Day Zero - Wed 18th March 2020
Yesterday at 2:30 pm I received the email I'd been expecting but dreading - School Closure was the title. That pickup was to be the last for an undefined period of time. Luckily they were signed into Adventure Club so they got the benefit of an extra couple of hours of fun and socialising but when I picked them up at 5:15 it was with a heavy heart.
They love their school and they are truly happy there. When I picked them up they were happily gardening in the Fantasy Garden, watering cans, wheelbarrows and waterproof clothing all being used with a natural ease. That sums up their experience at The Royal School more than anything. it's a truly practical, immersive, fun environment within which they are learning about the world around them.
I didn't know what they had been told if anything when I collected them and I was trying to find the right way to explain it without upsetting or frightening them. It was hard not to get tearful especially when Miss Beale asked if I was ok and gave me a big hug while wishing me Happy Easter, Happy Mothers Day and summer etc... I saw staff leaving wishing each other well with the oft-heard these days "Stay Safe" greeting.
I tried to talk to them in the car about it to gauge their understanding. I talked about not going back to school for a long time but they didn't really take much notice. At one point Ella asked me if I was happy about that and I said carefully that I was a little bit sad. She asked why and I choked up. I had to take a long pause, swallow back the tears and try to recover myself before explaining that I know how much they and I love the Royal School and we will miss their teachers and their friends etc. We then talked about the adventures we could have at 'Mummy School'.
Day One - Thursday 21st March 2020
We started with excitement, doing Carpet Time and writing down what the date was etc. There was lots of role playing e.g. how to line up and walk into the classroom.I'm learning a lot about how things are done at school :-) After that for P.E., we went with Daddy to the swimming pool at the Runnymede Hotel for a swim. We didn't know when we might next get a chance and I'm glad we did as the hotel shut down just 2 days later. There were only about 2 other people in the area and the main carpark was shut off. A very strange feeling, like a ghost town.
After a little while of swimming in the main pool, an aerobics instructor told us Aqua aerobics was about to start and asked us to leave the pool but the lady in the water said she was the only one so far so not to worry. They could take just one lane. As it happened 2 others joined in and we joined in from our side of the lane rope. A proper PE lesson! Carl and Ella had a woggle each and loved joining in with the lesson. They took it really seriously and didn't want to stop! Ella and Carl had a quick cheeky dip in the Jacuzzi as there was no-one around followed by the sauna in the changing rooms before we headed home, not knowing at that point it was to be for the last time...
After lunch (made by Chef Ella) we did Reading through the use of Teach Your Monster to Read on the computer. Carl is quite obsessed and wants to keep going continuously. Ella enjoys it at a calmer rate.
Later that afternoon Abbie came back from school/CAMHS with Emma who came in for a chat and a private talk about future placing alongside. When she arrived Carl and Ella were having snuggles on the sofa. Not long after she left Ella began to feel very hot and we checked her temperature and it was raised to around 38.2. After dinner that had increased to 39 and she was very lethargic. We had no choice but to declare self isolation. For Abbie this would mean she was unable to attend her final day at Ranelagh or to celebrate Mother's Day with her family on Sunday.
Yesterday at 2:30 pm I received the email I'd been expecting but dreading - School Closure was the title. That pickup was to be the last for an undefined period of time. Luckily they were signed into Adventure Club so they got the benefit of an extra couple of hours of fun and socialising but when I picked them up at 5:15 it was with a heavy heart.
They love their school and they are truly happy there. When I picked them up they were happily gardening in the Fantasy Garden, watering cans, wheelbarrows and waterproof clothing all being used with a natural ease. That sums up their experience at The Royal School more than anything. it's a truly practical, immersive, fun environment within which they are learning about the world around them.
I didn't know what they had been told if anything when I collected them and I was trying to find the right way to explain it without upsetting or frightening them. It was hard not to get tearful especially when Miss Beale asked if I was ok and gave me a big hug while wishing me Happy Easter, Happy Mothers Day and summer etc... I saw staff leaving wishing each other well with the oft-heard these days "Stay Safe" greeting.
I tried to talk to them in the car about it to gauge their understanding. I talked about not going back to school for a long time but they didn't really take much notice. At one point Ella asked me if I was happy about that and I said carefully that I was a little bit sad. She asked why and I choked up. I had to take a long pause, swallow back the tears and try to recover myself before explaining that I know how much they and I love the Royal School and we will miss their teachers and their friends etc. We then talked about the adventures we could have at 'Mummy School'.
Day One - Thursday 21st March 2020
We started with excitement, doing Carpet Time and writing down what the date was etc. There was lots of role playing e.g. how to line up and walk into the classroom.I'm learning a lot about how things are done at school :-) After that for P.E., we went with Daddy to the swimming pool at the Runnymede Hotel for a swim. We didn't know when we might next get a chance and I'm glad we did as the hotel shut down just 2 days later. There were only about 2 other people in the area and the main carpark was shut off. A very strange feeling, like a ghost town.
After a little while of swimming in the main pool, an aerobics instructor told us Aqua aerobics was about to start and asked us to leave the pool but the lady in the water said she was the only one so far so not to worry. They could take just one lane. As it happened 2 others joined in and we joined in from our side of the lane rope. A proper PE lesson! Carl and Ella had a woggle each and loved joining in with the lesson. They took it really seriously and didn't want to stop! Ella and Carl had a quick cheeky dip in the Jacuzzi as there was no-one around followed by the sauna in the changing rooms before we headed home, not knowing at that point it was to be for the last time...After lunch (made by Chef Ella) we did Reading through the use of Teach Your Monster to Read on the computer. Carl is quite obsessed and wants to keep going continuously. Ella enjoys it at a calmer rate.
Later that afternoon Abbie came back from school/CAMHS with Emma who came in for a chat and a private talk about future placing alongside. When she arrived Carl and Ella were having snuggles on the sofa. Not long after she left Ella began to feel very hot and we checked her temperature and it was raised to around 38.2. After dinner that had increased to 39 and she was very lethargic. We had no choice but to declare self isolation. For Abbie this would mean she was unable to attend her final day at Ranelagh or to celebrate Mother's Day with her family on Sunday.
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