meadowblythe

Have you heard of a book called The Chimp Paradox by Dr Steve Peters? He's the sports psychologist behind the British Cycling team. He talks about different parts of the brain including the Chimp (instinct,raw emotion) and the Computer (cold,logical) and how to use them effectively. It's actually a much lighter read than I've made it sound! Meadowblythe

Porthesia Rail card much loved - in fact, admittedly according to his somewhat biased view, its cheaper to live in Birmingham and do casual work in London than live in London! And the trains run pretty much all night .. No, problem is getting to places where the trains don't run assuming he has to be back to college the next day, also work experience in the summer - he has just been taken on at a couple of large Christian Festivals which are in the middle of nowhere and no, it's not paid work. As we also live in the middle of a different nowhere (Lincolnshire, so many sheep ..) I can quite see he wants his own transport, just trying to be grown up about it (me, not him). Meadowblythe

Hmm having same conversation with Stage Manager Son. He missed his theory test first time as he was in a show which overran and he couldn't get out .. but have persauded him it's worth passing his test before Uni. We had reached an impasse on the car bit - nowhere to park in Birmingham, but his course means he will be travelling all over the West Midlands (and hopefully Stratford upon Avon!) to work, so he has decided to spend his savings on passing his motorbike test and upgrading his 125cc to a larger bike. I am horrified particularly as I know it also means he will be travelling with Dancing Son on the back, whilst admitting it is a practical and sensible option. Of course, he can't see the problem ! meadowblythe

The one thing I would caution is be sure you know where you could sit the actual exam - Julie W may have some insight into this, but certainly the school where I worked wouldn't countenance my son as an external candidate, and his old school, although they did agree, were not exactly keen on the idea. The rules are very tight now about who you have in your exam room. However, would be interested to know if people have found a work around to this problem, and if so if there are any companies that come recommended. An alternative suggestion - many part time/distance degrees are modular (OU springs to mind) and if its a matter of getting some study in, transferable at a later date, this may work? Maybe just studying one module? DS is considering this route at Glasgow Uni, as it also gives you access to their sports facilities and library ! Meadowblythe

Split infinitives or not, still brings prickles to the back of my neck ..

Must admit we didn't have teachers from the main school last year, but maybe that was the boys. Felt a bit let down over that. Also no link between the two weeks, completely different teachers and not even much continuity within the second week . But this may have been a one off. Meadowblythe

To mix my metaphors, or 1970's programmes, the problem with the tribble, definitely at one point, is it was in the same state as Monty Python's Norwegian Blue Parrot. Don't think it had been imbibing first. I really should have been paying attention!

Ventured to the cinema last night to watch the new(ish) Star Trek film. Although it probably has little artistic merit I really enjoyed it. But one thing is really puzzling me - how did the Tribble get onto the ship, and what was its state of health on arrival? OK, more than one thing puzzled me, don't examine the plot too closely .. Hoping someone else has seen it, but was paying closer attention .. Meadowblythe

Huge congrats - now, all you need to do is start him on the viola/bass trombone/french horn/double bass and you can do the whole saturday school + vocational school bit all over again!! On a different note, I think many music festivals tend to have slightly less tense atmospheres than dance festivals, and there is usually constructive feedback to be taken. There are exceptions though ! I also am sad that attendance seems to be dropping, at least at some of the ones near us. A couple seem to be on the verge of collapse which would be s shame.

My this takes me back - re taking school children to productions: Many years ago took my two boys to see A Midsummer Nights Dream at Stratford. Only when I got there did I realise the "full" play is 3 hours+ long and at least one, if not both, were junior school age. The eldest, however, seemed, very confused and kept talking about how he had seen "the other" version at school and insisting there were two versions. Eventually we twigged that they had seen a sanitised version at school without the rude bits in! Incidentally, for those of you with thesp-y type offpsring did you know that RSC offers a variety of (unpaid) roles ? Info is on the website. A friend worked there as an education liaison officer for a week - led to a paid position during her time at university. Providentially she had chosen Warwick Uni. after being rejected by Cambridge (boo) - just shows that sometimes things are meant to be ...

