Today, while he is still frustrating me in regards to not being focused on his Latin class work, I am taking some pride in Beorn once again. We received his exam results for the Cambridge IGCSEs he took at the end of last year. For those who understand the system, these are supposedly equivalent to UK GCSEs and are graded from A* to G with grades A to E being equivalent to O level grade A to E. Beorn took three "papers" as they're called, in Chemistry, Maths, and English. The program coordinators at Beorn's school claim receiving a B on a Cambridge exam is the equivalent of getting an A on a similar exam here in the states. All I really know is an A* is the top score, supposedly very difficult to get (Hyperception says it is similar to something called starred first in British examinations) and an E is passing. The E is just passing, although it allows you to continue in the program.
Cambridge has a recognition program called "Cambridge Scholars." In order to qualify, you must pass three papers in a single testing session (basically a two week period at the end of the year) with a grade of C or higher. No one at his school qualified last year, and all of the 9th graders weren't qualified, as they only took one IGCSE at the end of the year. So, we were holding our breath, hoping Beorn would get three Cs at least, as this society would look good on his future college applications.
Without further ado, here's how he did:
IGCSE Chemistry ~ B
IGCSE Maths ~ B
IGCSE English (including essays) ~ A*
...
I am so proud of him.
Apparently talking to them like people rather than children endears me to them, and then I have to try and let them down gently. Damn it.
).
And it's nice to see you here, sweetie. 
I'm not thirty yet, but close enough.
