Year 12 / 6th form support thread

[minesawine]

The term is about to start and I though it would be good to have a support group to help us on our 6th form journey.

May the year be drama-free and our DC's study hard and without complaint

DD had a wobbly start. Was always undecided about a level choices, and has now changed from history to maths. Partly influenced by timetable choices (she has the worst timetable in the year apparently...) but also by the teachers, and the fact she found the History lesson boring.

She was also freaked out by the workload - the teachers really terrified them all. I'm not sure how helpful this is - all are high performing over working girls, who need zero push to study, so this just stressed them all out.

And as new clever girls joined the sixth form, DD has realised she may not be top of the class any more. That aspect is, I think, an excellent lesson for her, that she may not be the best at everything, and that she does not need to be the best. An important life lesson for university and working life. We have always praised effort rather than grades (e.g. present for finishing GCSEs, nothing for the results) but she takes pleasure from academic success. We have tried to make her see sense yesterday. Hopefully this will teach her resilience as well. All part of growing up.

Fingers crossed for a better day today. Hopefully it has just been a shock to the system, and she can move on. DD2 had a much better start to school, so that's something!

Congratulations to your son, Bertrand, you must be proud. He seems to have his head in the right place (unlike my DD!)

That's an interesting point about scarring them, RG. The school ds is at is a selective boy's grammar with a mixed 6th. Dd was one of the second group of girls to go there a few years ago, and I remember talking to the head about how they were realizing that high achieving girls needed to be handled differently to high achieving boys. He said that the boys in general had coasted to their GCSE results but the girls had worked. So the school's traditional first day of year 12 "rocket up the arse" was completely inappropriate for and counter productive for girls...

Scaring, not scarring! A Freudian typo......

Dd1 had her induction morning yesterday. Has come out cheerful apart from she thought she would get her timetable and apparently it's done by hand (3000 students I think, so not convinced) and wasn't finished.

But she's got more stationery to get so is very happy. She likes getting stationery.

She starts fully next week.

I agree Bertrand. They have seen the girls doing their GCSEs, so surely they know that the rocket approach is the opposite of what is needed. One of the new sixth formers yesterday announced that she hated the school already. Great. Yesterday was the most upset I've seen my daughter in the 16 years of her existence. Sounds mad, and totally disproprtionate, but true. Oh well, hopefully it will improve.

My son (very selective private boys' school) is just delighted he no longer has to study all the subjects he didn't like. It's as if a great weight has lifted from him because whatever the next lesson is, it's one he enjoys. He was extremely indolent in the run up to his GCSEs - not the immediate Easter holiday onwards revision period, where he did get his head down to some extent, but the two years preceding it - so I wait to see whether he decides to engage fully now he's doing stuff he likes.

What I meant to say was he feels the opposite of pressure. I'm sorry that your daughter is feeling so stressed, Raskolnikov; I know some young people put a lot of pressure on themselves already and I remember that your daughter was one of the 'super revisers' on the GCSE thread.

Thanks Sunset. Yes a mad studier. She has already said she is going to work all weekend. We are nipping this in the bud and refusing to let her. She just cannot allow herself to get burnt out in the first week of a two year course! I spoke to someone at work (younger than me!) who said her first week of sixth form was similar, but it all calmed down. Fingers crossed!

Raskolnikov, it's another step up and I guess is going to be a shock. DD said her first music lesson was really hard. She was set some work for her first biology topic yesterday and was going to spend two hours last night working on it, and was glad of three free periods this morning but work needs handing in.

error, the six formers at DD's school all have their own rooms which long term DD will prefer as she has her own wash area and quiet place to study. From what I can gather it's the Year 12s in her house that don't speak - I've done the old parent thing of telling her to keep making conversations or at least asking questions. Luckily, she's met a day pupil who she's getting on with, they haven't got the same lessons or in the same house, but a start.

Ifonly4 - good to hear your DD is making friends. I think you said this is a scholarship to a new school, is there a particular strength or interest that the school does that appeals to your DD & she might make like-minded friends from that?

DD1 has made a friend as well, girl who has come in from another school. This school is her closest 6th form - she has a 90 minute bus journey each way! So I've said if the friendship develops in a positive way that if there is ever a weather or transport emergency, we can offer a bed for the night.

And DD's remarks came back - no change in History, but RE has gone up from a B to an A so she is very happy.

error, DD has a music scholarship. I'm hoping when she gets into choir, an ensemble and orchestra that'll help. Also, the Head of Year seemed to want ideas from her and she loved Folk group at her old school and wants another one formed, so maybe that'll help as well. It doesn't help she was very lucky at her old school with two friendship groups so always the offer of something going on.

pointy, that's an awful journey for your DD's new friend.

