Year 7 Spring Term ....

[MaryAnnSingleton]

our thread, part two - all ready for the new term !! ds goes back on Tuesday...

I have still got the primary school thing with DS2 - although they are trialling info to the mobile phone now.. tis ok if you use the blardy thing, but mine is normally in the bottom of my handbag with a dead battery!

Oh I'm a bit of a control freak too Margaret which is why it's killing me not knowing! Mind you dd1 is actually better at telling me things than dd2 who is still at primary. But I have my finger well and truly in primary so I find out myself .

-yes, I was very involved in primary so I knew what was what !

I'm trying to back off a bit too and let him organise himself. He is pretty good at it himself, but typical male at the slightest opportunity is happy to sit back and let someone else do the graft!

I'm almost always home before him, so it means I get to catch up on his day's highlights and lowlights immediately, which is great.

I'm not interfering.... MUCH!

DD's Maths teacher has asked that they bring in all the stuff for their latest project tomorrow - it's due in on monday me thinks it's because the little buggers darlings might not have actually oommenced doing it. DD was spotted firtivily gathering all scraps peices of paper she'd done stuff on and assembling them into some kind of chaos order....

Next up is the Science project which is a patient information leaflet and I have had to stop myself from saying let meeeeeeeeeeeee do it seeing as I've just spent the past week revamping all of ours at work. I shall resist!

It's the history homework I have trouble keeping my hands off. I keep throwing useful books at her and weeping silently when she informs me that she is going to get all her information through the medium of Google.

Do you think the rise in finding stuff online is due to the fact they don't appear to have textbooks? Or at least one's to take home to look stuff up with.Or just good old google can give instant results? DD had to revise for a Geog test a while back and her teacher didn't even give them their excersice books to take home it was just assumed they'd look up the relevant symbols on the net.

Dd does have textbooks but I find the Science one in particular very badly written. Sometimes it is impossible to answer the questions at the end of a section without googling as the information is not in the text or is only implied.

I used to go to the library when I was a girl to get information for homework - sometimes I think it's too easy to just google something - surely then everyone in the class will have the same bit of homework ! Also ds has quite a good selection of books upstairs in his room so if he took a little time he might find reference there

When I mention to DS that I had to go the library when I was at school if I needed info, he just rolls his eyes at me!

!

DD actually whispers spends lunch time in the library I was like Wow! Till I was informed it's a bit of a yr7 hangout. Maybe one day they'll actually look at the reference books....

But you can find far more info on the net in far more detail. We have a well stocked public library (the central one for the town) about 15 mins walk from here. But his teachers tend to set very specific and quite challenging homeworks. If ds1 were to go to the library to try and do his research for:
10 facts about the Brigantes, or
factual information about three different types of rock (cost, availability, carve-ability) to do a report on their suitability for use for statues
.. he simply would not be able to find the information at all.

I think it is vital that children learn how to use the internet effectively and efficiently for research. I love books, and dislike intensely E-books, which I can't see replacing actual books. But in terms of reference material the days of books are numbered I'm afraid, because the internet is so much more powerful and up-to-date.

So why should they learn to use reference books?

oh I agree with you roisin - it's just that sometimes ds will take the easiest option and not research further than the first thing that comes up !

yes, I so agree with both of you.

The point I was making, with the history homework, is that she would rather take info from the first site she Googles than let me point her in the right direction - and as I'm a history student I do have a lot of helpful material on hand.

ds has told me that he has been asked out by a girl in his year,and wanted to know what going out involved and whether he should go ! I was trying to remember what I did at that age..I did 'go out' with a boy but I'd known him since we were about 6...we used to go to youth club together and off on awaydays to the coast - was very innnocent.

Awww! Thats so sweet! Has he decided to accept this girl's invitation? Or will he be a heart breaker and turn her down? I can't imagine my DD asking a boy out and any boy who'd ask DD out would have to be very brave.

DD had me helping her with the maths project tonight, my role was to tell her the figures whilst she whizzed around on the lap top doing tables and graphs, I was most impressed with her ICT skills I can just about C&P stuff!

Go MM's DS .. that is lovely, you will have to let us know if he has said yes!

Does your DD like maths magenta?

!

Is anyone else finding their child is extremely tired? DD is regularly coming home almost too tired to eat her tea and going to bed at 7pm. She often stays on after school for a netball match or music lesson and she has a couple of dance lessons a week, so she is usually on the go till 5 or 6pm and then she is just wiped out.
It is almost like when she was in Reception again. Are other people's children going through this too?

I think DS is tired, although he won't admit it On a couple of occasions recently we have asked him to go to bed earlier because he has been crabby and rubbing his eyes. He does basketball after school on a Tuesday but this is the only after school thing he does, although he does extra inter-class sports stuff at lunchtime. As for too tired to eat his tea.... he had a big plateful of curry and rice tonight and two minutes after finishing he asked if he could have something else because he was still hungry. Maybe the easter holiday break will give her a much needed rest?

DS received an ST in his planner (the opposite to a merit) for forgetting his science homework today. DH and I were not very happy with him as he sighs and rolls his eyes at me when I ask if he as everything before he leaves for school.

DD was shattered last week too I think she's really looking forward to 2 weeks off for Easter.

Hopefully your DS will see the ST as a reminder to be a bit more organised. I know when DD got a detention for her done but not found in her bag Maths homework it did make her a bit more organised.

Yesterday DD got a merit slip for actually volunteering to read one of the parts in the play they are reading in English I was amazed as DD doesn't do the participating in class discussions bit easily which her English teacher obviously realised hence the slip.

Oh and MM any news on your DS and the girl??

That's lovely magenta - bet you are really pleased.

Oh yes MM - any "dates" yet?