One of the things I liked about the Conservatoire is that the dancers are part of a wider creative environment - there are also students of opera, musical theare, drama, classical music, jazz, film and stage management. They are all largely in the same accommodation and the flats are mixed regarding course members, unless students specify otherwise, and there are opportunities to work in a wide range of productions. All students can get free tickets for any event on in the conservatoire as they want them to experience as wide a range of genre as possible. Meadowblythe

There's a book of this name too - a really sweet little story.

It's an overnighter for me ... Mahler's Resurrection on the Friday, Alison Balsom (DD's heroine!) on the following afternoon. .

The Albert Dock is fabulous -the shop and cafe at Tate Liverpool highly recommended, let alone the art

See - I knew there would be more than one view ! meadowblythe

Hmm Answer from my son, who has tried, is an emphatic "no." It came to light during the Easter holidays. He did two days of Russian, and then two days of "normal," and had a thoroughly miserable time on the first day of both styles as he needed to adjust. He had seriously considered 6th form options so he could combine but reluctantly dropped the plan. I know there are those on here who do combine though - perhaps they have different experiences. Russian ballet needs a huge amount of commitment, you really do have to subscribe wholeheartedly to that style (at least that's what he thought!) meadowblythe

I did a few calculations on this ... Assuming the worst, and having taken your degree in dance you were unable to get employment, one option would be to study for a second, more academic degree. Given you would have previous study (ie your BA in dance) and assuming you learnt via distance learning, this would cost about £10,000. Compared with the cost of a DaDa + accommodation this looked feasible. My DS is year 11, the changes to Dadas didn't overly effect me as our income bought us out in broadly the same place. I didn't want him to do a degree for social as well as academic reasons, but when it came to it, for us the dance training had to come first. So yes he is on a degree course but it was such a brilliant fit for him that had to take precedence. His plan B is to go into the forces if he can't get a position as a dancer. And with his degree he will be able to go in as an officer! Plan C is a part time job and a part time degree and I'll end up no worse off I have to support him in three years time rather than now.

Not all degree courses have that many students - the Royal Scottish Conservatoire only take 12 students per year on their degree course, and they then split some classes by gender within that ... It might be because it's Scottish, but English students can get the usual loans and grants (plus the conservatoire bursaries ..)

Just wanted to say that Hammond does have some wonderful ballet teachers at present ... not trying to make your choice harder!

could you please post your twitter name? Can't find you ...

For what its worth I've made some huge mistakes in the opposite direction I should have listened to my heart not my head when deciding which school for DS aged 11 I should have listened to my DS when he decided mid August he really didn't want to go All you can do is try not to regret too much - and I have found this hard - and to learn from it when it comes to making decisions in the future. I honestly believe that coming to the whole vocational system at 16 rather than 11 has distinct merits - you are unknown and this can be an advantage. You have wider life experiences and possibly greater performance experience. I'm certainly not pushing my extremely musical DD into the equivalent music schools and am actively encouraging her to make the most of the opportunities available to her which don't involve boarding. I now feel many of these mistakes are still affecting my DS at 15, but I am trying to use these past mistakes to help us with our choices now. Meadowblythe

Julie, all I can say is Meadowblythe

Certainly know that its one of the most popular A levels at my school and covers questions such as the existence of God (we are heavy on Richard Dawkins and Oliver Sachs in the library!), questions on such issues as assisted suicide, abortion etc, and also the views on the above from the view of different World Religions. It's also well regarded by the universities.

At the risk of being cynical, if they didn't offer first auditions presumably they couldn't cash the cheques!

Update on non dancing central-school offered son: Despite the Central offer he's at the moment pretty much decided on Birmingham School of Acting.(he's been fortunate enough to get lots of offers). I've mixed emotions on this - closer to home, significantly lower living costs BUT so much less prestigious (with apologies to anyone at/from Birmingham, this is an outsiders view). BUT I made a horrendous mistake myself five years ago when I persuaded dancing son to take a place at a more prestigious vocational school, a choice we will both always bitterly regret. And I wish dancing son had just a little more choice for 6th form (and yes I do realise he is fortunate to have received some a very good offer already). And how much advice can you offer a hormonal 18 year old boy???