meadowblythe

Both JA and to a lesser extent CAT only take into account how you perform on the day - being in one class will not help you get into another. My best advice to the parent of any 8 year old - encourage them to see the wider picture, enjoy their dancing, but not focus on it being the be all and end all. You simply don't know what will happen, broken limbs, development, ability to cope with pressure .. the list is endless. Even if it all works out well, the more rounded your child the better they are able to seize the opportunities offered.

KindleK, The harsh reality is that she is probably *just* good enough to get jobbing work as an orchestral 3rd or bumper. Similarly her brother is good enough to get consistent work as a ballet dancer - he is about to commence his 3rd year of full time employment, this time heading of to China, but he is not exceptional, will never dance for the Royal Ballet or equivalent. In some ways, because they are good but not the very best, I feel they needed their vocational training more than the truly brilliant to be able to access the advanced training they needed to get work. I hope they have fulfilled and interesting lives. Certainly to have completed a degree, lived abroad for 2 years and be about to head off across the world before you reach 21 is not to be underestimated, and would, I hope, stand in DS' favour to offset a less than perfect set of academic results in future times. I hope this helps. My personal experience is you have to pick a path, assess if it is working at key points, but don't constantly compare with the alternative routes. There is no right answer, no perfect situation (lucky you if you find one!), just a bunch of parents trying to do their best.

My DD faced a similar decision when moving to a specialist vocational music school. At the end of the day she went for the start of year 10 based on a few suppositions: Her excellent academic background would stand her in good stead through GCSEs Making the wrong decision at A level was likely to be far more costly than at GCSEs Her overriding desire to make a career in music had to take priority Weekend and holiday commitments to high level/nation ensembles meant her time was compromised anyway. In reality the lack of continuity caused a few wobbles at GCSE, smarter choices made for A level than if she had started at the same school at Y12 better musical opportunities by 1000 miles - although one dodgy audition set up which was purely the teachers fault extra commitments took as much time as at grammar school - in some ways worse as she missed so many academic lessons during Y12/13. end result: 4 out of 5 offers at conservatoire including the most prestigious, and 3 scholarship offers on one of the most competitive instruments for places. Academically definitely not as good results as if she had stayed at grammar. But I really doubt she would have the training to have survived the audition run. I had not realised quite how hard and draining the whole process would be. I understand now how the mums of DD feel! For us the decision was whether it was worth going for bust - there was never really going to be a safety net - and only you can decide that. good luck Meadowblythe

No - only place my DS didn't get a Y7 place was WL - he was told as a JA he was too flexible for WL (suspected hypermobility). Now a strapping 6 footer who has shot past his dad's height and build (anyone remember my constant worry he would be too small as well as too bendy) he dreams of the days of dropping into splits. But his musicality has never been questioned (except possibly by the Grade 4 piano examiner, but that's a long story). I don't think anyone has every really worked out who is put on which lists, or why they chose certain children, and this goes for most schools and most artistic disciplines. It is simply a matter of taking what you can from the experience and moving on.

Pups_mum just wondering how youngest pup got on? Must admit he was in my thoughts this weekend.

Chantry Dance - 3 year contemporary ballet diploma and Level 4 diploma in teaching.

I would classify RCS as classical with contemporary Ballet West?

There are plenty of parents on here of DC whose children have been assessed out of various schools, and gone on to dance professionally. And my DS was taught by ex-professional dancers from very prestigious companies who had, themselves, been assessed out.

I was very much in the "don't say anything, things are bad enough .." camp with DS. With musical DD I've been more vocal. Not sure it made a huge amount of difference regarding the staff BUT it has made my daughter more confident in asserting and negotiating situations regarding opportunities for herself. If I had my time again I would risk upsetting the apple cart.

That's interesting .. does that mean students can get loans/funding for the Royal Ballet School?

From an employment point of view, you don't need exams. I'm not sure regarding teaching at some later stage. Obviously the exams also let you enter some competitions.

As far as I am aware, if a course requires A level or equivalent, they probably wouldn't accept her ballet exams. A "mainstream" university will require academic qualifications. However: A levels are not a pre-requisite for all courses. Dancewise, Central, Rambert and RCS all offer degree courses at 16. You need GCSE's (or did when DS went). You don't need A levels. Some music students attend conservatoire with 1 (or none) A levels. I'm not sure on the Hammond's set up regarding Foundation/Full degrees, but I'm sure Pictures and others will be able to tell you. Were you thinking of a dance or academic degree?

