Thread 16 - Corona Cohort Year 12, 2021 Zooming through Summer Term

[orangecinnamon]

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Hi all any suggestions for new thread title? We will be there pretty soon.
Something about summer break/moving on to year 13?

@Fiddlersgreen we have to wake DS up. It is at 6.30 though as he leaves for the bus at 7.20. He seems to sleep through his alarm but we get up then anyway so he is woken with a cup of tea every day. He does often need a second prompt ten mins later.

Hats off to your DS, Piggy - fantastic results!

DD has gone into school for English and geography exams today. She’s desperate to do well in English, but a bit overwhelmed worrying that today’s paper will throw her. I’m keeping everything crossed she gets asked the question she’s hoping for 🙏

It's been raining here on and off all night. It's still very humid though. We need some rain.

Ds scared me on a roundabout this morn. It was my fault really as we'd been waiting a while, I said go, but a car was coming from another junction. It's the only main road we have to cross on our journey to school. I would have gone in that gap and it wasn't close enough to make the other car break or toot at us. But I've not got good nerves. Ds's best mates mum was behind us in her car. I worry about Ds driving with friends once he's passed, in fact ds1 wasn't allowed passengers at first, but Ds2 wants to take this lad to school once he's passed as he lives nearby. After seeing that today she might say he can't go in the car 😂

I wake DD. My alarm goes at 04.35. Get DD up at 04.50. We’re out the house at 05.05. Five times a week, and pass the same fox trashing the same commercial bin every time

Great results Piggy.

DD does AS maths, but over 2 years. It’s been a challenge, even with the extra year, the content may be reduced but she does not think like standard mathematicians so it takes longer to process. Was the same with music learning.

@ealingwestmum oh wow that’s so early!

DS doesn’t even need to be up until 8 and there’s no chance of getting him up even a second earlier than he needs to!

I know I should leave him to it and suffer the consequences but I just can’t do it yet!

We all leave at 8 so there is a mad scramble in the hall while everyone tries to grab shoes, bags and get out the door. I sometimes knock on DS's door at about 7.25 but he is usually awake. Pre Covid he was always up by about 6.30 though.

Wow, Ealing! Why so early??
Our alarm goes off at 6.45am and were out the door at 7.30am ( in non- Covid times, it's 15 minutes earlier, and 20 minutes later getting home at the end of the school day).
DD gets up with the alarm to wash her hair, straighten it and apply full make up...DS gets up at about 7.20am, showers, eats and leaves within 10 minutes 😂

@Piggywaspushed - amazing results - well done to your DS! mine is a bit disappointed in his mocks but came out absolutely determined to improve so fingers crossed! One of their history teachers is being replaced next year as the teaching hasn’t been up to par - he has already been told this. French he made a few silly mistakes but that can cost you at this level. His spoken and listening was very good but his written let him down. Last two mornings he has worked from 8 before school at 9 - we live 400m from the gate.

They had a day off timetable for UCAS yesterday and need to produce first draft personal statement by next week. Gosh you don’t get much space!

@ealingwestmumn- I can’t tell you much I admire you and your DD for continuing the swimming journey at 17 - DS still is always up by 7 even in holidays but that is such a lie in for us all now! His swimming featured heavily in his final personal statement paragraph- he was on the Welsh talent pathway at 14 so is hoping that impresses Cardiff! He very much liked the Warwick course for ancient history and is adding that to his 5 alongside Birmingham, Lancaster, and Cambridge.

It had rained last night a bit but still hot but more due tomorrow. Water butt only filled a bit so couldn't have been much.

I have always had a struggle getting DD up when in Primary school but once she hit secondary and had a bus to catch it all changed and now she's up before me and out the door by 7.30am as she walks instead of bus as it sets her up for the day. I took her in today as she has a full day of lessons and her bag was bulging plus carrying folders and will pick her up too - prob tomorrow too as it looks wet.

Great results Piggy - we haven't done this next lots of mocks yet so not out the woods with revising yet.

Anyone else's DC doing work experience? DD has hers last week of term and into Summer holidays. Assume it's going ahead as after 17th July.

Piggy’s son - well done! I have no idea how it’s going to play out for Dd. They start soonish but I am not harassing/pushing her due to her health. She’s also been concentrating on a massive group assessment due in this week. I think the teachers and everyone are actually quite amazed it’s managed to go ahead! After all the health problems, we still very nearly caused chaos as her elder sister very very nearly could have brought covid down to us from university. University Dd said quite a few Year 13s have been up visiting siblings and are now stuck isolating with them or have gone back home and been told to isolate at home.

Dd has always got herself up for school. She has to leave at 7.55 now, which is later than at her old school - mainly due to covid timings though (staggered starts). I do bring her breakfast though. She's on the second floor, kitchen is ground floor and it would hold her up if she had to get breakfast. I'm a bit of a softie, I do her a smoothie (banana, apple and raspberry) and a cheese toastie!

