well done. Thank you. I appreciate.

15:14 That I've got some orange downstairs. Actually, I've got a juicer. So if you know that again, better for the planet, isn't it just juicing my own oranges? I'm not paying a big corporation factories, batteries, don't worry about. It what would be better for the planet is if you didn't have eight oranges every time you want a drink. That wouldn't be better. A bit of a waste. Anyway, we're here talking about September because I don't know if you realise guys, but as of this, as of this podcast being released, it's the end of August, which means if you're in the UK, you're about to go back to school. So we get loads of messages and a lot of them are from ECTS, people who just finished training or are training getting their first jobs and they've asked specifically can I ask some tips Yeah, as an ECT, obviously, but as as September, I don't know what you mean they've asked specifically. Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, me yeah, not you because you're not on any other stuff but they want some tips for September and I thought do you want to be really cool Let's just do a generic episode.

16:06 Anyone in teaching, whether they've been doing it for 20 years, five years, or this is their first ever year, they can find it useful. Just to go over some of the key things and how you can hit the ground running in September and have a really successful start to the year. Because I would go so far to say that that first month is probably the most important month in embedding routines, you know, establishing relationships and getting teaching started really early. So let's let's talk about it. Let's get into how we can start September off really well. And a big one that I'm really passionate about and I know you've spoken a lot in the past, but how you've developed in this area is behaviour and, and some of the myths around behaviour in September and how to kind of bust them.

16:49 And as a realistic teacher, you and I, we don't go away and do our own research. We don't read loads, we read bits of CPD and stuff. But as just a, you know, a teacher in a school, experienced, experienced, done it for a long time. How would you approach behaviour in September? How can we hit the ground running and? Start do it right. Is that out? That's the first. There you go. No, I just, I saw you smirk because I know you were thinking what I was thinking. Don't smile to a Christmas. Yeah, I think, I think you just, first of all, I'd ignore that advice, but we can draw our guests from it. What people mean, which is get get your behaviour management right at the start of the year. That's what really what they mean, isn't it? When they say that sort of stuff, they're saying don't go too easy on them and let them walk all over you because then they'll just do that all year. Because I'll realise that's who you are. When at the start of the year, when those children are first meeting you and they're first getting to know you, they will be making this perception of you in their head and judging basically what they can get away with, what they can't get away because they're kids.

17:42 They obviously, obviously just want to have fun all the time. So if you don't establish really, really, really good routines in the classroom, rules that for their behaviour specifically in mind, then yeah, I feel like they just run rings around you. And I was there. I spent the first couple of years of my career, you remember, where I was just way, way, way too friendly and I didn't want to upset anyone. And I wanted the kids to like me so badly. I needed them to like me because I want them to go home, be like Mr Steve is. He's so cool. He's my favourite teacher. And that was the most important thing ever. But actually what what it meant was the behaviour in my class wasn't very good and therefore the learning outcomes weren't very good and it all just kind of trickled down from there. So behaviour get it right. I think you're right. It's the big words. I always think about a route.

18:24 The routine comes to mind straight away, and structure. They're the two things where I think you're in charge of the classroom. You see, you see yourself as the manager of the classroom as well as a teacher. You're going to do all of the learning stuff. Think of that as a side that's going to come because you've you've trained or you've been doing the job for 10 years. You know, the curriculum, you've done your planning. We'll talk about that later. When it comes to behaviour, structure is so unbelievably important for children. It's insane. And like we said, always back up what you're saying. Don't give false promises or false, you know, hope to the children. They can get a way of doing something. That's what they mean when they say don't smile until until September. What they what they mean is, you know, yeah. Smart day one. Like a smile now, kids. My mantra?

19:05 Spend the whole some holidays miserable smart until the kids are. But that's what they mean. They mean yeah, when when you think of smiling, they they're saying don't budget. You know, if you're smiling, you're you're laid back, you're open, you're budging on what you've sat. You can smile and be really strict with your where your line is your children. And I think routine. I recommend that. Yeah, it'll come completely like if build relationships with your kids as quickly as possible. They need to know that you like them. And that's insane, I think, because some people will hear that and go, what are you talking about? You're not their friend. And I see people getting annoyed saying like you're you're their teacher, not their friend. Yeah, I completely agree with you. But I don't have to be friendly to be nice. I don't have to be someone's best pal going to their birthday party at jungle gyms.

19:49 Yeah. To to be nice and friendly. Yeah. I'm gonna make sure when the kids walk into my classroom, they can smile at me and I'll smile back. Yeah. Can you imagine some, you know, inexperienced teacher coming into the classroom? First day this kids buzzing comes in. Oh my God, we've got Miss Jones. It's her first. She's really young. She's cool. Oh my gosh, I'm really excited. I seen her training last year. Apparently she's really nice because you were yourself in your training year. They walk in, give you a big smile and you're there deadpan staring at them because someone said to you, don't smile until Christmas. That kids going. To be put off straight away, smile, be friendly, be lovely, but have really strict routines. What kind of what we talking about when we say have routines and structure? What do what do you take from that as a teacher? When we're saying to them, you know, have this, I can imagine there's a new you teach you like what do you mean?

20:32 Okay, well, routines is supposed a little bit different, but routines, I mean literally just them knowing even down like visual timetable. I know that's more like the structure of the day, but just them knowing precisely how you like things done, even if it's like how to leave the classroom. Yeah, sure. So little routines like that don't leave them up in the air and and you don't have to have them already on day one. You don't have to be panicking about it. But I think you should have in mind the idea that anything where you feel like it's not very well routined as the year goes on as well, you could be like just squash it quick, get it in there quick. You notice on day two that that when we say, right, let's line up to go home, that the kids are a nightmare and maybe they've got they're just, you know, they're just all over the place. They start messing around you, you just stop immediately. Well, everyone sit back down. That's not that is not good enough. We need to come up with a routine right now. Let's work on it together and have those little things in place that you build up over time. I like the idea of building up on it. That's really cool.

21:20 I think that's good, especially for more experienced teachers. Just you don't need to solve it from day one. Pick something and be consistent like you said with the lining up. If you on day one, let's say they're lining up awfully and you go right, I'm going to pick up on this right now it's day one. It's a really solid routines, guys. When we line up, we do not talk and we line one behind the other and I dismiss you a table at a time to line up. Tomorrow, do that, Wednesday, do that, Thursday, do that. Don't do it for two days, then stop. That's not a routine. Then that's not a habit for the children. I had one, a few classes actually over the years. They're all different, but one class was so messy. Oh my God, like every day at the end of the day, all of their stuff would just be on the floor and I just couldn't comprehend how like everything on the floor. But they really like they weren't conscious of it and they were, they were honestly such a nice class. So I'm not, I don't want to get angry at them and like get really cross because they were so lovely. They just really were unaware of the mess they're making. So we just got into a routine.

22:14 I picked up on it quite quickly where it was like, OK, the end of every single day. The last bit of our routine was we do a table check and a floor check and, and the, and the basically it was just stupid little things like the first table ready, the neatest table or the neatest floor. They just got to line up first for lunch, which was great. And for those little things, yeah, like for me, I'm like, who cares? You're going to go to lunch anyway. But they love that they want to be at the front of the line. And we just got into that routine and by the end of the year they were completely like subliminally just always checking the tables and checking the floors and it was nice. And that came from you being consistent as. Consistent. Yeah. And if I wasn't consistent, it would have slipped. If I if I stopped doing that after a week, that's not enough time to embed into their minds. This almost like a response. Isn't that they? They know that that they trigger at the end of the lessons.

