Thread 31 Covid Cohort - Hopping through Easter and Revision

[OrangeCinnamonCroissant]

This is a thread for supporting all young people post GCSEs 2020, regardless of their educational setting. It is respectfully requested that all are supportive and helpful to each other. If you want to start a debate, e.g state vs private, please don't within this thread. Please also be sensitive when responding to threads about grades.

Some of us have been here since first thread back in yr10, some will be new. Everyone has been friendly and helpful in the past. Everyone is welcome. It is hoped this will continue.

Our DS/DD may go down various paths (such as employment, apprenticeships, higher ed) We have decided for anyone interested they will most likely find us within the Further Ed board.

previous Thread 30

I've made this one a little bit earlier as things are so busy, at home and on thread, so please feel free to use up previous thread first

No comment < gives pointed stare upstairs>…🤣

Absolutely , my hard Paddington stare is pretty much my permanent expression these days 🤣

Yeah! He got 33/40 but his teacher basically said he could ask for it to be remarked because 'he knew he would be a bit disappointed'. I am guessing the teacher is disappointed and perhaps feels his students have been undermarked by other teachers but DS is a bit confused. I thought a review of marking as it is called was really a formal process. DS reckons 33/40 is an A so he isn't actually ' a bit disappointed'!

DS had his prom last night, so nice for them to finally do something as a school. He looked very smart in his DJ. Still isn’t home… 😱 I do know where he is though so all good - last big party before exams.

I asked him if he was getting his History mark and apparently they will be given them next week.

In other news I’ve bitten the bullet and contacted an Ed Psych re DS2. Hopefully will get something organised early summer.

@Piggywaspushed dd said she’d asked around and most in her class got in the 32-34 range so she doesn’t feel so disappointed. Maybe they’re all marking relatively cautiously? (Although there’s nothing wrong with an A!).

Good luck with the Ed psych @JustHereWithMyPopcorn ! I can’t remember- is it ADHD that you suspect?

Still to hear from Durham...
Put this on the Durham thread but it's true of all unis I'm sure.
I've just looked at that spreadsheet about offers for this year at Durham. I know not all are on here, but for DDs choice of liberal arts, most have been asked for 3 A*.
The requirements on their website are AAA*
Just shows how demand is higher than availability that they can up the grades so much.

That sounds like a good night, JustHere!
Both DC’s proms are post-exams, which I’m quite pleased about, only because any drama that may occur on the night would really affect DD (whenever she goes to a party, her mood seems to take a dive the next day and she ruminates for days).

Im relieved to hear that NEA marks have to be given to students, thanks, Piggy. Is it the case that they are marked by one teacher and then moderated by another, or do 2 teachers get together to agree a final mark?
I can imagine potential for a difficult working relationship in a department, if your DS’s teacher is egging him on to argue another teacher’s judgement.

I don’t understand what you’re saying, NCTDN. Do you mean courses advertised as needing 3As would be expected to make lower offers?
DD applied to KCL with predictions of AAB, for an AAA course and got rejected, but she wasn’t surprised, and her Birmingham and Southampton offers are exactly as advertised; I thought that was standard?

@crazycrofter dyspraxia but I am suspecting maybe ADHD too? I don’t know if there’s anything, he might just be a slightly quirky, slightly sensitive/anxious young man.

@Nctdn have you looked at what Durham actually accepted in the past fir this course ?
Because asking for & taking with are often very different.
Also it's been proven that asking for higher grades bizarrely makes courses rather more attractive.
Re. The student loan we need to do ours still as DH has been sitting on it for weeks. We always get the minimum, so how do we circumnavigate all the form filling in easily ?

@cantonet we knew DS would only get the minimum so you can just apply for the minimum and you don’t have to supply any info on salaries etc. Took five minutes to do (ish).

I'm saying that their typical offer according to the website is AAA*
The spreadsheet shows offers ranging from 2 to 4 A*

I am really not sure why DS's history teacher said that. There are two history classes and he may have felt his (lovely, small,all very bright) history class was marked down by the woman who teaches the other class. This sort of thing does happen which is, of course, why exam boards moderate,too.

DS is confused by who originally marked his essay. But he will probably just leave it be.

