Year 11 - 2024/2025: And relax! Support Thread for the summer holidays.

[QueenMabby]

New thread to carry us all through the summer as we transition from dealing with stressed teens to dealing with bored teens!

She went to her uni disability services.

Most of her first year it was waiting for ASD assement - huge form for me over christmas - then on-line interview with her and me in spring- and a no not that. However they urged her to persuit dyslexia and dyspraxia - which I'm diagosed with - and ADHD.

The disability services arranged the assments for dyslexia and dyspraxia - no input needed from us or schools - she paid nomimcal fee - and they did the test took most of a day -- she has both. That was start second year - she late August brithday - she's got quite a bit of support items from welsh services - well worth finding out for her - english equilents are apparently not as good.

ADHD via GP - she had to be very persistant - and finally gone though right to choose only in England- she had forms - some of which needed my input - and a interviews with last just her few weeks ago. She has it and is now on waiting list to try medication - in her final year.

We're trying to get DS to do similar - sure he has something - dyspraxia most likely but ASD assor said his sleep issues -- DD1 less extreme - were a possible indictor of that.

I got diagnosed at Uni - in my last uni year - had to pay nomimcal fee a lot for me at the time though - and get past an interview before external assessor did tests. Went to next uni for masters - and looked at support they said I'd have had to pay whole assesment amount with them.

They didn't ask for school reports - school were flip floppling gas lighting nightmares anyway - but they did mention her GP records were missing - she was sat on waiting list for two years waiting assesmnet before she hit 18 and there's nothing then- so looked at those - apparently it's crossing welsh/english border that likely repsonsible for that.

So disablity services - but what they can do and how they operate varies between Uni but they are the first port of call.

DD1 didn't get her grades - but she got her first place uni.

She doing well in assesments - no exams - and is very happy there.

So hopefully your two will be the same.

DS dropped one grade - so ended up with what ucas said most on course get ABB - though he also had futher maths and welsh bac - though welch bac grade was moderate down by a grade.

Thank you so much, that's very helpful. Why were the GP records needed? Was it because of any mention of issues before? So for dyspraxia was the testing mostly her or was there also history needed from you? I'm guessing for ADHD much more childhood history was needed again from you? Thanks again for answering, I'll get my friend on her services and see what they say.

Seems like lots of a level students didn’t get the results they wanted although I’m guessing that’s just what is talked about more? Makes me worry what we are up against on Thursday? Th only things we need for the next step are maths and English but we are worried about English… and obviously he wants more that just passing maths and English. Roll on Thursday ….. I think 🤣

The vast vast majority of A level candidates at my school got the grades they wanted.

That’s good. I think it might just be that those who didn’t have been upset and therefore more vocal and that’s what I’ve been hearing about. I really hope the GCSE’s have gone well too!

That's the way it goes.

I had a conversation with one boy who got an unexpected A in physics - a grade up from what he was expecting. I said we could ask them to review it if he wanted 🤣

No idea and they didn't say but that was ASD assesment it was mentioned.

There wouldn't have been much there TBH - bar Eczema and asthma disgosiss- as GP have never been hugely helpful or kids particularly ill. Though out interview what we thought off as normal behavior apparently isn't in general population - so we hadn't sought GP help with just got on with supporting her.

They didn't need any further input from us with dyslexia and dyspraxia testing. She did series of activties with educational psychologists and got a set of scores back that showed she was. Sounded similar to what I had.

DD1 did take took a list of spelling and reading/writing programs done - mostly at home - despite us asking for schools help -- and the dsylexia assesor was like was oh wow that's a lot. She also mentioned sceening we'd fought for at both primary and secondary she been border line on so school refused to help further - they were scathing about how useless those were.

@achangeofnameisasgoodasarest- congrats for your older two on getting their first choice. A-level results are weird. Situations where grades are dropped but the first choice still takes them can make DC’s so conflicted!

@CatHairEveryWhereNow- well done to your ds too.

Most of DD’s friends in U6th seem to have got their first choice including her “cello bestie” in orchestra who got four A stars! She’s off to Oxford.

dd had some of her friends over yesterday and they all seemed to manage to calm each other down AND gee each other up about results day! We have bought a suit and some shirts and have a new school bag arriving today. Still shoes to do but that’s about it.

Congrats to all those with A'level result'ers.