22:56 Like, Oh yeah, Mrs Stevens always cheques the floor and table, so let's just do it rather than waiting for him. And, and those routines don't have to just be on them. External stuff like that, that's like away from learning almost, isn't it? Like behaviours lining up? You can put those routines and embed those expectations into your lessons as well. Some of the best feedback I got that I was really proud of from a lesson observation was I was in, I think it was a science lesson in the afternoon, but it was, I think after Easter. So we had a really big chunk of the year where a lot of those expectations and routines had really been embedded. And I always look forward to observations to kind of show people what the kids can do because they're so used to it. And a big part of the lesson was we do maybe some starter stuff. We start off with some, maybe they'll do some quiet reading or some handwriting or sometimes tables, or maybe they'll do a question from last lesson, a bit of a recap, whatever it was. And then the next slide on the screen was their date and their object learning objective.

23:49 And I remember so vividly because I got to the point of my class where I could click next that would come onto the screen and I didn't say anything and the class went silent and all started doing a date and a learning objective. Because that didn't happen in September. That didn't even really happen in October or November. That took a long time of saying, you know, putting on and saying right when this comes up we do I don't know what silently if you finish, you do your extra work and then the next time it might be okay date and what? And then over time eventually it's just next one. And if someones talking, what do we do when this side is on and we do the day and what? Yeah, correct. And that constant embedding meant that by Easter, click it on 32 children silently doing the date, doing the doing the start of questions meant I could go over to a group of children and recap some stuff or catch up with the kids who are absent. That, that those things are so powerful, I think, and I know they're hard, like you made it sound really easy. They are hard to do because it's easy to forget because you're also doing a million other things in a day. So the little things are easy to forget and. That's why building up is really good. Yeah, because.

24:46 Cool. We've established the class now for a couple of weeks. This is how we line up and move around the class. I know for a fact there's two other things that are bugging me, but you know what? I'm going to focus on this for now and I know that my work is never done as a teacher and if by September all my routines aren't fully established in exactly how I want, especially as an inexperienced teacher, don't beat yourself up, you've got time to still do it. Yeah, and write them down. If you notice something you think I'd like to change this, just write it down. You forget otherwise. If you like me anyway, but like another one might be. So. Yeah. So you've got them all lining up now, happy with that. You've got them right in their date and Walt. And then. And then actually, you get to the part in the lesson where you're maybe, I don't know, you're working with someone at a different table. And the kids get up from other parts of the class and they walk over to you and they and they go, they tap you.

25:27 Mr. Price, can you? And you're thinking, oh, that's, that's an annoying behaviour and they're trying to be nice. I'm not going to shout, I'm not going to cross. But I'm going to think of a way now to establish a new routine that stops children getting up out of their seat randomly in the lesson, rather than just putting their hand up and waiting. What might be your team for that? For someone listening right now, If you used to stop them getting out of their seat, what might you teach them to do instead? Or yeah, sure. So I first of all, I'd address the whole class. I wouldn't just address that like one kid, I'd address the whole class. I'd make some time for it. I'd actually dedicate some time in the lesson to really just go over almost like the meta level of like, this is what I like as a teacher, and This is why I like it. It's gonna help you learn. From now on, you cannot get out of your seat. Don't be afraid to explain it. Yeah, I always explain it to them.

26:08 I remember being a kid in school thinking, why? Yeah. The why kid and. Why though? Why do I have to do that? Yeah, why do I have to? I don't understand, and if it's really powerful to explain why being absolutely. Right, yeah, I agree. It's one of those fine lines, isn't it, between a kid being rude? Why? Because you've actually told them to do something really obviously. If you proactively explain. Something don't Chuck the toilet roll into the toilet. Why? Yeah, then I'd be annoyed. Yeah, at this point, just don't do that. Yeah, because also I think you know why. But if it exactly but there's something fairly innocent in their minds of. I want help from the teacher. So I went to the teacher to get help and they say and you say, oh, don't do that. Imagine that. Yeah. And then you don't tell me, don't answer me back, that that situation is wrong, because it's like they are genuinely just unsure. You're teaching them not to ask you for. Help. Yeah, why they couldn't get help.

26:48 So, yeah, just establish a new routine, explain what's right. Be silly with it. Because kids remember funny things. So play a little game, like get one of the kids role-playing where they get up and and. And you just ignore them and everyone's laughing and then someone else puts hands up and you go straight to them. And this kids following you around, like make a silly little game out of it where they'll remember, oh, us getting up, we like that. That's not how we get the attention of the teacher. That backfire when everyone gets up because I think it's. Funny. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It might do for a little bit, but. No, you're right, you're right. You've got to create a hook for them. Create a hook for them to remember something. If you just say don't do this anymore and carry on doing what you're doing, I promise you they'll forget. You've got to really establish an embed routine, so. In September's there's time to start that and don't be afraid to start it immediately and again, maybe we can finish on behaviour for this. One of the best bits of advice I remember receiving early in my career and it's been like throughout a number of people have said this, so it's really important is do not be afraid to cut down lesson time to teach routines and expectations and behaviour.

27:42 Look at behaviour the same way you look at maths, same way you look at English, same way you look at the curriculum. Because if children aren't, don't have their learning behaviours established, it's OK to spend 20 minutes teaching learning behaviours multiple times and, and modelling it. And, and the same way I teach children how to do exchanging when I did. Adding I'm going to teach children how to actually ask their partner for help or the order before they just stand up and think they can walk to the front of the class. So I'm going to teach them how to do it. I'm going to teach them how to be good partners. I'm going to teach them why it's important to focus on certain thing at a time. I'm going to teach them if they're really struggling with something, what they can do to help themselves rather than me just getting annoyed at them for looking out the window. Yeah, that's just a it's an adjustment.

28:22 It's Yeah, it's not. You're on a pelting. Time at the start of the year, so the rest of the year is really smooth rather than the, you know, on that small level. I think, you know, I can't because I, you know, you're putting out fires all year and actually ironically wasting more time in the long run. Just do you have any? Because I feel like routine is a really good point. So I'm happy to keep talking about, but do you have any like route like tips on like toilets? Because that's a that's a big one. Like kids want to go to the toilet. Obviously people need to go to the toilet. So I'm not one of those teachers that's like, Nope, you simply can't ever go to the toilet in the middle of my lesson. Do you have any advice on how to manage kids needing to go to the? Toilet. I think that I don't from what from my experience of working in multiple schools and talking to lots of teachers, there is not one answer that everyone goes by. So I'm not going to sit here and say you should always let your kids go all the time.

29:03 Because my gut instinct is if someone needs to go to the toilet, they can go to the toilet. If I need to go to the toilet on that day, you know, lots of people say, well, I can't go to the toilet. So yeah, you're an adult teacher. Like, that's such a bad, that's such a bad comparison. Never compare yourself to the kid. I just don't think, I think that's not useful. I like to let the children go to the toilet when they need to. I think there's got to be, you got to build up trust and you've got to almost have trust in someone and then if they erode that, I think then you come up some consequences. But in terms of actually letting them go to the toilet, I think you need to be consistent with your year group colleagues. What you don't want, especially in a school where maybe you go to a different teacher for a maths group and you go to another teacher for an English group and you come back to your class teacher. All three having a different toilet policy is obviously going to be confusing and annoying for the. Children, that's a really good point. I think you need to be really consistent with your year group. I would talk to SLT and just establish what the actual rules are in the school because again, if if year six have a different role to year four, it might be for a reason. You know, especially young girls going through changes that that as they get older in primary school, they need to be able to go to the toilet straight away.

