....or, Exams R Us
(with the help of Shimelle's Sketch of the week).
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| The pinwheels are in green felt |
When I was at school anyone who worked very hard was called a "stew". Revising for exams was "stewing". My two don't like it if I shout "keep on stewing" upstairs as they work. They tend to come out of their rooms and pelt me with things, over the bannisters.
I asked them what word they would use and they couldn't think of one. (What does this say about school life today? I'm not sure. Maybe it just means they are at a school which respects a bit of hard work?)
What about skipping school then I said. What would you say for that? We said "scheming" as in "I schemed triple General Science and went home." Oops. did I say that out loud? Strange word, they thought. "Skiving" (to rhyme with "jiving") is what they use. But remember kids, it's for saying and not for doing..
"Formals" have turned into "Proms". School dances, as we knew them, ("hops" according to my mum) don't happen round here anymore. Too hard to police. Mmm.. I think I can feel another new page coming on. But I'd like a few more examples, please, if you have any?
"Formals" have turned into "Proms". School dances, as we knew them, ("hops" according to my mum) don't happen round here anymore. Too hard to police. Mmm.. I think I can feel another new page coming on. But I'd like a few more examples, please, if you have any?
39 comments:
Goodness, you're taking me back to my school days - you've really got me thinking about this, I'm sure we used to say so many words, no longer used today.
I was certainly a bit of a swot, and never really skipped school - far to scared my parents would find out LOL.
Another wonderful layout Sian on your everyday thoughts and life.
No consolation, but the actual dealing with exams gets harder as you get older :-)
Before my good school (one that respected hard work), you were 'keen', or a 'keener', if you worked too hard. And I was :-)
great layout - love the compilation next to The Tall One.
In my time studyign was swotting, missing a class was skiving and we didn't have a big school dance or prom
Love the big photo on your page, and the little felt pinwheels.
We called skipping class 'skiving' as well. I did this once when it snowed, a rare occasion where I grew up on the essex coast, and had a snowball fight. Didn't realise that the classroom windows had a distant view of our chosen war zone... got a few detentions for that one!
We called revising 'cramming'. And I think we just called the dances 'the school dance'! very imaginative! x
oh Sian, this brings back memories, if you worked hard at school you were called a swot, and you swotted for exams. Missing a class was skiving or if you didn't go to school all day you were bunking off!!
We didn't have a school dance either.
Good luck to the tall one. Great layout too, a good to look back on xx
Yes, I used 'swot', 'skive', 'bunk off' too
Hpe it's not too stressful round your house.
You'd be known as a 'swot' when I was at school. My two tell me it's a 'boffin' or 'boff' these days, but that you can also be called that for wearing neat uniform!
'Skiving' would be our word for 'scheming', both theirs and mine....theoretically of course!
My teenage nieces have all had proms at the end of GCSE exams, but we didn't have anything like that when I was at school.
'boffin' 'swot' 'cramming' 'bunking off' ....it seems the words have not changed much :) hope the exams go well
we had a school disco but not a posh affair like a prom. i would have loved a prom but instead i went to the medical college ball when i qualified, now that was a night to remember,
jo xxx
For our end of year exams we would have a week off school before they started and it was known as 'Swot' week. If you missed a class you were 'wagging'. If you were studious you were a 'nerd' or a 'try-hard' or dare I say it ... a 'suck'.
Our dances were called 'formals', but the party after was always more important than the actual event.
In Australia it is very important to not be seen to be trying or succeeding - we are very good at cutting down our tall poppies, not necessarily a good thing .. you never get a big head/arrogant over here! That doesn't mean we don't try, you just don't see us trying - and then we laugh it off with a joke! :-)
Bunking off was for missing school and swot for if your worked hard when I was at school. No dance or prom in my day.
Yeah, we have the revision timetable up, Rob only coming out of his room for norishment...'only three weeks left' I keep telling him. And 'you know it makes sense to work hard now'. Good luck to you boy and mine.
Good luck to your boy from me too. We had swots, we skived and we bunked off. No to the first, yes to the other two for me. We had school disco's! no such thing as a prom for us:( Gorgeous LO Sian
It was cramming for exams, skipping was skipping (no creativity here), and the junior dance was a prom, but the senior dance was a ball. Ordinary dances were often hops. Your papers and embellishments are just perfect for this subject!
Here in America I think the acceptable "lingo" gets changed yearly, heck, maybe even daily. When I was in school, people who skipped classes "cut" and then their parents got called by the truant officer! The studious ones were nerds. I definitely fell into that category. I crammed for exams. My younger two children barely even prepare. i don't think they even have a word for studying anymore ... who does that???
It was the school disco in my day and bunking off. I can't remember what you were called if you worked hard....mmmm maybe that's not good. Love your layout and placement of the photo.
It was the 'school disco' for me,'swotting' and, for 'skiving' read 'doggin' it' (no 'g')! Great LO Sian
Alison xx
Round here, missing a class is 'bunking off' and what was a 'swot' is now a 'geek'.
