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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Our school has gone from 1 couple of cases to a little flurry: canteen closed as catering staff all SI, and a couple more letters, and dcs are noticing fewer kids in classes (although some of those may be protective if seeing family over Christmas). I'm so relieved to have reached the last day (online teaching tomorrow) as it feels like there's the potential for it to escalate otherwise...

@AnneOfCleavage: hows your dd doing? Mastitis is miserable :-(

We have received a letter asking all secondary children to test before they come back to school in January - this seems sensible to me.

The wheels have fallen off in our house so just crawling towards the end of term. I think it sounds like we are all in the same boat really.

Last day in school here too, Y12 have made it through without having to SI, I think they may be the only year in the school to manage that. 😃

Had my first ever email saying DS's performance is being monitored because he got 47% in a maths test. It said his homework had been poor too. I think he has been too focused on personal training, he will have to pull his socks up over Christmas. Apart from anything else he will be embarrassed because his GF's mum is one of the maths teachers at his school (luckily doesn't teach him, but taught DS1). Luckily DS1 is home and will be up for tutoring him until the Jan mock.

Thanks for the nice comments about his legs, I don't think the photo showed quite how chunky they are, I am sure @Oblomov20 has more feminine legs. When DS1 wore a little leopardskin dress at a festival his legs were more convincing!

That photo Monkey Bet you have such laugh in your house if that's his kind of humour. Hilarious!

Thanks for all your well wishes. She's still got a big lump but the pain is subsiding although swelling and redness still there. Got a Dr phone appoint tomorrow so will go in if I feel she needs to be actually seen again. No news on blood results which is a good sign as they call quickly if anything untoward but will get them tomorrow when they phone.
She's at school today as wanted to give out her gifts and attend two double lessons before term ended - didn't get on with online on Teams as laggy. She's on a promise to call me if she needs picking up early as it may be too much as it's quite a full on day.

Has anyone else read online that secondary schools may be going online for the first week back after Christmas? Read it last night on my online news app.

Seasonal name change but I am sure you can spot me!

BBC is reporting that first week in Jan will be years 11 and 13 only.

Last day for us...phew. Apart from ds's driving lessons we will just be home from now on. Food shop online booked each week, we might meet dh's daughter and family for a walk and we do walk the dogs twice a day. So hopefully we will keep illness free (colds etc as well as covid)

Schools are now to go back staggered. They say those taking exams in the summer will go back as usual...so is that year 12 I wonder?

@Piggyinblankets you added that comment just before me. So just years 11 and 13 then?

According to BBC , although sixth form colleges seem very uncertain.

We have middle schools round my way so they will literally have to be remote teaching two year groups while the rest are in as'primary'.

We have now been moved to Tier 3 our little family meal out on Christmas eve now cancelled, this was the only thing we had planned and have no-one coming over for Christmas. On top of a stinker of a cold and reading about delayed returns to school has made me feel really down. Oh well, things could be a lot worse I suppose,

DS picked up his GCSE certificates today - would have originally been an awards afternoon so they got given a copy of the programme for that and also any certificates they'd have got.

There's about 250 per year up to year 11 and they had two achievment prizes and two "school values" prizes for each subject so am pretty proud of him getting prizes for Music, RE and also a team one for the basketball team :)

He's wandered off with the programme but I think about 80 of them got at least 6 grade 7 and better which seems pretty good for a comprehensive.

Now he is supposedly writing his RE essay that was due on Tuesday....

They end at 12:30 tomorrow. We are so far escaping being put into tier 3 but with about 70 cases per 100,000 it does make sense.

Has everyone had their GCSE certificates? We haven't heard anything about these at all.

I’m sorry Popcorn. I think unfortunately it was always going to be a difficult end to the year. 💐

Drinking caffeine to keep myself going, waiting to watch DS’s presentation in a bit then get him from station later this evening, another long trip in the dark. DD had an unexpected exam at some ridiculous hour this morning but means she doesn’t now need to do it next Thursday- I had no idea she was supposed to, thought she was finishing next Wednesday, which she now is.

