For most of us working in schools, tomorrow marks the start of our return to work, although in some schools it may be a training day so you have some sense of reprieve before the kids come in. I know in the schools i work in that some of the children will have experienced difficult situations over the festive period. This can range from witnessing relational conflict between members of their family, alcohol misuse, and general unpredictable behaviour. Whilst some children live with this all the time, it is often heightened at xmas with more stress and expectations of the ‘perfect’ xmas being put on families. For these children, the return to school is looked forward to as it represents familiarity, certainty and positive and consistent relational experiences with adults they have learnt to trust. While this is positve for the children, it can can be exhausting for school staff who themselves may feel like they could do with another week off to recover from their own celebrations.
I know schools are very busy places and the pressure can start as soon as you walk through the door tomorrow morning, so try and be gentle on yourselves and the children you work with and have a positive and happy start to 2016.