Thank you @Sisublondie and @SuperTrooper1111 - DDs are identical twins and have broadly similar interests and academic aptitudes, over the years school results have generally been very similar too. We make a specific effort not to compare them and to treat them as separate individuals, but they tend to compare themselves and then get upset with each other over tiny differences.

If all goes well, DDs will be going to different sixth form schools and doing a slightly different set of subjects. Which I hope will ease the competitive streak a bit...

Does anybody else feel like time is just dragging now? I didn't plan much for this last week - which is probably good as it was far too hot to do much - but it feels like time is going really slowly now. I'm sure the heat hasn't helped but forecast to cool down a bit now which I am thankful for.

I found a piece of paper in the living room which DD had written a list of subjects and grades on, almost all were a bit lower than her predicted grades so I think it is on her mind. At the time she said most of the exams went pretty well but I guess all these weeks later she may only be remembering the bits that didn't go her way. Fortunately she only needs four passes for her applied course at college so that has taken the pressure off but I know she would like to do well for herself.

I've barely had time to think about poor DD2 - arranging accomm for DD1 and sorting student finance for our foster daughter (and her accomm too) has taken up all my time. She has whiled away the hours by going to the Proms a lot now she is back from the Army, but had a big meltdown yesterday about 'being bad at everything'.

Bracing myself for a tough week next week. But feeling much sadder for my friend whose mum died four hours before A-Level results came out for her first child (thankfully in to first choice) who now has GCSEs to contend with too. Just a horrendous time for her.

@sisublondie thank you, its a pleasant distraction from the wait for GCSE results for DS - 5 more sleeps / non sleeps! 😊

@achangeofnameisasgoodasarest
Oh, that's so awful for your friend 💔 I'm sorry x
One of dd's friends dads died very suddenly just before her A levels started 😔
She got fantastic results last week 😃💙
Dd is ok (I think..)
Shes at pils today, then an at home day tomorrow.
Garden party on monday 😃
Then I'll need to find things for us to do before Thursday...with older dd we went to the cinema a lot !

@achangeofnameisasgoodasarest- that’s horrific. Your poor friend!

Not long now. I’m not sure if it’ll be a good thing or a bad thing that dd will be away at a residential. She’s started the slow downwards spiral of confidence and expectations. Fingers crossed she’ll be kept busy enough not to worry. She doesn’t do well if she’s not busy because it gives her too much time in her own head!

DD had an email through from the college she's going to giving her an appointment on Friday morning to enrol. We thought we'd be able to bowl up after picking up her results but I guess another 24 hours won't make much difference! My nerves are far worse than hers. I was awake in the night worrying not just about her results but also how she'll get on at college and whether her anxiety is going to rear up.

Dds (🤞) enrolment is the week after results day

We don't do enrolment until the start of term

@SuperTrooper1111- un-mumsnetty hugs for you. An appointment system is probably a calmer way to do it although it’s a bit frustrating not to be able to get it all done in one day.

We don’t have enrollment day. Dd has her place and as long as she gets her grades on Thursday then she’ll just rock up on the first day of school (the 3rd) and go straight into it.

We also have to go to college on 27th to enrol and take proof of results. Also have to do an it induction and decide on a compulsory extra curricular before then. He will need to decide what he wants to do by then as he has changed from what he initially applied for -def is not doing maths.

Dd is just doing a resit (again). She hasn't actually been told yet how to get her result. In previous years it was rock up to college (1 hrs round trip) or phone up. I'm hoping we can phone. Fed up with driving an hour just to get a piece of paper with a 3 on it...

That’s really tough. How is she feeling about it this year? Can she not just do functional skills? It’s so awful that they make kids sit through re-sits they’re never going to pass when the functional skills qualification is available and for many would really give them a confidence boost.

My bff who is a teacher had a bottom set class this year and was confident that last least 6 of them were never going to be in a position to pass. It would have been so much better for them to have just gone straight onto a functional skills course where the syllabus would be accessible and they could approach assessments with confidence.

@QueenMabby We have agreed to give up, at least for now (21 next month). It is just too depressing. She has a good chance this time but I fear may still just be below the pass line. (Passed FS English a year ago independently, but FS maths is wordier, and finding somewhere to do it in person has proved tricky so far). Now trying driving instead which is a whole new load of stress.

@QueenMabby
Ah, but then those pupils wouldn't count for the schools progress 8 score?
It's so wrong, but 🤷‍♀️