30:05 There are some children who have medical needs where they have a toilet pass, they need to go straight away. There are some children who just need to go to the toilet and you should let them go. And there are also some children who don't need to go to the toilet. They just want to get out of their lesson and they want to mess around in the toilet or they want to avoid doing the work because they don't understand. Something or they genuinely just need a break because they're anxious or something. That's the horrible bit, isn't it? I remember someone telling me that years ago they were like, have you ever considered that this child is not leaving your classroom to be naughty? They're just, they just need a break and this is the only way they can. There's only way they can get out. For 30 seconds and you haven't established a way in your room where a child in that situation can deal with it in a different way They. Can feel comfortable talking about it or asking. About it, so the the toilet question to me is like A7 pronged question. I think like if a child needs to go to the loo just let them go quickly.

30:51 But as teacher you do just pick up on stuff. I think we actually what you it's great you went deeper actually than I was thinking. I had a way more surface level thing in my head of literally like the routine of how do you do it in terms of because I find about you, but I've found over the years that there is nothing more frustrating. To do role play. Really. Okay, I'm delivering some really important part of the lesson that I think is gonna maybe spark some questions from the children. OK, Wow. And him with it. Oh, you've got a question about him. Yeah, yeah. Can I go to the toilet? Oh no. Can you? Just hang on, let me finish this paragraph. Let me just finish this paragraph. Let me just finish what I'm saying, and then we'll come back to you. Anyone else got a? Question. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. What? Can I go to the toilet when they're finished? OK, right. Let's just then I always find myself in that situation where I'm saying to the children, right, we need to establish some sort of routine where that you're not just putting your hand up and like doing this in the middle of me delivering like some important piece of information for your. Lesson.

31:40 Well OK, I'll come on to that straight away. Toilet passes. If there are children who medically need a toilet pass, yeah, they have a printed off coloured card, Yep, that they keep and they just hold up. No discussion. I just nod and they can go off to the toilet. Yep, doesn't remotely interrupt the class whatsoever. Something I don't do anymore that I used to do what I thought was really good advice. Maybe I'll start doing it again. It is just like a coded, coded system. So like if hands up, obviously if you do hands up, that can be to answer a question. But if they need to go to the toilet, maybe they'll put two fingers up crossed or something. Yeah, yeah. And then and then you know, that's the symbol for saying, well, I'm not going to answer get them to answer the question because I know they need the toilet. You might not straight away save them. Yes, you might say one second and then let someone answer and then when there's a natural lull, just look at them and nod.

32:21 Then you can control it as the teacher. So you've got again look, it comes back to teaching your kids routines. Don't be annoyed at stuff when 8 year olds don't do something that in your head you want them to do. Yeah, if you've not put any effort into the making them do it. Yeah. So, you know, if you're like, oh, for God's sake, why did the kids keep asking me to go to the toilet every time I ask a question? OK, well, they're eight. And if they're doing that, are you going to just moan at them and yourself or are you going to think of a system that you can embed to stop it happening? Yeah, because. They literally just need the toilet and they're telling you that's it. They're already being polite because they're putting their hand up and telling you they're not just walking off. Right, exactly. So you've you that annoys you, You've got to think of a system. I agree. And I think that that even just like the cross fingers is a really good symbol of like, I put my hand up, I'm gonna ask you to go to the toilet and you know this visually now so you can. Build the teacher has control.

33:04 I think it's about getting control. As much control as you can as the teacher in any way possible. That's what this all comes down to for behaviour in my opinion. Moving on to a slight different point, I've got a new thing I'm trying this year. Actually. I say new. It's something where I've recognised it in my whole career. I've just never really I've. I've never really like embedded this. Properly. Is it how to teach properly? Yeah. Are you finally becoming? How? I'm finally training. I've never. I'm a fraud. I'm a fraud. It's something where I was like, no, because like you said, September's so important. It's the time to do it. I thought about it in term six last year and I was like, it's too late. It's honestly too late. I've like these kids had me for. Five years, Six. I go to a new. School, it's just not fair as well for me. It's just changed but I I think this is important now you've got me for five terms. I've not mentioned it once, but basically it was starting to annoy me last year that. You couldn't teach it, I'm sorry. No kids.

33:50 Kids putting their hands up in general when I'm midway. Through something like saying something I. Think you've said this before, I think you're more like further down. The line than me. So I said on transition day to this class that I'm getting in September, I made a real big point of it and I was like, I'm going to. And like, like we've said in this episode, that is going to be my thing. I start with and I'll, I'll establish other things afterwards, but I'm going to start with this, which is I'm going to make it really clear to the kids that I think it's rude that if I'm talking to them all and it's not just general whatever, but I'm, you know, mid delivering a lesson and they put their hands up to ask a question. I've made it clear to them that if you're doing that, all you're thinking about is the question you want to ask. And you've actually stopped listening to me. You're not even listening to what I'm saying anymore because you're just thinking, oh, I need to ask this question.

34:33 I'm going to think about my. Question, so I don't forget my question. You've just described this podcast. I'm just thinking about my. Question. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, you're absolutely. Right. And I've just said, I said the kid, I said the kids, I'm going to write guys really important in September that you just wait till there's a natural pause in what I'm saying. So when you feel like I've finished my point, then you can come in, which is what we're doing in this podcast all the time. We wait until the other person to finish that. Point you are. That's so. True. You've kind of done. I feel like maybe I even got this from you. I don't. Know this was a huge thing for me, a huge thing because it's exactly that. It's actually more it's it's not I'm not personally offended that they want to ask for something I'll pay through. It's that I'm in the middle of probably the most important point of the lesson of me as a teacher telling the class the key information that they need to be able to get something out of this lesson.

35:17 And someone's got their hand up and they're asking something from 2 slides ago or they're just saying, oh, oh, I love rocks. And I read this about rocks. That's completely different. And you know for a fact, the whole time they got their hand up, all they think is I'm going to ask this question, I'm going to ask this question, I'm going to ask this question. So I established that with my class. It didn't really help because they're so young, like I've moved year 4, they're quite young, but it minimised it. Like there are some children who they'll just want to get something out of their system. Fine, but you come up with a way. You say to them, look, next time this happens, here's a piece of scrap paper. Write the question down, keep your finger on it. And then when I finished, you can come back to it. And that worked for some I. Was about to say because the immediate floor I thought of this was am I just, is it the same problem but kids aren't putting their hands up? Are they just now thinking of their question, Thinking I'm not lapping my hand up to the end, we can still think of my question.

36:02 And that's why you've got to think of a way to address the problem rather than either mask over it or just keep moving the masking. Yeah. So that masking is a huge part of teaching where you kind of, it feels like you've achieved something, but really you haven't. But that child putting their hand down now is still thinking, OK, I'm going to ask them about igneous rocks. Igneous rocks at. The right moment now. Yeah, exactly. So two things happened. Either those kids would carry on doing that, or when I did it, some kids would wait and I'd finish a sentence. I wouldn't be in the mid, I wouldn't finish my point. I'd finish a sentence and they'd be like, and I'd be like, I've not finished yet, OK. And we go down. All they're doing is thinking about and they're just so you know, it's small things like that you're gonna find throughout the year that will constantly happen. And you know, even if you pick up on that in October, December, November, you're like, right, guys? I've noticed this thing's been happening. It's not actually too late.

