Y13 Summer term: Finishing Lessons, Starting Exams and leaving Sixth Form

[catslife]

So our dcs are now on the last term of sixth form, finishing off lessons and starting their exams.
How did that happen - doesn't seem that long ago since they started Y12.
This is the thread where we support each other as our dcs revise and start their exams, finish off coursework, leave sixth form and make plans for what to do with the rest of their lives. This may involve going to uni or other alternatives.
Every Y13 parent is welcome to join in whether new to these threads or if you have been with us for a while - the more the merrier.

TeressasGreen could you get your DD to nominate you as her advocate? I can't say I'm an expert, but I do know that people with disabilities can have an advocate to communicate on their behalf in certain situations.

It's so flipping hard this bit isn't it. Legally they are adults, but it's a flipping tough and complicated world and some just need a bit of extra support and their parents to be able to speak in support of them.

That’s a great idea, thank you.

This is still all quite new to us. I get a lecture from the receptionist at the GP whenever I call on her behalf, even though I know her notes say to speak to me. It makes me doubly determined to get everything I can I place for her.

I wish we had a private place to discuss some of this stuff more.

I did a quick Google and there's loads of agencies that provide details about being an advocate for someone with a disability. Happy to post links if you like. I wonder if you phoned the GPs saying "I am TG Junior's advocate ..." you might get a different attitude!

it's difficult enough to talk to a GP when you are in your thirties or older, it is not the case that your dd failed in any way to say the "right" thing.

No she didn't fail at all.
The GP was lovely in sorting it out I have to say, it was just one of those things, but it was a big deal for dd.

DS1 managed to make his own GP appointment (without being prompted), get himself there (without having me for moral support), be honest about his current state of health and get his prescriptions renewed.

That would be normal for some 18 year olds but it has taken some doing for him to get to this point.

It helps having a GP where he can book an appointment online.

I'm going to wait until his exams are done before reminding him that he needs to contact student support before he starts university. One step at a time.

Teresa universities vary on how much they will speak to parents but everyone I have asked have a provision to allow students to say that they are happy for parents to speak to disability services on their behalf.
One of the universities dd applied to said they would renew this for each occasion but ds's university is happy to speak to me as necessary as he has signed the relevant form.
I haven't had to do it often but it has been very useful to have that provision.
I have also found that the universities are really quite open to parents being involved to get things put in place before they actually start.

Dd can't talk on the phone - not just anxiety but she actually can't process what people are saying. I have found that just getting her to say 'I'm happy for you to talk to my mother' is sufficient for services to talk to me.

I'm back for the final stretch. Dd will be completely finished with exams in just under 3 weeks time!

She's had 2 exams already, neither of which have gone as well as she hoped, both further maths. Apparently she knew what she was supposed to do but want getting the right answers, so assumes she's made a lot of sign/arithmetic errors. At least that's given her a bit of a kick up the arse and she's doing a LOT of revision for the others now. She's got an unconditional offer, so even if she messes up completely she's still going to the same place and doing the same course, just possibly with a bit less money in her pocket.

I'm sorry to hear about horse troubles and health issues. for everyone with problems. It's such a crucial time we just want it all to run smoothly.

We have the same timeframe MsAwesomeD - done in 19 days. I am having the bathroom sorted, we've been going to do it for the last ten years (= happily ignoring it) but now that it's my sole responsibility it's getting done. That should give me a bit of distraction for the next couple of weeks, they start after exams obviously but I'm assuming that I have to pick tiles and things. The bath is chipped, the sink is cracked and doesn't drain properly with two odd taps - I just want something functional with a shower.

DS had a couple of failures at the doctor, turning up on the wrong day, and another where he thought he'd missed an appointment but it was a week later. We could have done without the woe and drama, just from him because the receptionist was lovely. Why he doesn't use the calendar on his phone and set a reminder I do not know. It works for me. Alexa gets me out of the door a few times a week where I would have totally forgotten about the gym/picking up my MIL.

Knitting DS won't use the calendar on his phone or any other reminder system either, which I agree is very frustrating. The one time I left him to it he didn't realise he had two maths mocks and almost missed them, so I dread to think what will happen when he goes away,

I find it is easy to put an appt on the wrong day in my phone. But it is very useful, when I get it right.

I have some lavender tiles left over if you want them knitting 5 years ago we redid our tiles (though not the fittings) and made a very "loud" panel of yellow, palm green, midnight blue and lavender tiles in big stripes. Very cheerful. The other bathroom is deadly dull, white tiles.

