Corona Cohort - Year 12 - 2021 - NO 'Self isolating' please.

[Oblomov20]

We just want our kids in school. Please. If at all possible.

And driving lessons. And good Mental Health. And happiness.

In-and-amongst all this Covid nightmare and lockdown debacle.

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I wish they'd vaccinate the 16+ students and school staff too, I really have my doubts about the reliability of the lateral flow tests and the logistics of keeping it all going, volunteers etc. I think that once again Boris has backed himself into a corner and can't close schools without losing face. DS loves his school and struggles to maintain focus at home but is very nervous. We have talked his day through to see if there are any particular issues (lunchtime is the key stress time) and how he can work round that. It's not just that though, he is sick of teenagers and students being blamed for the spread and that is likely to happen more too.

I have 2 opposites. DS(17) wants to go into school to see his friends. DD(13) would rather lie in bed all day at home, happy to text/game with friends virtually and never go to school again ever! Will endure online lessons like she endures most of her RL lessons! 😠 Mardy teen! God save me!

I have said on here before (I think...or it might have been the university thread) that I wish they'd vaccinate secondary school age children (obv. university age too) plus teachers and everyone in schools. Get the education system moving again. I think it is so important. Healthcare providers should come first then education and people really needed to keep us going. I only know a few who have been vaccinated. They are all elderly and have been isolating and will continue to isolate. I know it's needed for the elderly as they are the ones getting really poorly, but some of them are happy to continue isolating. So surely getting some of the younger generation and the people actually spreading the virus vaccinated is more important. But I probably wouldn't say that if I were in my 80's and worrying about catching it. It's difficult really isn't it? I think the vaccination will take a long time to make any difference. Boris was on this morn and is obviously considering a tier 5.

I did get ds2 out for a drive this morn. I wanted to get him driving the school route on a Sunday while it's quiet. It is mostly a sort of country lane, but double sided so can pass other cars. Though I think the last part which involves crossing a fast road I will drive myself. I used to be terrified going across there with ds1 learning. I don't have good nerves. I think it will be Easter before we get out of the restrictions and he can have lessons again. There are a few in his year that have passed tests already. How have they done it so quickly considering we had a 4 week lockdown in November? I know of a few of ds1's friends (age 19) that have been learning ages and keep getting tests cancelled. It must be so frustrating.

Totally agree with the idea of vaccination of secondary and above, along with all school staff once healthcare staff are vaccinated.

DS didn’t sleep through until he was 3.5. Even now the thought of how little sleep we all got makes me shudder. Good practice for early morning swims. Now he is always up by 7.30 and goes off to bed at 9. We are v v lucky I think!! He stayed up for NYE first time ever this year. Nearly killed him he was so tired! He has a Surface and PC in his room but doesn’t go on them on an evening. He will sit on his phone or watch TV with us on an evening but never takes his phone upstairs on a night. He would be on technology all day given the choice but doesn’t bother on an evening.

Just sorted car insurance- birthday next week. He is v v excited...

Happy New Year to you all.
Let's hope we don't have too many 'dramas' in 2021.

Both of my ds's start back Wednesday 6th online. Until 18th. When they are supposed to be going back into school. We'll see it that actually happens!

@estherfrewen are you in a tier where your ds can have lessons? All cancelled here. Your ds sounds great. Mine thinks I'm a complete weirdo if I suggest coming out of his room. I can hear him up there now...shouting very loudly to a friend while on his headset. They will be playing fifa. The problem is they all seem to start up early evening then continue into the early hours of the morning. I've heard him at 2am talking. Though to be fair...not on a school night. He wouldn't sit with us and watch tv. Ds1 will sit with us. Ds3 will sometimes too.

@icanbewhatiwant - yes still lessons here for the moment... mine is usually screaming on CSGO but he and his friend are also back playing Minecraft. Friend is 19! TV viewing at the moment is working our way through the entire Modern Family and House of Cards on Netflix.

Tier 4 driving lessons hiatus here after only 2 lessons! Theory test booked for March. At this rate, the longer there are restrictions, the higher the likelihood we might cave and basically buy a suitable small sized engine car to teach DS to drive ourselves. Feeling completely fed up today.

Just been talking to DD - on line 'learning' seems to consist of posting a presentation and then leaving the girls to get on with it. Teachers available for questions during 'the lesson' but nothing else. I rather thought it was more involved than that! Hmmm.

I read the Oxford vaccine isn't authorised for under 18's which is a shame. If we could vaccinate the teenagers, stop the spread, and keep schools open it would be perfect. I guess the problem is getting underage volunteers to trial a vaccine...ethical dilemma!

@estherfrewen yes ds1 likes mine craft too.

