Y7- 2023/24 support thread

[BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz]

Hi, just dropping in a thread for those of us who have kids starting secondary this coming September. There was a lovely thread going last year and they are carrying it on into Year 8, so here is a place for us the year behind.

How is everyone feeling as they finish Primary and prepare for Secondary?

Dd is moving from a single form entry "family feel" type cosy Primary into a large 8 form entry, multiple building secondary. She's going alone, her primary class are really split up across multiple secondaries.

The transition days helped, and she is excited,but has been really sad this weke saying her goodbyes

Is everyone prepped for uniform etc?

@Yoyo2021 my friend and I were saying just today how we wished we were getting to do all these lessons and activities!
DS’s school has a politics society - I would LOVE that!

Hi, I’ll join in.

I have summer born DS with ASD so things aren’t going so well for us. He hasn’t made any friends yet, misses his junior school friends who all went to different schools. Our only saving grace is his 13 year old brother is in year 9 at the school. So little DS is spending all his free time with him.

@TeaandHobnobs wow! That is simply fantastic to put on such a club!

I am simply so jealous

So much opportunity!

My son found year 5 and 6 very boring so nice to see him so enthusiastic!

Welcome to the club, sorry to hear that it's not going totally smoothly- it's definetly taking some longer than others, but this is the start of the next five year period, more if they stay on for sixth form, so I'll keep fingers crossed for those less settled in yet.

@HalfasleepChrisintheMorning that sounds good, and what a nice club to be able to do too.
@Yoyo2021 I know what you mean about the lessons, I'm definitely going to be attempting to learn some Latin alongside my DCs having never had that opportunity.
@JoshLymanIsHotterThanSam , hi, I'm not sure if you've had the chance to skim back through previous posts but there seem to be quite a few of us in here with DCs with, or waiting for, ASD diagnosis so you're in good company!

Well, final day of the 1st full week meaning they've done everything at least once. Hopefully they'll all be handling it like pros soon, already we're at the stage of it being quite dark at getting up time though which is always hard.
Have a good one everyone.

This is a lovely thread. And it’s Friday!

I have a call with the SENCO today. In year 6 he was so well supported with his dyspraxia. He learned to touch type and I stupidly thought year 7 would be no problem as it’s the same school (6-18 school).
The problem is having so many different teachers and I get the impression they didn’t read his learning support plan. There’s not a lot on it, just that he be encouraged to use his laptop if at all possible. Where practical he should be given handouts to highlight rather than copy from the board. Work should be marked on content and effort not handwriting. At the moment he’s been given 25% extra time in tests and exams. It will be decided in year 9 if he gets that for GCSE.

I hope it goes well- I’m nervous!

Oh and Latin is great fun. I did it for GCSE and I’m loving doing it again with DS.
Chris est in cubiculum dormit.

good morning all,

yes this is a lovely thread and it is nice to chat to others.

I’ve found it really helpful just writing worries down here or things that have been said and finding out.

I don’t really have anyone to talk to about this experiences that are going though the same thing so it’s really brilliant.

thanks everyone.

We had a wobble last night.
They played an away hockey match in the afternoon and nearly missed the bus home, she left her school travelling top at the pitch and then the bus driver didn't stop at the stop in our village so she had to deal with having a conversation with him. She walked in and promptly burst into tears but a cuddle, shower and some calpol calmed her down and then she was fine.
We have figured out the prep timetable as she has been given assignments on Teams for all subjects and this was stressing her out as she thought she had to do them all each night. We are now just going to only do the preps that the timetable states for each day and if any teachers tell her off then she can say she is just following the timetable.
Hopefully today will be better and then just tomorrow as a half day.
I'm going to buy her lots of snacks for Saturday afternoon and we can snuggle on the sofa + binge watch all of the Star Wars films 😵‍💫

It is a good thread just for getting your worries out, I agree @Yoyo2021 .
Hi @JoshLymanIsHotterThanSam sorry your DS2 is struggling a bit at the moment. Is there a support centre he can go to rather than/as well as hang around with his brother? My DS1 (now yr9) still spends pretty much all his free time there but there’s other kids and structured stuff eg they put on card games without the free for all of the main playground.
@twistyizzy - sorry about the wobble, hopefully if a similar thing happens again she will be less upset. 🤞

@twistyizzy
The school your daughter is at sounds very similar to DS school. Figuring out Teams is a mission in itself!
Apparently yesterday some of the boys in DS form set up a teams group and sent lots of silly gifs in Computing lesson. They got seriously told off as it was a breach of the terms of use policy they all signed. DS was added to the group but didn’t post thankfully and left as soon as he could work out how to do it. Modern version of passing notes in class?