36:46 I think with yours in Term 6 maybe at that point. In term six years 6. OK, you're past that, you know, whatever. But I think, I don't think it's too late for someone to be like, I've noticed something. I think it's affecting it in this way. You can think about this in your head, but then how can I tell the kids about this? OK, kids, you know, it's affecting your learning. If you're not listening to me, deliver something. But I really value what you want to say. I hate the idea of suppressing questions, especially in the afternoon when you're doing something really interesting like history. And it's really sparked their interest. And there's seven hands go up and I found myself before they're going, guys, you need to not ask questions because I'm in the middle of talking. That's actually really bad. Yeah, like that's really bad. They're. So engaged and they're showing you and you're squashing it. Exactly, And you see their faces go and I hate that.

37:27 So, you know, just embedding ways, finding ways to get around it. Have post it notes on the table. I mean they can grab a post it note, then put it in front of them, write it down and then carry on this. And at the end, if you and if there's loads as a teacher, you can be like right, everyone bringing post it notes to the front. I'll just read off loads of them. Just go through them. You know there's ways you can manage it and. Don't be afraid to say you don't know. Just because there is a situation in reality where you do actually have a lesson to get through exactly, there is a, there is almost a minimum point you need to get through in this lesson really. And if they keep asking questions, you actually won't get through it all. And therefore the lesson is even worse now. So that you've got to find a balance. Somewhere and and children, you know, you do have to teach them that you can't ask 10 questions though, like there are some questions where yourself after you need to go out and find something, something someone did once. I remember a colleague of mine, there was a child who constantly asked questions constantly no matter what you did.

38:10 They're just like, yeah, but what about that? So they gave this person three questions a day, like as tokens kind of thing. Like they were like, listen, your questions are great, but you really need to ask the right questions because half the questions were answered. So then he really thought about his questions then. And then when he had a question, he thought, OK, this is this is important enough for me to use a token. I'm going to use my question tokens. And for that child that really worked. There's not going to be a one-size-fits-all. Some children, I tell you now you can say to them we're not gonna ask questions in class, OK. And they were like, oh, that's fine. I'll ask you a break time. Yeah. Oh, that's fine. I'll just find out myself. They won't be personally offended. There'll be some children, while asking a question is the most important thing in the world and they have to go out to the chest. So you need to find a way as the teacher and. There's always someone there's always like there's always gonna be someone who's asking the most questions. Some by definition, someone has to be in your class asking the most questions.

38:57 And I mean, think if you're a teacher, think about it right now, who is that person that comes to your mind whether this year just gone away in the past? Who's that person who just everything you say, they have their hand up to answer it. And it's both great and a little bit annoying. It just is. So you've got, yeah, you've got to manage it with things like that. That's really. And it's OK to say between colleagues and between staff, this is really annoying me. Yeah. Because then you can actually talk to your staff and be like, OK, well, how can we fix it then? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Because just remember, they are children. They do need to learn stuff. They need to learn not to do stuff sometimes. And that's OK. We need to pander to everything. But you know, you have to put, you have to do an intervention or to put something in place. You can't expect routines to fall into place or the children to behave how you magically imagined this beautiful.

39:38 Classroom I had a child once just to finish off on this point. I had a child once, very similar, put hand up a lot, really engaged with such a lovely kid. And she was so super into every single lesson, right? Always wanted to ask a question and she definitely got like a higher proportion of of like how many things are asked because she always had a hand up, but she'd always get annoyed. Then if it did get to the point where there's eight hands up and I asked three people and she wasn't one of them, she'd be like. She'd actually like have a huff and get a bit annoyed about it. And one time I just, I just talked to her and I just explained, like you said, we always do. I think we're both hot on this. I just explained to her, I said, look, there are 32 children in this classroom. You are all equal. I really value your questions. I said, but how do you think it would feel to the other children if I if you answered 50% of the questions and the other 31 children answered the other 50%? That's so not fair, is it?

40:23 And she was like, yeah, I suppose so. And honestly, from that point onwards, completely fine with yeah, I just needed a bit of explanation. It's like you're not the only person in the room. Yeah, I'm here for all of you. Not just you. That's a really good thing to learn out of that lesson. Honestly, she might have. She might only remember that. Yeah, she might have forgotten this history fact that you talked about, but she remembered that. And then do you know what in the future? It disrupted other children less. She just got on with it. She wasn't getting annoyed anymore. She got more at the future lessons. There's different ways to get stuff out of kids and I think where as teachers you got constantly on the lookout for that kind. Of thing and whilst also not hurting their feelings and not suppressing them like you said. It doesn't mean you're raising a generation of woke snowflakes. Like, no, we're just taking emotion seriously, Right? And as and as professionals who are adults with children, we're going to look out for them.

41:09 Yeah. It winds me up so much when people like, well, just tell them no. It's like OK for some kids that would. Have been a That would have been a board rubber chucked at your head, Yeah. Back in your day you had PTSD for half the class I'll. Tell you what, you're still talking about that board rubber, so it probably wasn't a good thing. Exactly. To be honest with you, exactly. You don't remember anything you were taught clearly. So OK, cool. So you know, behaviours, routines, that's a huge chunk. I think so. That's nice. I hope that was helpful. Yeah, I think that was really helpful for anyone listening. So we're going to go through some other ones now, maybe a bit more quickly. Classroom environment, hot topic. Yeah. I mean, we're gonna do what that girl did. I'm like, oh, we have to talk about this one, too, But yes, we do, Hayden. Yeah, there's lots of things we want to talk about today, and this is one of them. OK, so we just need to think how online it would be if you were classroom environment and two people doing a podcast didn't talk about you.

41:53 OK, I get. It. So what do you think about classroom? Environment, I think it's rubbish. No, I think classroom environment, it's one of those things, I mean you we've got the same. Mindset. We're not the guys to talk about. We're not the guys, but I, I also definitely know that if I don't sort it out in September, yeah, I just the whole year goes by. And what do you even mean by classroom environment? Because you've got just displays working wars like what we talking about What? Okay, strip it back. We know for a fact there are lots of different type of teachers. Some teachers bloody love going above and beyond and some teachers, those teachers make amazing spaces. And I think anyone pretending that God, that's rubbish, you're not. No, no, Celebrate it. Celebrate the above and beyond people when they do something above and beyond.

42:34 Yeah, that's great because it's amazing. And those kids have a great experience. You wouldn't do it if they're above and beyond. Bit was them and their ability to teach English. Oh, then going home, reading, research on how to do English better. Yeah. You'd be like, oh, well done. That's amazing. Exactly. I haven't done that, but like, that's brilliant. Exactly. So there's like two kind of prongs here. It's like almost what should be expected from teachers and what do they actually do? So in terms of hitting the ground running in September, Yeah. What would you say is, you know, the bare minimum that, you know, every classroom needs to have? Because I don't think not. Soulless cesspits do we bare minimum. If you've got display boards in there, there needs to be something on them like there's a come on. Realistically, there can't just be bare display boards. Well, that would you mean backed and stuff? No, no, I mean like, bit like not even backed. Yeah, You can't just have them and think, oh, I'll do that later in the time, at least back them and put a nice board around them. Yeah, even though there's nothing on it just yet. And because, you know, in term one you're gonna do a topic and it's gonna go up there, whatever, at least just have the classroom looking inviting and a little bit colourful Germany, rather than just like bare.

