Year 12 #1 - GCSEs are sooo last year!

[bpisok]

New thread to see us through to Christmas?

Thanks everyone. I think it was a really good start, too. He sometimes struggles with confidence and thinks he's not smart enough for uni, but such good results give him a better feeling

Stickerrocks DS1 was 4.5yo, DS2 3yo and DD1 16 months. DD2 was born a almost eight weeks after we arrived in the UK. Their father, my first husband, died and my family married me with a british-somalian man. Worst 6 years of my life. They have hardly any memories of our time in Somalia and we don't have any contact with my family there for years (they treat me like dead since I left my second husband).

No report cards or parent evenings here so far. The school usually has both in early december, but I don't know about Sixth Form.

@Soomaa - you are an inspiration. What you've been through humbles me and puts into perspective my some what trivial worries. You and your family deserve every success!

Back from parents' evening. DS1 has been pulling out all the stops and tutor is really pleased with him. Excellent effort across the board and good balance with extra curricular stuff (rugby, model UN and D of E). Too early for predictions but tutor suggests 'flight path' is good and all Uni options open at this stage. Good report from DS2's tutor as well (Year 9) do happy house tonight.

Just need a house viewing to convert to an offer. Another one tomorrow. House has never been so tidy 😬 our cheeky offer on a lovely house turned down today 😢

DS2 is very susceptible to a sales pitch.

When they had the talk about the EPQ, he came home and listed the benefits and explained that he had decided to sign up. I had to point out that four A-levels were enough to be going on with.

Someone came to his sixth form to do a talk on apprenticeships. DS2 asked questions at the end, and the speaker showed him a "degree level" science apprenticeship which DS2 came home very enthusiastic about. When I read the small print, it turns out that the three-year apprenticeship leads to a foundation degree which is not a pathway to the career DS2 wants to pursue.

Going back to www and ebi. This has been a practise in dgds school since year 7. They have peer marking too! All are handy ways to mark work. The DC are taught to use www and ebi themselves as well as the teachers when evaluating their work.
First report is December and big assessment tests already underway. They sit these test at least twice termly. Its a great way to ensure constant revision. In year 12 two progress reports and end of year full report. Each report is set as ..
Under/on track/above, ( level they are working at) predicted grade then aspirational grade and any comments if necessary so you can see how they are doing. The school uses an app that even tells you in real time what lesson they are in and whether they are in attendance. Also in the app it has announcements, behaviour, credits gained, attendance, announcements,homework and timetable. You just log on and all info about your DC is there in one place. I love that app!
So overall the school keeps parents well informed.

Dgd has just become a trustee of a large charity who specialise in regeneration of deprived areas. They want young trustees and we think this will be an ideal volunteer placement to teach her about all sorts of things and has a bit of responsibility with it. Also she is doing ' elf' day baking and selling cakes for Alzheimer's society. And she also doing a bit if voluntary work for the library and a local little arts theatre. All are not heavy commitments because if her workload doing 4 a levels. But she us beginning to enjoy these varied roles.

Sorry about typos!

So, start again :) Thank you for the PM.

We've had a 'settling in' report which gave grades for A level study skills - so very woolly. No parents' meeting until the end of March.

DD4 has just given up the EPQ on the basis of it being huge amounts of form filling and the rest of her time being already heavily booked so she's doing three A levels only now, although trying to teach herself latin to GCSE.

Sostenueto congrats to your dgd on taking on the trustee role. That sounds a great idea. The dcs school did the same as yours with the marking - it works well. I was quite impressed with some of the feedback from the peers!
We have a subject tutors evening in January followed by mock exams. Before that, I think the feedback will be a data sheet or similar.

So all we’ve had a “welcome” email on parents portal and absolutely nothing else. No other contact from 6th form college, just to be clear, no report, no parents meeting, no information about uni, nothing about EPQ, no levels, nothing, zero, zilch

Trying to tell myself it is preparing me for uni when I’ll also know nothing. DD taking last weekend about doing a masters degree, so have no idea how realistic that is.

I contacted College yesterday as was given vague information about parents evening but told to contact DD tutor. Am reluctant to go down this path behind DD back as we are starting to get on again and I don’t want to break any trust

Twin - does the college keep your daughter updated with their view on her progress?
If so, I guess that's OK.
TBH I wouldn't ring the school unless I had justifiable concerns because my DD would never speak to me again if I did!
How many are there in her year group?

Sostenuto - ds's school use a similar thing called My Child at School but for some inexplicable reason they don't put homework on it (and ds has yet again lost his paper planner).

Dd's school don't have wifi for the kids and the boarders only have it if they pay for 4G so they don't use online portals.

Dd has been asked if she would like to become a Regional Ambassador for the Holocaust Educational Trust but she has declined as she feels that with her long school day (9am-6pm standard, 8am-7pm extra classes) and the fact she has to prepare for the Model United Nations conference next year where she is co-chairing a committee that if she takes on anything else either her academic work or her dance training will start to suffer.

We've had no feedback at all so far either academically or vocationally apart from the conversations we've had to have with regards to dd's injury and treatment.

Its vocational assessment week this week and next for her.

UKMT SMC boundaries have just been published:-

UK Mathematics Trust
@UKMathsTrust · 1h
SMC 2018 certificate boundaries and follow-on round thresholds:
Gold - 83 and above
Silver - 67 to 82
Bronze - 53 to 66
BMO1 - 102 and above.

That was quick.

Ah, curses! DS3 has worked out that his max possible score is 101 if he got everything he did right. And I don’t think he’ll be getting that much.

EllenJane its only the first year your DS will have done it, and they tend to get better each year. Also, Kangaroo qualification indicates strong maths ability in and of itself

Bispock if DD does get feedback she keeps herself! I agree completely, my DD would never speak to her again if I made more formal contact with College.

DS2 entered the SMC last year (in Y11) and got a silver certificate

Dd thinks she got "about 30"

Do we know when the results are sent out?

Sooma what a roller coaster ride you've all had.

DD doesn't talk about things like the SMC. No idea what she thinks she's got.

Tell a lie. She has volunteered the information that she got 72.

On the IMC, I think the results used to get emailed out on the same day / day after the grade boundaries were published (because all the papers have to be marked before the grade boundaries can be calculated).
I've no idea about SMC though, except to say it gas to be quite soon as the kangaroo and first round of the Olympiad are only a couple of weeks away.

Sticker the marks have been emailed out?

Sooma I just read your post. Wow! That's a lot for you and your DC to gave gone through.

Stickerrocks 72 is a great score for someone in Y12.

You had dropped off my 'threads I'm on'! Nothing much to report here, had a first tracking with assessment grades on, everything mostly on track thankfully.

Sost your granddaughter sounds amazing!