GCSE summer 2020 thread 6 - Carry on Corona Cohort, Further adventures aboard the Corona Charabanc.

[FoolsAssassin]

The summer of discovidtent for the Corona Cohort trudging on towards results day.
Ofqual have done them a little video to explain their results:

Please feel free to join us to see what twists the next bit has in store for us all.

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Thread 1 year 10

Not Psychology by any chance Silverhill?

@FoolsAssassin
No, she is finding the Psychology textbook quite interesting. It's Sociology that she is having doubts about.

That’s good she likes it, it’s often the one that isn’t what people expect when they start. Hope she can find alternative to Sociology, agree much better now.

That's worth finding out now @Silverhill. Dd is doing Psychology and I hope she likes it.

Does your daughter have any possible alternatives to Sociology?

@Oblomov20 re car insurance a friend recommended those ones which let you buy a stand alone month in their own name which lets them use a car without affecting the no claims of the other if anything happens. However, I discovered that Direct Line would add DS1 on for £2/day on the policy we have with them. I think we can add 7 periods of an extra person added on. Last time I added him for a few days it was free! So may be worth checking with your insurer.

FoolsAssassin it was Dominic Cummings that was behind changing the GCSEs - Gove apparently said Cummings was his ‘daemon’ and gave him the push to do more.

Ds has this week been sent a list of tasks by his future college to be completed and uploaded by mid August. He has sort of made a start, but is procrastinating in favour of programming his keyboard sounds.

Thank you Monkey for that tip. I will definitely talk to Dh about that as an option. I actually hadn't heard of that idea.

@comefromaway dd has transition work for all three of her sixth form options. The thought of having to do all three because she's so indecisive has forced her to make a decision on where she's going!

Now that she only has the one lot of work to do, she says there's no urgency and it can be left till August! It's not like she has anything else to do....

The end of the exams made DS a bit flat. Not to a worrying level, but he said that whilst he "wasn't doing exams" he could enjoy the freedom, but now that he wouldn't be doing exams anyway he was conscious of missing out on better times. It is difficult to persuade him that he should now be doing the transition work.

Like others, both my DSs and DS1's GF getting up early afternoon, going to bed around 2am. Working out and gaming and not a lot else although both have tidied their rooms (DS2 for the first time in about 3 years) and DS1 even hoovered his!

The most constructive thing we have started is a cooking rota and everybody is doing 1 day a week, mainly for DS1 to lean to cook before going to university. DS2 started with scrambled eggs on toast or pancakes, but can now cook fish, macaroni cheese, veggie lasagne.

Just had an email from school with a link to a video saying goodbye to year 11 from the senior management team. Today would have been the leavers assembly and prom. Made me feel a bit emotional watching it with the teachers all in their zoom windows.

DS is at his dads house but will be asleep I should think...

Miranda - I would feel emotional too - but DD hasn't had any information regarding leaving assembly etc. Just received an email about results days, basically DD will receive an email at 8.00am. Then from 8.30-11.30 a member of the 6th form team will contact her to discuss her results and next steps. Other support will be available.
So definitely not going into school on the day sadly.
DD will HATE being contacted, it's one thing seeing teachers face to face but she won't want a phone call. Also means that she could have approx. 30mins to finally decide if she wants to stay at her school or take up another offer. I am sure if she decides to leave she will want me to tell her school...

@Monkey2001 - love the idea of the cooking rota. Despite meaning to teach DD how to cook, I've never actually done it. She has only ever baked flapjacks and traybacks without help. Got plenty of time to try I guess :-)

Just realised that as the email I received today also mentions that they want the girls to come into school next week (1 form at a time) and return all text book and resources, then they aren't expecting any to want to do retakes (1st take) in the Autumn, although maybe they assume you will ask to keep the books if you're thinking about it.

@Heifer I think it is clear that very few DC will bother to sit the autumn exams. There could be done awkward conversations where DC tells teacher they want to keep books in case they don't get the grade they want when the teacher may know the grade, at least for the ones in the top end of each ranking.

I thoroughly recommend family cooking rota. We plan it on Sunday night, everyone chooses a day and tells me what they want to cook so I can do the shopping. We have recently gone veggie/pescatarian Monday to Friday and they are definitely more willing to be positive about new things if I haven't cooked them!

Zanda I lived through the Gove days which were bloody stressful as they kept changing things . It’s only recently I knew Cummimgs behind it all.

That’s nice Miranda, the Head did one on her own last week on last day of exams. She stood in hall as she would have done but all on her own. It was sad.

DS is going to be cooking , like the idea of a planning night.

We have been told nothing about results day at all - quite a few stay on to the sixth form there but an amount go either to the local college or to other sixth forms so would be quite nice to know what’s happening.

I’ve taken the day off although not really sure why - just feels like the right thing to do I think

I'm planning on advising Ds1 to NOT sit exams again, in the Autumn.

Seriously? What are thrust chances of getting a better grade? Slim-to-none, me predicts!!

Said child won't have studied the subject since March, so by October, not studied it for 7 months.

And should be concentrating on their A'levels.

Say they got a 7. You honestly think they are gonna IMPROVE and get an 8 in the Autumn? No chance!

Rejoining the thread, after falling off it recently, thanks to lockdown (who knew that all of us being at home would take up more time, not less?!)

DD is just about it finish the bridging course her new school involved her in. I think she's enjoyed it, and it's certainly been hands on and well organised, and given her a chance to meet her new teachers and class mates.

Her current school hasn't mentioned anything about grade rankings, results day, hoodies, year books, no acknowledgment of year 11 now officially being leavers, no misty-eyed videos of them throughout the years...nothing. It kind of makes the situation even worse than it is, as if this is the year time forgot. 😩

She's met up with her BF a couple of times, and her friendship group talk all the time, run quizzes for each other etc, so she's ok. We had a chat about results last night and agreed that resits are not really an option and she may just have to accept slightly different grades than she hoped for in some subjects. Her new school hasn't said anything about lowering requirements for entry; she has to contact them on results day to let them know what she got.

DD on zoom assembly right now. Talk from Head, New Head of Sixth Form and then subject talks about A levels.

This is her last day...all very depressing. I think it will get harder as the summer progresses and just how much they missed hits home. The 'emergency' aspect kept everyone going think.

Do you have any time off @wheresthebeach coming up ? I'm think a staycation and planning that may keep DD busy. No-one went for my idea of a local cottage break - luckily nice sandy beach four miles away.

it's a conundrum really because they've already been doing extra work, bridging work , self directed work etc. Not really fair to make them keep on doing it for the next 2.5 months.

Painting fences ?

Hi @OrangeCinnamon - We're off to Cornwall for a week in early July. The cottage owners have been in touch saying they are confident they can open so fingers crossed on that front.
DD can do her sport now, so even tho' all comps cancelled at least she's out and about.
It may be me who's struggling more than her at the moment.

Ahh @wheresthebeach totally get you ..feels like groundhog day atm. Weather doesnt help.

@Silverhill what exam board for sociology ? Might be interested in buying off you if you like?

Of course if you have someone local to pass on to am sure that easier with Covid about but happy to pay price & postage if right board

Email from school about Leavers Hoodies - am assuming DS will want one

No info here as too results day, hoodies or any celebrations. Just that they hope to get year 11 back together “at some point”

No bridging work either, just a half an hour “lesson” once a week for a couple of subjects

DD is attending a virtual summer school run by Barts this week.

It is only now I see her exciting and buzzing about it that I have clocked that she hasn't been herself recently. She and her friends are planning a week's camping in August - don't know whether to encourage or squelch their hopes...