Year 11 GCSE support thread 6 - exams and proms

Oh leeds that's sounds fab, except the bit about the insects! We ended up at the chippy for tea, fortunately Monday is gluten free night (am coeliac ) so I had fish and chips other people had pie and chips. DS did all the dishes even the scouse pan which was black. He then went to bed at 7.30, when I spoke to him at 8, he was v v upet and kept saying g he could have burnt the house down and he was useless. I tried to be positive and kept saying well you didn't and no one died, that wasn't good enough, think he wanted to wallow in his misery a bit, so left him to it . He was asleep within 15 mins, dd on the other hand was awake ages and kept going over how smokey it was and how scared she was, so she's had lots of praise for doing all the right things. God kids are hard work.

Leeds, is it OpWall she's doing?

And what did you have for dinner, AuntP?!

DD is in Madagascar with school, on a 19 day biology/geography trip. I believe they get to count species of insect, wildlife etc and identify bird calls. We have lost wi fi connection now, but last I heard she was partaking of a yoga class on the beach at 5:30 am. Nice life! I never went abroad with my school. Not even on a day trip.

Hehe love the "intercontinental hiss fit" I imagine if she hasn't got the £2 she'll just come home when she's supposed to! !!

BTM thanks for the insect repellent it arrived today, that's what you call service .

leeds Africa.....These kids don't half get around, what is she doing.

DS despite being relatively sensible most of the time has managed tonight to nearly burn the house down, I left him with the slow cooker full of scouse this morning with instructions at 4.45 to tip it into the big pan and put on a low heat and add 1 pint of water, scouse is never right from the slow cooker, needs a while on the stove. Should be no problem you'd think, he's 16 he can manage that.... scouse went into the pan, heat went on (not low) no extra water, and he went out again!!!! Poor DD came home at 5.50 to the house billowing black horrible smoke as soon as she opened the front door, she says she couldn't see what she was doing it was that bad. Sensibly she switched pan off, switched extractor hood on and opened every window and door in the house, then she sat in the garden and cried. House stinks and I'm surrounding by yankee candles of various smells to clear the smell. And this lad is off to Japan on his own in less than 10 days....

I too love the idea of an inter continental hissy fit! DD is in Africa at the moment, so I await with bated breath .......

Inter continental hissy fit!!!! Well you've made a valiant attempt at solving the problem. Well done.

Just goes to show that mum can do anything and sort out any issue, even from thousands of miles away. DD2 phoned me from sports day to tell me she had lost her shoes last week.mi have no idea what I was meant to do about it from 5 miles away, but she thought it perfectly reasonable to call me.....

That all sounds very sensible HSM. That is a right PITA about year head BTM.

Glad visit went well Spudmasher and guess you are right about the rapid growing up.

Think DD has done a bit of that the last week or so as has been hanging around with people mostly 18 plus. It's gone 3 am in Japan and she is currently having an inter continental hissy fit as wants to change her non transferable ticket for a day to go on a road trip and come back later. I did ask Trailfinders, only way to do it is to buy a one way ticket at 2k so obviously not happening. Lots of anguished emails coming through. Think she might have finally stopped...

Sounds like you have it all under control!

DD is worrying about sixth form still - wants to go back into first choice to ask some questions (or she won't consider it at all), but year head is away...

She sounds sensible, HSM. If it's anything like the parties my DD attends, they will spend all their time taking pictures of themselves and each other.........

College visit went well, I think. It was heir end of year show. They all looked very grown up and the standard was very high indeed which left DD feeling a bit anxious. But these kids have been in full time performing arts college for at least a year, so of course they are good. Not many 16 year olds on her course it seems. We guessed about 5 in the current Year 1. The rest were older- 18- and some looked a lot older. I predict a period of very rapid growing up.

Oh 20 or 30 should be fine. Are they likely to be interested in drinking? DD was at a friends 18th the other night, and they had some drinks, but nobody was really drinking (or anything else) IYKWIM.

Warning the neighbours and asking them to come and tell you if there's a problem is good - then you can sort it immediately.

Do you live in a fairly remote location? Garages tend not to be at all soundproofed (raucous fun can go down badly with neighbours!)