Am not upset if they do the first week of next term from home, I think DS could do with that but appreciate I may well be alone with this .

I'm alright really, just on a bit of a downer today and feeling rough.

Enjoy the presentation Fools, hope the caffeine keeps you going!

Feel for you popcorn. This Christmas is going to be unlike any other before o ever again.

We've had word from DBIL today that he and his family aren't coming to us on Christmas Day as they're too nervous. Both DBIL and DSIL work in schools and they have secondary school age children. But given our family of 5 have all had Covid in the last month and are now recovered we must be the safest venue to visit!

I'm actually not as bothered as I thought I might be. It will be a novelty to have a more relaxed day then we've ever had and not have to worry about cooking 12 people. We can eat late, walk the dog and do Christmas at Easter.

Thanks Sandy, it’s going to be a weird one for sure. Maybe it will be more relaxing at least as you say, not running around trying to do everything and chilling in PJs might make a nice change!

We had our first Christmas just the four of us a few years ago when my Mum died. We have been embracing the whole not having to be dressed or have food by any particular time and my DC seem to enjoy it.

Have decided to embrace Corona Christmas and have bought Pandemic for a board game.

I have bought a couple of board games for DS2 for Christmas, he wanted monopoly (can't stand it!) so I got that ut also bought Cluedo the Harry Potter version which I thought might be fun.

I think I'm just going to stock up on quality street, matchmakers and twiglets and spend the day on the sofa.

@JustHereWithMyPopcorn we play a fantastic anti-capitalist version of monopoly invented by friends' parents who were fed up with the fights and interminable games 50 years ago. They call it "Gasman" and all the players gang up against the bank and the objective is to bankrupt the bank as quickly as possible. You can get it down to about 30 minutes of frenzied play if you are very focussed. Bank is represented by the Old Boot and the first and last players each roll one of the dice for bank's go. Only bank pays rent, he can't buy property and players can lend each other money as long as it is repaid before the bank runs out. Let me know if you try it!

We always have a game of monopoly at Christmas and looking forward to this years as not much else on!

End of term here, thankfully with no isolating required for year 12 this term. Also saw the news about possible delayed start to term in January and fine with that. Watched the sixth form music concert this evening which they recorded during the week which was lovely to see DD playing.

Progress report was due Friday but didn’t get emailed through. DD asked teacher today who said it had been emailed (it definitely hasn’t) but he’d give her a paper copy. Took a look at it and has only 2 of the 3 a levels listed but with 3 a level teachers so all muddled up and doesn’t make any sense. Guess that’ll be waiting till January to sort out.

[quote Monkey2001]@JustHereWithMyPopcorn we play a fantastic anti-capitalist version of monopoly invented by friends' parents who were fed up with the fights and interminable games 50 years ago. They call it "Gasman" and all the players gang up against the bank and the objective is to bankrupt the bank as quickly as possible. You can get it down to about 30 minutes of frenzied play if you are very focussed. Bank is represented by the Old Boot and the first and last players each roll one of the dice for bank's go. Only bank pays rent, he can't buy property and players can lend each other money as long as it is repaid before the bank runs out. Let me know if you try it![/quote]
Ha fabulous! 😀

What a pain @PaddingtonPaddington, DS is waiting for his Biology test result and Eng mock (only one sitting another in Jan) but otherwise he’s got everything back. Very annoying to have to wait til the new term (whenever they get back!) to find out what’s going on.

Has anyone else read online that secondary schools may be going online for the first week back after Christmas? Read it last night on my online news app. We got an end of term email which said might be doing this will let you know beginning of Jan. I feel so sorry for the school senior leadership team, limited respite on the cards this holiday.

DD's school are testing everyone on 4 and January. DD will be tested on 5 January in a 15 minute slot and will then have to leave school. She better be negative given that she has just had it!

We also had an email last night briefly mentioning it. I don’t think schools have been given full details yet.