Thread 17 - Corona Cohort Summer Vacation to Yr 13, Finding Freedom?

[Orangecinnamon21]

PLACEHOLDER FOR NEW THREAD ...PREVIOUSLY TO BE FOUND IN SECONDARY EDUCATION

We have DD's 15th birthday party going on here tonight - I think there are 9 soon-to-be-Y11s in the house, and DH and I are off out for the evening 😬
(DS has already scarpered)

I'm sure they will be sensible but have apologised to the neighbours in advance and told them to let me know ASAP if they witness any shenanigans. Wish me luck.

We were going more south and East tbh . Sorry proggy! I used to live in Aldborough St John when I was very little and our cottage was about 5 miles from there and we didn't even go there!

Ah,I see
I saw your reference to visiting Barnard Castle which is why I thought surely you’d ‘crack on’ to Durham?

It was mooted but DS1 was being a pain so we knocked 'looking at piles of rocks'* on the head.

*aka splendid castles...

that’s the danger of EH and NT membership once they’re older
Surprised there wasn’t any pubs open on a Monday night though- know the area very well!

I think it might be a covid thing in part : staff shortages definitely shut one place down.

@Heifer

This comment on UCAS puts a spanner in the works about applying to top 3 first and seeing (I thought it was a great idea) "If you didn't use all five choices, you can add more choices one at a time from your application as long as it's before 30 June and you've not accepted any offers or been declined by your choices"

To be honest I doubt DD would agree to do anything differently from what the school suggests and I'm not sure I would want to push it in case it backfires! If she applied for what she thinks and didn't get the offers I can at least inwardly think it's because she didn't do the EPQ ;-)

Interesting to read that not many are going out. DD had been great all throug lockdown, obeying all the rules without us having to tell her to. But now if seems it's gloves off (masks still on inside though) :-)

The bit to 30th June is UCAS extra. What I meant was that in the main application period, usuallyto 15th Jan, now 31st, all applications get equal consideration. My DS had added one 10th Jan and got the offer a few days later (biomed when he was convinced he would not get a medicine offer). See FAQ

www.ucas.com › filePDF
Applying through UCAS – frequently asked questions (FAQs)

We dropped into Newcastle University unplanned today and were stunned to find an open day in progress. Still can't find any reference to anything other than virtual visits online but plenty of pre-registered young people were there with parents in tow. Not offer holders! We got pointed to the bits of interest and boys had a long chat with a graduate. Everyone very friendly.

Durham by contrast was a ghost town on campus but a lively mix of Pride and hen parties in the town.

Monkey I think? Jannettas tick, toasty shack tick. St Andrews a hit despite the distance. Eye-watering grades though.

Mmmm Toastie Shack! Which subject was your DS looking at @ewwsprouts?

A friend of a friend who lives in Australia has said on FB that in Australia they are cancelling adult vaccinations and prioritising Y12s as Delta variant is spreading among younger people. She said teacher friends were having theirs cancelled so their students could have it!

Monkey Straight biology. So not in an historic building but adjacent to sports facilities is a big plus. You have a DC there currently?

@EwwSprouts - snap with DD
Where are your DS top picks at the moment? Also where have you already visited?

@Monkey I've heard that too.
It's shocking that there's so many cases in Sydney and such a stringent lockdown again. Australia are essentially doing the opposite to us. I wonder which way will be ultimately most successful?

How much revision did your dc's do for the driving theory test? Mine have it on Wednesday. Bearing in mind DD has been away and probably done no revision & ds1 is dyslexic I'm not feeling hopeful. Dd1 did one whole day of cramming the day before and passed, but I'm not sure about these two

Durham has announced ‘discover Durham’ tours are now available. We have managed to book one while we are up there visiting in a few weeks.

www.durham.ac.uk/visit-us/open-days/discover-durham-tours/

@Fferny1. DS spent a few evenings before the theory test on the app. I think it said he had done about 15-20 mock tests, which I thought was pretty low. He finds learning easy though and that was enough for him to pass with quite a high mark (can’t remember what it was but it wasn’t a scrape through like DS1!)

Heifer Aspirational St Andrews & Durham. Not settled on others but in the mix York, Nottingham, Sheffield, Lancaster. Doesn't want London.
Only visited those mentioned in earlier post.

Have you been anywhere yet?

Not sure I understand the Australian plan. Much as I would like DS to have the vaccine, I feel teachers should be prioritised as they are likely to be more adversely affected by COVID.

@EwwSprouts yes, DS1 is doing medicine at St Andrews, just finished his first year and LOVES it.

@Fferny1 my DSs dipped in and out of the app, but I think they have time if they are already aware of the meaning of road signs. DS1 failed first time because he had not sorted the strategy on hazard perception - you need to click when you see the hazard and click again shortly after in case you clicked too early.

I agree that the Australian plan does not make sense - it looks like they are trying to stop the spread rather than protect the vulnerable. The poster lived in Sidney and said they are not allowed more than 10km from home.

For any in SA London - apparently Harlequins is offering jabs to any 16-18 year old who turns up today.

@Monkey2001 Wow! Bet that was a nail biting application process.

I've forgotten where I've put it, but the DC have received NI cards haven't they?

No cards these days. Just a piece of paper to lose...

Thanks Piggy. I least I know what I'm looking for. DS doesn't think I would have trusted him with it and he's probably right.

Do you mean for 3 years I have been looking for, and taking the blame for, a national insurance card that didn’t exist in the place?

..I have paper evidence

Yup!