The essay in question was the one submitted to Cambridge - but that doesn't tell us much!

(Struggling to not get all text in bold when I mention star!!)
So basically they are asking for higher than their typical offer published on their website. It's the same for every person who has put their offer on that spreadsheet.

Yes - we have always done that with DS and did the same for DD this year. Both get confirmation within a few days, and we don't have to supply any info at all

@NCTDN the grades in the Durham TSR spreadsheet - at least the one I was stalking on DDs Bf’s behalf- are the ones that the applicant has been predicted or has in hand.
Its been a mixed bag for DDs ( Classics) friendship group: offers, rejections and still waiting…

@JustHereWithMyPopcorn Your post made me smile. DS's school had a unusual black tie event just last week. Apparently because they've not had any socials since the pandemic, they thought they'd put it on now to boost morale . Well did it just!

There were photos on the school website of the event, lots of them but I couldn't spot DS in any of them . He's been studying non stop since yr 11 and we have to tell him to STOP! i know this is the opposite of what some have but ds has OCD so we worry about his mental health all the time and any sign of overdoing something creates worry so I was really hoping he enjoyed himself.

Anyway, I asked him how the event went, 'Fine!' he said,...'I didn't see you in any of the photos..?" "Oh well" he replied,...... I was in the CENTRE of everything! Me , "I was BREAKDANCING! Anybody that was there DEFINITELY saw me.

grin]
I keep replaying the picture of ds breakdancing in his suit surrounded by the whole school.

(I'm having my first ever attack of covid so this was quite entertaining).

It looks as though my two might be having proms on consecutive nights (thankfully not the same night). The arrangements for both are still a bit vague though. DS’s year had a black tie dinner in September which he really enjoyed.

@shimy that’s fantastic! 😄 So lovely to see them getting to do these things, you need to see if anyone else has got some pictures!

I get some schools planning things after the exams but after all the mocks and uni stresses it genuinely is lovely to see them let their hair down before rolling into the big ones.

@JustHereWithMyPopcorn Agreed, it's good to see them gaining some sense of normality again. No teen parties nothing. Hope your ds enjoyed theirs as well? That reminds me again DS is 18 tomorrow by the way, can't believe he's 18 already.

@shimy I’ll find out when he gets home… 😂

Any birthday plans for your DS?

@JustHereWithMyPopcorn As its bang in the middle of exam revision he initially wanted to go for a meal with his mates mid week but family started calling to give a heads up they are all descending on us on Sunday to mark it, so i started planning something really nice, invited two of his friends he hasn't seen in ages round, DS1 coming from his workplacement town, got balloons, ordered a lovely cake etc and aunties bringing the food round. Then i tested positive for Covid on Wednesday .

At the moment, I'm not sure whether the family is still coming or not, DH hasn't been very coherent with this [skeptical] but if they do come, they'll do all the grind work and still make it fun for ds. Then hopefully, he'll be able to go out for a meal with his mates on top of that, the other mates i invited said they couldn't come as one their dad's birthday is on the same day and the other one revising for an imminent exam.

Is yours 18 yet?

@shimy oh no! What a shame can you host it in the garden? You can stay in the house and wave out the window?? Bloody Covid. My DS turned 18 in early March but had his party after mocks at the end of March - they were all in the garden with a marquee, heaters and chunky blankets plus fire pit outside for the braver folk! 😄 They had fun though.

Well done to @Nard75 Ds.

Ds handed in his coursework for business studies yesterday. The exam is done, so that's it for business now. So he's pleased.

I filled in the form and paid a deposit for the prom. but Ds said so far not enough dc's have said yes. So we don't know if there will be one.

I dropped Ds and his mates at a local brewery yesterday eve. they don't usually go drinking. Ds hadn't eaten anything and didn't eat anything as he didn't like the look of the food on offer. He drank 3 pints of strong beer and was very happy and giggly when they arrived home. It was quite amusing. His friends are around 6' tall and 2 of them are quite big built too, Ds is 5'3 and 7 stone. So I don't think he can take as much alcohol 🤣 They ordered pizza, Ds soon calmed down. I hope he doesn't get ill at university trying to keep up with the other drinkers.

Happy birthday to your DS for tomorrow Shimy, and hope you aren’t feeling too rough.