Thread 14? Corona Cohort Yr 12 2021 - 'Vaccinations and Eliminations'

[orangecinnamon]

Just place marking for the New Thread!

DDs test is Monthday 8th (time tbc -alphabetically) then she is to come home, then told result later that day. If negative start back Tuesday - will be tested again Thursday then remaining tests to be done at home.

Re Leeds - Tickets have sold out apparently. DDs was carried over from last year - but her friends weren't sure whether to go until 1 more decided to go and got a ticket, but when rest of the group tried - all gone.. They are hoping people will start selling their tickets at some point.

My DD is definitely more upbeat now, in that she is now very excited and looking forward to the summer. Her and her friends have been busy making plans what to go/where to go. Thankfully have decided not abroad this year (saves me saving no).. Friends have 2nd houses in Cornwall. Derbyshire so plan to go their - also camping in North wales - it's lovely to see her back to her upbeat self. She has warned me that I may not see much of her, as she will be out with friends a lot - unless they are all at our house.

Suprisingly she is thinking about applying for a job at a local pizza place near us as her friends is now working there. I had always told her in the past that we didn't expect her to find a job, she could concentrate on her studies/sport/social but I am happy that she is thinking about it at least - even if she drops it after 3-6 months (once she can go out and about, there is NO way she will want to be working Fri/Sat night when everyone else is out after being stuck in for so long.

Re Vaccines - I got the Pfizer on 18th Feb and luckily no side effects at all - even arm wasn't too sore so greatful for that - although I know it could happen with 2nd jab so not counting my chickens just yet :-)

RE exams next year - I think DD would prefer to take exams although having said that - that is so she could prove herself as she believes due to her school taking the stance of sticking to previous result patterns last year she was downgraded on 3 subjects (although def upgraded on 1). So she didn't feel it was a true reflection on her abilities but rather the school past performance. She didn't dwell on it though as she knows she could have performed better in Mocks to make sure she was the 1 in the class who got the higher grade etc..

She surprised me by saying she wished they could all repeat a year - and start yr 12 again in September.

Another plus - is that she mentioned she had been looking at Durhams website and loved what she saw (I'm personally not such a fan as am worried by what I've heard/read) but at least she is looking herself and not just me passing info onto her :-)

Hope you all manage to enjoy the good weather this weekend .

Yes DD says she'd be gutted if she couldn't do actual exams next year as was cheated last year but I just hope they cut them some slack and decide to be generous rather than stingy with grade boundaries.

Interesting that some of you DC are testing then going home to await result and if clear start next day. DD goes in 8th, gets tested and then carries on with the school day - I assume there's a half hour wait to see if test is negative. Not sure which I prefer.

Arm still sore today but marginally better. Other symptoms all gone thankfully.

DS’s school haven’t released final details yet but will on Monday. Students will have a test on site, wait in a holding area for the results and then onto classes if negative. The part I am not sure about is what will happen if positive, most travel on public or school transport and parents aren’t necessarily close by to pick them up in normal times. DD(y10, different school) has been given a time slot to arrive on the 8th which is later than usual. Her school have asked for two emergency contacts one of whom must be able to pick up within half an hour in the event of a positive test or development of symptoms. We might both have to be on standby on the 8th - luckily both of us have fairly local and flexible jobs but one can’t pick both up within half an hour as we are on 4 points of a square where each side is about 8 miles apart IYSWIM.

DS’s school are testing the week before, so they can start on the 8th. They will then be tested every week. DD’s school will test the girls when they return, and if they are positive, they will have to go home.

Ours are testing next week and then when back at school. We have to do them ourselves after the 3rd one.

I hope they start deciding what to do with years 12 and 10 (I have one in each). I actually think it is worse for my younger one as there are so many subjects (11) and he's missed a lot of the practical stuff. My YR12 has missed all his practicals but should be able to catch up. Going to be hard to say they should sit normal exams when a lot will have missed c8mths of face to face teaching.
No jabs for us yet, bang on 50yrs old so think we will be quite late. Glad others are getting theirs.

I'm in the position of having 2 dc in consecutive year group cohorts (12&11), so neither of them will have done final-exam GCSEs.

I'll be really interested to see if there's much difference between dd1's 'algorithm' grades and dd2's teacher assessed ones. Dd1's grades were much as I would have expected, almost exactly the same as her mock results with a couple a little higher.

Dd1 has started the long, slow process of working herself into a frenzy of anxiety over the return to school. Just going in for the test for 20 minutes yesterday exhausted her. There's going to be a lot of soothing and anti-stress strategy discussion on the agenda next week...

Kingscote, I bought a Reading ticket. As ds was planning on going last year as a group of 10. Soo glad I did. As Heifer said they quickly sold out. Apparently some of them later got a message to say theirs had been cancelled! They are well cross, as I would be.

No info on pre-return tests yet.

Bought cake as maths motivation. I do think him growing up with a labrador explains a lot.

