Teaching: when you'd rather go into school with a bleeding open wound than set cover and deal with the fallout. Also teaching, setting cover before getting a bleeding open wound attended to!

Is Putin Really a Defender of Traditional Values? Slavoj Žižek argues that Putin isn’t a true defender of Orthodoxy but another authoritarian modernizer, like Stalin or Peter the Great. His use of the Church is about power, not faith. Read more: prosyn.org/mMTAWA5

Give RE the status, coherence and rigour it needs, by ensuring all teachers of RE, primary & secondary, know what pupils have learned in earlier years and so can use and build on it. Our current system is inequitable. Countless children miss out. @culhamstgabriel.bsky.social @retoday.bsky.social

Pretty true in Orthodox circles too!

Sitting in an excellent A-Level training, and I can't believe the audacity. A former colleague who failed her class - didn’t mark mocks, skipped half a paper, and barely followed the spec -is in the chat acting like an expert. We’ve done so much catch-up, yet she’s enthusiastically commenting!

@saimasaleh.bsky.social Thoroughly enjoyed your slot!

Interesting to see Byzantine wedding crowns and the Chora icon framed as ‘fascinating’ in contrast to Western traditions by Dr Richard Kueh. So familiar from my Orthodox perspective, but great to see them used here. I’ll dig out my resources to share with colleagues. #StrictlyRE #Byzantine #Orthodox

A reminder that BlueSky works differently. Make sure if something resonated with you to repost so others in the community can see the awesome. #TLSky #TLSkyChat #EduSky #EduSkyChat #EduAI #KitLit #TLChat #Skybrarians #Edtech

Final thread These are the female #Orthodox saints who have courageously spoken out against corrupt rulers, standing for justice and truth even at great personal cost. 🧵 1/9

Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde stands in a good tradition. I have my #Orthodox take here.

Another thread. Many #Orthodox saints have courageously spoken out against corrupt rulers, standing for justice and truth even at great personal cost. Here are some notable examples: St. John the Baptist (1st century) 🗡️🦗 was beheaded for denouncing King Herod’s unlawful marriage.

Christians are called to 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘢—boldness in faith. The prophets, apostles, and martyrs spoke truth to power, not to condemn, but to bear witness to God’s justice and mercy. When a bishop calls upon a ruler to show mercy to the vulnerable, they stand in this same tradition.

Spending time online can leave you with a warped view of the world and that's a shame. Good people have always outnumbered bad people and things generally get better. Hold onto that x

When you're a Spurs supporter, watching Spurs play separately from your Liverpool supporting Dad, and you discover his online match has a couple of minutes lag!

Does your school expect students to have targets and levels marked on their books? I thought this was an outdated practice.

Waiting for the magnificent Arab Christmas to begin. Always a wonderful yearly event. Lovely memories of attending the first ones with the late great "Archimandrite of the Oecumenical Throne", Ephrem Lash, who knew most of the different languages in addition to Arabic ...Syriac, Aramaic and Coptic.

Lovely thread on Twelfth Night. We keep the lights up for Theophany - colloquially Τα Φώτα in Greek - the Feast of Lights, and then sorrowfully take them down.

Welcome to friends who've joined me. Check out my lists for interesting topics and people. They are not comprehensive - but there's something for everyone. bsky.app/profile/mari...

I’ve written to my MP urging her to archive her X account. Under Elon Musk, it’s become a hub for toxic propaganda, misogyny, Islamophobia, and attacks on democracy, and the rule of law. I’ve moved to Bluesky and urge MPs, unions, and Govt offices to do the same.

🌊 Today we celebrated Theophany, the Baptism of Christ in the Jordan! ✝️ The Great Blessing of Waters reminds us of God’s sanctification of creation and our renewal in Him💧🙏 It’s a day of joy,faith and blessing - grateful to be with my church family! 🌟🏡 www.facebook.com/media/set/?v...

@teachertapp.bsky.social You asked about a snow day today. My term starts tomorrow. Neither staff or students in. Colleagues at former schools started today, but it's an INSET day. I went for not relevant. But technically, all of these schools would be closed to pupils anyway!

I have one more day of holiday (we go back on the 7th). I'm not sure it makes it any better - other than I can get to Church for Theophany.

Happy New Year 2025! 🎉 Wishing you a year filled with joy, success, and blessings. May 2025 bring new opportunities, and God’s grace guide your steps with peace, hope, and love. Cheers to a bright and blessed year ahead! 🥂✨

Teacher to dinner lady in a day! With the kitchen short-staffed for our festive Christmas Dinner, it was all hands on deck – from the Deputy Head to office staff. Even the Maths teacher on tills, adding bills! 🎄🍽️✨ Team Work is the Dream Work – Yorkshire puds flying, plates full, Christmas saved! 🎅🍴👏

One week till Christmas, just back from Year 11 parents' evening – some lovely chats, but I’m absolutely done in. Still a mountain of work waiting for me, and it’s far too late to be staring at a to-do list this long. 🎄📚😩 #TeacherLife #EndOfTermMadness"

Talks over return of Parthenon marbles to Athens are ‘well advanced’

My 6th Formers introduced me to this word, warning of the perils of TikTok. The kids are alright.

Chat GTP cannot produce results if prompted with the name "David Mayer". I guess know who will be featuring in all my rubrics for assignments from now on!! officechai.com/stories/chat...

When we introduced fit for work assessments, we were told nobody who was genuinely disabled would be denied disability benefits because there would be safeguards, and then people died because they were denied disability benefits. You see the problem with assisted dying "safeguards" yet?

Made my first block on here. Ill-informed bigotry comes in all forms, including those who think they are the last person to be bigots.

Right #TeamRE hit me up! What do you consider to be the most effective homework for GCSE RE?

Today’s poem is dedicated to all those who have taken it upon themselves to correct the grammar or spelling in my poems over the last few weeks. It’s called ‘Pedents’.

So #TeamRE this week at 6th Form Open Evening a parent asked me "Why would you recommend A Level RS over say psychology or sociology?" I know he was impressed by my answer, what would yours be?

Today’s poem is called ‘This is Not the Poem I Had Hoped to Write’.

I did know this and it's why Arts education is so incredibly important.

It's a bit breezy out!

Good to see North London has made it to Bluesky!

Had a lovely dept trip with colleagues and their kids this Friday to see good old Paddington! Choice of movie dictated by my niece having a part as a dancing nun! Good family fun all round!

Today's poem by Emily Dickinson #poemoftheday #poetry

Did you know there’s a site to search for starter packs of people to follow? Built by @mubashariqbal.com blueskydirectory.com/starter-pack...

World Children's Day - but would also have been my late Mother's birthday, so pause for thought about parents and children. Today's poem is an extract from Khalil Gibran #poemoftheday #poetry

I meant to post this yesterday after our first taste of snow but got distracted, as usual. Tuesday's poem Blizzard By William Carlos Williams

#poemoftheday ‘Now that all your worry’ by Hafiz translated by Daniel Ladinsky Now that all your worry has proved such an unlucrative business, Why not find a better job?

This place was puddling along quite nicely, but this weekend a lot of angry people with axes to grind have popped up! I hope it's just a blip!

Today's poem, the Boy and the Door by Yiannis Ritsos Diomidis Komninos, a 17 year old school boy, was the first fatality. Context in next post. #poemoftheday #poetry

People just joining from X/Twitter, what took you so long?

Today's poem: The Greek Language by Nikiforos Vrettakos.🇬🇷 Nikiforos Vrettakos (1912–1991) was a Greek poet known for his lyrical, humanistic style, deeply inspired by his love for nature, peace, and humanity. #poemoftheday #poem