HSM, DD's BF had houseparty recently. And one for her 16th - DD heavily involved in planning both. About 100 teens in a 2 bed maisonette/garden. Both passed off with no major incidents!
Is yours going to be on that scale?

Hi hocus will happily dm you when ds is back and I have some idea of what the hell to expect! At present I'm relying on sugar and her daughter.
Horsemad I would love to do your DS'S trip. I left school and worked all summer then went to college after college I had week in Portugal with some mates! And I thought that was dead exotic, but now its nothing compared to what some of our DC are doing.

Hi Hocus, I have PM'd you.

Horsemad, I was thinking earlier how fantastic your DS' s trip sounds.

I would have loved to do what some of our DC'S are doing. Do have very find memories of a couple of weeks with a friend and her family in the South of France though.

First night we found Simple Minds were playing in the local Amphitheatre so we climbed up the hill behind and watched from there - one of my fondest memories of being that age.

I would love to visit Japan.

Hello sorry to join in as my Ds is Yr 13 just finished, however he is doing a trip to Japan with some friends from school in September. I do have a BIL there who is advising but (and so as not to derail the thread) would any of you who have had a DC on a trip to Japan this summer mind me PMing for any practical tips ? I have been (many years ago) and at the moment what I can think of mainly is clean socks for the shoe removal situations. I honestly don't want to derail this thread so will start another if more appropriate but some up to date tips would be appreciated.

DS did not have a prom after GCSEs and I am just at how grown up and glamorous they all look.

AuntP at Trevor!
Sounds like you've got it all under control. I hate packing.

SugarPlum, sounds like she's having a ball - how lovely for her (and you to know she's enjoying herself)

That is a lot of organisation to do for you all to go away as well, you'll be sick of packing !

DD decided to take a teddy with something British on, can't remember what. Just relieved she did as it will give her a bit of space o way home which seeing she might well need as she has 'got carried away in the Ghibli store '

No lessons at weekend so she has been to the beach, McDonald's, shopping and off for a curry. Curry made her hiccup and the rest of them were laughing about how the Brit couldn't handle the curry

Thanks BTM that's really kind of you, let know about postage costs. The storage is out of necessity where else do you keep a roof box and ladder? For years the roof box lived behind the shed wrapped in a tarp until one of the neighbours asked me about Trevor? And I was like ???what? ? Apparently this was what they called the wrapped up box as it looked like a body in a sheet ,ie Trevor Jordache from Brookie !! Typical scouse humour but prompted me to find a better place for Trevor the roof box, the name stuck.

Have no idea how the prom went he came home at 12.45 am and got up at 10.30 am and apparently it was alright, music crap and v v loud, couldn't talk to people. He went back to a friends for an after party but people started drinking so him and a few others left. 2 teachers cried and he didn't get an award, this is the sum of information I have gotten out of him. We've been shopping for a everything on my list and think he's pretty much done now for Japan we've got a Scout send of bbq with tv crew tomorrow so I intend to ask about money for the stop over am guessing dollars will be best.

switched I agree despite ds being 6ft 3 or so he's still my baby and I'm not sure how he's gonna cope, I've just bought a cash belt and belt bag for his stuff when in Tokyo, I actually told him to keep his money with his phone, he'll never loose that.

Only left to do is get gifts for his host family something light enough to pack but obviously from here, have seen some coaster with stylised pics of iconic buildings so Pier Head, the wigwam, Albert Dock our beach, think they'll do.

And after all the Japan stuff I go away day after him and have sorted nothing!!

Hope college visit goes well tomorrow Spudmasher.

Switchitoff I think we are allowed a bit of a wobble, as you said they are our babies !

I'm ok again now and have surprised myself as to how ok I have been the last few days about it all. She isn't the most independent of 16 year old so I think this will do her a huge amount of good. I was not good last week though before she went and first few days though thought I held it together pretty well.

Will be interesting to see how all our DC'S change this summer with the various things they are doing. It feels like quite an important milestone on the way to independence.

Suddenly realised today that we still had big pink Maths stick it notes on the toilet door !