Y9-2024/2025

Historically Computing and IT (they offer both) have been popular and there are two teachers.
Its the MFL department that struggles!

@PuttingDownRoots my other suggestion when weighing up subject choices is to check that the subjects are well enough staffed. We have dissuaded DD from Computer Science as it's the one subject that her school has struggled to recruit teachers for over the past 18 months or so.

@CouldNotStayAway hope everyone is back to health soon, hate norovirus!

@PuttingDownRoots everything I've read here about computer science at GCSE is that it's pretty dull and the fun bits you can do by yourself. Not sure which qualification/board you're looking at, but I'd check the content very carefully. The computer science offered at my DD's school looked dire when you actually saw the course content. Really, really dry and technical, not much fun coding or anything.

DD is having a dilemma about Computing Vs Spanish.
She just doesn't know which she will be happier doing...

I think she's pretty certain on Geography and Animal Care as her other two subjects. Unless Dance is on the list this year....

If only there were more hours in the day, but realistically 9 Subjects is enough!

My DD is in first year of her GCSE courses, they can drop them though so it's not final until the end of this year.

She is doing Child Development which she loves.

There's a couple of us who have already done the GCSE options making so we can offer advice!

This term has just been 'business as usual' for DD with no great dramas, which I'll take as a win!

We've not heard any details about GCSE options, but we now have a timeline: there will be a GCSE curriculum evening in late February, early reports in March, closely followed by progress evening, with option choices submitted before the Easter break. So sounds like it'll be a busy term!

Good news that things are more settled at the moment, @DeathMetalMum. Welcome, @BobbleHatDay - I'm sure there will be a few of us agonising with our DCs about GCSE options next term, so we can support each other!

Enjoy the break, everyone!

Can I join? DS is now on xmas holidays - next year will be navigating options for gcse! As neither parent was educated in the UK and he's our eldest - it will be new for us all!

Hope everyone has a good Xmas!

Glad your ds has had a good term. Half a day left here too.

Thinks seemed to have calmed down a little. Though I think dd may secretly be hoping for a move still. She's signed up for duke of edinburgh award with school this half term, and was accepted. We also had options evening recently. We started the evening her saying she was doing history, drama and possibly media studies or triple science. By the end of the evening PE was her second choice, she had fleetingly mentioned it but discounted it until she realised she could use two sports she does outside of school for the coursework element.

Dd is hanging out with a friend after school tomorrow as they finish early. Which is a first and I'm really pleased she's organised it and it's actually happening.

Can I join. Have dd1 in year 9 she seems to have good and bad days. The school re-shuffled the forms at the beginning of the year, dd had stayed in the same form. But is finding the new members of her form have made the form very noisy/chaotic. She only has one or two lessons in forms each day though thankfully. She has asked about moving forms but I'm not certain school will think this is a valid reason. Dd and I discussed moving forms at the end of July as she didn't have a great time with some of her friend group but she declined.

Homework has increased quite notably this year. She does two sports outside of school that take up a good chunk of the weekend but is getting into the habit of doing something each night if not more.

Pretty good here, although DD has a tendency to take on too much, clubs, productions, etc and get frazzled trying to work out how to make it all work, organisation is not her strong point, and neither is taking advice from her parents when we try to help 😆 1st abroad trip with the school coming up next week so all very exciting. We have an hours commute too @LetItGoToRuin and it does eat into the day, although some homework, learning scripts etc gets done on the bus.

How is everyone getting on in Y9? It’s mostly good for DD but there’s always something!

Friendships – things are good at the moment. DD feels her new teaching group like her, which is a massive relief as she has a bit of a toxic form group. She also does clubs four lunchtimes out of five (she only did two last year) and has formed friendships with her music buddies and her singing/dancing buddies, and she also has ‘before school’ buddies who are largely different again. So she has lots of options if there are any wobbles. This is a big relief as Y7 (with toxic form group) was a bit tricky.

Homework – this is just starting to get to her a bit. She is very diligent and wants to get her homework done sooner rather than later, but the downside is that she gets anxious if the homework list starts to build. Last night she had to catch up on maths classwork that she’d missed due to an instrumental lesson – this involved copying notes from a friend into her book and doing some questions that the teacher recommended. Then she had her actual maths homework which was unfortunately quite a lot of questions. She barely started that last night, so has maths and something else to face tonight for tomorrow, and went to school this morning feeling quite pressured and resentful.

I don’t think there’s a problem, as such – DD doesn't seem to be struggling with any actual content, and she is not worryingly perfectionist (eg when asked to make a ‘poster’ she doesn’t waste too much time on unnecessary colouring in!) but she absolutely would never consider leaving homework unfinished or handing it in late. I suspect this is a good thing in the long run, but we just need to watch for stress/burnout! I also don’t think the homework is too much – it’s just that she is quite busy with hobbies and music practice, and has an hour’s commute, so there are only so many hours in the day.

Sorry – that was a bit long! How is everyone else doing?

She has also started child development gcse (they do 3 year course) which she loves!

We are having a good term. My DD has fallen out with her 'friend' (school described it as a toxic friendship) As the girl has also fallen out with the other one of the trio, the other one and my daughter are managing to stay firm against the nasty comments (before my daughter would give in and be friends again) . Its lead to a turn around in her behaviour - only 1 behaviour point in 2 weeks plus some achievement points and engaging in lessons.

She is much happier.

On the downside still no sign of an adhd referral and they also refused to complete the forms for a private mental health assessment I wanted to get done.

All happy here. School trip yesterday (a days hill walking) which they got lucky with the weather for and it seems they all enjoyed themselves despite dreading it! The school is delightfully bonkers at times... taking 200 13/14yos hill walking just for the fun of it....

How's it going for everyone? Kind of ok here but the new classes are a big change so taking a bit of getting used to. Especially days when it's very science & maths heavy! My DD is good at them but she's not very passionate about it so it's more of a slog than a subject she properly enjoys.

My daughter went back last Thursday (5th). With all the problems she had at the end of last term with a really horrible group of so called friends, her head of year couldn't have been more supportive, and moved her classes and form.

She's settled so well into her new form, has a new group of friends and is so happy! Just hope it lasts. Its so nice to see her happy for a change!!

Hope everyone else's year 9 is getting on ok. x

Weve had the first money request. £15.
Coach prices are extorinate these days!

My dd had an amazing first full day. She has had a tricky time since last Xmas and I have had call after call home about her behaviour.

I had a call today saying how well she had done in one class. Focused, worked hard read her work aloud when asked.