Many kinds of stress

The atmosphere was a little fraught at work today.  It doesn't help that Ofsted are visiting.  For some reason this visit has coincided with the whole school being polished from top to bottom and fresh flowers appearing in places that don't normally have floral displays.  Teachers are looking exceptionally smart and there's an air of quiet anticipation around the place.  As we've had a couple of really good visits, this is just a short inspection concentrating on one subject.  Art.  You can tell who the head of the art faculty is, she's the one with a nervous twitch and a frozen smile on her face.  Art displays around the whole school have been revamped and I suspect that the art technician has been busy sharpening pencils and scrubbing paint pots until well into the early hours.

Now add to the mix the fact that today was results day for January A and AS level modules.  I think I've seen every emotion going today from shrieks of joy to tears of despair.  The exams office is a kind of sanctuary where we usher the students in, close the door, mop up tears and hand out tissues.  Give wise advice and send them on their way with either reassurance or a re-take form!  Fortunately the majority of students are happy with their results but there are always a few for whom it's a bit of a wake up call that come exams period you really do have to curtail your social life and put in the extra hours.  

All in all, it was quite nice to get today over and done with and for normal service to resume tomorrow.  I'm even hoping to get a layout done for one of the last Just One Sketch prompts.  I think there may be a puppy involved!