Year 10 - 2023/2024 Support Thread

Ah - was just checking they weren't staging a Bacchanalian orgy. My greek lessons were, alas, never 'wild'.

@QueenMabby - not been reading The Secret History has she?

Ahh @MissyB1 hope it went well for him!

I struggled to find medical work experience for my daughter who is in year 10 and due to do a week this July. Nearly all the NHS schemes ate 16+ and all the contacts I know said the same thing, even the admin staff based in a building with no patients. But we were lucky enough that an old school friend of mine who is now a GP offered for her to do WP at her practice (unsolicited!) I rasied the under 16 issue and she wasn't concerned, though we've had to do all the usual paperwork and risk assessments etc. We are travelling a similar distance to this practice, so no risk of her knowing any patients - which was a concern of my friendly GP when I asked him about it. Without this friend it would have been online experience only for DD. Though the NHS Blood & Transplant service do a WP scheme for 14+which looks realy good. Lots of my daughter's friends are saying they will do "online" experiences and plan to spend the week chilling out!

second day of exams for ds today, English language and Maths (his nemesis!). He was very nervous about the Maths, it’s the only exam he ever panics in 🙁.

There's not been any mention of end of year exams here. Although I think the maths teacher mentioned an exam in june/july and the PE teacher mentioned similar, but no formal week of exams. Our mock exams are in /October November.
I'm thinking that DS might need to do some revising of topics, especially the ones done earlier on in Year 10, towards the end of summer, so that's he's not trying to cram everything once school starts in September. Is anyone planning to do any revision in the summer or is this overkill? 6 weeks of absolutely no work seems a bit too long given it won't be long before their mocks.

DS is doing a work experience placement in July for a week in an architecture company which I arranged through a friend. DS has no clue what he want to do as a career, so I just want to expose him to the work place and they have a good scheme, with a project for him to do.

DS has work experience at the end of Y10 - we've been lucky to sort out something interesting with a friend of ours, but it feels like the process depends largely on who you know, which doesn't seem fair.

I must say he's finding Y10 quite a step up in terms of what the teachers are expecting. We didn't have a great parents evening - he's doing OK but could do a lot better. He has end of year exams and then two lots of mocks in Y11 so I'm hoping the penny will finally drop at some point during that process that there is a direct correlation between effort put in and results achieved.

End of year exams are after May half term at our school so no one goes away as the intention is to revise. Shame as it’d be a nice sunny break! I’m so sick of the rain atm!

Parents Evenings sound positive!
RS revision nagging continues at pace, despite me saying am going to leave him to his own devices -hey ho!

Am guessing after half term there will be end of year exams but no mention of those yet-the nagging never ends!

They do work experience at the end of year 10 at our school. My older 2 ds's work/worked at a local grain place in the lab testing crops each summer for almost 3 months. Ds1 did it for 3 years, ds2 did 2 years, but he's doing a year abroad this year so won't be working there, then he will return to uni next year , so will work there again next summer. So we asked if ds3 could do work experience there and that's what he's doing. Hopefully he will be able to work summers there too. He has to be 18 though for paid work, so not for a few years.

DD has work experience coming up in the last week of year 10 but we were really struggling to find anything she was interested in so DH is going to take her to work and give her a project to do. I think it is very young for them to be expected to organise it themselves (which is what the school were suggesting), I suspect most have had a parent sort it for them.

Well done to those getting good feedback from parents evening, we only get one per year and it was last term. Feels like DD is doing ok at the moment, she is enjoying the new topic in History (the cold war). She has a history trip at the end of June and there is an info evening about it early May, the school have said we can give them DD's passport then if we won't need it - seems like a long time for them to be hanging on to them! We're not going anywhere in half term as DS is year 13 so doing his A levels.

DD1 had work experience in Y10. She's the very end of year as well so was 14. It was really good for her though I admit hard to get. She's learned she doesn't want to work in an office (one week of financial PR) and that she doesn't want to be a primary teacher. Her Year 12 work experience is with my sister-in-law who is a teaching nurse - which since she wants to do nursing is perfect.

