School life, between the linesBy Eleven Plus Diary
School stories, admissions adventures, and the things parents talk about on the way home.
School life · British careers rooms
The careers quiz told our daughter she should be a florist. I had other plans, her school login and a whole night.
Parent life · British DofE households
Every Duke of Edinburgh expedition starts on a landing, with a rucksack and a parent taking things out. I was the parent. I was also, it emerged, the excess weight.
School life · British exam halls
An East Sussex academy wants an exams invigilator who can patrol a hall unheard. I have never entered a room unheard in my life.
Parent life · Cambridge, Dorset and the GCSE forum
At one Dorset prom the grand arrivals lasted the length of the school drive. My son’s school is a seven-minute walk away, and I still had a budget.
School life · Britain and beyond
A Devon school has more French pupils wanting to write than English pupils willing to answer. I have something to confess about 1993.
School history · England and Wales
For a century, schools with panoramic photographs have told the legend of the boy who sprinted behind the back row and appeared at both ends. Then I tried it on Boxing Day.
Parent life · GCSE results day
On GCSE results morning the pupil goes in and the parent waits outside. I have been studying how other people waited.
School life · Staffordshire, Devon and Newcastle
Three Year 10 pupils spent their work experience in museums and archives, checking, counting and scanning. Our Tupperware drawer has not been checked since 2019.
School life · Norwich and York
A Norwich Steiner School newsletter reported that its maypole dancers would rather analyse the tangle than dance. I run the maypole at our May fair, and I know the type.
School life · School swimming and the after-school lesson
The youngest’s swimming letter asks for pyjamas, for a lesson on water safety. I took the pyjamas more seriously than the water.
School life · British reading records, at home and at school
Our youngest started Reception with a small blue reading record and a box for parents’ comments. I took the box personally.
School life · East Sussex and West Yorkshire
A Crowborough primary asked Year 2 families to build Tudor houses for a bonfire. I have built one of these before, and I built it too well.
