Tag Archive: pandemic life

  1. One year in – Alexandra Park School

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    It is a whole year since lockdown began in the UK on 23rd March 2020. Soon afterwards, we began Oldham’s Lockdown Museum. The project asked local people to send in pictures and tell us what they were doing in a time of monumental change. Over the coming months, photographs poured in and together they create a fascinating and sometimes moving snapshot of Oldham during lockdown. The Lockdown Museum tells amazing stories of how people came together to help one another, adapted their lives and businesses and found the strength to keep going in the most challenging of times. Today, we’re revisiting Alexandra Park Junior School.

    Banner showing Welcome Back Everyone in multi-colours and the phrase To Learn, Be Happy and Achieve our best

    To mark the anniversary of lockdown, we have contacted some of the contributors and asked them to reflect on the last twelve months. Here is the first in a series of revealing blog posts.

    No1. Samantha Hickling, Alexandra Park Primary School

    Three children sat on the ground of an assembly hall with a rainbow banner with words Alexandra Park Junior School, Thankyou NHS and Keyworkers.
    • Tell us a little bit about yourself and or your organisation. Who are you, what do you do? Where are you from?

    We are Alexandra Park Junior School, a junior school within Oldham who have been majoritively closed during both the 1st and 3rd lockdown to all pupils except the children of key workers and the vulnerable.

    • Thinking back to 2020… What were you doing in March, when the first lockdown started?

    We had just completed our mock SATs on the day the lockdown was announced. We had just had a successful Book Week and we were planning a variety of future events.

    • What suddenly changed for you when the first lockdown started? How did you adapt?

    We suddenly had to adapt to teaching online with two days notice. Our classes were empty, our children at home with no idea when we wold be back. We expected maybe 12 weeks at most, we never expected not saying goodbye to the Y6 children

    • What helped you through it, personally and professionally?

    Our team at Alex Park are like a family and we all got each other through it. The never ending enthusiasm for the children at home, and their happy voices when we would call to check in.

    • What has changed between the first, second and third lockdown?

    We have really got a handle on remote learning. In the first lockdown we provided work, but now we provide a true learning experience via live lessons. The children are more engaged in it as well.

    • What, if any, have been the positives?

    The positive attitudes from the children – they always see the positive side

    Three children standing outside the school holding paintings and drawings of hearts and rainbows for the NHS.
    • What are your hopes for the rest of 2021 and beyond?

    A return to some form of normal and a chance for our families to be families again. A chance for our children to sit in groups and work together again, rather than in rows. A chance to sing together and play together. No more bubbles!

    Take a look at Oldham’s Lockdown Museum page and see some of the other contributions we’ve received.

  2. This Year

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    Oldham's Lockdown Museum logo

    We are asking you to send us written records of your life in Oldham during the last year of the pandemic. Lesley Reece submitted this poem to Oldham’s Lockdown Museum.

    Tick tock tick tock
    Time passes so slow
    Staring at the same 4 walls
    With nowhere else to go
    Day by day week by week
    Then a year has gone
    A year that seemed ever so bleak
    Was so hard for everyone
    But if you look deeper
    You will remember the laughter
    Not a perfect year by any stretch
    But it’s not all been a disaster
    Our plans may not have taken us
    To where we’d like to be
    Just living day by day
    Can really help us see
    The kindness of others
    Who stop and say hello
    The lonely ones who need your smile
    In order to let theirs grow
    We have seen clapping on the doorstep
    All with our pans and pots
    To let the NHS know
    That we thank them such a lot
    Not being able to see
    Loved ones is very hard
    Getting all your fresh air
    From your very own back yard
    The wearing of our masks
    Has grown natural to me
    The really extraordinary ones
    Are such a joy to see
    Birthdays and celebrations
    Don’t have the same wow
    But we all find different ways
    To enjoy them anyhow
    They say eyes are the windows
    To see inside your heart
    That is quite a good job
    As you can only see that part
    Helping out each other
    Doing a good turn
    Home schooling is a nightmare
    Keeping kid still long enough
    For them to actually learn
    With limited access
    For face to face contact
    It is the hardest part
    Human touch is what we lack
    But we are all doing our bit
    To get through this somehow
    It’s just the way it has to be
    For all of us for now
    So don’t let those days slip away
    Find reasons to smile
    For when this is all over
    You will have done things worthwhile
    Not a day will be wasted
    We have so much to learn
    By showing support to each other
    And doing a good turn
    We can come out stronger
    On the other side
    For acting responsibly
    We can turn this tide.

    If you have written something which you would like us to record for future generations, you are welcome to submit it here.