Today my daughter leaves home. I wrote a poem about that earlier in the week which I have copied below. But as I sit here on my yoga mat, in the calm cool of the morning, I am reflecting on why this is such a very difficult day for me. When I left home, 34 … Continue reading A bit more.
Blackberries and Brambles
Last night we picked blackberriesYou and I Growing at the path-sideWhere we have walked together so many timesSometimes in chatterSometimes in silenceSometimes feeling the sharpness of feelings like brambles that have cut our skinAnd other times rejoicing in the sheer beauty of it all. I was taken back to eighteen years agoAnd that harvest. Only … Continue reading Blackberries and Brambles
What happens when you’re busy making other plans….
Back in the summer of 2019, I was lucky enough to have coaching with the incredible Sarah Philp. We had several sessions together and ended when I felt that we had worked enough, for the time being, on identifying my values and vision. After this, I began some therapeutic work to try and address some … Continue reading What happens when you’re busy making other plans….
Summer wellbeing sunshine
How will you hold onto the summer sunshine, particularly when the nights draw in and the autumn storms gather? As teachers, we often allow ourselves to get into the habit of pushing ourselves too hard during term time and holding out for the holidays, in order to focus on our wellbeing. I have been as … Continue reading Summer wellbeing sunshine
The I Factor In Your Wellbeing
Back at the start of this year I read a tweet by Paul Dix, inviting people to pitch ideas for shows on a new radio station called TeacherHug Radio. You can find out more about the station here: About – Teacher Hug Radio My pitch pretty much went like this: “I have been involved for … Continue reading The I Factor In Your Wellbeing
An education
I tell you I teach you The facts, the information, the knowledge. I repeat, review, re-phrase Recognise the resistance Re-double my efforts. I get frustrated. Why can’t you Do as I say Not as I did? I don’t want you to make the same mistakes I can’t bear to see you suffer the same pains … Continue reading An education
The holiday of a lifetime?
Holiday. And we are off. In the car, en route, unterwegs. On a journey that we had hardly hoped to dare might happen. Not the “normal” summer holiday trip in so many respects. Not the usual first day of the holidays departure, ahead of three weeks away. Not sitting in the front of the car … Continue reading The holiday of a lifetime?
Protected: A response
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.
Proactive Pastoral Care – Book launch and my contribution around trauma responsive education
On Thursday April 15th, I was honoured to be part of the panel for the launch of Maria O’Neill’s fantastic new book, Proactive Pastoral Care, published by Bloomsbury and available on Amazon. In my contribution, I built upon Maria’s excellent ideas and suggested how a school community can ensure that it is responsive to the … Continue reading Proactive Pastoral Care – Book launch and my contribution around trauma responsive education
For UKEdchat April 2021. How to be a professional human.
This week I was privileged to present a session at UKEdChat’s global online conference. This is a video of my contribution to the event: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WHrZspW_9-_oTXhbTPn4wNx4PLWT35Jh/view?usp=sharing This is the basis of what I said. Hello there I’m absolutely delighted that you’ve joined me for this session today and that you are ready to consider the idea … Continue reading For UKEdchat April 2021. How to be a professional human.