@sansou 3 lessons here before tier 4. The theory test booked feb half term. Fairly sure that will be cancelled.

@Wheresthebeach I did read somewhere of a trial going on with 12-18 year olds.

@icanbewhatiwant - oh...I googled and it looks like Moderna are trialling in teenagers. We aren't due to get that one til the Spring though.

DD had 3 lessons before Tier 4 hit, but is driving most days with us. She 'narrates' as she drives: "I'm looking up ahead at that zebra crossing, there's nobody near it so I'm staying in 3rd, ooooh I've just seen the traffic light at the end go red so I'm changing down to 2nd, mirror, indicate, move to outside lane, brake, change down to first, brake, clutch in, neutral, handbrake, rest feet."
It's quite exhausting to listen to...

@KingscoteStaff - that's funny! Isn't that what you're supposed to do when you do the advanced driving test?

DD is going out every day with one of us (mainly DH) and did the A3 to Hampton and back today. She's progressing very quickly and, possibly, getting a bit cocky. Theory test booked for February but whether or not that happens who knows?

The Pfizer one is ok for 16 year olds upwards. Dd is in Group 6 because of her brain injury so I hope she’ll be getting that one. However the GP won’t be offering it and their receptionist can’t tell me how vaccinators will know (as she isn’t on a shielding list). I believe the Pfizer one is the one you’ll have to go to a centre for. I know she’ll be less anxious once she’s been vaccinated. We have had so many near misses!

@sandybayley I’m not telling her there’s an advanced test...

Advanced test?

Something like this @Oblomov20

www.roadar.org.uk/drivers/the-test.htm

Oooo is that the one where you get to go on a skid pan?

Happy new year to everyone.
I dropped off the last thread so apologies if I’ve missed anything.
DS1 was meant to back at college tomorrow but will now be online only for two weeks and then hopefully back in. They’ve been doing online every other week since September anyway (so half the year group in college and half logging in) so it’s not too much of a difference for him.
DS2 (year 10) has also got two weeks of online lessons now, his school does 1 GCSE a year early so they do have that coming up this year, no idea how they will be prepared for it. They were meant to have the mock first week back, obviously that’s been postponed and we don’t have a new date yet.
We somehow managed to get to 2 weeks before the end of term before positive cases in the school started to make large groups self isolate, they ended up closing for the final week as not enough well/non-isolating teachers!

She's progressing very quickly and, possibly, getting a bit cocky.

Yep, totally get this Sandy!

I also have 2 slugs. DS1 (19) would not get up before 3:00 unless there was a reason, but he did get up at midday today and hoovered the stairs after agreeing to last night. He is also back into Minecraft and Pokemon on his DS, as well as more grown up games like Halo. He did not have a problem getting to University lectures, although he has a distinct tendency towards being nocturnal. DS2 a bit better at getting up.

Oxford are also doing a trial for 16-17 year olds. I think the sample size for younger people was small in the Pfizer testing because when the American health board approved it, some people voted against approval because of the lack of evidence of for younger people.

I definitely think teachers should be vaccinated before older people - I would say frontline health.then teachers, then elderly, then other people who have to go out to work. It is crazy that they are not being priortised at all when they are expected to spend long periods of time with others in enclosed spaces, and for primary school the children are not masked.

I don’t get why mask wearing isn’t introduced in secondary schools. Mind you it looks like it too late now and we are heading for another lockdown

@Wheresthebeach mine have to wear masks in school apart from when actually seated. They wear them walking about between lessons.

@KingscoteStaff that's funny you dd narrating. Mine doesn't say anything. He tells me off for telling him what to do. Yes they do have to do that for advanced driving.

@sandybayley a3 is familiar. I grew up in Kingston and took my test in surbiton. It is very different driving there to where we are now in Suffolk. It's 45 mins drive to Norwich, that is the nearest city. But round here it's fairly quiet. So really to get city practice we need to book 2.5 hour driving lessons. Ds1 passed his test over 2 years ago but has never driven on a motorway as there aren't any for a long way. We do have a few duel carriageways. But not locally.

I'd like to get ds out driving everyday. But he isn't keen.

Has anyone tried changing dates with the theory test? I've booked feb half but we are going to be in lockdown then, I'm sure. If I leave it and it's cancelled it will be difficult to re book as there will be lots re booking. I have no idea if it can be changed. I don't want to cancel just incase it goes ahead. Very doubtful though. It's a shame they don't let people do them at home with a webcam and someone watching them to make sure they don't cheat.

@sandybayley yes ds is cocky too....I said yesterday that gear changes are smoother he replies saying they've always been smooth. He keeps telling me he's a better driver than me 🙄