CLEANING out the guinea pigs, running art clubs, preparing lessons on Sunday afternoons: the 35-hour week is a misty-eyed dream for the teachers pictured below.

The TES asked five teachers to keep diaries of their workload for the start of the autumn term. Our heads and deputies clocked 55-and 70-hour weeks, and their classroom colleagues put in 40 to 50 hours at a time of year when the heavy workload has often yet to begin.

This was not a scientific exercise but an attempt to give a flavour of just how time-consuming the job of teaching is - particularly in primary school.

Claire Bird, a reception teacher in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, spends half her spare moments cleaning paint pots, sharpening pencils and otherwise preparing for the next lesson. As soon as class breaks up, Linda Boole, a deputy head in London, is on playground or dinner duty. Both juggle several roles as teacher and subject co-ordinators.

Ms Boole suggests a four-day week to give teachers Friday to prepare and reflect. “Really, the week is too long for the children,” she says. “We try to do the fun stuff in the afternoon but by Friday, it really is not productive.”

What is draining is not simply the hours but the intensity of the activity with children, she says. All of our classroom teachers were spending 25-30 hours a week teaching or supervising pupils.

The diaries broadly match those of past studies of teachers’ workload. Last year’s report by the Schoolteachers’ Review Body found heads worked about 60 hours while classroom teachers worked 52 hours a week. About 40 per cent of their time was spent teaching, with preparation and marking taking up almost a third. Again, our teachers’ diaries gave a similar result.

Our secondary teachers had the lightest workloads. Both new to the profession, they benefited from fewer meetings but had detention and other duties. Newly-qualified English teacher Claire Simpkins spent 30 minutes preparing or marking for every hour teaching and her diary notes her early nervousness and growing confidence.

Several of the diaries also recount teachers battling against illness and their reluctance to take a day off.

Claire Simpkins, newly-qualified English and media teacher, Alderbrook school, Solihull.

Wednesday, September 12

Claire has the lightest teaching timetable, but still typically works a 53-hour week, spending evenings and Sunday afternoon reading up on set texts or preparing lessons.

Teaching Year 8 and Year 9 :50 minutes each.

Year 10: two x 50 mins.

After September 11attacks in US, had emotional discussions with Years 8 and 9 and abandoned lesson plans.

Preparation Marked for two periods. After school, internet research for literacy strategy and resources for An Inspector Calls (90 minutes).

Comments School weird with situation in NY. Children are worried and asking a lot of questions. Syllabus work almost feels irrelevant today.

Linda Boole, deputy head, St Anne’s CE primary, Tottenham, north London.

Friday, September 7

Linda, who juggles being deputy head, literacy co-ordinator, key stage 2 co-ordinator and Year 4 class teacher, averages a 52-hour week, even with a floating teacher giving her non-contact time. She has an hour’s preparation for every two hours with pupils, with up to 15 hours in meetings or training.

7.45am Arrive, photocopy homework, give out English books, check pencils, write names on homework books.

8.30am Meeting with head.

8.55am In playground, greet children.

9am Register, assembly.

9.30am Literacy hour.

10.30am Playtime - two gulps of tea.

10.45am Numeracy lesson.

12.15pm Lunch for children - not me.

12.30pm Dinner duty - supervise children who won’t line up for dinner ladies. Eat between getting up to deal with squabbles over who’s sitting where, he hit me, pushed in, etc.

1pm Set up lesson for afternoon.

1.15pm Finish off, Give homework out.

2.30pm Playground duty.

2.45pm Take Year 6 to class with headteacher.

3.30pm Home time. Dismiss children, talk to parents etc.

4pm Staff room. Everyone knackered, staring blankly into space. The occasional jokelaugh interspersed with weary silence.

5pm Leave. Go to pub! Three lagers later, everything seems fine. Plans, what are they? Literacy, numeracy, I’ll work it out on Sunday when I’m doing my planning (three hours of it).

Claire Bird, reception teacher, Western primary, Harrogate, North Yorkshire.

