Parents of Year 11DC support thread. The final term.

[OhYouBadBadKitten]

Eep.

There's nothing that could induce DS to stay - he wants to study music, they don't offer music A level, end of discussion. He's keen to move now, he started off regarding it as a necessary evil but now he's looking forward to going somewhere bigger. I think the new buildings/new staff/new classmates will be good for him, it will certainly make university less of a shock than it might otherwise be.

Shocks - DH had one this afternoon. He had an email from school saying that childname's revision sessions started next week, childname's iGCSE english paper was on Tuesday, please support childname in their revision. I had to reassure him that DS was taking AQA and still had two weeks to his first exam. I'm not sure whether he'll be getting random reminders for the next six weeks or whether school has just got off to a bad start.

That's our take on it knitting. DD is at a small independent - there are only 28 girls in her year. There are 2,500 at the sixth form college (that's bigger than my uni was). At least she will still have the comfort and security of home whilst dipping her toe in the water of a bigger establishment, rather than staying small and university being the most almighty shock.

exit we are similar. Dd in tiny independent and leaving for large comprehensive 6th form. Also nothing from the head about her going she's really looking forward to it though. None of her friends are going but she doesn't seem to mind.

My DD is also very keen to move from her (excellent reputation) comp to a grammar sixth form. I just feel like she's outgrown the school really and wants to spread her wings. Plus, her school will be opening its sixth form for the first time in September and she doesn't want to be "a hamster" - I think she means guinea pig

Hi exit my DGD is at an indep all girls school - very small - 400 girls altogether. She's been there since year 7 and she's now year 11. The plan was always that she would leave after Yr 11 and hopefully go to the 6th form college which happens to be near her school. It's in an affluent area and they have good results..........BUT DGD wants to stay on into the 6th form and her parents have agreed - reluctantly as far as my son is concerned, partly because of the fees but so that she can mix with "ordinary" kids (most girls at her present school come from very wealthy families) so she's staying which I think is a mistake but she doesn't want to leave her friends. Sacrifices have been made to keep her there as we're not a wealthy family. The school was offering scholarships, and 15 applied (they had to do a written paper) and 5 got through (she was one of them) and there was an interview with the head and 6th form teacher. 2 got through (DGD was one of them) and the scholarship was10% of the fees! Unbelievable.

10% won't go far!

at hamster.

Oh what a shame. I went to a sixth form college for A levels - one of the best things I ever did in terms of broadening my horizons and preparing me for uni

Dd is at a small independent girls school - 60 in her year. She's transferring to a large comp sixth form with 450 students. She is the only one going from her school. She went for a taster session and said that everyone knew someone and were in large excited groups so she just stood on her own. I think she's feeling quite down. She's also non-gender typical and thinks she may be trans and bi so she dresses like a boy and has short hair. She's now thinking she may present herself as female to fit in but is feeling miserable. I have emphasised she can stay at her own school where she and others are comfortable with her quirks but she says she doesn't believe in single sex education.

Sounds like your DD is at a difficult point right now sillydog. I can see why she might be happier in a mixed sex environment though.I think people do settle into new friendship groups quite quickly at sixth form, many are ready for a change.

I went to a sixth form college myself and loved the change. DS is similarly enthusiastic about leaving his school (which doesn't offer computer science anyway) DSD, though, considered the sixth form that DS will go to but instead has been persuaded by her current (fee paying) school to stay there, even though that means compromising on the subjects she'd really like to do. I do think the sixth form would be a better halfway house to uni, and she'll have a bit of a shock when she finally mixes with kids from different backgrounds, but right now she just doesn't have the confidence to make that leap. She only went into her current school in Y9 and still pines for her cozy prep school .

at hamster too!

Mysillydog - I think the best thing about going to a large 6th form is you can find others similar to you, even if you are quite 'niche' (wasn't sure how to put that!) She sounds courageous striking out for the unknown - I reckon she will flourish if she chooses to be herself.

dd is at a large comp - her choices were to stay there, to go on to the big 6th form college, or choose somewhere further afield. She has gone for further afield to somewhere that will really suit her. School were initially a bit but it was quite a left field choice - theyve stopped quizzing her about it now.

It's interesting all this talk about 6th form. DS is adamant he wants to stay at the current one, he's had his offer and his 'study block'. It would appear he and his friends that all wish to do FM would have enough numbers to all make up a class. A and B make up Physics and Maths, C is his free period and D is Systems and Control. Or something.

Hope you are all ok.