What I really wanted, but for some reason didn't get was to feel like I was on a pebbly beach, subtle hues, bleached beiges etc.

DD is 3 weeks on Friday so a bit longer. Her last exam is C4 maths so the different boards must be on different days if other Maths people are finished sooner.

Ms Awesome I bet that gave her a bit of a shock in FM.

Apparently the only person in our house with the ability to use paper or electronic diaries is me.

I have now reached the point of asking my children to get out their phones and put the appointment/event into their calendar then and there, in front of me.

the school have sent us all the timetables, and I have to say I look at it frequently but only dd has actually committed the dates to the kitchen calendar. I reckon that transferring the dates is more likely to result in error than just sticking the print out on the wall.

Paper diaries otherwise, I went through a phase of putting dates in my phone but as my phone goes missing a fair amount (it is now lost three days running) it was slightly pointless. If it gets put on the wall that is something. I also get very anxious about organised burglars breaking in, looking at the calendar and thinking right she is going to be out for these dates or away on holiday then so never put holidays up on the calendar. mad I know.

This morning I feel very discombombulated. Sitting here worrying what to do first. Prise ds1 out of bed? Buy new mattress which involves going to bed shop (mattress falling apart, 20 years old) - I've been putting this off till half term, now worrying about flame retardants in new mattress, to which I'm newly allergic. OR, sit around encouraging kids, and writing lists of Othello Quotes?

Or buy a large pot for wilting Phormium? Or search house endlessly for phone which I cannot locate? Or take garden rubbish to the tip???

Maybe I will start by going to making macaroni cheese for lunch.

Have a good day everyone, and may the focus be with you!

raspberry it really did give her a shock. I didn't help either with my initial comment of "well maybe you'll do some more revision for the next ones", at which point she promptly burst into tears and I had to rethink where I was coming from. She does intellectually know it doesn't matter what grade she gets (it will be a grade, she can't fail completely because she's got very high marks in the AS modules), but for her own pride she wanted it to be an A.

I got her exam timetable wrong, is not 3 weeks, it's 3 weeks on Monday that she finishes. Her last exam is maths M2. So first and last exams are further maths.

DD tells me that a couple of girls have 3 exams scheduled for the same day - all with the same exam board. Obviously there is a clash. How can this happen?

Aww poor girl MsAwesome. She sounds really shaken up.

ahh, your poor dd MrsAD. It's so frustrating isn't it. And of course once a paper is sat, that's it, it can't be unsat and revision doesn't apply retrospectively. I presume she has at least one FM paper to sit?

dd finishes with a flourish on the 25th with FP3 and M4.

Well that'll teach me for being so smug (yesterday 22:47)

DS1 finally agreed to apply for DSA. I explained that he would need to ask the GP for medical evidence about how his illness affects his studies. DS1 then admitted that at yesterday's appointment he pretended everything was fine, because he was fed up with having to answer questions about his health.

MrsAD your poor DD. If she did well at AS though, and still has more papers to go then it doesn't mean complete disaster.
And like you say, she has an unconditional so at least she has that certainty.

Lonicera 3 papers in one day sounds horrific. DD has been so lucky, she never has more than 1 per day.

She finishes with the same paper as your DD Raspberry - C4 on 22nd.

C3 is the one she's really dreading and unfortunately it falls right in the middle of her busiest week with an exam every day.

Third hopefully another GP appointment should sort it out. He can't be the first person to have claimed to be fine when really not.

Dd has been irritatingly good a going to the doctors on her own, since she was 13. The first I would know about it she would come skipping in with a paper bag from the chemists and delight in showing me this mortal wound she's had for three days but "didn't have time to show me." I on the other hand still often get Dp to do it over the phone.

DD is however a severe klutz so I think she was forced into making her own appointments due to embarresment of the extreme volume of injuries (who gets bitten by dogs 3 time by 3 different dogs???) and ilnesses she aquires ( eg.hand foot and mouth, like a sodding sheep, she had to stay of school for 3 weeks, no symptons apart from a spotty throat, hand and feet).

Dd forgets things easily too, however my main worry with her currently is that she just doesn' wake up. No sound wakes her, I've stood over her and watched her nap peacefully as a fire alarm went off (burnt toast, after seeing this however we found an alarm that has a strobe light). I worry she'll miss her exams.