Post GCSE’s 2022 - Year 12 2022/23 General support thread

[Rollergirl11]

This is a thread for supporting all young people post GCSEs 2022, regardless of their educational setting.
Our DC’s may continue down various pathways ( employment, apprenticeships, higher ed)
Everyone is welcome!

Hello @Rollergirl11 !

We're not getting off to an entirely great start with DD's sixth form 'journey'. As I commented on the other thread, she left doing her HW (of which there's a considerable amount) until she knew she was going to that particular school (so last Friday). And it's dominating her last few days off. And it will mean she'll start feeling annoyed at school and herself likely.

Hey @LouisCatorze , DD is not off to an amazing start either. She’s been laid up in bed ill all of this week after she got back from Reading festival on Monday. This is what happens if you don’t get ANY sleep 3 nights on the trot!

She has also shown zero interest or given me any indication as to what she wants ordering for her “business wear” sixth form dress code and has just sneered at the stuff I bought her in the absence of any guidance from her. So I’ve just done a massive flounce and said I’m done with it and she can sort it herself. She starts next Wednesday so here’s hoping she manages to get stuff delivered in time. 🤦‍♀️

Just starting homework here as well and not well.

We're still waiting to hear from first choice college as to whether DS has a place with the subjects he wants. He's refusing to do the summer work until he knows he's got the place (and school starts next week). The deadline has passed so he's had to accept a place at college 2 (which will offer the subjects he wants) just in case (as their deadline for registration was 13:00 today). I was hoping we'd have this all sorted by the weekend as next week is now looking massively stressful

Hello @Rollergirl11 and all on the new thread. If I was your DD, I'd have to ask for the review, I wouldn't be able to resist.

My DS is still plodding on with his bridging work and also waiting to hear from school on whether they will let him swap further mathematics for biology as his fourth A-level. As he starts back on Monday, I'm guessing he will find out then.

He started his new job on Tuesday and has done a couple of shifts since then which he has enjoyed, although he's already moaning as they want him in on Sunday afternoon and he had plans. Obviously he's going to work as it wouldn't look great otherwise.

Hope your DS hears soon @TwinkleToesStrikesAgain

Hello new thread 😊

DD currently up in Edinburgh seeing her dad - she has done most of the transition work although I’m sure has taken some with her.

She goes back on Tuesday but can wear anything which does help.

She’ll be back either Saturday or Sunday.

As DS has just left school it feels very odd that she’ll be my only child at school. Plus no school uninformed for the first time in a long time!

@Rollergirl11 you have my deepest sympathy (and empathy) on the sixth form attire front. I can't believe that DD actually agreed to a stripy (bargain £15) M&S blouse and a men's range jumper (good to wear under a jacket). She also moaned that she'd had to buy the stuff herself (i.e. source it, I paid), knowing full well that anything I suggest 'off the cuff' will be met very negatively.

Well done for flouncing. It's good to play them at their own game sometimes .

Hope she feels better soon though.

Hi all,

DS also still has some summer work to do but doesn't start actual lessons until the 12th so he has next week. Wed or Thurs he has an induction day to get his timetable and a tour etc. He had a phone call from one of the maths teachers to welcome him to the college a couple of days ago which I thought was a nice touch. He mentioned STEP preparation so I'm wondering if he remembered me from the open evening when I asked about it!

DS knows a few people from his school going but they are doing different subjects so he probably won't see them much (it's a big college - more than 1000 in each year!) No uniform or even smart clothes required so I've bought him some more casual stuff but he doesn't care about clothes.

Hope you hear soon @TwinkleToesStrikesAgain must be a bit stressful still waiting to hear. Fingers crossed for the change of subject @zighead Hope those feeling a bit under the weather recover quickly.

@Rollergirl11 I feel your pain. We are trying to find the exact shade of dark taupe jacket to go with a pair of trousers I bought in the sale at the beginning of the summer because they are comfortable and she wants to wear them for school. I am losing the will to live as well as having so many parcels to send back.

DD has chosen 2 art/portfolio subjects and has put a lot of work into one subject and so far not started the other 2 😬
She goes back on Monday but no actual lessons til wednesday

Thanks for the thread @Rollergirl11

Another DS still working through the bridging work, on the last subject which is History. Expressed surprise at the amount...et, you have had over 9 weeks to do it...

We have at least managed to sort the last of the business wear today

Of DS's group of friends who hoped to stay in the current school, only one boy didn't get through. Feel sorry for him, although he is going to a local college so has a way forward, but tough to be the only one of the group.

Have a great weekend!

Hi all!

Thanks for the new thread @Rollergirl11

DDs went for their enrolment on Wednesday and have a half day induction day next Wednesday. They've been put in the same tutor group as they're both studying French, but the DD1 had Biology & Chemistry and DD2 has English Literature & History.

Both have a small amount of bridging work to do but not sure if DD1 has done much. I can't ask as I get told to butt out.

Good news is they don't start full time until 12th. Luckily they don't have to wear any form of uniform.

