Y11 2023-24 thread 4

Good luck to everyone still going, not long now!

DS was very glad to get everything out of the way - no rest for him though, he was setting up then dj-ing at the PTA ball on Saturday and left the house at 6.45 this morning to start his summer gardening job 😁

@steppemum glad to hear your DD is feeling better after pride, hopefully the holiday will also cheer her up! DS found his first physics paper horrendous, it was his second exam and it really knocked his confidence. Last year grade boundaries were very low so keeping fingers crossed that will help.

Not sure that as much music revision is happening this weekend as DS has planned. This last push is a real struggle.

DS is planning on keeping all his notes for his sister. He is very proud of them 😁. Not sure she is ecstatic about this inheritance!

DD was so emotional on her last day, never seen her cry so much. She's got a great group of friends, all going to a different college so she's going to miss them lots.

Good luck to the kids still doing exams this week. Really feel for them looking at DS there would be no way he would cope with any this week. He did nothing yesterday apart from an hour quick tidy of his room and gym but still look knackered had to repeat everything a few times to him.

Also still going - DS has had today totally off (gamed all day with 90 minutes break to go get a prom suit) before a final 3 days of probably what needs to be his most intensive revision - for FM2.
Paper 1 was a shocker & FM revision had to come second to normal maths. In practice that means he's done none & needs the next 3 days but it's so hard to keep going when everyone else seems to have finished!

We're still at it. Two next week. At the beginning, I thought it would be great having these days for just two but dd is exhausted. It's really hard to keep going.

I’m finding it really difficult to adjust to no more schoolwork or exams. Think ds might be too. All that freedom that he has been desperate for is suddenly here.

Thank you for all your kind messages.
Dd did really badly on paper 1, so not much chance of a pass. Although she has admitted that she did answer some of the paper 2 questions.

She has been out at pride all day and has come home buzzing, so she is OK.
(although she lost her phone and finally find it 6 hours later)

Off on holiday on Monday morning, so time to chill.

Good luck to all still going next week x x

DD is beyond knackered. I’m going to run her an early bath and pack her off to bed very soon!!

Hugs to everyone with flat or anxious post-GCSE teens. It's so hard and we can't really do much other than prop them up, listen, and distract.

DS and I went to see a talk last night from a scientist he idolises and we took so long hanging around the museum and getting books signed that suddenly it was half nine and hardly anywhere in town was still serving food. We did find something in the end, and then ate too much, too late - so both of us were feeling quite sluggish this morning! He's spent the day building Warhammer miniatures, having opened the huge order he saved up for and placed on the middle of GCSEs as a big carrot for him to keep going.

Hope to do lots of fun things and watch some films with him over the next few weeks. I also think he needs to look for a job or a volunteer opportunity, because this is going to be a long summer and I think even building a tiny plastic army is going to pall...

DS and his friends appear to be bored already. They have just gone to Sainsburys and for a walk. It's 11 weeks until they go back to school/college. He definitely needs a job!

Oh @steppemum that's awful, your poor DD! I hope she is a bit calmer today and has got things a bit more in perspective. She may not have completely failed physics and she may have done better on paper 2 than she thinks It's over now and hopefully she can reset and focus on the future.

Unlike a lot of your children, DS is refusing to do anything today. No room clearing, getting rid of old notes or getting out old uniform for me to wash and return to the school for the "pre loved" PTA uniform sales they hold. He's not coming across as emotional or exhausted but is a bit mopey and subdued. I guess they all react differently.

He has a few things set up with friends - tennis this evening and football watching next week. Then two transition days and then we're off on holiday for two weeks.

Hope your weekends are going well.

@steppemum hope your DD is feeling better today change can be hard. @Popfan fingers crossed he got his pass
I am already dreading results as DS is concerned about Eng lang.
DS started sorting his room chucked all work except Eng Lang just incase and Geography as planning to do for ALevel.
School 6th form sent email all OK for ALevel choices if he gets required grades except for core maths seems a lot want to do it so they will be in touch.
Getting DS to try the journey to 6th form college this week to see what it's like.

@steppemum that sounds a really tough last day for both your DD and you. Really hope that over the next few days she feels better. And about her Physics, it's so hard not to feel gutted for them isn't it. Like @Popfan my DC completely messed up one of their English papers, a subject they'd really hoped to do for A-level. All I hope is that the grade boundaries are kind and that their other paper/s might go far enough to rescue things.

We picked DD up from the party at midnight.
When I woke her up to go to her job this morning at 6:30, she said, "I actually want to die" 😂

A revision-free weekend here, then 2 days for preparing for her final exam, Food Tech.

@steppemum that sounds so tough for your Dd. I hope things are better now and she can look forward to the summer.

@steppemum your poor DD, I hope things start to become easier for her x

Only Further Maths to go on Wednesday so we’ve decided a weekend off revising and just go for it Monday and Tuesday. DS is so over exams and tired I think a proper break is more beneficial!

He’s looking forward to a new start in September, he has nice friends but has never really fully felt he’s fitted in to be honest. He goes out occasionally but is not into drinking or girls yet (which the others are!). I do worry sometimes he’s lonely but he has a great relationship with his younger brother, 18 months difference, so they go out to play tennis/into town etc together quite a lot. He also still really likes hanging out with DH and I so said he’s looking forward to dog walks with me and helping at the allotment 😂

I'm so pleased it is all over. Can't help feeling sad still over English lang paper two though, he was so upset over it as it was the one he was most confident with, he just found the texts really hard and couldn't see what he needed to for q4 which meant he was massively put off for q5. He did so well in his mock and so could have done really well, now he's looking at not passing. Really hope he's done enough for a 4.

Trying to forget it all now until August!!

DS said last night he doesn’t feel excited it’s over as he is still in the mind set that he has to do more revision, hopefully this weekend he’ll switch off and be excited about the summer!

@steppemum I’m so sorry to hear about your DDs last day and her time at the school. I hope life turns around for her now and she moves on to a much happier phase of her life. X

Ds said physics was good.
I jokingly asked him yesterday evening that he must be feeling bereft, with nothing to do and he said he's already bored and needs to find a job.
Im sure he'll adjust and I'd love him to find a job but there never seems to be anything for 16 yr olds. Job hunting will at least keep him occupied for a bit.

After extensive googling, I've answered my own question about online resources for the music listening, including the 'fill in the missing bars' bit. I know what DS will be doing today!

Oh @steppemum that sounds so tough for your poor DD. I hope she can look forward to better days ahead.

Your poor DD. Sounds like she's done an amazing job keeping it all together until now. I hope she's able to put the last exam behind her and I hope the next chapter is a more positive one for her