Monday, September 10

Claire, who is also IT co-ordinator and acting SENCO, averages a 51-hour week. Many jobs, such as photocopying and washing paint pots, should be done by a non-teacher under government guidelines. “We have a nursery nurse as well but I could do with a permanent assistant,” she says.

7.45am Arrive. Set out paints and equipment: put out books, mix paint colours, cut paper, photocopy sheets.

8.20am Collect mail from pigeon hole.

8.30am Clean out class guinea-pigs.

8.40am Phone LEA about child with English as foreign language (to no avail!).

8.50am Chat to parent, collect children - help take off coats etc.

9am Register and assembly.

9.20am Read story with class and introduce activities. Sit with group making simple pictures and also begin baseline assessment activity - call children for one-to-one.

10.10am Collect milk - put straws in! Give out snacks, help with coats. Spend 10 minutes of break looking after distressed child who couldn’t find snack.

10.30am Coffee.

10.40am Continue activities, read story, sing songs.

11.30am Home time - help the children with coats.

11.50am Call County Hall again (still to no avail). Set up activities for afternoon.

12.10pm Photocopy targets for all children in the school with SEN.

12.20pm Lunch.

12.45pm As morning session.

2.15pm Tidy up with children and singing.

2.30pm Playtime - help children get coats then wash paint pots, wipe tables etc.

2.45pm Collect children from playground; story time.

3.10pm Home time - talk to several parents about concerns.

3.30pm Meet two colleagues (as SENCO) and educational psychologist to draw up individual education plans for children.

5.15pm Photocopy sheets for tomorrow.

5.30pm Home!

7-7.45pm Type letter to parents to go out tomorrow, read tomorrow’s plans and SENCO notes from today.

Dianne Smith, headteacher, Admiral Lord Nelson school, Portsmouth, Hampshire.

Thursday, September 13

With one week clocking in at 70 hours, Dianne works the longest hours. She spends up to 12 hours a day in school to avoid taking work home. Pupils are the biggest call on her time - an average 13 hours a week in class, corridors, dining rooms or dealing with student issues.

8am Check in.

8.15am Staff and key stage 4 briefing.

8.30am Meet teaching assistant about mathematics lesson.

8.45am Maths lesson.

9.35am Meet head of technology and technician about job description for technician.

10.30am Update business manager on outcome of previous meeting.

10.45am Admin and unscheduled meetings including MFL teacher and deputy head.

11.45am Phone Hampshire head colleague about forthcoming conference.

12.05pm Meet vice-chair of governors.

12.35pm Lunch in dining hall with staff and students.

1.20pm Meet head of Year 11 about student issue.

1.30pm Meet head of modern foreign languages about German exchange.

1.50pm Senior team call-out to deal with two students.

2.10pm Maths lesson.

3pm On corridors for end of school day, talking to students and staff.

3.30pm Break.

4pm Interview grandfather of former student about re-marking GCSE history.

4.30pm Meet assistant head of key stage 4 about final list for GCSE remarking.

5pm Meet business manager about new finance monitoring system for heads of dept.

5.30pm Discussion with head of year 11 about support for students to achieve targets.

6.30pm Admin and letter writing.

8pm Home.

Graham Handyside, art teacher, Villiers high school, Southall, west London.

Monday, October 8

Graham’s average week exceeds 49 hours. He has few meetings but makes up for it by running art clubs, soccer matches and occasional detentions. He spends an hour preparing or marking for every three hours, 45 minutes teaching, but says more time is spent on admin.

7.45am Set up art room. Clean paint pots, lay out equipment. Clarify marks ready for Year 11 parents’ evening.

8.35am Staff briefing.

8.40am Registration.

9.05am Year 9, teaching portraits.

10.45am Break. On duty in playground and around school.

11.05am Cover science lesson for absent colleague.

11.55am Year 11, teaching GCSE class composition.

12.45pm Lunchtime - spend 25 minutes photocopying resources for afternoon lesson.

1.50pm Year 10, teaching GNVQ class photoshop; designing CD covers.

3.30pm End of school. Begin marking.

4.35pm Go round corner for meal.

5pm Year 11 parents’ evening.

8pm Home.