Page 8 | YEAR 8 YEAR 8 YEAR 8 !!

MaryAnnSingleton · 2009-07-17T13:10:26+00:00

here we are, all ready for the new term !!

roisin · 12/10/2009 20:04

ds1 generally goes upstairs to his room at around 8pm, sometimes he's allowed on the PC at that time and goes up later.

Generally he doesn't go to sleep til 10 or later, but I still pack him off upstairs. I often want to watch something that is not appropriate/appealing for him/them, and I want my peace/my space.

If there's something on that he wants to see (rarely), then we record it for us to watch at a more reasonable hour.

Too often late, late evenings at weekends soon slip into late, late evenings during the week. I work in a secondary school and I regularly see children who are far too tired to cope with the rigours of a school day, let alone learn anything.

For us it works very well for the children to go upstairs at an early hour. They then have 'screen-free' time (no computers or TVs upstairs), and it gives them the opportunity to relax, chill and wind-down from the day. They also use that time for reading, which they both do prolifically.

bellavita · 13/10/2009 18:50

DS1 goes up at 9.00pm often saying to us though that he isn't tired although more often than not, we have to wake him at 7.00am and he groans and says he can't get up! He may listen to his i-pod for a bit or read which I don't mind. On weekends it is more like 10pm.

DS2 (10 next month) goes up to bed at 8.30 on a week night but on a weekend goes at the same time as DS1.

I feel that DH and I need our time too and because I am in bed about 10.15ish on a weeknight, I am not about to have DS1 going just before me .

roisin · 14/10/2009 18:11

Are your yr8 children coping OK with group work? Last year ds1 often got the lion's share of the work, but he gradually learned through the year to not just volunteer to do everything himself. But now it's like he's back to square one.

He was off sick on Monday and missed English. The homework was to prepare a presentation on the Amazon Rainforest in their group for Thursday. Today ds1 was put in a group of students who were all off on Monday. He has come home with a powerpoint presentation to write, find pictures, design, animate and generally create for tomorrow. Now, he is half way through and will certainly end up with an excellent product. But what are the rest of the group contributing to this?!

I don't make a big deal of it. But I do just gently say, "Hmmm... What are the other members of your group doing tonight in preparation for this?"

webwiz · 14/10/2009 19:37

Mmm Roisin I'm not keen on group work for exactly this reason - it always seems to be my DCs doing the lion's share of the work. Recently DS has only done group work with people he has chosen to work with and so he picks all the other serious hardworking boys

LadyGlencoraPalliser · 15/10/2009 10:33

DD is in a teaching group with three of her closest friends and they tend to do all their group work together. There are little spats occasionally about who does what, as they are all quite strong minded and keen to do things their way, but that's all part of learning to work as a team. I think they all make a good contribution to the finished work.
Last year each group had to prepare and deliver a maths lesson to the class and at parents evening we were told that DD's group had done such a good presentation that the teacher had shown it to the entire maths department as a model. (Sorry, couldn't resist a little boast)

roisin · 15/10/2009 17:10

That's great LGP. Well done dd!

ds1's group did their presentation today and he was pleased with how it went.

Now he's got Geography group homework, and he's designing a powerpoint and writing a script!

magentadreamer · 17/10/2009 09:22

Dd's Science teacher has impressed me, Dd had her half term Science test on Thursday and yesterday came home with it all marked!

Dd's school is linked to a school for the visually impaired in Africa and in her after schools craft club they've all been making bags to send over. Her house is also raising money for braille slates.

Dd is also learning lines for an audition. The Btec Performing Arts group is going to do a prodction of Bugsy Malone and Dd would love to take part, especially since they'll have slurge guns!

One more week and it'll be half term

roisin · 29/11/2009 09:22

Hey! How is everybody doing?
ds1 is getting on fine.
On Saturday he's going on a school trip to the Trafford Centre - basically shopping all day with bowling alley too. I'm a bit as his normal limit for shopping is about 30 mins!!! This might be interesting!

He is still spending too much time on his homework. He loves writing essays and his teachers don't set upper word limits ... I think they might start doing so just for him!

He does get fantastic marks for them and fortunately doesn't get stacks of homework anyway, but when he has an essay (English, history, etc.) it's like it takes over his whole life/all weekend until it's done.

roisin · 15/12/2009 07:29

It's very quiet here now. I guess that means everyone is getting on very well?

deaddei · 15/12/2009 07:59

I've just sent a letter in to the year head asking for a meeting in the New Year- there are some very disruptive girls in dds teaching group- permanently on report, and as a result not much teaching is being done in certain lessons.
It makes me so mad that the same girls can have this effect- we had it in yr 7, and it's just as bad now. Just because they don't give a shit, I'm not having dds schooling affected.
Not sure what will happen- but another parent is coming in too, so that's extra support.
Our girls are so NICE- not in top academic groups, but excellent results, top marks for effort and generally helpful and responsible- if they were in the top teaching groups this wouldn't happen.

LadyGlenChristmasPresent · 15/12/2009 11:14

That is so true, Deaddei. Good luck with your meeting. It is so unfair on the hardworking, well-behaved children when a badly-behaved minority can disrupt the whole class. It is one of DD's biggest issues as well.
Roisin - DD is getting on great this year. Apart from the disruption issues that Deaddei mentions, which only happen in certain subjects, she has a lovely group of friends and seems to be enjoying school a lot. Christmas concert tomorrow and she is playing in the school orchestra so I am lookiing forward to that.

deaddei · 16/12/2009 18:03

Well yesterday, 6 girls made one of the teachers cry!
I got a call from head of year to tell me these girls have been given internal exclusions till end of term, and their parents have been told the next step is external exclusion (but not permanent)
DD came home and said how WONDERFUL lessons were today.
Have a meeting scheduled for first week back!

roisin · 16/12/2009 18:40

Oh well done LGP's dd. What instrument does she play?

