Well, Standard Grades finished last Friday and there has been a collective breathing out and relaxing of all muscles (at least, all that don’t involve crutches and ankles).  Biology last Monday received some intensive enforced revision over the final 24 hours although, once he’d trotted off to the exam, I looked over some past papers and thought perhaps we should have spent more of that time doing some graph interpretation than checking that he’d at least read everything once.  Right, as it turns out, as he got stuck on a pie chart.  Oh well.  We’ll just have to wait until August.  Planned parental support (= pressure?) for the German exam at the end of the week never materialised due to my enforced bedrest courtesy of the NHS.  In fact, not only could I not offer any help, wanted or otherwise, but the boys were getting phonecalls along the lines of “You’d better go to the chippy for some tea” as OH found balancing a hard week at work, visiting the hospital, finding the stuff I needed – toothbrush, clean underwear, that sort of thing – managing the house, and organising the boys something of a challenge.  Not the best support for Standard Grades, I’m afraid, but I’m sure other children have to endure worse.

Back at school now and after a few days of watching videos they seem to be doing work in class again, even in the subjects they’re giving up.  I suspect this is a small challenge for the school and possibly something that hadn’t been given too much thought beforehand; how to handle 2 year groups at once following the exams.  meanwhile GP2 is coming home saying things like “Only 2 more biology lessons to go” or “I’ve only got 3 more art lessons ever“.  He could go to lunchtime art club next year only it’s at the same time as band practice.  Come August, neither of the boys will be doing Biology but at least GP2 will be doing Geography which will provide some Environmental Science input.