43:27 What? What are they like? Cork boards often, aren't they? Yeah. What behind? Yeah, some people look on Perhesi in this book. Calming. There's a lot of research about calming stuff. Like I would say colours aren't that important personally. Like they can be nice and inviting. I don't think children. Necessarily we use Hessians, I said colours as if that's the thing I do. But. I use Hessians. Yeah, exactly. A lot of people do use that calming environment, which they think is important. But you know, going above like making a paper mash a tree in your corner, You don't need to do that. Like it's nice. You don't need to do that to be an effective teacher. You, you made the tree. But I don't think classroom environment in terms of starting off strong in September. Again, I think there's a few things you need to do. Look at your policy. What do you think about this? I wanted to talk about this for classroom environment. There's a few schools at the minute who are taking very literally the advice after the school well-being report was released about what teachers should and shouldn't do and this whole list of things teachers shouldn't have to do anymore. And it was like transferring data from one thing to another. A whole list.

44:23 I can't remember one of them was teachers shouldn't be have to do displays. And, you know, that was interpreted by many as, like, as you walk into the school, there's a display in the hallway. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But some schools have gone all out, and some head teachers have actually said, no, take all displays down in classrooms as well because teachers don't have to do displays anymore. What do you think about? That there's a weird middle ground that is skipped over, which is what I actually think. So from day one of teaching I've always thought, isn't that mental? That we have to do displays despite already doing 20 hours of overtime unpaid a week and this is on top. I've always thought it's completely completely mental. As someone who also doesn't really like doing that sort of stuff, I obviously I justify it because I don't like it.

45:06 But going all the way to the level of therefore get rid of them. All in your classrooms. In your classroom, I don't think would be my outcome. I think I'd probably find a middle ground of like, OK, let's let's employ ATA or something to be like the display person. Well, it's good job. We've got lots of money in schools for that. Yeah, I know. That's why it's obviously struggle, but I mean, we've worked in a school that's had that, where they've had like a resources team and you just kind of put in what you want and eventually they'll get around to making it for you. I like the idea of working more, you know, I, I don't necessarily use it, my teaching too much, even though it might be good. I'm not saying it's good or bad, whatever, but it's obviously good to have a vocab war children can look at. It's got to be practical. That's all I really care about, all I really care about about in. But the time to do it though. In schools, yeah.

45:47 It's not this now, right? But that's another thing, right, in terms of like, but if a school was saying, oh, no, teacher shouldn't be doing this, OK, we'll cancel two of your staff meetings and give them those two hours like if you want. I just don't know. I thought there's a time. I thought there's a way to not go to the extreme of we haven't bare walls in our school because we've been told teachers can't do this. I'll just give them time to do it. I'm sure they won't mind doing it. It's just when it's on top, that's when I'm like, that's an unfair expectation. I've worked in a school where it was just honestly changing displays that every term took so much time. So many evenings I spent like way after school hours had finished just doing displays. Would be would you tell people listening to say no to that now? Oh God, yeah. I wish I could go back and be like, no, typically I wish not even just no. I wish I could go back and say when would you like me to? Yeah, yeah, yeah. And then when they inevitably say, oh, in your free unpaid time at the weekend or the half term or at 6:00 PM, I'll be like, oh, OK, I'm not going to do it then. Is there any other time in in like the paid out otherwise I could do it, yeah. 100.

46:38 Percent and when they say no we go OK what's the solution then yeah who who's going to do it for me then I. Think it's a really good attitude to have which is not to say I want to do this yeah, that that is like you're putting up the wall almost straight away, aren't you and say no, I'm not doing that and I'm awful at that I will jump to straight away. Nope, not doing it. Nope, not doing it. Yeah. Well, actually what you should say is OK when like that when and how yeah. And and if that can't be answered, then you've almost put the answer on them rather than on you being negative and all not going above and beyond. And no, I'm not. But there's a risk though, that they have thought about it and they'll give you a really good answer at which case at which point, if it's reasonable, you've just got to accept it and that's fine. It's like, oh, yeah, next staff meeting, we're giving you all time to do it. You're like, oh, OK. And that's fine. Then, but the wall has to go down, yeah.

47:18 Yeah. And even though I don't like doing displays, if they say you've given half a day to do it, yeah, but, well, obviously I'll do it. You are paying, It's my job. So yeah, you don't have to like every part of your job. Yeah. So yeah, classroom environment, I think it needs to be practised. That's cool. It obviously needs to hit what your SLT are asking you, but just look at what your SLT are asking for you. Is it fair? Is it reasonable? If it's not, ask questions. But yeah, practicality, have that at the front of your mind. Don't do something because it looks cool. But then if you actually go and sit in all of the spaces, and this is amazing thing I saw on Blue Sky, I can't remember who posted it, but they said in September at the start, go and sit in every single seat in your in your classroom seating plan and environment. Don't sit in every single seat and see if everything's practical and useful. So you know, if you sit in 32 seats and 10 of them can't see the English vocab board, that's now a pointless board because what do you want an English vocab board for? It's for when they're working.

48:07 The children can look up and see. Some if 10, can't see it if 10. Can't see it. They're not going to put it in their work. So I was like, Oh my God, that's such an easy way sometimes. It's hard though, isn't it? You get awkward classrooms. Yeah, completely. In my classroom, I've got like almost like a dead spot where you just, it's just so angled to see the board, but there's nowhere else but the tables because it's just not big enough. But anyone on that table just really struggle to see the board because it's just on such an angle at the front I'm. Like, oh, I can't and I guess. Them back as far as I can. Another thing then, as teachers, it's that knowledge of doing that, at least you know well, those ten kids can't see it. So I'm gonna have something in place for them. Yeah, I'm gonna allow them to go out of their seat and go and look when we're doing this writing. So if then ten kids do that, I'm not going. Well, you're sitting. Oh, yeah, I did tell you that just now. I've. Got about four, four that are just just slightly too far and it's just hard to see And, and whenever we do anything remotely relies on the interactive board, we actually have to be looking at or watching a video or reading something.

48:53 I'm always like just come and come and sit over here. Just literally come and sit on the carpet over here or just move your chair around for a bit. Yeah, you can go back to your table to work, but yeah, you've got to think of. Something so quickly in classroom environment. Last thing, seating plans, rows, groups. Boy, girl, boys, we'll go. You know, higher ability, lower ability. Where do you stand? All that kind of. Stuff it doesn't matter. I just I understand over the years I've been every single one and and none of them made any difference ever. I just think it's personal preference. Yeah, absolutely. I don't want to say anymore on. That I would actively avoid. Boy girl, that's my I hate it. I hate that idea of one of them do boy guards and they'll talk less. Right. No, don't perpetuate that in your classroom, okay? All you need to do as a teacher is obviously don't put friends next to each other clearly. And if they happen to be, there's a whole group of eight that are girls who are all friends and talk to each other, try and avoid that. Do you know what you can also do? You could also not and teach them to how to behave in the classroom.

