Any teachers out there?

[AnythingButVanilla]

Charlie B my friends and I are coming to the party in the zoo on friday night! Are they fun?

I'm clearly not Charlie but I've done the Zoo Lates a couple of times now and they're brilliant although it was bloody freezing when I went last month and my meanie boyfriend wouldn't let me steal a pygmy goat

What do you do at the zoo, Charlie? Are you working directly with the animals or more behind the scenes?

 

[dellzeqq]

I'm clearly not Charlie but I've done the Zoo Lates a couple of times now and they're brilliant although it was bloody freezing when I went last month and my meanie boyfriend wouldn't let me steal a pygmy goat

What do you do at the zoo, Charlie? Are you working directly with the animals or more behind the scenes?

he teaches the penguins to swim. No, really - the lazy buggers have got out of the habit. And he teaches the elephants to squirt visitors with their trunks.

 

[vernon]

I am not aware of any directive to use whistles. Just this weekend I had thirty kids in London on a school trip taking in the sights, four museums, some free time in Covent Carden as well as travelling on the underground. My colleagues and I marshalled the kids by group texts. They were briefed beforehand that a fully charged mobile was an essential part of their luggage and that failure to respond to any text would guarantee exclusion from any further trips that i organised.

They were also briefed about rendezvous points and what to do if they should ever find themselves separated from their group. At first they whinged about the frequency of body counts as we walked through London but spotted the benefits when every one had rendezvoused ahead of schedule and were ready to move on and the 'missing person' was reeled in by phone.

It was quite entertaining have fourteen, fifteen and sixteen year olds begging to be returned to the hotel so that they could go to bed on Saturday night. It was only half past nine in the evening at the time. They were too tired to speak to their parents when they were picked up from Leeds station on Sunday night.

A job well done without whistles, shouting and bollockings.

 

[dellzeqq]

right, Vernon - that does it. Next York to Hull ride, you're TECing

 

[vernon]

right, Vernon - that does it. Next York to Hull ride, you're TECing

That used to be my customary position on the local 100km Audaxes.

 

[CharlieB]

Charlie B my friends and I are coming to the party in the zoo on friday night! Are they fun?

They are, Becs, but be warned - you will be searched at the entrance, and unless you're really good at smuggling contraband booze it will be confiscated. Last year we tipped some wine into a fruit juice carton and got away with it. That's just so our concessionaires earn the exhorbitant rents we charge them.
Here's the shocking part - the confiscated stuff goes into a free raffle at our Christmas party.
Crikey, I'm out of a job if this gets seen.
Last Saturday, we went to the Whipsnade late evening, and it was as if the animals were operating on a body clock that sends them to sleep during normal hours. Mrs. Hippo and her baby were wallowing in their pooey water, Zebras were galloping, the Cheetahs were almost at full pelt, and the baby Elephants were trotting about as only hyperactive youngsters can.

 

[CharlieB]

And next year, ABV, and Becs, please contact me in advance as I've always got freebies to the Zoo Lates. Which go fast.
ABV - it's nothing terribly exciting - I'm in Finance.

 

[srw]

Surely you can find a tame zoologist to say that tigers are terribly sensitive animals and may go bananas if they are startled by a whistle?

 

[Nihal]

They don't. Nor do I, come to that - in emergency I shout; if I'm e.g. on a track I say "ring ring" or "beep beep".

Why bother??I have a bell which i have not used since its installment.I find it easier at the guys whose stopping me

 

[Leedsbusdriver]

Have you seen the recent phenomenon of kids in Hi-Viz vests whilst they are out on a school trip.Had the pleasure of picking up a group of school kids with accompanying teachers heading into Leeds on a school trip.
20 primary school kids and 4 teachers/assistants all with Hi-Viz on were certainly not hard to miss at the bus stop

 

[Becs]

They are, Becs, but be warned - you will be searched at the entrance, and unless you're really good at smuggling contraband booze it will be confiscated. Last year we tipped some wine into a fruit juice carton and got away with it. That's just so our concessionaires earn the exhorbitant rents we charge them.
Here's the shocking part - the confiscated stuff goes into a free raffle at our Christmas party.
Crikey, I'm out of a job if this gets seen.
Last Saturday, we went to the Whipsnade late evening, and it was as if the animals were operating on a body clock that sends them to sleep during normal hours. Mrs. Hippo and her baby were wallowing in their pooey water, Zebras were galloping, the Cheetahs were almost at full pelt, and the baby Elephants were trotting about as only hyperactive youngsters can.

Should I be offended that your first thought was me smuggling in illicit drinkies!?!

 

[Monsieur]

I teach stroppy teenagers in a secondary school but if I taught primary age children and had the dubious pleasure of leading them on a trip I think I'd also insist on hi-viz and whistles.
I could only imagine the accusatory news headlines if I had lost one of the little darlings and knowing that I was fully in charge of them at all times and that I had the means whereby I could quickly call them to heel when needed would make the job so much easier.

Then again I could just shout loudly at the bleeders but the zookeepers would most probably object to that too.

 

[Night Train]

Here's the shocking part - the confiscated stuff goes into a free raffle at our Christmas party.
Crikey, I'm out of a job if this gets seen.

It is almost tempting to 'doctor' some drinks to take in.
No, don't do that.

 

[MissTillyFlop]

The organisation I work for, owning London and Whipsnade Zoos, sees a lot of school groups, of all ages coming in.
I've noticed a growing use, to the point of ubiquity, of whistles by teachers to control the movement of the children.
It does annoy me a lot, though. Teachers - you're escorting children, not herding cattle - they're human beings, for chrissakes! No-one did it when I was at school, and I think if a teacher used it to me, I'd probably deck them.
This has become especially apparent in the last 6-9 months, which leads me to wonder whether this is a recent Department of Education Directive.
Anyone in the profession know if this is the case?
For or against?

Not a directive, just an unfortunate side effect of having to work with children who wouldn't know discipline if they fell over it.

It's about a thing that the kids will all hear and listen to. They don't do listening to voices these days (apart form their own) and apparently holding hands will affect their sexuality, which they don't seem to like the idea of.

Your suggestions?

 

[MrJamie]

What do they have bells for???

Morris Dancing Cyclists?