Reflecting on the last half term this morning and there are reasons to be positive. I know it’s #SwitchOffSaturday but this has helped me wind down and park some of the things rattling around in my head. Here’s a quick thread of my thoughts.

1. Schools have once again shown their incredible adaptability. With little notice again, schools changed their practice and, through constant feedback and support have tailored remote provision to their own school context.

2. School staff have learned new skills quickly and effectively. As challenging as it has been, it will benefit us all in the long run, lot just because of the new skills learned but also as it has given us an insight into the challenges children face when learning new skills.

3. The education sector is larger united - certainly more so than I can ever remember. There is hope of change and with a collective voice, there is a better chance now than there ever has been.

3. Communities are also tighter. Despite the challenges we face, the support schools are receiving from their communities is welcomed.

4. The vaccination programme is a great success. It has been lovely this week to hear that my parents, my in-laws and some school staff have received their vaccination. This hopefully signals a step towards a return to normality.

5. Change is scary, but exciting. The last two weeks for me have been a reminder that whilst it is hard to move out of your comfort zone, we have to do it if we are to continue to grow.

6. The national picture is growing more and more positive. The more the numbers improve the more likely we are to have children back safely on 8th March. This is what we all want.

7. This half term has been one of the hardest I can remember. This hopefully means that the next one can’t be as bad. We have to believe that each term that passes will get slightly easier and slightly more ‘normal’.

8. I’m proud to call myself a #teacher. I’m proud to say that I have doubted myself; that I have asked for help; that I have been supported by many in school and on #edutwitter; that we are #StrongerTogether; that I’ve learned loads; and that I can now have some #familytime

Thank you to everyone who has helped and supported me this half term. Sorry if some of my tweets are negative and political. Here’s to a restful half term and a positive outlook for term 4.