49:40 Yeah. Like, you're gonna have to do stuff sometimes with your friends. Like it's. It is absolutely impossible to have a seating plan where everything's perfect. So don't beat yourself up if you do a seating plan. You think, oh, God, why have I put these two together? They always talk. Yeah. OK. Well, this next time they won't be. But for this time, they've got to learn that they can't talk to each other. My seating plan system's really simple. I do the same thing every single time I tell the beginning of the year. We change seating plan every at the start of each term. No, there's there's nothing you can do about that and and we won't do it mid term. It's just tough. I always say to them if you get if you get something as a friend, it's by accident. I randomise your seating plans. That's what I tell the kids. Obviously, I don't actually randomise it. And then the only thing I do consider when I'm doing my seating plan, it's not boys and girls and things like that. It is literally just what children do I want closest to me so I know will need the most support.

50:23 I'm not having to go right round and awkwardly to the back of the classroom. I can just keep them nearer to me, nearer to the board. And equally I pair them with children that I've learned are really bad at focusing. I'll put them in place, places where I can just be like helping them focus all the time. Everyone else randomised changes each term. If you moan about it tough, get over it. And I find that they just, they just generally deal with it like, okay, we're gonna change the term anyway. And I'll say you learn to get on the people around how life works. You're gonna be filled with people you don't necessarily. Yeah, like that's when you get parents come in and go because we move. Could you move little Sally, please? Because don't really like I'm at the point now where I'm like, oh, not until next time. And I'm more confident now it might start my career. But oh, yes, of course, straight away. But if there's a safeguarding issue or a very big falling out, I'd be like, oh, OK, I'll talk to them and we'll get to the bottom of it and then maybe I will obviously do that.

51:09 But if it's simply just, oh, you don't quite get on with that person. I'm like, well, sorry, yeah, I agree. Someone else might feel the same way. Who I then move close to them and then I get a parent coming to me saying oh can they move? It's always awkward. You've got one child in your class who is a little bit naughty or a bit, it's slightly annoying to the other children. The children find that behaviour annoying. And then yeah, you're constantly getting kids saying I don't want to sit there. To that person, it's like, well, yeah, come on, it's getting up. There now part of you know part of them learning how to pay better is going to be you learning how to deal with these behaviours also. Yeah, when it's not you, you missed one big thing in classroom environments. I know you want to move on. And I feel like this is really important to me. And it's hilariously that hilariously, as you didn't bring it up, being really, really tidy. I think that's I actually value that super high. I don't know why I didn't bring that. Up, yeah.

51:51 I've been really organised, really, really tidy classroom. I think that's really important. I've struggled with it this year, struggled to keep on top of it and I've felt stressed all the time and I think children sometimes get a bit stressed when there's just stuff everywhere, but I think that's another big one. Tidy, Tidy desk, tidy mind. Tidy desk, tidy mind. That's the thing, yeah. Yeah, so that's why my mind is messy as hell. Yeah, I struggle with that. Class was not bad, though. I'm a Type B person. Yeah, but it's not great. And, you know, I think stuff has everything has a place. Again, there's got to be a bottom line for that. Everything's got to have a place. The kids know where to go for a pencil. They know where to go for their maths books. You could say, can you hand out the English books? And they'll be like, yeah, sure. And they'd go straight to English books. But yeah, tidiness is important. And it's something I learned as I got older.

52:32 It's it's another way of having routines and structure for your children. They they can. They should be able to rely on a tidy space I think. Yeah, OK. Fair enough. Moving on, you know how I just mentioned about children learning to socialise with people that are not necessarily their best friends, so that's next to them. Same for adults really, isn't it? There's one of our points that's a bit lower down our. List. Yeah, No, no, no. I. Thought it linked nicely about you know you're going to work with people that aren't necessarily your best friends. Yeah, yeah, that's tricky. Yeah. No, it can't. It can be tricky. I think again, talking to people, especially new teachers who are asking for advice and stuff from the podcast. I think this is something which equally applies to literally everyone, though. This is one, I really like this point because you are constantly moved about in a primary school. It's quite unique really.

53:17 If you worked in a different kind of job, like my cousin works for this company, there's like accounting or something, right? And he's had the same team for honest like five years. Because you're an accountant. You can't suddenly go into sales. You're an accountant with the accounting team. You're doing accounting with teaching. It's like called I'm a year four teacher. You can also be a year one teacher, you can also be a year six teacher and you get moved constantly. And if you're not getting moved, some of your team's probably getting moved around. So whether you're going to a new year group or someone's joining you every year, I'd argue pretty much you're guaranteed a new team in some respect, whether it's a teaching assistant or a fellow teacher or whatever it is. And I think it's really, really important to draw the line and, and understand that you do not have to be friends with everyone you work with.

53:59 You can be friendly, you can be cordial, and you absolutely should be always professional. And if that's not two ways and that's a different conversation, but you can be in control of being professional. You don't have to like the person you're working with. And I'm not saying I do or don't. I'm quite fortunate I think right now with my team. I really like all of them, you know. Am I best friends with them? Obviously not because I'm best friends with my best friends like, but with my colleagues. Do I like them to go on with them? Yes. Am I always professional with them? I try to be as much as possible. Have you ever worked with someone who you thought? I just wish I didn't have to. Well. Sitting, sitting. Awe. For a podcast, God. You know what have I have? I have.

54:41 I've worked with people where I think, where I've thought in my head I would never socialise with you outside of this school. I don't necessarily dislike you like where I think like you're horrible, but I think we are so different. You're not the kind of person that I actively want to socialise with outside the school, but I don't hate them. You know? A strong word, isn't it? Yeah. I don't know. I would say it's never gone further than that. I've ever worked with someone where I'm so enraged by them that I think, Oh my God, you know, I've had OK. The furthest it's ever gone is just. I've just disagreed with like, the majority of things that they say. I think it's not got to an enraged level, but I'm always a bit like a little bit on edge. Like I just, I just know that we're going to think differently about this thing. It's just annoying because we constantly don't agree on, like, how to do this thing.

55:23 Yeah, but that's about as far as it's gone. What about you? I'd say I've worked with, I've worked in a school with people who I'm like, I actively don't like you. Yeah. And that's just true. Always going to happen. There's always going to be people. I'm like you just I don't like the way you treat the kids. I think it's it whether it's acceptable or not, whatever, But I just think the, the, the way you talk about them in the staff room, it's like you resent this job. It's like why you? I don't understand why some people are teachers. I'll be perfectly honest. Like, like maybe you feel like you're trapped in the job. Whatever, fine. But yeah, maybe. But go and do something else. If you, if you, if what you're saying about about the the job is, is true, then what on earth are you doing still here? And I I struggle to bond with those types of people or get on with them or think of ways. Yeah. I just struggle with that because the number one reason why I'm a teacher is because I love teaching the kids. And if that, if I don't feel that from someone, I'm just a bit like, wow, OK, don't know what you're doing, but I think advice from starting September, if you're starting on a team with someone who you just don't quite get on with, completely bury that.

56:20 Completely bury. Don't let don't let it remotely get in the way because it's the same for a child in your class. You're told in transition blood. Yeah, Sally, she's a right nightmare coming up. You got to sit next to her. You got you got off. Jeez, that's Sally. You know, just be careful if the teacher, like the year group below is saying that to you. I also don't like that. Like it's cool to know these things, but I want to form my own opinions. I want to go in with a clean slate. Same with my colleagues and my and my teaching stuff. I want to go with a clean slate. I'm going to go in really professional to say, OK, what are the best outcomes for the kids? We're maybe planning together or something like that. We're going to break it up evenly, make sure it's fair, distribute stuff, and then if something happens that I don't like or I think it's wrong or I think it's unprofessional, then go from there. But I think you've got to start up a blank, clean slate. Yeah, I agree, because I think the happiest, it affects your mind massively.

