GCSEs 2012 support thread

[Kez100]

Here we go........hold on tight!

[Kez100]

My daughter has already finished History (year 10), Maths (November), Drama (March) and ICT OCR Nationals (controlled assessments), so doesn;t have too many coming up.

Week 1 (14/5) French reading, French listening and RE
Week 2 (21/5) English Lit x 2 papers, English Language, Science x 2

....then one Science paper in late June.

[BringBack1996]

DS has a ridiculous amount of exams, somethink like 24 coming up. However he's already done art and 2/3 of maths.

No exams until 21st of May when he has them pretty much full on for 6 weeks.

Does anyone know what happens when two exams are scheduled for the same time? Does DS do them both on the same day at different times?

[Rezolution]

Yes, he sits one paper and then is supervised by an invigilator while he has his lunch/sandwiches and then sits the second paper. It is arranged so that he cannot tell other candidates what is on the paper he has sat and they cannot tell him what is on the one he is sitting in the afternoon.

[IdontknowwhyIcare]

Oh gosh 24 exams! Your poor ds. In this house we - yes I mean we, all the encouragement to revise, eat well sleep etc, help with revision feels like I am taking them. Lol.
Ds has 10, all the final parts after the coursework, controlled assessments etc.
He has w/c 21/5 biology, PE theory, chemistry, eng lit (poetry dreading that one although all work to date is A*), DT and economics.
W/c 28/5 is business studies and physics.
W/c 11/6 maths, history and maths.

Some days time gallops by, other times it seems like ages away till the exams.

[Shanghaidiva]

My ds has German on Tuesday this week and Monday the following week. Should do well as he is fluent, but these are his first formal examinations (he is 11) so the whole process is new for him.

[BringBack1996]

Thanks Rezolution. He has three exams in total that day so the two at the same time in the afternoon will probably be one after another in that case. He's dreading that day as he has physics in the morning followed by history and latin. I really don't see why his school don't do more modules/early entry. The number of exams he has this year is just awful.

[glaurung]

Dd starts off with French like yours Kez, then English, PE and so on. Thirteen in total, finishing on 20 June. We're at the point now where we'll be glad once they've started (and even gladder oncer they're over).

[SecretSquirrels]

DS did his Maths in Y10 but has Statistics in it's place and 11 subjects altogether.
Maths is the only early entry the school does and none of his exams are modular.
First exam is on 14th May and last one on 21st June. Not sure how many actual exam papers.
He's very motivated and ambitious but his interest lies in Physics along with Maths, Chemistry and Biology. He detests and struggles with English. Naturally he wants to spend all his time revising Physics (he wants to get 100%) and resists revising English. I keep telling him that after the next few weeks he'll never have to do English again.

[BeingFluffy]

I can't believe how long the exams go on for, I am sure in my day it was a couple of weeks. DDs start with French on 14 May and end with Latin on 20 June. Around 18 exams plus 10 hours of art. DD is actually doing her piano practice to avoid revising!

[BringBack1996]

DS got the 10 hours of art out of the way last week thankfully! It was very stressful in the run up to it so I'm glad it wasn't at the same time as his other exams.

[BeingFluffy]

Bringback1996 - I know :( it is difficult enough to get her to do her art homework under normal circumstances.

[Kez100]

We said that about Drama. The production was at the end of last term. At the time, she wished it was later, but now the major revision has kicked in she is pleased it is over!

Teacher also said the Drama Unit had to be done in x number of weeks so sitting the exam later wouldn't have helped as they would have started learning the lines etc later as well.

I have just been up and she is sat with little coloured post it note arrows. With french on some and the english translation on other matching them up! Apparantly it is only going OK, can she be excused washing up tonight!!!!!! They just knwo how to play it perfectly, don't they.

[BackforGood]

ds has finished both his 2 English (at end of Yr10) and his maths (in March) but still has 16 exams on his list. He starts with French (most hated subject) next Monday.

[TheOneWithTheHair]

Checking in and place marking. I'll be back when I have time to read the thread. :)

[MiladyGardenia]

I wish I could get my head around this 'newfangled' way of doing things! I know that ds1 has done some bits of some exams but what with Higher papaers and Lower papers and coursework and early entrances etc etc I don't know what's going on. He does though so that's ok...

So he has French on 14th and 17th May (also his most hated subject) with RS on the 17th too; following week is Sciences, then the rest as a mix until the last exam on the 25th June (Geography and one of his favourites too).

He's quite fortunate as he only has one day when he has two exams, the rest are all just one each day with a goodish amount of study time between most.

[empirestateofmind]

DD starts the written exams with English next Thursday. She has finished Art so has 18 exams still to go.

[BringBack1996]

I wish DS's was like that, Milady. He'll have a period with three/four days without exams then he'll have two or three on the same day! He seems to think that's because the school use a few different exam boards but I have no idea

[SecretSquirrels]

They do seem to go on for a long time. Just asked DS and he has 19 exams, starting with Geography. The thing is that with controlled assessments he has already clocked up many, many hours worth of work towards these GCSEs during year 10 and 11.

I did O levels in, ahem, 1974. All crammed into a couple of weeks if I remember correctly.

How nervous or stressed are everyone's DCs?
DS makes out he's not worried but he has lost his appetite. A serious symptom in a greedy 16 year old boy. . I am annoying him by nagging trying to coax him into eating better.

[GrungeBlobPrimpants]

Thanks for starting this thread kez100

Drama down, loads still to to. Mostly all before half term and I'm convnnced she hasn't done enough work arrrrghhhhhh

Got to dash now but am marking place

[BackforGood]

my ds is the opposite of stressed. I've just gone down now, to find him and his mate (who I didn't know was here) playing on the x-box. Not quite sure how tht's helping their study ???

[TheOneWithTheHair]

Ds's start with French on Monday. That seems to be a common one with us. Food Tech theory on 16th and more French the day after. English on 22nd and 24th then 3x science on 12th June.

So only 8 exams left. Not too bad but he seems to be reluctant to do any revision at all. He has already had a massive strop at the mere suggestion that he do some work. :(

[TheOneWithTheHair]

By the way, love your name BringBack1996. :)

Don't think I want to do it all again though!

[MiladyGardenia]

I think it's partly that, BringBack, but probably also partly the choice of subjects. I feel for your ds though- that's an awful situation, imo.

Ds1 doesn't appear to be too stressed at the moment, although I have noticed he's been complaining of tiredness more over the last couple of weeks. But he's been revising since just before the Easter holidays so he feels in control. I think.

[BringBack1996]

DS is in a position where he is stressed, tired and wants to do well. However he isn't revising, is always too tired due to sports commitments and then gets even more stressed because he hasn't done the revision! He wants to do well but really lacks motivation IMO.

[BringBack1996]

TheOneWithTheHair I'm pg with DC3 so really am doing it all over again!