Ds has been a nightmare in the mornings since year 7; he sleeps really heavily and is a natural owl, but he needs to leave at 7.20. I used to set my alarm at 6.35 and I'd need to knock on his door several times until he finally roused and got in the shower. He'd set his alarm but just sleep through it. However he got a new phone around Easter time - just another iphone, with the same alarm, but ever since then he's got up by himself at 6.30! I can't understand it, but I assume maybe the alarm is louder!? I think I've only had to wake him once since then. So now I set my alarm for 6.55! I also make him breakfast, but it's a simple one of high protein yoghurt and grapes.

It’s for swim training Piccolo, though a touch earlier these days as pools need to have less swimmers in at the same time.

Thank you esther, though you know her reasoning has now gone beyond the sport itself. Plagued with so many injuries before, she was reluctant to leave on a low. Lock downs led to substantial weight gain (same food volume, minimal exercise, denial etc) so slowly, slowly right now. Who knows if she’ll sign up at uni...I hope so.

Can anyone beat 8.20am? Dd is a night owl and has her clothes ready and has a shower at night. She can manage asleep to out-the-door in 20 mins!

We've had a turbulent few days. I think exams last week really made DD think about her plans, and over the weekend she decided that she really didn't want to do Psychology. Lots of tears and panic about whether she wanted to go to uni at all, whether to do an apprenticeship, gap year, get a job? Then intensified on Monday after the start of Higher Ed week when they were told they should be doing something they loved, but she didn't really love anything. I tried to explain that nobody really loved all aspects of a subject/job, there were always bits that you didn't want to do but that didn't seem to help.

In desperation I suggested she speak to one of the teachers who had been really helpful with DS 2 years ago. Obviously being new to the school they didn't know each other but he came up with several ideas that I hadn't even known about.

So....

Anyone know anything about Liberal Arts (and Natural Science?) degrees? DD seems really keen as it means she doesn't have to narrow her interests too much, but I'm a bit concerned about the amount of work that studying so many different areas might involve. So far UCL, Exeter, Nottingham and UEA looking good.

Your DD is not alone in feeling overwhelmed Seeline. It’s all been so hypothetical up to now, and then now all focus on having it all mapped out in a week.

Liberal arts is a great option for those not ready to narrow down, and we’ll respected by employers. Each subject (they select their mix) is not taught throughout the 3/4 years at the same time, and then they specialise/major in the latter stage.

I know nothing about Natural Sciences other than it’s highly subscribed!

Ah, yes, or course - I'd forgotten about the swimming, ealing. That's one good thing about being involved in music - no early mornings, only late nights, which works well with teenagers!

@Seeline Scottish universities also very good if you don't know what you want to do. As they are 4 year courses, the first year is very broad. At St Andrews you do 3 modules from anything except medicine in the first year, so people can start with Classics and end up with Neuroscience! I think that all Scottish universities are similar

Seeline, we've had much wringing of hands and many tears with dd about uni choices - subjects and location.
She feels like she's the only person she knows who doesn't really know what she wants to do with her life. I think some of that may come from being at a selective private school - lots of motivated high flyers, with eyes on medicine or things like law, politics etc. DD is more into drama and English, but has had a major confidence wobble since starting year 12 and doesn't feel good enough at anything.

Thanks @ealingwestmum - good to know that it is well respected (DH was muttering things about Mickey Mouse degrees ). Just from the entry requirements I realised that they are quite demanding courses.

I still wake mine each morning - still giving her a lift to avoid overcrowded trains and buses in S London - so I have to be up anyway. We leave at about 7.45. I always woke DS too and he seems to cope for himself at uni now (apart from one very major sleeping through the alarm which will go down in family history!).

Ah the late nights, wishing them a speedy return and all that comes with them for you Piccolo; know how important they are to a family of musicians.

@ealingwestmum I grew up in Surrey. We used to see so many foxes. I moved up to the Norfolk/Suffolk bored in 1995 and I've only seen 5 or 6 foxes since living here.

Ds2 is a nightmare to get up. He needs to leave 8.15am so he sets his alarm for 7.50am showers then comes down at 8am. It's always such a rush. Ds3 is always waiting with his bag on ready to go while Ds2 is rushing round.

I'm dreading him passing his test and driving to school. He will leave early to start with as he will want to arrive early and get parked. But once he gets the hang of the journey and parking I can see him giving himself 5 mins to do a 15 min journey!

@Monkey2001 Scottish unis sound great, but DD doesn't want to go so far away - we're in London.

@Alsoplayspiccolo Agree - DD is also at a selective private school and definitely most of her friends are following med/Oxbridge/law/engineering routes, and have everything planned out. It's hard for those that haven't.