GCSE Summer 2020 - Thread 11 Carry on Corona Cohort - Starting New Terms and Settings

So good to see that everyone has settled well into their new sixth forms and colleges. The whole exams fiasco seems a lifetime ago now!

DD was the only one from her school friendship group going up to College. The rest of her friends stayed on for sixth form. However, DD has a lot of friends fro. Outside of school from her sports. Lots of them are going up to her college, and it seems that she is making friends with the school friends, of her sporty friends, if that makes sense. In any case, she is happy and had set up a WhatsApp group so all her friends can find each other in their free periods. It's a big college.

My DD does have a job. She coaches in the sport that she does. I'm keen for her to continue as I think it will give her valuable skills for her chosen career (physiotherapy), mostly responsibility and communication (with parents and children).

Following my previous post, I spoke too soon...DD has been unwell all weekend.

Really hoping it’s something and nothing (the stress of getting back to school, and a new school at that?) - she said she had no appetite on Friday, and spent all day yesterday feeling sick, pale, not eating, and the same again today. Hasn’t been sick, but feels very nauseous.

Not sure what to do, re school tomorrow. Any advice?
I can’t quite believe that, after 6 months off, she’s under the weather after 2.5 days back in school.

DD wants to get a job but I've been clear it has to balance with study. A few hours a week at the weekend would be great but unsure of prospects in the current situation.

Hi all, DS went back to his Saturday job yesterday and unbeknownst to him or us was expected to do a 10 hour shift. Plus he didn't take any money for lunch and so didn't eat all day. Hopefully he will learn from this.
Btec business also the favourite here. I expect that will only last until the first essay is due.

Wow Janie! DS's economics class is 28!!

One of my classes is 24.

DD also tired on Friday from 3 days at school this week but is definitely glad to be back.

Parents evening next week to speak with DDs form tutor. I’m surprised it is on but glad it is.

DD has an occasional job babysitting but she doesn’t really have time for a regular one as she has 3 music commitments outside school so just juggling those is challenging enough.

DS's college has said they will struggle with jobs in term time so leaving that for now.

Dd was tired on Friday afternoon after the first three days. I suppose when you’ve pretty much been lying on your bed for 6 months any sort of activity is going to be tiring. She was still in very good spirits though. I really hope they’re able to keep this normality for a while yet. Covid numbers in our area have seen a bit of a spike over the last week (although interestingly no increase in hospital admissions).

I would like dd to get a job, I think it’s good to see more of the world, and also it’s good for future employment to have something on your CV. Not at the detriment of her a-levels (or mental health) though, so at the minute I’m keeping my eye out but haven’t mentioned to her since mid summer about looking. I’m hoping a nice little 8 hour job in a local supermarket might come up. She does have other commitments as well, she volunteers for a few hours a week and goes to a youth theatre group which can be full on at times, both of which are starting again next week. We’ll see.

DS starts on Monday, got the timetable yesterday, he seems to have quite a few “study periods” too and doesn’t have to stay on site.
He is a football referee but obviously hasn’t worked since February, this should start up again next weekend. He gets around £25 a match and sometimes gets two matches in one weekend.
His original plan was to get a supermarket/McDonalds job after GCSEs but it didn’t happen and now nowhere seems to need any staff!

Thanks for the new thread - need to have a bit of a catch up but hope everyone’s DC have had a good start to sixth form. DD1 seems to be settling in well. Classes are very small (5-6 per subject) which suits her down to the ground. DD2 is also back at school and happy to see friends again after so many months. Both seem to be coping well with the Brave New World of staggered starts and year group bubbles. I am also back at school (primary teacher) and finding it all much tougher than they are!

DS won't be working in term-time but he has managed to keep up a bit of mini tennis coaching through the summer and that should be an option most holidays except xmas.

DD’s waitressing job went by the wayside with the ‘rona so she’s trying her level best to get something else now, it really isn’t easy for them but she knows she has to contribute to the car insurance when she eventually passes her test.

My DD has two jobs.
One is with the company I work for which she has done for quite some time during school holidays and on a Saturday at peak times,
the other, is a new one recently acquired in a local village pub.
Given her ever increasing social life she is going to need both to fund it all

Ds keen to get a job. Would love him to get one in John Lewis or Waitrose for the discount! I regret discouraging DS1 from getting a job as it really helps develop maturity. Not easy to get jobs now though.

Mine has a Saturday paper round and works part time for the family business of one of his fellow students but he will have to cut the hours right back - he's been working Fri/Sat/Sun for the last few weekends. He also plays football and hockey and is an Explorer scout, no hockey matches yet but won't be long (football is training only, not a league team).

No current plans for a job here for DS...tbh he has only just turned 16 and with his various SEN I'm not even sure he's vaguely ready to cope with one. If he can get himself to and from sixth form, get his work done and not get into any scrapes, that'll be enough for now! Amongst his friendship group there are one or two who have paper rounds but that's about it. I'm sure this will change as they go through sixth form though.

I think we'll get DS to concentrate on A levels and EPQ for now plus hopefully grading to karate black belt which should have happened at Easter but obviously didn't.

I feel worn out and he hasn’t even gone back yet! Am slightly wondering whether having my mum and dad visiting us next weekend will be entirely a good idea, but we haven’t seen them since Christmas and my mum basically invited them here

Well I made the mistake of reading the pages DS waved at me , having finally dug out my glasses. It’s for a project him and a few others are doing which I think is a cross between maths and computer science, set by a university lecturer.

I have not a bloody clue what it is going on about and hope DH can make sense of it to make the right encouraging noises DS didn’t seem phased so I guess that’s a good sign!

Thanks for the new thread! Will catch up later!

Dd is desperate for a job! McDonalds turned her down, she’s going to apply to Costa and Starbucks but not sure what chance she has.

@NotAKaren. Tbh I've told DD she didn't have to get a job. She is doing 3 A levels plus 1 AS level, EPQ, DoE, plays hockey Saturday, helps juniors Sunday, plays county hockey as well as having a pretty active social life which seems to keep growing and growing (will have to watch it).

I thought she will be too busy too work as well but have said that during school holidays she needs to be doing stuff that will help her get to uni and/or help her with her A levels, and also to get a job once A levels finish.. (thinking of life guarding/hockey coaching qualification).

However, this was before I realised just how many free periods she has at school.. She has 19 over 2 weeks, so guessing she won't be quite as busy in the evenings as I thought.

I'm hoping the babysitting starts to pick up again as that paid well and she could study once the children were in bed.

@NotAKaren mine was meant to have a job at the local plant nursery over the summer. But due to covid they didn't take him on. He'd worked there 2 or 3 mornings a week during half terms previously. He'd like to work there again if he can, the pay is pretty crap though.

Ds is thrilled that all the footballing lads at school have left and gone to college or other places. He's very small for his age and was only ever a reserve (played only a handful of games years 7-11) There were a lot of lads that were in the academy in our nearest city. So were very good at football. Now they've moved on he's hoping to make the 6th form team. That's the only sport they will do though.

DD works at our local stables - one day at the weekend and one day after school.