Tag Archive: pandemic life
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One year in – Alexandra Park School
Comments Off on One year in – Alexandra Park SchoolIt 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.
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
- 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
- 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.
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This Year
Comments Off on This YearWe 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.