@JoshLymanIsHotterThanSam (fantasic username!)
At DS school there is a board games club every lunchtime staffed by the pastoral prefects. Is there something like that so he can pop in? Is sounded great for making friends. The other one was Book club which was just a chat about favourite books in the library with hot chocolate and mini muffins. Very relaxed and welcoming. Hope he finds his tribe soon.

I have had a skim read so can see I do have some company on this one. It’s so hard because he is trying really hard to be brave. But his social skills have always left a lot to be desired. As @HalfasleepChrisintheMorning sats he needs his tribe, once he has them he’ll be great.

The school does have an autism base so there is the possibility that he can go use that. Clubs wise at the moment there isn’t much, he spends his free time in the library with his brother. I worry this will wear thin with DS(13). I have asked senco what lunchtime clubs there are where he can meet other year 7’s but no reply yet. The school is fed by an on-site primary school so a lot of the kids know each other already which is hard. And for some reason they have already done mixed classes across the year group which I find strange. Normally (and they did this when older DS started) they teach in tutor groups for the first term before mixing them all up. I’ve a mind to point out to them that this path isn’t fair to those on the SEN register.

Dd not got a group to go to lessons with. so one.of the days a much larger older child tried to kick her shoe of f while she was walking. He was in a group. I wasmt expecting random attacks!

Apparently a lot of swearing in the y7.
Dd hadnt told me about the online maths app. And it doesnt seem to show on the homework app.
Only performance and sport clubs start before half term here.
Still nothing re the maths set. But have had other issues so had to contact tutor.

@Busornobus67 sorry to hear that, bloody pack mentality of teenagers especially against younger kids on their own. Hopefully the tutor can offer some support.

SENCO was great, much reassured. DS can go to her anytime for a chat or help. She says he’s a jolly little chap around school.

@Busornobus67 that’s terrible. Hope school stamp down on it very firmly.

Gutted - had to ring in sick for dd this morning. She's picked up some sort of bug and is on the loo every 20mins. She tried, got on the bus then har to get off after 2 stops and come home. Poor love.

Can I join in? My DS has gone to a school no one from his primary school has gone to in his year. He is enjoying the lessons but is anxious about the movement between lessons and how big the school is and how many boys there are. He was in a mixed 2 form entry primary to a 6 form boys grammar.

He is friendly with the other boys but not friends yet hasn't found his tribe. In primary he was in a little trio but they have gone to 3 different schools.

It's whenever he is tired we get tears and anxiety. He also is overwhelmed by the homework more because his primary never had that much homework whereas here he gets a new piece most days and trying to balance homework and timetables.

I am hoping that by half term he will get into his stride.

@Purpletoes hi 👋. Sorry to hear about his struggles, you/he are definitely not alone!

Primary we only had maths really. Technically spelling but dd1 never practised them at home. (Unlike dd2 who is going to need more help).
But did do a complete sats prep book for each of spag/maths comprehension in year ,6.

Bernadette that awful. One of my worries is getting ill on a bus. Hope feel better quickly.
D said pile of sick in school one day with just a sign blergh! When walked back past there was an ill kid sat nearby.

Unfortunately im expecting a lot of illness with so many new kids...

Dd says all the loos are cubicles with basin so unisex. Which im not hugely keen on due to having dds and concerns about being ill etc. Dd already getting constipated.

Oh your poor DD @BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz! Hope she is feeling better really soon

She's perked back up thankfully. Marked as Authorised Absent on the MCAS app. Wouldn't care, she had maybe two days off sick her whole time at Nursery/Primary School.

Just one of those things.

Is it normal for the older kids to pick on the year 7s? My DS said an older girl tried to trip him up today (but didn't succeed) and yesterday an older boy shoved a ball in his face - but pulled the ball away before contact was made. He's mentioned another couple of things that have happened and calls the older kids bullies. I wasn't really expecting things like this to be happening every day?

Full blown tears tonight due to first fall out with a new friend. Doesn't want to go to school tomorrow and feels like she's got no real friends at school. Says they don't know her name and a friend she knew beforehand and they have clung together for the first 2 weeks is now moving away from her.
Tried to be supportive whilst saying that this is all part of life and the transition to secondary school but obviously I'm upset too.

@bessi from what I've heard from friends this low level stuff can be common 😔