From the editor: 'Classroom full of joy so help give city a lift with your stories'

Children help us all smile. They make us tired, frustrated and anxious but they always raise our spirits.
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It is their funny little phrases, their intepretations of life and their simplisitic views on how things should be done that keep us giggling when they are little. Then teenage ambition and drive to change the world raises our spirits, particularly since they have all the answers!

It is the opportunity to help shape those young lives which attracts many people into the teaching profession. It is an incredibly rewarding job but it also has plenty of challenges, more in 2020 than usual.

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Every school in the city was open right through lockdown for the children of essential workers and the most vulnerable. Then it was just a couple of days from welcoming all pupils back when news started breaking of the first bubbles being sent home. If one child has a positive Covid test, everyone in their group or year has to self isolate for two weeks. That means a lot of youngsters are back at home, even though they are well.

Children back at St Thomas of Canterbury School. Reception class with miss White.Children back at St Thomas of Canterbury School. Reception class with miss White.
Children back at St Thomas of Canterbury School. Reception class with miss White.

Headteachers are following the guidelines, they are acting quickly when they get new cases and are doing exactly what we need them to do. It might not seem ideal but we need to accept that it is going to be like this for a long time. It is better for schools to be back and some pupils to have to self isolate occassionally than for us to give up on education for an extended period. It is these frustrated conversations which parents are bringing to our newsdesk but that is actually only a tiny part of the real story.

The true picture in our city right now is one of dedicated professionals who are bending over backwards to make sure the younger generations keep learning as safely and as efficiently as possible. Our sons and daughters are over the moon to be back with their friends, to be doing all the fun things that we remember from our own childhood, to be putting their creative and academic minds to use in a way that isn't possible at home.

To celebrate that and show our teachers that they truly are appreciated, The Star is launching a new campaign Loving Learning, which will reflect all the positivity and education taking place against the odds.

If you want your school to feature, please get in touch.