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.

Old thread:

previous

Popping back in again after a short hiatus. Great catching up on everyone’s news. DS’s School closed on Tuesday (meant to close yesterday formally) due to COVID outbreak. All of yr 11 sent home a week before, so I was glad really. Lessons continued online.
DS2 has had a really good term academically, not so much MH wise. It’s weird having a completely different dc to ds1. Excellent reports about his drive, motivation, effort etc with mainly A’s. He finally dropped Business studies and his teacher who is also his HM was gutted as DS is his top Business studies student.

I can’t bear to reward the posts about driving lessons, as ds1’s theory test is about to expire next yr, and shows no sign of trying to rebook lessons since first lockdown.

I feel a bit like an imposter mum with DS2 because I’m used to being the mum who has the DS who is disinterested socially & academically and can’t be arsed about anything but with DS2 he has a million and one things he is doing all at once. He is reading extensively outside of his subjects (Economics, Geography & Politics) and actually enjoying it! Loves taking long details notes during classes and refuses to use the computer for note taking as, how would he draw his graphs in economics class? he instead has a A4 notebook full of neatly written notes and diagrams (he said he enjoys the feel of the book leaves between his fingers). in addition, his diary is packed full of societies and some work in the community etc etc I really can’t keep up. It would’ve been a real shock to the system had ds1 been born last.

Is it true their yr with be applying with grades in hand? DS2 mentioned this and although I knew it was being discussed, I didn’t know it had been agreed?

Ah that’s the beauty of having more than one child Shimy - you get to celebrate their differences (and at times, despair, I’m sure!) of them being so individual. Lovely to hear your DS2 enjoying his studies, and I hope the MH side starts to improve as life edges slowly to normality. I know, its still got a long way to go...

I didn't think the changes re grades/uni applications would be in place for current Y12s.

shimy DS told his teacher he might drop Spanish yesterday and she started crying...

Icanbewhatiwant £54 for 2 hours 😲 I've just booked a 2 hour lesson next June for DD and it's £70 for 2 hours. Whereabouts are you out of interest?

Yes - earliest a new system for uni applications would start is 3 years from now. If it goes ahead - only at consultation stage at the moment.

Piggy poor woman, a bit over invested?

Just noticed a big typo in first post, meant to say, “I can’t bear to read about driving lessons”.

I think she just feels a bit like it's her fault and she ahs let the class down, bless her. He felt quite bad!

Laughing at Shimy and others who have very different children. I do too. Ds1 is difficult, Ds2 easy.

Reminds self to ring driving instructor. I have only booked one lesson for Ds1's birthday, so far.

@AnneOfCleavage We are on Norfolk/Suffolk border. The chap giving a few lessons is a PDI so he's not fully qualified. I am hoping to book the original experienced ADI in jan. He will charge £58 for the 2 hours. Still quite a bit less than where you are. I expect you are in or near London or a big city.

Icanbewhatiwant I'm not sure what PDI / ADI means but this guy also does advanced lessons which DH has had a few times so he is the bees knees but still it's quite a bit more than what you're paying. We're nowhere near London (South West).

@ealingwestmum Very kind of you

@AnneOfCleavage PDI is a learner instructor. He's passed 2 of his exams. They have to go out and teach real pupils before taking the ADI exam. He's got spaces to teach as just starting up, so he's giving ds a few lessons. But I'd rather the original chap teach him really once he has spaces. I know we all have to start somewhere with teaching, ds likes him and has asked if he can keep having him, but I can't help thinking that the knowledge of a professional teacher would be best.

It's gone very quiet on here - that doesn't happen often :-)

DD is crawling into school at the moment. Absolutely shattered. She is miffed because she was given a target grade of B for Biology and she expected an A. Grade grid due today/tomorrow so fingers crossed her working at grade is an A so she isn't in a mood! ;-) All her tests/homework have been marked as a A (execpt 1 B) She got given an 8 at GCSE so I expect that is why her target grade is B at the moment. I am guessing it's flexible as with GCSE they had target grade worked out on Sats etc but never gave that out after yr 7 as they added their own stretching target taking into account how the student was working etc.

