Last month, our newest members of staff introduced themselves to the SGGS community and outlined their excitement at joining our school. Now, Mrs Pemberton, Miss Gonzales and Mrs McGuire share their thoughts on the experience of ‘lockdown’ teaching and working so far. 

Mrs Pemberton, Teacher of PE

Starting a new job during lockdown has been strange, I must admit. PE lessons are usually very active and include lots of questions and interactions, so locking myself away in the front room of my house to record yoga and dance videos has been very different!

I have learnt some new skills in video editing and how to use technology in a more efficient way. It has also been enjoyable providing something for the students, even if I do miss the human interaction and fun of working in a face-to-face school environment.

It has been great to meet some of the staff through video call meetings and everyone has been very welcoming! As a school, SGGS has done a wonderful job of providing platforms so that school life can continue in the best possible way. This has really helped me to feel like I have started a new job and I am a part of something.

As humans we can adapt quickly, but I confess, I am looking forward to adapting back to school life. I am enjoying my new job already but will enjoy it even more where we are no longer connecting virtually and can connect in person!

 

 

Miss Gonzales – Head of Spanish

Challenging times are the perfect opportunity to test us all and prove that anything is possible. It has been a few weeks since I joined SGGS and I have been impressed with how enthusiastically students and teachers have embraced technology. We are all in this together and we are lucky to have technology on our side. The amount of resources available at SGGS shows that now more than ever, we can innovate and bring down barriers in multiple ways.

I feel lucky to be able to communicate with my students daily and I can see their effort and resilience building up every day. Being able to share multiple resources has also given them the freedom and stimulus to pick, choose and explore on their own. Even though we are experiencing physical constraints, our minds can still wander and grow in every possible way!

 

Mrs McGuire - Sixth Form Administrator

After Easter I started my first official day at SGGS. I had meetings using Microsoft Teams, with my new colleagues showing me the ropes. Every email I received over the next few days contained words of welcome and offers of help. It is odd starting a job and communicating with people that I should be seeing every day!

Working remotely has its challenges. I have three daughters at home. My eldest is 10, my middle is 5 and my youngest is 4 and not yet at school. I always start the working day with emails. Receiving messages from students containing wishes of health and thanks is not something I have experienced before. It is really refreshing and makes me smile knowing that I can help these polite young people on their journeys.

After lunch, I stop and take my children out for daily exercise. I am a firm believer that exercise is good for mental health and mental health is paramount. Being cooped up 24/7 is not healthy for anyone and it puts a lot of stress and strain on even the most relaxed of people. The afternoons are more fluid. I dip in and out of meetings or projects and reply to any emails that float in. By 3pm things start to bubble again as we head to dinner time, with me trying to fend off requests for snacks!

I am enjoying my new role immensely and I couldn’t be more happy or grateful to work in such a caring, supportive and inspiring school.