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Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

pfb -in fact only child - off to secondary on Thursday...

788 replies

MaryAnnSingleton · 02/09/2008 08:07

am being calm but every so often panic strikes me - ds is fine about it, it's just me fretting about roads to cross/ money for the canteen - will it get lost/stolen, what about the lockers, arghhh ! Plus,as with the beginning of every term,I'll miss him - I love having him here in the holidays !
It also means that I have no excuses not to sit at my desk and work on the job I'm meant to finish by the end of Seot...

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magentadreamer · 25/09/2008 15:03

DD's school have finally relaunched their website plus added loads of new stuff. Apparently they will send home termly progress reports which will show levels they are working at and that terms target level. Plus in their planners they'll have their half term targets! I just hope they said home an idiots mum's guide to the levels!

roisin · 25/09/2008 18:18

Ormirian

this german dictionary is fab

They are designed for learners and are far more user-friendly than the regular dictionaries we had to use from the outset when we were learning.

ds1 is doing German too and loving it. But he will do 3 languages this year for one term each, which is a bit odd I think. I don't know what happens in yr8.

bellavita · 25/09/2008 20:38

DS has learnt his first hard lesson tonight, keep your homework safe until you need it. He has lost a piece of homework that needs to be handed in tomorrow............. now at this time of night he is having to do it again.

I have come upstairs out of the way before I blow a gasket. I keep finding books, pieces of work, rulers, pencils etc all over the place instead of it all being nice, neat and tidy on the dining room table - well anywhere really as long as it is together and tidy.

magentadreamer · 25/09/2008 22:28

DD is now outraged - she was looking at the school website and found a bit about the book clubs. They have a boys and a girls book club which I can understand. They've a scheme going for Yr7's - read 7 books comment on them and do a Quest - loads of different stuff they can do eg how would you publisice a book, design a book cover etc. DD was up for this as she loves reading and will devour a book in a day or so if I don't make her do things like sleep! The children once they've read their books and completed their quest then get to go on an activity. The girls get to go on a pamper evening and try new make up etc and the boys get to go paint balling.... DD is now totally put off by the idea as she's not as she put it a girlie girl and bets the books for the girls will all be girlie girl books she'd rather read crime/spy/mystery books then teenage angst about snogging type books. I have suggested she talks to her form tutor who runs it to see if they have a book list or can chose their own books.... I can just see her at a pamper party... NOT!

whispers to Bellavita my red is rather nice

bellavita · 26/09/2008 07:24

DS is going to ask for a locker today - they are £5, just so he can put his pe kit in (has pe Monday and Tuesday) and also he can put his bag in there at lunchtime. After last night with the homework, I don't trust him to leave books in it overnight etc.

After last nigh'ts drama, we are going to go and look for a desk over the weekend which will go in his bedroom, that way he can keep all school stuff in one place.

magentadreamer · 26/09/2008 08:00

Is the £5 refundable? DD was told on her first day to bring a £1 for her locker key and she gets that back at the end of the year. She makes great use of it - last night her bag only had her planner in it and the homework she needed to do.

Have you got an Ikea near you Bellavita - DD has one from there wasn't ouchingly expensive if I remember.

bellavita · 26/09/2008 08:12

Not sure if the £5 is refundable. I really, really, could not trust DS to just bring planner, said books and homework home and leave the rest in the locker - would not work.

Yes, we do have an Ikea (about 40 mins away) so will have a look. What I would really like is for him to have a desk underneath together with a pull out futon type thingy for when he has a friend staying. At the moment if he has a sleepover, they have to stay in the guest room which has a hideaway bed (for when my parents come). We really want to spend as little as possible, but we want something sturdy.

bellavita · 26/09/2008 08:21

magenta - hope you enjoyed your "red"

MaryAnnSingleton · 26/09/2008 09:17

will wait with interest news of desk - ds will need one pretty soon

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OrmIrian · 26/09/2008 09:47

Thanks roisin. I was about to place an order with them too

roisin · 26/09/2008 16:09

ds1 has a locker but again just for PE kit. But he had to pay £8 for it, and apparently that is £3 deposit for a key, plus just one year's rent! So if he wants it again next year he has to pay another £5

But he is pleased to have it means he can leave his trainers, footie boots and shinpads at school and just brings home PE kit that needs washing.

bellavita · 26/09/2008 16:12

eeek another £5 next year

Wonder whether DS has managed to sort his out today - perhaps he is going to come home (mmmm should be walking through the door any minute) and say his £5 only lasts one year.

roisin · 26/09/2008 16:16

He's managed quite well to be organised. One week he did lose a piece of homework and had to go and get another copy from the teacher and re-do it overnight. But generally he's managing well.

He has a clear plastic file (a robust thing not just a poly-pocket) where he keeps all loose sheets in his bag.