I can't believe she will be 17 on Sunday - where has the time gone? Driving lesson booked (had no problem here, and also got Theory Test booked in for Feb half term - could have got it for Jan but DD wanted to wait).

Really hope all your DD/DS are ok and looking forward to Christmas - whatever that might mean for you all.

Ours will be a very quiet affair tbh. It's always just the 3 of us these days, so try to make it different to a normal Sunday. Have bought some more games to play with DD (table top curling and puck game) which will be fun.

Sorry to hear those of you in the London area will be going into Tier 3, we have been there and know it can be hard but it certaily helped our local numbers reduce (that and lots of testing)

Take care all
Please keep posting - it keeps be sane (ish) :-)

I was thinking it had gone quiet too.

DS is meant to dress up on Friday in the sort of clothes you’d wear for New Year’s Eve (I think). Theme of suits and sparkles. As he said, he doesn’t have a suit and isn’t about to get one (no dress code for 6th form here)

we now have Covid in the house (again) sigh.

@ChristopherTracy - sorry to hear that. You're London based as well aren't you? We're all fully recovered now apart from me still not being able to taste anything.

DD finished school last week and is very happy. She's out ice skating at Hampton Court with her BF. As they've both had COVID I guess they pose no risk to anyone but it does seem a bit weird to be in Tier 3 tomorrow and there they are whizzing round the ice carefree.

Her older brother is home from university but has lots of work to do as he has exams in January. Her younger brother has GCSE mocks in January so he is revising. Both are a bit irritated with her at the moment 😬

Yes in zone 5. All indoors until the 19th.

@ChristopherTracy - you have my sympathy. I think the hardest part of isolation is when you're 'well' but confined to the house. When you are ill being confined is easier. When I was finally OK to go out I found it quite difficult to do so though.

Really sorry to hear that ChristopherTracey, fingers crossed for a swift recovery. That’s great to hear you are all pretty much recovered now Sandy

I feel this term is never going to end! DS started on 1st and DD now has exams until 23rd. Our local station is useless for the trains they both need so lots of cross country treks, DD uses one 45 mins away, DS’s is 55 mins. Allowing extra time for traffic and it is not a quick process. I would really like to move now.

Everyone exhausted here too, including me as I have come down with a head cold and feeling very rough. I don't understand how I can pick up a cold when, on the very few occasions I have been out, I have been fully masked up and hand gelling all the way. If that can't stop a cold how is it meant to stop covid??
Anyway DS sat the last of his mad week of tests today in Biology and feels that he did OK so all of us looking forward to Friday now.

I have made a decision on driving school, keep your fingers crossed that they have space!!

Wishing you all speedy recovery ChristopherTracey.

DD in last few days of SI...like many of us with DC in London schools, COVID exploded in positivity rates in sixth forms in the last few weeks. But I have mixed feelings as my 80 year old mum gets her first jab in Thurs and really hope to get her to London for xmas. For the total shit show this year has been, I am in awe that she’s in this position to be vaccinated in the first tranche, thanks to a whole infrastructure led by science bods

Sorry to hear about the Covid in the house @ChristopherTracy, hope recovery is very quick.

What a nightmare ChristopherTracey so sorry to hear that

Ice-skating sounds fun Sandybayley. We'll miss that in our town this year as no rink inside or out here.

DD off school since yesterday and for the rest of the week now as she was in pain over the weekend and had swelling and redness in her breast plus rather a large lump. Spoke to 111 who said see GP on Monday so we got an appointment as they were rather concerned as she's 16 and she has mastitis poor love. They took lots of blood too to rule out other stuff as this is rather unusual apparently but she's on v strong antibiotics for 7 days and painkillers as was crying in pain. Didn't help that they asked if we had a history of breast cancer in our family but guess they need to know all relevant info. We don't hence blood taken.
She's had two end of term tests (100 questions) in two of her subjects so has managed to do those somehow and hand them in online. Did really well and now she's panicking that they'll think she's cheated which she didn't - we've been quizzing her all weekend on the topics so she was well revised. Now have to find a friend who can bring all her presents, cards and secret Santa gifts etc.