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Welcome to Scotsnet - discuss all aspects of life in Scotland, including relocating, schools and local areas.

Original poster

any of your DCs starting S1 this august?

298 replies

strangerthongs · 16/02/2019 19:52

I thought I'd start our own thread seeing as there's threads for S5/6, exams, uni etc.

V nervous about DD starting S1. High school's a whole other ball game isn't it? I remember being badly bullied and feeling overwhelmed in the first few weeks.

Does anyone know what books they tend to read in English in S1 nowadays, and what they study in History in S1 - my two favourite subjects when I was at schools so I'm curious.

In my DD's high school, they will be choosing subjects midway through S1 which seems awfy early (it was S2 when I was at school).

I wonder what the most popular subjects are...there seems to be some really cool options nowadays although I would hope DD will choose subjects that she is likely to actually use/need in her future career and not because all her friends are doing it.

Anyone else have a DC starting high school?

OP posts:
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dementedpixie · 17/02/2019 12:08

Our school has a blazer from S1. There is a different tie from S4. Blazer about £35 I think. Lots of pockets so ds uses his as a pencil case!

dementedpixie · 17/02/2019 12:10

I bought 2 blazers for dd in S1 and didn't replace any until the start of S4 as she got taller and slimmer rather than growing out the way

Original poster
strangerthongs · 17/02/2019 12:32

not sure how to get to know their guidance teacher in advance as surely they aren't allocated until they start?

OP posts:
dementedpixie · 17/02/2019 12:41

Ours are put into 'houses' and each house has a guidance teacher. I think ours found out their houses at the 2 day visit they did before school starting

YouBumder · 17/02/2019 12:43

Ours was the same, demented. There was a meeting at the school the evening before the induction days and at that they got the details of the houses and the pastoral care teacher they’d have.

BrokenWing · 17/02/2019 13:37

ds in S3 has had the same guidance teacher since S1, I have never met her, I called her once last year for clarification when ds had a letter home (late after lunch by a couple of minutes once and got a stern warning letter from an overly enthusiastic new computer system) and that is it.

IME, (and ds's friends parents) you will be told who your child's guidance teacher is and they can go to them if they need them, they will also keep in touch with your child through their time in school. There is no need for parents to "get to know" them unless your child has specific concerns/issues (e.g. ongoing illness, behaviour problems, anxiety, bullying, problems with quantity of homework, serious incidents, etc etc that impacts their wellbeing or education. Or if your childs has subject options issues - i.e. has a passion for a specific career/higher education choice that needs certain subjects and they cant take due to column restrictions). You should encourage your child to approach their guidance teacher themselves if they need to find out something and only intervene if necessary.

prettybird · 17/02/2019 13:50

Glad to see I'm not the only one who was ignorant about what their child was studying Sturmundcalm GrinBlush

Ds had the same pastoral care teacher throughout who also seemed to be his guidance teacher.

Original poster
strangerthongs · 17/02/2019 14:17

The house system seems weird - what's the point of it and what decision making goes into the house selection?

In 'the olden days' as my DD calls it, we had registration classes for 1a, 1b, 1c etc

OP posts:
TinTinBanana · 17/02/2019 14:24

Is there a lot to carry in school bags? Should they have a very big bag?

dementedpixie · 17/02/2019 14:27

It helps split up the classes. Inter house competitions? For e.g there are 3 houses in our school. For each house there are 2 S1 classes so 1L1, 1L2, 1A1, 1A2, 1S1, 1S2. I don't know how they choose who is in which class

prettybird · 17/02/2019 14:43

Ds just had a standard rucksack from SportsDirect. It could be quite full on days he had rugby (needing boots and rugby kit) and swimmin (needing a towel). But apart from that, it wasn't ever too full or heavy. The only "book" that they tended to have was whatever book they were studying for English. All the other subjects tended to be work sheets, plus roughly a jotter per subject.

They might need a plastic container for Home Ec days so that they can bring home their efforts Hmm

YouBumder · 17/02/2019 15:11

My son has a locker, it’s £15 a year (I think you get £5 deposit back)

Original poster
strangerthongs · 17/02/2019 16:01

I thought the lockers were free...

OP posts:
dementedpixie · 17/02/2019 16:03

Our lockers are chargeable too but there aren't enough for everyone so neither of mine have one

dementedpixie · 17/02/2019 16:05

We don't provide containers for home economics but do pay £15 at the start of the year to cover ingredients/containers. Ds has an Adidas backpack and dd has a Kipling backpack that has lasted about 3 years

prettybird · 17/02/2019 16:12

I think lockers (availability and cost) depend on the school. Ds' old school both charged and didn't have enough for all pupils.

Iirc, the older years had first call on them - but by the time ds could have got one, he'd got used to carrying his stuff anyway.

TinTinBanana · 17/02/2019 16:15

Having a locker would be good. I can't imagine ds managing everything in his school bag. Hopefully he will surprise, he is only P6 just now.

weebarra · 17/02/2019 16:23

DS1 starts in August. I'm fairly terrified as he has ADHD and dyspraxia but I was a bit reassured at the open evening. The teachers seemed lovely. He will also get an enhanced transition and will meet pupils from the other feeder schools at P7 camp.
I'm a bit worried about him getting to school - we live 3 miles from school but the council have just said they will scrap school buses.

BrokenWing · 17/02/2019 16:37

Is there a lot to carry in school bags? Should they have a very big bag?

Ds has a normal sized rucksack, more important is it is waterproof or they'll be coming home with soggy jotters/worksheets.

Ds originally had an Adidas one until everything got soaked in the first week, he now has a Northface one which was more expensive but has lasted him 2 1/2 years so far and is still like new.

TinTinBanana · 17/02/2019 18:40

Thanks Broken I would not have thought of that. In fact I thought an Adidas bag would have kept the water out. I will definitely get ds a waterproof bag. I need to choose the bag carefully as it needs to be easy for ds to find things in it.

Weebarra does your ds manage his bag and belongings ok? My ds has a fine motor difficulty so struggles a bit with these things. What will you do if there are no school buses?

dementedpixie · 17/02/2019 18:44

Ds Adidas bag is ok as he uses plastic folders for his schoolwork

weebarra · 17/02/2019 19:00

TinTin - he has a child planning meeting next week so travel is something I need to raise. I also don't know if the school has lockers, but that would be useful.
He's not great with organisation so that's one of the things that worries me. It's not a huge school though.

prettybird · 17/02/2019 19:00

I think ds kept important stuff in a plastic bag in his rucksack because of course he couldn't possibly use the raincover Wink

The school encourages blazers but acknowledges that as a state school, they can't compel them. I think the head teacher's quote to the Parent Council was along the lines that their authority was essentially a big bluff, smoke and mirrors. Shock

TinTinBanana · 17/02/2019 19:11

Good luck with the planning meeting weebarra I hope it goes well. Organisation is something my ds will need a lot of help with.

I have often wondered about having to wear a blazer in winter. It is good to hear that they are not compulsory in most schools.

Groovee · 17/02/2019 19:15

We have to pay a £10 deposit for lockers that you get back when they leave.