Then at home he does all his homework at the kitchen table and he has a box where he keeps any books he doesn't need at school next day.

When he's doing his homework he uses the equipment from his school bag and puts it back afterwards.

In his bag he has separate pockets for:
planner/basic pencil case
additional equipment - calculator, crayons, compass etc.
drink
wallet
emergency money

After he's finished his homework each evening he checks the timetable and packs his bag for the next day.

We also have specific hooks in the hall where he hangs his PE bag, tech apron, food tech apron, perf arts uniform, etc.

Crikey, it sounds like boot camp, doesn't it?

Obviously I've set up most of these routines for him, but he's maintaining them himself and it seems to be working.

bellavita · 26/09/2008 16:29

roisin - we have a very similar system (DS supposed to sit at dining room table for doing homework), there is a box for books not being used, plastic wallet for homework, same set up in his bag as your DS but he still cannot get himself organised (I think I am getting on DH's nerves now because I keep going on at DS), DH seems to think that he will have to learn the hard way. Anyhooooo......

DS has not got his locker today, his form teacher is arranging for some letters to be sent home which we will have to sign and send back, then locker will be allocated.

Again, thank crunchie it is Friday

roisin · 26/09/2008 17:07

He's come home absolutely shattered. They have IT Period 6=last thing on a Friday, and they had 3 tests to do in IT today. ds1 said they were really hard and he was exhausted. It sounded like verbal reasoning and non verbal reasoning plus a spelling test (this is on top of CATs last week). ds1 is excellent at spelling, but said this test was really hard with words like photosynthesis in it! I wonder if they get extra credit for the fact that his class did it on a Friday afternoon?

They have actually had loads of tests, and I keep telling him I'm sure that will be it and they won't have any more ...

Fortunately he only has 2 pieces of homework this weekend which is great because we wanted to go out tomorrow for the day.

His Science homework is to do a challenge. There is a choice and Easy Challenge and a Difficult Challenge. I think ds1 will go for the difficult one, but it really is very hard.

magentadreamer · 26/09/2008 18:44

DD is amazing me at how organised she is being - I honestly had visions of her returning home the first day in her polo shirt and trousers -the rest being scattered around the school. She goes to her locker before school starts loads up her bag for the morning lessons then goes again at lunch to unload/reload. At home time she goes and puts any books etc that aren't needed into the locker and brings back that nights homework. On Friday she bring back her entire locker. This is the child who had a lost property bin named solely for her - or so it seemed in Juniors!

Bellavita is it one of those High beds with desk etc underneath that you are after? I saw one the other day in I think Bensons beds - the shop has just been renamed grr. Looked very sturdy. The ikea one looked a bit wobbly IMHO but could have just needed tightening up.

MaryAnnSingleton · 26/09/2008 21:23

ds has similar system for organising - supervised by me,though he is checking which books are needed each eveningfor next day...some loose bits of paper are coming home a bit crumpled despite my putting a poly envelope thing in,so a more rigid plastic folder/file might be an idea (adds to growing list of stuff to get). I can't remember how much the locker costs to rent at ds' school - you have to supply your own padlock..ds has a combination one to save losing a key ! It's really nr his tutor room too so handy for storing PE kit during the week.

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MaryAnnSingleton · 26/09/2008 21:24

how many weeks have we done now ? I think they're coping brilliantly !

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roisin · 27/09/2008 08:44

We've done 4 weeks, which means we are half way towards half term.

YIPPEE!

MaryAnnSingleton · 27/09/2008 08:46

it's been a lot easier than I'd imagined (touches wood) this time last year we were visiting the schools to choose and I was terrified ! ds says that the current yr 6s were looking round yesterday !

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bellavita · 27/09/2008 09:06

DS is looking forward to the Yr6's looking around his (done on an evening) because the now Yr7's get to be the hosts in classrooms and have lots and lots of things going on to show the Yr6's that it is not as hard as they might think it is.

I think he is secretly hoping he is in the science block demonstrating and helping with experiments.

WendyWeber · 27/09/2008 10:03

DS2 will be going to the 6th form open evening in a couple of weeks & thinking about his A level options - you will be amazed how soon that comes round

Have just been catching up with this thread & it's lovely to read how they're all settling in & sorting themselves out bellavita, you'd better find yourself a wine tree as well as a money tree!

MaryAnnSingleton · 27/09/2008 14:33

I can certainly believe that WendyWeber ! time does whizz by alarmingly (then we can fret about 6th form college !)

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SqueakyPop · 27/09/2008 14:35

Tell me it is only 3 full weeks!

roisin · 27/09/2008 15:58

It depends on your county SqueakyPop. We've done 4 weeks and we've got 4 more til half term.