If your children are young enough or in a school year where the school have welcomed them back, you may be sending your child back to school. As a WoMo friend of mine said last week, Brexit and Covid have been the playground divide. And you know what, she is right.
There are two camps, broadly, when it come to Covid. It’s the remainers v the Brexiteers, except now it’s the full scale lockdowners v the risk takers. And when I say risk takers, I am not suggesting parties of 50 people in your house. With 3 kids, and having recently stepped out of PAYE life into being self-employed, I am firmly in the mindset of keeping my work health (think income) and my mental health in the best shape possible. I am in the back to school camp.
3 kids who all want to see their mates and a mother who wants to be building her business is a recipe for a stress fest under our roof. So I read. A lot. And not books - articles. I looked beyond the headlines, I read beyond the tabloids and tried to really weigh up the pros and cons of going outside, walking more than once with the dog and the pros and cons of mask wearing. We were on lockdown in a fierce way at the start. We stuck to ALL the rules and have continued to do so. I understand the risks not just for my family but for others, and I have been careful.
Yet when it came to my 4 year old going back to school, for me this was a no brainer. I won’t go on to quote extensive stats on ages of people who have passed away from Covid or the reasons why you should do it, but this has been my choice. I believe the risk to my son and our family is minimal and the benefit to his, and my, mental health far outweighs keeping him at home. He is beyond excited to see his mates and needs the social interaction. I am lucky that I do not live with or have a family member that lives with a vulnerable condition so that has made my decision easier. And I’m not out having parties or hugging anyone. I am still being careful.
But what prompted me to write this blog is the classroom divide. It is Brexit all over again. The judgement from a few of the parents who have kept their kids at home is off the chart. It is a personal choice. And whatever your decision may be, it’s YOUR decision for your family. You may feel the teahcers are hard done by or the kids need to be protected or there is going to be mass spread of the virus around the school. I dont believe any of those things are true, but that’s just me. I trust the school have taken the necessary steps, vulnerable teachers aren’t working in my sons school and I can tell you the teachers were so excited to see the kids. I asked the Head Teacher when I collected my son yesterday, how was day 1? She said ‘It has been amazing to have the kids back in the school. We have missed them all! Schools are meant for children’. She was grinning from ear to ear. Her words were genuine and she was truly thrilled to have them back.