Not sure DD2 will get any work experience however - doesn't seem to be scheduled. I guess, at music school, they probably think the whole thing is work experience.

I do think yr10 is too young for work experience. So many won’t have a clue what they fancy and like you say at 14/15 very few work places want the responsibility or the faff of DBS, risk assessments etc.
DD1 was very fortunate to spend a week shadowing a medical consultant friend of ours (200 miles away, so even stayed with her) but she had to complete a trillion forms for the NHS - as an August born she did hers after her GCSEs, but still before she turned 16. So I’m now thinking the NHS must be ok with fifteen year olds. There were a LOT of hurdles though!

Well done to Parents evening dc and the good comments from teachers. Ours is next week.

I've had a right week. A lovely MN'er meet up on Monday. Me rather than ds2 trying to sort his 2 day work experience, but only managing to arrange 1 day because most places won't take an under 16 (clearly a silly idea by only our school then as I note none of you have this silliness).

Stupidy I booked theatre 2 consecutive nights. Went to see Macbeth in Wimbledon which was really poor, a bit new age and hard to follow. Then Jekyll & Hyde, (same cast as previous night) which was much better and ds enjoyed. (Instead of Mr Poole the butler it was Mrs Poole and ds was most unimpressed). I've had enough and I'm all theatre'd out!

@DataColour great news! Well done to your DS. @minisnowballs didn’t read the whole article, just the first couple of paragraphs but flipping heck!

@NotDonna Well done to your DD! Sounds like she's really progressing and it's so nice to hear that from the teachers. That's great feedback.

@minisnowballs haha not sure what to think of that article! Mostly disagree with that article as my DD and DS did not have typical boy/girl hobbies at all and still don't. Also I don't think chemistry sets were ever aimed just for boys!

We also had parents evening yesterday and the feedback was very positive. Hard worker in class and fully focused and engaged in the classes he enjoys (maths, english, geography, RE surprisingly and music), a bit less engaged in the sciences and easily distracted, but results are good. results are great overall, so his hard work is paying off. Also quite a few teachers said he was a nice kid, bright and can have a good conversations with teachers about the subject.
Bit of a relief actually as he's had quite an unsteady year with behaviour issues outside the class and has had numerous detentions and calls to us from head of year and also the headteacher on one occasion. He seems to reign it in in class, wishing he would do the same outside of it. It's been a really stressful few months with his behaviour.

Fabulous news @NotDonna - well done to her. So nice when they get to hear their teachers praising them!

DD2 has gone back to school - I've heard nothing of note except that they studied this vile piece from 2014 as a piece of persuasive writing in a cover lesson and lots of the children agreed with it. https://www.express.co.uk/life-style/life/455465/Stop-making-our-children-neutral-let-boys-and-girls-play-with-gender-specific-toys

@NotDonna that’s great to hear! My DDs one isn’t for another 3 weeks. It’s wonderful when things start to fall into place and the hard work pays off. My daughter has really blossomed in maths this year and I am so proud of her work ethic. Just a bit worried that she is all work and no play at the moment, and feeling constantly stressed about exams. They do “mocks” in June and the teachers are constantly reminding them how long they have left - they’re only year 10 for goodness sake!

I’ve just had parents eve with DD3. I do like it when they accompany you. ALL her teachers seemed really pleased with her progress! As I’ve mentioned previously she has suddenly turned a corner and is in the fabulous cycle of trying hard, receiving praise, improving results, feeling more confident, trying harder…etc. Tonight was confirmation that she’s on a decent trajectory. Don’t get me wrong she struggles and She’s not going to be getting stellar results but seeing her enjoy tonight and grin at her feedback was delightful. Yeah!

Mine love a meal deal @QueenMabby ! That's what I do when DS has got an all day cricket match.
Hope your DD has a good day at school.
DS went volunteering this morning at Parkrun and has just set off on a very long bike ride with DH. Hell be knackered when he gets back so tomorrow will be a homework and Xbox type of day.
Hope everyone has a good weekend!