On an overcast day, we braved the delayed and cancelled trains to meet in central Birmingham for the first @MaternityCPD #MTPTProject coffee morning in the West Midlands.
As well as sharing our experiences of life with newborns, we talked about our CPD aims whilst on maternity. Below are a few CPD activities those of us who met discussed and that might be inspiring to you too:
- Getting out of the house once a day to go on a walk. Not only is this great for your physical and emotional well-being, these walks can provide inspiration for classroom practice. Top Tip: take photos/ audio recordings. See http://www.mtpt.org.uk/walking/ for further details about walking and #MTPTProject.
- Visiting other schools. Maternity leave offers you the chance to visit other schools to develop your practice and leadership skills. Ask in advance if someone on the team could watch the little one. You may be surprised at how many volunteers you have!
- Reading. Taking this opportunity to read for pleasure, read books for young people, catch up on education reading. Join your local library or check out the following blogs http://www.hearthfire.bethkemp.co.uk/reading-recommendations-slide-14-narrative-voice/ or https://lauramcinerney.com/2017/12/10/my-year-in-books-2017-finished-liked for non fiction recommendations. Check out @crowded_shelf for a twitter book club or perhaps join in the #52booksayear challenge.
- Subject Knowledge. Use the time to brush up on your subject expertise. We had an in depth talk about grammar over our lattes and hot chocolates!
- Visiting museums and galleries: intellectual stimulation for parents and older siblings.
With the last bullet point in mind, we are looking to host the next Midlands meet up in Leicester, and take advantage of the refurbishments that have taken place at the museum. Keep an eye out for details!
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