Guessing your boy is doing his GCSEs by the number of subjects and it is a scary thought that whatever he does in the future depends on the results of these exams, no pressure then ....
i love all this talk of school vocabulary! i have learned quite a bit from this post. :-)
Oh this brings back memories of my GCSE's, if I wasn't studying I was sitting the exams, and that was it! We called it skiving, and you were called a swot if you did your homework! Good luck the The Tall One :)
"round yer" missing school was mooching or mitching, probably a corruption of the Welsh in what is known locally as Wenglish. We didn't have a school dance, goodness me didn't we know there had been a war???
The tall one will do ok with such tremendous support and his mum has given me a few happy moments reading all the lovely memories
Ah we are dealing with GCSE and AS revision so I do empathise. Like the idea of the page - didn't do one of either kid revising should do really. Hmmm...
Swot, skive and no dance/disco/prom for me - love the photo of TTO - very "moody". Hope he does well, sounds like he's trying hard.
Swot and skiving for me. Good luck to The tall one.
Swotting...Skiving...& School Disco! To me a Prom sounds so American!! Great LO...just catching up & may I say I'm glad you got hold of that vintage beach PP you commented on when I posted my March DP DT LO's!!! Especially love thos tiny pinwheels!! :)
In my time studying was swotting, missing a class was skiving and if you were missing all day it was bunking off,we didn't have a big school dance or prom. I too am madly revisiing as exams in two weeks and I am not ready. Good luck to the tall one I am sure he will do great x
A layout about the different sayings or current slang words have been rattling around in my brain for a while, so I'd love to see what you come up with. :D
Wow, have I learned a bunch of new words! In my school days, you crammed for exams, were a nerd if you studied too hard, and if you cut classes, smoked and drank you were a burn out.
Love the word stewing but not heard of it before. That photo and LO evokes the teenage feel.Good luck to you and him.
Love your little felt pinwheels... Stew is new to me. We used 'swot' and 'smarty pants', and 'skive/skip', and my children's vocabulary included 'bunk off' (I am hoping they never did, but it's too late to care now!).
We "crammed" for exams, "skipped" class, attended the "prom", and were simply "nerds" if we studied hard.
Cute layout!
Loving this post and that layout is superb Sian. When I was at achool (in Dickensian times lol) they were calles 'swots' and 'bunking off' was missing lessons ....
good luck to your boy. I am sure it will go fine. I too am spending a lot of the day at a desk! as an 18yr old we call missing a lesson skiving and if you are working really hard probably cramming! We do have words for other things though. Such as a good conversation is "good chat" and if you have done something cool or funny, it's "lads". i think this may just be boarding school words though! Lovely page as well! xxx
Hee Hee In my day if you worked hard at school you were known as a "keener". These name changes would make a terrific LO!! Good luck to your DS. My DD is finishing up her fourth year of college and can't wait to finish. She has so many exams that I can't keep track. Just completed another insurance exam this week and is now an official insurance broker. She already has her job lined up and starts the end of the month. It is so great to see the years of hard work pay off. Somehow I feel that it is my accomplishment too, only because I always told her that she had to always work hard in school for the day she would get her "big girl job". ;) Guess that day is here!!
I was a bit of a swot at school, only bunked off General Studies in the 6th form but did enjoy a good school disco!! Good luck to your DS, sounds like he'll do well!
Good luck to him! I hope he gets the results his hard work deserves xx
Love the vocabulary ideas, and it reminds me again of a post I need to write soon... We would 'skive' (well, I wouldn't obviously!) but when I taught in Cambridge it was known as 'mitching'. I foyu worked too hard you were a 'creep'. Revising was always, um, revising!
Does the way the school years are numbered/named differ now from then? I was at school just as the changeover from 1st-5th year then 6th form to Year 7-13 was happening. How about members of staff: masters/mistresses -> teachers, dinner ladies -> lunchtime assistants? How much have the school subjects changed? (I hope my two get to take Latin as I did...)
"Nerds" around here would never think about "cutting" class, not even for "Senior Ditch Day" (when all the seniors skip class). Dances just seem to be dances, except for Prom, which is still Prom.
Although we still have "detention" for kids who have to stay after school for punishment, we also now have something called "referrals," which I don't quite understand (b/c, so far, my kids haven't gotten one).
Rinda
I remember "cramming" as the term for studying hard, though I couldn't be accused of doing that during high school where I studied just enough to get by. I was well into my twenties before I learned how to study.
"Playing hooky" was the term for skipping school.
BTW, we applied the term "farmer" to anyone we didn't consider cool...that's kind of laughable since we lived where lots of farming and ranching was done.!
When I was in school (back in the middle ages, lol) studying was cramming, skipping class was called skipping or cutting or playing hookey. There were hops but the big dance was the formal. I can't remember what we called those who studied really hard and made the great grades.
Loooove this layout! Those pinwheels are darling. I'm sure The Tall one will do well.
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