DD (Y10) has her target grades now, it now is dawning on me that I will go through this again next year. In addition, DS will do AS level Maths and FM (poss physics as not sure that's linear yet), then the following year he will do A Levels, then the following year she will. I have years of exams ahead of me!!!!

That's my worry really - that it will be a massive jump from the tiny ind school to uni. She won't have a problem with not mixing with middle class girls as she does now because she has both feet on the ground and though she's an only child (not by choice) she's been brought up with her 3 boy cousins who live next door but one, particularly the youngest who is just 6 months younger than her.

I don't think she'll have trouble making friends though that may take a while. When she went to her current school, most of them knew each other as they'd been in the lower school together (12 in the class) but she bided her time and made friends ok. I suppose the main worry for me is how she will cope with going out and about with friends as that doesn't happen now. They all live miles away and do go out but are ferried there and back plus they are all off on holiday when school breaks up.

Oh I meant to ask will they do AS levels?

nananina Probably not. A levels are going over to being two year courses where the AS level won't count towards the final grade, so most schools aren't offering them. There's a few subjects that are still on the old system though, eg maths

I looked and our future sixth form website has a section on A level reform. The only students who look to be taking AS levels will be those on unreformed A levels (maths, further maths) and those who get an exception to everyone-will-take-three-Alevels and who start with four and drop one.

DS1 has his last day of lessons tomorrow. First exam on Wednesday (Biology ATP). I've seen him wandering around the house with the Biology iGCSE book. Hopefully he has opened it at some point.

Bluelilies and Shanghai do you mind me asking what yours are revising in preparation for Wednesday's ATP? DS1 has looked at how to test for nutrients, draw a specimen, label a diagram and draw a graph, but not sure what else to focus on.

I fear the answer is very little second. She won't tell you what she's doing, and won't ask for help. I'm hoping they're doing some revision in school because there f* all happening at home. This evening DSD has had a long bath, done some social messaging, tried out new make up and gone to bed, so that's not going to help her much. Encoraging her doesn't work though. She digs her heels in and does no work at all.

Second - ds has been revising those areas too :)
He has some past papers to complete over the weekend so will see if anything new comes up but they all tend to be quite similar.

Yikes! Can't believe it's starting already for so many of you! Good Luck to all dcs with exams coming up next week.
We've still got a little while, no igcses so first exam is 17th May. It feels like the weeks are hurtling along though so it'll be here before we know it!

DD has dance competitions this weekend but will be taking revision with her for between sections.

DD is at a huge comp, with 600 per year. She is staying there for 6th form as the only viable alternative was a similar sized 6th form an hours bus ride away - she currently has a 20 min walk so it was always going to be the easiest option. The 6th form at her school has a good reputation (better than the lower school anyway!) and she's happy to be staying there.

She seems to have just realised though that many of her friends won't be staying and she's feeling a bit blue this week - the end of an era.
She said tonight she's determined to try to enjoy the last couple of weeks rather than wishing them away, or letting them pass by in a whirlwind of stress.

Momentous times ahead for us all - for everyone!

DS also moving to schools as he doesn't want to be a 'hamster' either!
It will be a big change as he is taking the IB - (new school does not offer A levels). He has been at his current school since he was 8 so a change before university is a good idea.

Thank you Shanghai And Bluelillies

When the exams happen, we won't be able to discuss the content of individual exams because of the time zone differences involved. It's going to have to be very general until students around the globe have done that exam.

Nana I think it depends on the individual schools whether pupils taking the new reformed A levels will be taking AS exams. In this area there seems to be a divide with state sixth forms entering them and independent schools waiting until the end of the course.
Blue I have heard that entries for reformed AS exams are higher than expected this year.
Need Physics (and Chemistry and Biology) are all now linear so our Y11s won't be the first cohort to take these subjects.
dd is now on a count down to the exams with a 2 week timetable, the last lesson for some subjects will be next week.

I'm pretty sure I won't be discussing the detail of exams. I can predict that there will be questions on "stuff", "the usual" and "same old, same old". That is more or less the feedback I get on all tests, all subjects.

I agree knitting all I usually get is that it was either "hard" or "OK" rather than anything too specific.
I know that other forums such as the Student Room does have guidelines about what can be posted about exams and what isn't allowed.

Thanks Cats. With DD considering her A Level choices and telling me things at the same time as DS, I can't quite keep track of which subjects are still linear or not, aside from Maths, from when

I know my DN, who is also in Y11 but at a different school IS taking AS Levels next year, I don't think it's a clear cut as it might seem.

I get 'stuff' a lot too knitting. If I ask what kind of stuff, I get 'stuffy stuff'

Snowing here, I have got the heating on and put 400 rugs on the pony..