Corona Cohort’s Year 12 adventures

[FoolsAssassin]

We’ve made it into year 12 and rapidly approaching the end of the first half term .

Lots of challenges we could never imagined as we started the year but we’re all keeping on keeping on and this thread is for anyone who would like to jump on board to share the rather unusual journey this is turning out to be.

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Yes, sounds v different. Our manager told the boys he thought covid was 'all a fuss over nothing'

Our sports are swimming, football and hockey. I am actually confident about all of them, they have all been really diligent with the Covid procedures, signing in and out, hand sanitising, distancing for drop off etc. But DD only swims, so one bubble apart from school. DS plays for two football teams (training only, they are disability teams) hockey (training and matches) and is an Explorer so that is 5 lots of mixing as well as school every week and he feels its too many. He's probably right.

@ExpensivelyDecorated I can see why he is concerned - that is a lot of bubbles. DD only has hockey these days so can't wait

@Piggywaspushed

Yes, sounds v different. Our manager told the boys he thought covid was 'all a fuss over nothing'

Wow! There is a bit of macho culture going on where men (in particular) behave in a Trump-ish way. Sorry your DS is a victim of this.

Rugby here seems a bit too relaxed too - they are not following their own rules. I take comfort in the number of experts who say that spread is much less prevalent outdoors.

I was at one of DS's hockey matches a few weeks ago when the ball came rolling off the pitch, one of the other mums picked it up with a bare hand to roll back and got yelled at by the referee and the game was stopped while someone sanitised the ball.

@sandybayley I hate to tell you but there is a case in your DD's year. I got a call this morning to say my DS is a close contact of a positive case in lower sixth and he's come home and can't go back for two weeks. It is a bit strange as apparently the person who is positive had no symptoms and got the positive result this morning. I'm not sure why they had the test without symptoms or why having had the test they were in school yesterday. Maybe part of a ONS (or similar) study? DS joined lessons by teams when he got home and said quite a few of his class mates are now having to isolate.

I hope all the teachers are ok - luckily the school has the space and resources to make it as covid secure as is possible and I know that vulnerable pupils and staff members are being allowed to work / study from home. DS's one teacher (who unfortunately also teaches the positive case identified today) is very nervous and asks them to wear masks during lessons which they are happy to do.

Hope sandybayley junior avoids having to miss school.

I think some are having tests if the rest of the family are positive or have symptoms. The bods at the test centres actually frequently over this (that's how the football team case was uncovered) .Child still shouldn't have been in before though!

Piggy Your macho sport manager would totally undermine my confidence too.

@Horace123 - thanks for the update. A bit weird to not get an email from school as they're normally all over it. I will interrogate DD when she returns home..,

Yeah sprouts: not to put too fine a point on it, he's a boorish twat!

DS now has Spanish test back - a B in one, and a C in the other, apparently top of the class. So A+ in Econ, B+ in sociology ( I read it; it's an A!) and B ish in Spanish. History will be interesting!

I’m an avid lurker here but just wondering how your dc are finding history? Dd was able to get 8/9s throughout GCSEs albeit by working hard but has found the jump to A level tough. She has just got a D+ for an essay and there have been tears! The feedback says she struggled with structure as well as other bits and bobs eg ‘academic tone’. She’s very demoralised and I was just wondering if she’s alone in her struggle. Unfortunately for her, she’s in a very bright class so feels particularly poor by comparison. Thanks

I've had tests for the Covid tracking app (all negative) and there has been no need to self-isolate while waiting for the results if you didn't have Covid symptoms.

Several more cases at DS's school today. He's ok but someone in his form has to SI.

Same, sort of. A Level teachers seem very demanding. If I were to be a bit critical, they seem to demand excellent academic essay technique without really modelling or teaching how to, unlike DS's Sociology teacher, or the English/Film. Sociology teachers I know.

There is a lot of content and it seems a bit dry and a bit unvaried at the mo.

History is one of those subjects that benefits form inspiring teachers, I find.

I agree @Piggywaspushed about their demand for academic excellence without really giving them the tools. I’m hoping things will improve as she likes the teachers but has declared A levels a ‘humbling experience’!! She’s always been dead set on a history degree and is now having a reluctant rethink but I’ve tried to say it’s too early to make any decisions. I think we’ll write off any work tonight and watch the Bake Off final.

@cariadambyth ds is enjoying history. He says it has the most work though. He has a lot of work to do at home...mostly history. He's got mock exams this week. So I'll see how he does. He was given 7 at gcse he says he'd have had a better grade had he actually sat the exam. No chance for him to prove that one though.

I forgot to add ds wants to do a history degree. But possibly combined with something like philosophy. But it's too early to decide yet.

Mine is doing history too and loving it, but he is with the same teacher he had for GCSE and who is one of the best teachers to have ever taught my DCs. Also he is a middle rather than high achieving student and doesn't intend to take it at degree level, so there isn't so much pressure.

@icanbewhatiwant I hope his mocks go well. I’m glad he’s enjoying the course. I think dd is finding one of the topics (War of the Roses) rather dry. Onwards and upwards, hopefully!

I have a theory that history is more male oriented with dates, wars etc whereas politics as more social theory is more female oriented. DD finding politics better than history for that reason.

@whatsnext2 that’s such an interesting theory and is certainly true in dd’s case too. What’s your dd’s third out of curiosity? It’s RS here.

@cariadambyth English lit and economics. One to be dropped....

Economics has already been dropped here!

Ds has made flash cards for history and wanted me to test him on dates etc. I have I know idea how he remembers it all. I can't even remember my 3 boys dates of birth! As I've got older my memory seems to be awful.

Our school must buck the trend. History more girl dominated and the big politics class more boy dominated. There is a very good female history teacher, the rest of the teachers are male. I wonder if that makes a difference?

DD has officially dropped psychology now, and tells me others are doing the same. Even though she didn’t tell her teacher why, the teacher responded to the news by saying, “ Well, I hope your other subjects turn out to be what you expected!”, so maybe that’s a very telling comment.
DD was actually enjoying the content but found trying to remember the names of the people involved hard, and having met her teacher at parents evening, I don’t think she “got” DD’s SEN difficulties (ironically).