I guess it'll probably all come good in the end (hopefully)

We're not off to a great start either, though it is entirely my fault! I'd completely forgotten that Year 7 and Year 12 start a day earlier than the rest of the school next week, but that the regular school buses don't start til the whole school begins. The school is providing transport for pupils from our area on day 1, but a reduced service and you had to book before the end of the Summer term. Unfortunately I am a complete idiot and forgot to do this, so instead of taking DS a couple of miles to get the bus, I will have to do a 40 odd mile round trip at both ends of the day. Grrrr.
Other than that, all is well. Uniform bought, except shoes, and bridging work is apparently done apart from a tiny bit left for maths.
It feels like so long since DS was at school, so getting back into the routine will be strange. He says it doesn't seem long enough to him though!

Thanks Rollergirl. Good luck to all starting, wherever they're going. Ds started two days ago and is very aggrieved already about doing further maths as he now only has a few free periods a week. I have a feeling he will drop it by the end of the year.

He's just told me about Biology bridging work - research piece up to 2000 words and he hasn't done it! I was cross with him as he's had practically 3 months - he's going to have to put his head down but is gaming as we speak.

We've had an email about uni open days. Anyone planning on attending this early?

Hope no one minds me joining - I did post on a older thread under different user name (think it might have been in Year 10!!) but got distracted off.

DD's dress code is sort of smart casual but has some unspecific vagaries we are not sure about. Although we are sure she will be pulled up on anything that does not meet it! So we have had similar fun to others on here trying to find stuff that both she and I think is acceptable. She starts on Monday - it's just a Y7 and Y12 day (she's staying on in school sixth form so not too hard a transition).

Someone asked about open days - we did go to a local one a couple of weeks back, mainly because DD has no real concept of what a university is so we wanted her to find out! We actually found it very interesting and glad we did it - partly because it was more relaxed as literally no pressure and have planned to go to some more - though in the short term we might be basing our open day visiting as much around places we'd like to visit as where DD might like to study :) We also went to some talks - personal statement and student finance stand out, which I think were good for DD to hear early.

My DS is booked to go to a few university open days over the next few months but think most will be tricky now he has a weekend job. Hopefully can do early morning on a few that are within a 1.5 hour drive as I do know that some people manage two universities in one day. That must be very tiring!

Gosh, we haven't even thought about University open days yet! My elder son starts University in a few weeks so I need to get that all sorted before I can think about anything else. Elder DS only had online open days (he's had a gap year), so we've no experience of "normal" open days. Younger DS does already have some ideas of places he's interested in, all of course at opposite ends of the country, so I guess I should encourage him to look into some open days fairly soon.

Hello all. Nice shiny new thread.
Wow are people really doing uni open days already? Not sure I can begin to think about that yet.

We did a couple of open days before selecting A’levels, ds had an idea of what he wanted to do so we went to some open days and it fuelled his desire for the subject even more.. I think it helped push him to study for his GCSE’s and he was certain that he was picking the right A-levels for the Uni course he wanted.

however with ds1 he didn’t even want to do an open day when he applied to Uni.. he had decided where he was going and that was that. Thankgoodness he got in!

Hi all. DS is enrolled in college to do a BTEC. He can’t wait. Job ticking along. Got another month in probation so unsure what happens at the end. Not much training been given so if he’s let go on the basis not completed he’s going to say something. He’s getting 8 hours a week which is perfect with college starting. Bus is a nightmare. So expensive and no college passes to buy but at least he will be independent and not relying on me for lifts (unless I’m feeling generous on my WFH days!)

DS started at sixth form yesterday. Inductions, photos, timetable collection and meeting form tutor. Then off to lessons, only 8 in maths group (as there’s more than one group) and they did a maths test which DS said was fun! Physics only 5 in the lesson and the teacher was also his form tutor. Other subjects start Monday. Seems happy to be back learning again.

6th form starts next Friday here. He really needs to be back in college now - funpacked summer but he needs some structure again.

Did anyone else have to take the lanyard photo at home? We had to email it in as apparently it takes too long to take all the photos in college. Took about half an hour and at least 40 attempts 😆

Yes we had to upload a photo for the lanyard. Wasn't as stressful as doing his passport photo earlier in the summer, that one took lots of attempts! I told him to smile this time! Glad he does have a passport now (it came back much quicker than I expected) as he needs to take it in for ID on his induction day, otherwise I would be trying to find his birth certificate.

I know what you mean about needing the structure, feels like he finished school ages and ages and ages ago. Think he's quite looking forward to getting started.

I think we share the same DD

My DD went shopping for clothes herself for Year 12 and got 1 jumper and a gilet

(I know I should have gone with her but DH is in hospital and even he said Chemo is more pleasant than clothes shopping with her!)

Help all. Haven’t posted for a while but have been following.
I am so glad that DS just carries in with h form, reading about all your travails - I can’t imagine trying to navigate that. So enjoyed @Rollergirl11 ’s flounce account and utterly recognise the situation. Either of my boys like to engage in the process of shopping - I find it deadly too and just wish that I, like them, had a personal shopper who curated ranges of options based on vague and muttered guidance and then out put up with being whinged at when they are slow to graciously agree to try stufff on.

DS’s school has girls for sixth form which I think is going to change things a lot. Only half a day in, so yet to see. Their uniform guidance is vague and the standard look seems to be giant black jumper or jacket, mid thigh skirt, bare legs, short socks and utterly enormous clumpy black shoes, and no make up. V amusing, and rather refreshingly purposeful.