DS should be a 3 mile cycle, 40 minute bus journey, 20 minute walk. Yesterday though rhis all rook him 2 hours, as four buses went past full already. He was 20 minutes late on his first day. He is a bit worried about the three days he has to be in by 9...
All our 6th form providers are a similar journey. Eek.

ifonly it is. We're in the wilds of East Anglia and there is a real 6th form blackspot north of us. Roads are also very poor. Where we are, we have one 6th form in town - it's where DD is and it's very well regarded - and then there are 6th forms in Newmarket and Bury St Edmunds. North of us it's hopeless - the nearest secondary to this girl is a Free School and it has no 6th form, nor apparently any plans to have one.

Dd had her first day today.

Went well, she's made friends, came home buzzing.

I'm slightly worried as she'd enquired in the holidays about dropping RS for biology......but been told biology was full. Head of sixth form also emailed me saying he didn't think biology fitted with Her other choices of geography and product design and questioned if it would be a good choice if available as she doesn't want to do science as a degree or career.

Anyway she gets there today and has a place in biology. She's happy.

I'm concerned after the comments from school. She did dual science not triple. She got B in science, A in additional. But looking at her biology grades she got As in all biology papers.

She did enjoy biology at gcse but never spoke of it as an option until she got her results. Head of sixth form said there's a big jump from gcse biology to A level. I'm worried she made a mistake. She got an A in RS at gcse. She's been put off A level RS at the thought of thirty mark questions!

DD has just completed her first week in 6th form. She has stayed on in her school (they have their 6th form in a separate building) and seems happy enough so far. I think she appreciates being in a familiar environment whilst enjoying the extra freedoms and privileges the 6th formers get. Hope it lasts

Ds has had a full week back already. He's exhausted but happy enough. Working through break, lunch (after going to eat - they have a long lunch) and all study periods, so he's had no work to bring home - yet.

Good start!

I feel quite sad hearing about some of these long journeys to/from school, when DS was in sixth form we had one of his friends stay over for about a week during bad weather.

It's so tricky if the journey is disrupted by weather or travel issues.

I think if you live in a city or arge urban area, it can be hard to appreciate how limited the options can be in rural areas.

I think we're quite rural, but even so the journey to local schools was an hour max.

Ds still hasn't started, but he found his timetable on the college student portal this afternoon - on Mondays he doesn't have to be in until 2.45 pm for just the last period! Does mean nearly all his study/frees are used up on Monday, lol, but he's pretty happy

He's also been automatically put into a STEP maths class, which is interesting.

Rask hopefully your daughter will find maths more interesting than history (I'd certainly find it easier anyway!).

Atia assuming that he's at F like my dd, she's been put automatically into a STEM chemistry class and STEP maths.

One of her friends (who has an older brother) says that's usual, and you attend the first, and decide whether you want to continue.
She thinks she'll do STEP maths (she's doing further so may well be helpful) but probably not continue with STEM chemistry, especially as it's over the enrichment which she wanted to do. Apparently some of the STEM chemistry may well be maths for those chemists not doing A level, so she shouldn't need it anyway.

Monday seems to be a light timetable for a few of them, she's got the first and last lesson off, and her friend has the first lesson as tutor period (and apparently they only happen about half the time too) and second lesson off.

One day she's only got maths so she's happy about that too.

She's going in for 9am on Monday anyway for this week, and then may go in late from the week after.

Hello again all👋
In typical style Ds has managed to miss his train, & a lesson, on the first week
Really not sure a levels will be the right fit for him but time will tell.
Glad to see most have settled in well & that so many had fantastic gcse results.

After a good start this week DS went out last night and came back covered in love-bites

How is that going to go down on Monday - any tips on how to get rid of them quickly?!

Chocrock! Sorry - not helpful! They might have faded but Monday. And concealer will help.

DS has survived so far. No issues with what he wore. He fell asleep on th sofa when he cam home. They had a team building day off site yesterday which wasn't too bad apparently. They do school on Saturdays so he is in today. Football training this afternoon.

They don't get their timetable until Monday. He said they all want to just start getting on with stuff now.

readyforsunshine you are not alone.

My DS has also managed to miss a lesson in his first week due to transport issues.

Leave early I told him, just in case there's an issue I told him. Did he listen?

Oh well, onwards and upwards!