Deaddei - hope you get the issues sorted.

LadyGlenChristmasPresent · 16/12/2009 22:59

She plays violin. The concert was lovely although it didn't finish until 10pm and DD3, who is seven, was almost beside herself with tiredness by the end. The standard of playing and singing was really impressive, four different choirs, the orchestra, a strings group (which DD also played in) several individual singers - everything from opera to christmas carols - it was all great.
Deaddei - glad the girls have had some consequences and your DD had a better day. Let us know how the meeting goes in the New Year.

bellavita · 17/12/2009 22:14

Helloooo

I am glad Deaddei that something is being done about those girls. I work in a school where there are the most disruptive children... it is shocking. I love the job, really I do, but some of the kids are in constant trouble, being excluded, secluded, safey netted. It really is an eye opener.

DS1 informed me tonight that he needed his new jeans taking up (sewing machine job) for his school disco tomorrow at the local rugby club... kids eh! I have just finished faffing.

I really wish he was a bit more like your DS Roisin with his homework. I have now banned his i-pod during the week.

Have a good christmas everyone

roisin · 18/12/2009 18:27

Hooray! We've all broken up now for Christmas.

ds1 has had another fab term, culminating in a HT's award in assembly today. They give out quite a lot - c.20% of student I think, but he's had one every term, which is fab. I guess they are for effort. He also got History and English awards this term as well, and excellent interim report.

I feel a bit sorry for ds2 who will got there next year (hopefully), and has to follow in ds1's rather large footprints.

Shall I get "Don't compare me to my brother" tattooed on his forehead?!

bellavita · 19/12/2009 16:56

DS1 didn't get to school yesterday because of the weather. He waited the allotted time for the bus but if it doesn't come after 20 mins then they can come home - it came after 25 mins... according to the school. He was determined to play out in it yesterday rather than have to go to a Yr8 disco and risk being asked to dance by a girl...

Well done your DS roisin

Have a fab christmas everyone. x

LadyGlencoraPalliser · 12/01/2010 09:55

Hope everyone had a good Christmas and is now back at school... unlike DD. Her school reopened this morning, but get this - only for years 7, 10 and 11. We get the pleasure of the Year 8s and 9s at home again today.
At least the primary school went back yesterday or I really would be tearing my hair out.

webwiz · 12/01/2010 13:57

Oh no LGP - DCs school was closed for three days last week and that was quite enough. DD2 has AS exams at the moment and is relieved that the snow is thawing. DS would have liked a few more days at home playing on his xbox though.

roisin · 12/01/2010 22:14

Happy New Year Everybody!
On the first day back I forgot to check the radio and sent ds1 off as usual. It took him 2 hours to get there on the bus, find out it was closed, and get back on the bus!

His school was only closed for 2 days though, so he's completely back in the swing of things already ... with stacks of homework too.

bellavita · 12/01/2010 22:29

DS1's school was closed for two days last week - they didn't actually go back until the Tuesday (Mon was a training day). The bus never turned up on the Tuesday, DS came home and I rang the school and she said they were closing it, it was closed Wed too. Back Thur/Fri.

Oh no roisin - all that way!

LGP - hope you get some respite soon.

Hardly any homework at all for DS. He made a fab ginger sponge cake though yesterday in food tech.

LadyGlencoraPalliser · 12/01/2010 23:46

Thanks Bellavita. I love her dearly, but my house appears to have become Teen Central. I am biting my tongue rather than ask why her friends' parents appear not to want half a dozen 12-year-olds lounging on their sofas and eating all their biscuits. Because I love them all really.

magentadreamer · 13/01/2010 07:09

Dd, was off school for two days last week plus Monday of this week. I'm mightly feed up of the snow/slush now! Hope your DD is back at school soon LGP.

Yr8 parents evening was cancelled last night and bought forward to next Tuesday. Dd was off ill when they handed out the forms so her appointment list is Maths and Science so it'll be short and sweet for us . The week after we have Options Evening - so I'm hoping that we can catch up with DD's Geog and History teachers then as she's contemplating doing those subjects. We've not had the Options booklet yet but DD is thinking of doing Geology,Geog and maybe History, Psychology or Drama. I just find it all a bit much that they are expecting 12 year olds to make choices that will effect their future. Some DC won't have the parental imput that DD will have and heaven knows what they will select. DD will obviously have a lot of imput into her choices and so far has experessed a great deal of enthusiasm for her first two choices. It's hard to balance it all up with interest/enthusiasm and not limiting options after GCSE. I know if she did want to do Geology at A level she wouldn't need a GCSE in it but she came home bouncing about the idea of doing it and I'd rather she did something that she was interested in then doing something because she had to. Luckly if she changed her mind about a subject she will be able to do something else as the options are done one a year over yr9-11. I get to go to 3 options evenings Yay!

DecorHate · 13/01/2010 07:15

I don't think we have to do anything about options yet(thankfully). LGP, be thankful your dd has friends nearby. My dd'a school has a v wide catchment area and of course she seems to have made friends mostly with girls who live in different towns to us.... So rarely gets to meet up with them outside school

roisin · 13/01/2010 20:52

Hello Everybody! Nice to hear from you all.

Bellavita - it's not far! It just took a long time on a snowy day when half the bus services had been cancelled because of accidents.

At ds1's school they choose options in yr9 still (around Easter time). I think some courses 'start' before yr10, especially core subjects; but I'm pleased they don't have to make choices yet to limit their options for the future.

Magentadreamer - do they actually drop some subjects at the end of yr8 then? Is that legal? I thought according to the NC they had to do so much of each subject right through to the end of yr9?