57:05 You know, I can tell you right now the happiest I am at work is when is when the people around me I'm just sort of chilled with even if it like you said, wouldn't hang out with them outside the school. But we all get along. We do the job properly together. But yeah, if you're you're struggling with someone and you're constantly moaning about them or you're going to their teach, oh, they're doing this. You're just, it just stresses you out. They live in rent free in your head as people say. I bet everyone had this feeling before, right? Where someone they don't quite get on with someone, they don't like someone. And then because you're living in that mindset, there's almost nothing that person can do that doesn't annoy you. And suddenly, you know, if you were eating a bag, well, maybe not eating because that would annoy me. But if, if you were like, if you just drank some of your drink right now, yeah, I wouldn't think twice about it. Yeah, but if someone I actively don't like sat there and drank their drink right now, I I'd probably be like in the middle of the pot.

57:50 How rude I'm talking. To him, you finally drinking their drink. Where it's completely, yeah, it's completely. Nothing wrong at all what they're doing, but with that mindset you have that automatically makes it into a bad thing and it just doesn't have to be. We're very lucky. I think our school, we've got a really, really, we're so lucky because I feel like every, every teacher in our school and TA, they just get on even if it's not, even if they're not friends outside of school. We've we've nailed that surface level at least respect for each other where everyone just gets on and we can all talk about stuff. We can disagree on things as well and it's just not a problem. I. Think that's really powerful. That's nice. That's a really good point actually. To go on to very quickly is the ability to disagree with someone without falling out with them as staff. That's so important and you've got to hit the ground running with that. And I was thinking about, you know, obviously we need maths in our school.

58:36 Yeah, we every September we get that time to go over maths basically and just touch base. And we never disagree, do we? Set expectations gardener, but what I thought would be really good having got some advice on blue sky again, I said, well, what would you do with this hour? It's really flexible. I I normally do this go over CPD. We've had recently go over our focus for the year, give you some time to do some planning and talk to your team. What would you do if you had the time and someone said put out an anonymous questionnaire and just ask them some questions about maths? You know, what was, what did you find trickiest to teach last year? So it's anonymous. And then you, as I can give some, you know, resources out to everyone and say, oh, look, here's some help. What went well? What's going badly? And I thought, yeah, that's a great idea. And I know some people would be really reluctant to ask those questions, especially what went badly.

59:18 And it's like, but that's really powerful. You're inviting criticism because you lead maths, but you're being naive if you think everything is perfect. So the I thought to myself, yeah, I would really trust actually my colleagues, my professionals, if they write something that said is going bad with maths, you know what? It's because it is. They're not out to get anyone. It's anonymous. They're writing it because they're professional. They go times tables is weak in my area. We need some help. Cool. And then I know because. We work in that school where where we've got that environment, it's nice. But if you're in a toxic school, I reckon I'd find it a lot harder if you, if you know that in that school there's someone who absolutely hates you, you don't get on with. I wouldn't want to hand out that questionnaire because I know they'll roast me because it's anonymous and you know, it's harder to make those decisions. So it is, I think. Yeah, there's a lot comes from taking time to make really nice relationships with the people around you, even if they're not your best friend, even if you think I'd never socialise with them, make the effort at work because actually you're stuck with them for a long time.

1:00:07 Yeah, it's worth it. And it comes down to controlling your mindset. And I suppose this is the last thing we're going to talk about in terms of in September. You, you have control over your mindset on other people. Someone else might affect you, you know, might not get on with you. That's down to them. You know, if that happens, deal with it. But from the offset in September, have that mindset, of course, going to get on with everyone. My whole class going to be amazing. My my colleagues going to be fantastic. And part of controlling your mindset is you've got to take control from the offset from September, we're sound like a broken record of that work life balance. It is so important. September especially is the time where you have to grip onto it as tightly as ever because it's so easy for it to disappear and so easy for people to almost blackmail you, make you feel bad about your six weeks you just had off. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

1:00:51 Doesn't matter. You're going. To work really hard now. From September, you've got to cling on to that work life balance. What does it look like in September, Hayden? Making sure that you look after yourself and don't get bad out from the start. Oh. Crikey, OK, right from the get go. I'm just going to precursor this with my one bit of advice I'd really want to push people to do is before September starts, just just dedicate a little bit of time to think about this, what we're about to say, right? Get ready to hit the ground running properly and don't get caught short. So proper work life balance is not again, feeling guilty you just had six weeks off and therefore taking on way more planning than you should be doing. Your planning should be what should meet whatever your requirements are of your score, whether whether that's you do it all in PPA, whether that's in your head you like on Friday nights is my planning night. As long as you can get it done in the time that you've allocated and no more, that's fine. That's fine.

1:01:37 You do what you do, but don't take on anymore just because, OK, it's a planning marking if you or any policy at school. If you feel like it's changed since last year and you just think this is ridiculous now and they're just expecting way too much for us. I can't get this done in in the time you need to say something about it that's affecting your work life balance. Go on, jump in with. No, you're absolutely right. Because I think it's such a, such a powerful thing because I sometimes feel like we're preaching to people we can't help. But I really do think we can because I feel like we're even preaching to people have already gone through this conversion and I've spoken to SLT and it's sorted or people who are going to speak to SLT and it's going to be sorted. They've got understanding SLT that with those people, I'd say to say to them is you've got to be the person to action it though, because there might be the loveliest SLT in the world and the nicest meaning, but don't know what's going on.

1:02:20 They don't know that you're taking marking home every day. That's clearly not acceptable, so be proactive and then you'll you'll find it will change quickly and your life will be better. Be a bystander. Don't be a bystander. Don't be a martyr. Be an upstander. Don't go to the staff room and say bloody hell, marking again, but then do nothing about change. You've got to be proactive about it. Or I'm talking to people in the toxic school where it doesn't matter. The school just like completely make them feel like feel awful for not possibly doing anything. I did a post this summer. I ended up feeling quite bad, but I still stand by what I said. So I'm really interested what you, what you think. I, I was, I was talking about people who in school teachers, there are some teachers and we do a podcast. So obviously we're probably under this umbrella who like to moan, OK, and who will say, oh, I do 60 hours work a week. Some of them don't you just don't do 60 hours a week. If you actually add up 60 hours a week, that's a lot. That's 12 hours a day if you're just doing Monday to Friday or 10 hours and then six hours at the weekend. Sometimes you just don't.

1:03:22 People exaggerate, but a lot of people do. So that's not what I was saying. I'm just saying sometimes people like to exaggerate as teachers. It's still horrendously lots and stuff like that. That's why I felt a bit bad. But the, the real reason I felt bad is because I said I just don't believe when people say to me they're doing 3 hours of work after after school every evening. And my point was, I simply don't believe it because I don't understand how I, I don't understand how you can fill 15 hours from Monday to Friday. I just didn't get it. I'm like, and I end up just, I, I, I don't believe you. And I'd love to sit in the room next to someone who said it from 6:00 to 9:00 every evening watching what they do for three hours because two things even they're doing it and I can't comprehend it. That's why I don't believe you, because I can't comprehend how insane your expectations are.