I'm starting to think of ballet* as a bridge - it's an arch that sets off, rises and then falls. But it has it's own unique path leading there, will have it's own unique curve, unique height, unique gradient and it's also leading on somewhere new. *or any other art form

Not that my DS ever said no to teaching, but people change, perspectives change, events force change ... Jazzpaws, hope your daughter has a wonderful time - teaching may be the ultimate way of "giving something back" to the teachers that have taken her so far.

One thing to consider is that if she is 15 when starting in the UK at any upper school, she will be one of the youngest - UK students wouldn't start until 16 at the very youngest. I know there are exceptions, but from a social point of view it may not be ideal. To put it another way, why wouldn't you wait until she is nearly 17, especially if moving from abroad? Are there specific reasons you would want her to start at 15?

As DancingWellies says, take it as it comes. Our son was horribly homesick and basically got very, very tired. But it was easier on us (and him) for us to go to him and just have a night at a fairly local hotel rather than spending all the precious time travelling. We started at the other extreme - following advice not to visit for three weeks - big mistake. Every DC reacts differently - listen to advice and see how it applies to how your DD is getting on. Birmingham is a great city to visit and can be relatively cheap - plenty of accommodation, cheap places to eat and things to do which are free/low cost. We still have an abiding fondness some 8 years on.

Definitely know of vocational students who have repeated years in both upper and lower school. Variety of reasons - many injury related, but also in lower school for academic reasons. I hope the fact that it's not the norm wouldn't stop me making the right decision for my child, but as others have said, what are your alternatives? What are the pros and cons of each option? Good luck with your decision.

I'm not sure that repeating year 7 would harm academically - there's no reason why GCSE's should be taken at a certain age, and it's close enough that it wouldn't hurt with sixth form applications A student from my son's cohort was advised to repeat a year twice for academic reasons. The second time he declined ...My concern would be the social media aspects - these, unfortunately, are not going to be addressed by a change of year group.

Wow this is a trick I've missed. Where do you get a card? I think the pancake place I'm thinking of is the Beech Street Cafe, which does a crepe and coffee deal. Very good for people watching. We are going to venture down Cowcross street next visit and the end of the month, I'll report back!

Hi all Looking for recommendations for a quick bite to eat before the Proms - something I've always struggled with. Occasionally treat ourselves to a cocktail and sandwich downstairs in the Albert Hall but can't sustain that for everyday living! Similarly the Barbican. I like the pancake house but I'm sure there are better (and cheaper) places in the area - but my knowledge of that bit of London is not good.

I wonder how that would work with students taking A levels - too late to start fresh ones, and with the two year courses not even AS levels to show from Year 12 studies. You might be lucky and find the course/syllabus/options line up. Unless they are really after overseas students?

I felt Isobel's was the most polished performance - at no time did I feel that technical demands of the programme overtook her musicality. I think there were a few split notes from Will - occupational hazard for trumpeters - and from the comments I wonder if the rest of the first piece held some challenges we didn't hear. Apparently he played a fourth piece which was outstanding. Chethams are obviously past masters at preparing their students for this competition. I guess the Saturday students may have less performance opportunities, and lesson time, than the vocational school pupils. I wonder too, whether the competition is such a priority for the senior staff at full time Conservatoire. Added to this, the students have obviously just started with a new teacher and a new environment, a challenge in itself. My money is still on the percussionist to win overall.

Your daughter is only 9, please bear in mind that no evaluation will tell you what might or might not happen. I do worry that children are no longer getting the chance to be children - do think about what you will do following the assessment, either if it is perceived as positive or negative. And how many of us really knew what we wanted to do at 9? (my choices: zoo keeper or archeologist.) To use a musical analogy; My eldest son is the most naturally gifted musician of my children. However, he hated practice, couldn't be bothered to learn to read the bass clef properly. His sister, who works her socks off, is the one with a scholarship to music conservatoire. More important to me was that both have a love of music that will last them a lifetime.

May I offer our patent family remedy on socks/tights? Each female in the family has their own colour nail varnish and a small dab is applied to the items as purchased? My mum used to do it for my sister and I, and she and I both use it ourselves now. As for the boys .. well getting anything out of the bedroom and into the wash is miracle enough in our house. I am still uncovering items that came home from school up to 6 years ago. Eww.

Lisa Looks like this may be withdrawn anyway, so I'd be careful before signing up. If it was me and I saw a job I fancied. I'd contact them and explain I was doing the course you are doing, and ask if they would accept that as an alternative. If i was my son I'd apply anyway and probably tell them why they were wrong !!