DD is back on 8th March - subject to initial test- then will be tested again after 3 days in school and again after a further 5 days.
Following that, she will test weekly- via home kits.
Masks, in classrooms, are to be worn where it is not possible to SD.
She’s keeping all fingers and toes crossed that 2022 exams will be sat

Latitude ticket here for DS. He's tagging along with his friend's family so it's not just a bunch of 17 yr old festival virgins. Can't deny that I feel somewhat reassured that he's got his mate's middle aged parents to keep an eye on them. Might cramp their style somewhat but apparently, they're "cool" parents. Feel for our teenagers - they've missed so much last year that I really hope that they can all go and enjoy a good summer.

@Piggywaspushed a friend in Cornwall said they are only doing 1 in school, rest from home as not practical to test in school when you travel a distance and might end up with a positive test. I expect schools with large catchment will mostly do the same.

No, ours are definitely doing all three ta school before it opens! Catchment isn't large just very village-y.

I feel for the poor kids who get tested positive at school. Though I wouldn’t post this on any coronavirus thread as people would take it would be a reason not to test. I hope the staff are reassuring with them before someone is there to pick them up. I remember when the first person tested positive a school near me, SLT when round with loud speakers to round the year group up outside. It terrified some of the younger pupils. Our rate is pretty high here.

The LFTs really aren't very sensitive. We have already done 500 tests at my school and not one positive identified. I am not sure that is a true picture! That is my main concern really as I think it will alter everyone's behaviour that they have been tested and are 'clear'. But I guess if they pick up some cases that is better than none.

I too feel sorry for anyone who tests positive. We haven't had many actually test positive in my school and the ones who have are definitely known by name!

Piggy I agree with the non sensitivity (3% accuracy for non symptomatic up to nearly 50% for those who become symptomatic). I really hope pupils do them as it’s another layer of defence.

I suppose the benefit of being in a school where it got a bit out of control was that the health advisers in the end sent a whole year group home. It then didn’t stigmatise anyone. I know of loads of teachers off but there was a wall of silence so no one officially knows why. Of course, part of me hopes there’s already a lot of herd immunity for the next few months at least at the school in that those that have had it can’t pass it on!

I think pupils doing the tests early will definitely mingle more with their friends before school starts.

It’s going to be an ‘interesting’ experiment.

I will say though that I think it is safer than in December because of masks, the weather, more people have had it, vaccines. The documents are clearer that masks should be worn so my Dd won’t get told off again for wearing one.

However teachers etc should have been vaccinated at half term, of course.

First test on 8th March in sports hall throughout the day for the whole school. Staggered time slots in and out. No FTF teaching until 9th. 2 further tests at school over the following fortnight followed by home testing thereafter. DS has arranged a driving lesson for the 12th April.

Presumably after howls of protest DS's school is now offering some evening slots. I feel bad now.

We have been told that only Yrs 11 and 13 going back on the 8th March and they will be tested on the 5th. Everyone else will be tested during the w/c 8th March and then in school on the 15th. I feel a bit miffed at that. Not that I'm desperate to get the boys out of my office or anything, or no no no...

I also think these tests are not really very accurate so concerned about behaviour with clear tests.

@Oblomov21

Kingscote, I bought a Reading ticket. As ds was planning on going last year as a group of 10. Soo glad I did. As Heifer said they quickly sold out. Apparently some of them later got a message to say theirs had been cancelled! They are well cross, as I would be.

What??

DD and pals had Reading tickets from last year and when it was cancelled they clicked 'Ticket next year' rather than 'refund, please'. I think this meant they got first dibs on Reading/Leeds tickets this year which prob. explains why they ran out so soon!

Crikey you can tell it's senior school allocation time and/or GCSE option time - our thread was on page 2 of secondary school - I don't think that has happened since we started!

DD surprised me by saying only 1 of her friends (of 10) is looking forward to going back. She doesn't really want to (I think partly because she has got used to getting up at 8.00 rather than 7.00) But also because she knows it's not like going back to how it was. They have just lost their Yr 12 space due to testing, so any spare lessons they have and can't come home they have to use any empty classroom to work. I am hoping that Yr 13 get to leave nice and early this year so Yr12 can have the 6th form block. They haven't been in it yet at all so it would be nice for them to have it to themselves before they have to share in Sept with next yrs 12.

DD and her friends have just decided they want to go to Parklife.. (DD and 1 friend already going to Leeds) so I'm guessing that will be a struggle for tickets when they open, we have preregistered on a few sites so fingers crossed.

Heifer that’s interesting. Dd is not looking forward to going back but I anticipated that. However from snippets I have overheard, everyone in her classes on Teams seems more subdued since last week too. Yr12 haven’t ever entered the sixth form building here either - also reserved for Yr13.

Good news is that the school have ‘caught’ someone with a latent test before they got symptoms and passed it on to keyworker pupils. So they actually can work!

Celebrating here - DD has been given permission to drop her fourth subject!! I think it's come at a good time, just before they go back. She has been saying for a while that she doesn't feel as though she has really learnt anything since Christmas, so only having 3 subjects to get to grips with face to face should help.

She hasn't been in the 6th form centre since induction day either. Such a shame - it would be so nice if they could mix with the U6. I think it really helps having seen them go through uni applications etc

Seeline that’s great news. Older Dd dropped her 4th and got great grades in the 3 she carried on. It particularly helped at exam time (in the days when they did exams)!