1:04:06 What could even exist? What could even happen? Maybe it does, or you're exaggerating a bit and you can maybe take control. And that's what I was getting at. I think teachers need to take control more because it's easy to slip into this martyr environment of feeling constantly on and unless you actively go in and turn that off and say no, I'm not doing it, I can see why people feel that way and feel like they're doing 3 hours a night. It's a hard one because it's a bit of a catch 22 because do you know what I believe? People that are saying they're working 3 hours a night and I believe it's because they are doing the job to 100%. And it's one of those weird things where I'm like, it sounds stupid for me to say this is the kind of job where you cannot give it 100% all the time. That sounds like I'm just being like, be lazy. Do less than you can.

1:04:46 You literally can't if you actually like this. It's endless really, if you think about it. I could if I wanted to, and I'm sure you could. I could spend 8 hours marking a single English lesson if I wanted to. Do you know what I mean? Because I could think I could invent some crazy thing that I need to do for that. That's what I mean. That's what I mean, right? And I agree. So I think a lot of these people, I reckon 99% of the people that are working hours every single evening after being at work for like like 11 hours, like crazy long days, could probably just sit back, assess the situation and cut back on some something precisely by not giving 100. That's that's the problem though, when I spoke to people about this in the past, because I've known people that like closely that are like this, it's because they just want to do the job really, really, really well all the time.

1:05:32 And whereas I've sort of already got to the point where I'm like, I'm going to sacrifice this little bit, this little bit, this little bit for the sake of my work life balance. And it's not really going to make much difference. You know, they spend 3 hours marking those books. I spend one hour marking those books. And actually the kids did the same amount of work, the same outcomes at the end of the year. I just didn't sacrifice 2 hours of my time. But maybe I don't look as good because the books don't look as good. And I think there's always little things that you can compromise on and. If you're in a toxic school, that's important. Yeah, isn't it? How the books look becomes an important thing. I remember getting drawn into the whole point of, you know, we'd have scrutiny on books, right in this school we worked in, where it was just horrendous. And the scrutiny would be sent to everyone, right?

1:06:14 And it'd be like a tick box. So it'd be like 10 statements. And the more ticks the better kind of thing. And it would be like 3 peer reviews every week, 17 ticks and every lesson. All this, none of about change, none of about learning, just insane tick box crap. And you'd know someone else got 9 ticks out of 10 and you got 3 ticks out of 10. And you're just like, yeah, the only reason they got 9 instead of three was because they did hours of extra work unpaid in there every time. And I can see, I completely get it. I can see why it would you would feel pushed into doing it. Like you've got to. What I want to say to people is you don't. If you're doing 3 hours of work every evening, you're doing too much. And it is not acceptable. It's because one of two things, your school's completely toxic and you're being pushed to do so and you need to stand up and not do it or move school eventually, if it's still not a problem or you're pushing yourself too much and you need to take control of it more.

1:07:04 And, and that's, I feel really strongly about that. And I don't want to feel like I'm attacking people who work really hard or, or do this extra work and they already feel stressed. And then there's me going, oh, I don't believe. You just don't do. It Yeah, it's a. Bit condescending my point of saying I know what you mean. Yeah, my point of saying I don't believe you is I don't believe that's necessary. Just don't do it. And I'm, I'm, I'm passionate about it because I don't want you to get burnt out because you know what, if you're doing it, you're probably an amazing teacher because you're obsessed with doing the right thing. Here's a. Little homework task for everyone. Then go and find the person in your school who who does the least work genuinely. And it might not be for best reasons, it might not be, but go and find them and literally just find out what they do. Yeah. Why? Why are they coming in at 7:45 and going home at 4:00 every day? And saying they're not doing any work. Outside. Yeah, and they're not doing work outside of school.

1:07:45 You might not agree with all the things they're not doing. You might be thinking they're actually not doing some stuff they should be doing. But just go and find out what they are doing and find the middle ground. Because if you're doing 20 more hours in them a week, but realistically you're getting similar outcomes each year and actually not much is changing and they're still employed and nothing actually bad is happening, they're just getting more of a life than you, then there might be something to learn from them. There might be something. Yeah, absolutely. No, I think that was really a really good chat. Yeah, I think we're gonna round that off there. But yeah, September is coming. I wanted to round it off by just saying that every single end of August that comes around, this is my 10th now, which seems insane. I am excited. It doesn't matter. You forget all the other stuff, maybe swear six weeks off. You forget what it's like when it's 5:30. You still got to set a marking to do what you do remember though, And what I'm so looking forward to is my class of 32 children walking in on their first day, being excited to be in school, all in their new uniforms and they'll sat down on some radio, brand new equipment, ready to learn some maths. And then I get to stand in front of them and teach them. Maths, not smile.

1:08:46 Until Christmas, but I get to teach them maths, I get to be excited, I get to build a safe space for them, I get to watch them progress, I get to watch them grow, I get to build relationships with them. There's something about September or just gets me so excited and I'm I'm really looking forward. To it. Yeah, brilliant. I love your passion. It is nice. You always get really, really buzzed for the new year. Because it's so exciting, you can mould them again. You can really take them on journeys and see them progress. Whether there'll be five kids who make amazing social progress across the year and then make friends that never made before. There be some kids who they can't talk in the classroom, and then after two months, they feel they can talk to you and they put their hand up and it gets to December and this kid for the first time ever done a home learning project. They got, you know, completely engrossed in something. You talk.

1:09:31 You know what, extremely selfishly, 10 year ago, me coming out here, you get to see 32 kids just love you genuinely because you because you work so hard to do the right thing for them. And and if you do the right thing for them, they end up respecting you and they love you like family. And by the end of the year, it's crazy. And I and I love that feeling. And that that is, you know, if ever it got to the point where we didn't teach anymore. Oh, God, I struggled to ever replace that. Yeah, it's hard. That's what makes this probably the best job. I I can't imagine doing another job completely and never doing this again. Horrible start crying in a second. You will not, I won't. Do you know who else I love? We're going to finish this off. I love our listeners. Thank you for listening.

1:10:13 And like Dylan said, if there are a bunch of new people today, I hope these tips helped you or not tips really well. They have more of a discussion. Just some thoughts about starting September right. And thanks for waiting around. We're good letting us have our summer. We do appreciate it because you know what I loved in loved in this podcast, but it was quite nice to think about it for a couple of weeks. It was good. It was good. We've done that. I really enjoyed that chat. I'm looking forward to this year. I think over this year we're going to take another step in the podcast game, I reckon take even more seriously. Wow, first I'm hearing. A new setup it's not trying. To make it more traumatic. Is not. We're talking about this. Let's talk about this an hour ago and I said I was going to say this. We might, we might even get a second camera, who knows, that'd be nice. Maybe we'll move out of this studio, which is Hayden's third bedroom, Who knows. But yeah guys, if you did enjoy this, please do follow us on Spotify.

1:10:57 Please leave us a review. We're heading towards 100 on Spotify. We're over 100 on all platforms, 5 star reviews, but it really helps us. And if you could share it, give it to someone who's starting in September. Which teachers are starting in September? Oh yeah, all of them. Send it to all of your teaching friends and yeah guys, get in touch. We love hearing from you. And we'll we'll be back next week. Maybe promise we will. No, we will. We will. We will. Absolutely. Maybe. Definitely. Right, See you then. See you then. Potentially bye then I wanted to speak last. Bye.