Are we ready for a GCSE’s 2019 thread?

[KittyMcKitty]

If so I’m in.

DS (my pfb) will be going into year 11. Mocks after half term. Crossing my fingers for him - needs average point score of 6.5 (across all 10 subjects) to stay for 6th Form.

Anyone else?

[cantkeepawayforever]

DD (second child) also going into Y11. Again, mocks after half term. Has spent much of the summer working on coursework for art & her DT subject.

Target grades are a set of 9s, so funnily enough we're not paying much attention to those - targets which you are almost certain to fail to meet seem to me to be hugely damaging to perfectionist girls. She's formidably disciplined and organised (also a serious dancer, with classes every evening) so I have fewer fears for her than i did for DS, but she also requires more emotional support and gets more anxious ... could be a fun year.

[maZebraltov]

Mine is only starting yr10, although he'll finish one GCSE next June. For me it's a kind of acid test, if he doesn't learn to revise this year then I would like him to look at BTEC & apprenticeship programmes next autumn. He is utterly resistant though. I don't think he'll figure out I was right until he's fully failed at A-level. Argh.

[AtiaoftheJulii]

Hi, yes, have been wondering if anyone would start one before term started!

Dd3 (precious baby!) will be starting y11 next week. She has long term health issues that have meant her attendance has been poor over the last couple of years, mostly due to fatigue and being immunosuppressed. She's just dropped her MFL to give her a bit more time and space, and she's also stopping one of her medications which we're hoping will leave her a bit stronger and that she won't just get really ill again.

I'm going to be encouraging visits to other 6th form open days this coming term. She wants to do A levels but doesn't really know what direction to go after that.

[CheeseTheDay]

DS1 (15) is about to start Year 11, and he's my PFB, so this will be my first time of going through all this with one of my children. Took GCSEs myself, but it was all so different back then, I don't think the pressure was as bad in my day.

DS needs a minimum of seven I/GCSEs at grade B or 6 for entry into the sixth form. Subject specific requirements are the same, grade B or 6, apart from STEM and modern languages, which require at least an A or 7, but preferably an A* or 8. DS wants to be an engineer and is planning on taking four STEM subjects, so no pressure.

DS's will be taking a mix of IGCE and GCSE subjects, and most of the IGCSE's are Edexcel, who have switched to the new 9-1 grading. However a handful of IGCSE subjects are CIE, who are sticking with A*-G. Therefore DS's grades will be a mix.

Does anyone find the new 9-1 rather ridiculous? When most of the world seemingly operate a letter based grading system, it seems nonsense that England has switched to a numerical one. We're meant to be a global society, and I can picture our children now, having to explain the 9-1 system to a potential international employer.

[myrtleWilson]

I'm in!

My Dd is going into year 11 (she's increasingly in denial about this ) She will (hopefully) stay on at six form at her current school.

She is quite anxious about her GCSEs -although she doesn't get anxious around exam time particularly but she does stress about not doing very well. I think she isn't the best at revising so we'll be much more directive about how to organise herself more effectively.

Our mocks aren't until January so I'll be watching you going through it first!

[KittyMcKitty]

Hi everyone

Glad there’s a few of us. DS’s targets are all 8’s - he’s somewhat in denial about it all and will certainly need to up his game in some subjects. He wants to stay where he is for 6th form - entirely achievable but he will need to put in some effort

[HowAreWeHereSoSoon]

Yes, absolutely. DS going into Yr 11, PFB so it's all new. Needs 5 x 6s to get into 6th Form with 7/8/9 in subjects that he wants to take to A'level, which should be achievable. Motivation is a problem, hoping I'm not going to be alone here in this, and first set of mocks before the summer were a mixed bag (designed to give them a scare I think). Proper mocks are before Christmas. I'm dreading the next 10 months

[OlderThanAverageforMN]

DD2 going into Year 11, private girls school. Already been through DD1 GCSE's/A's/University, she just graduated, so one done, one to get going. Slightly different for DD2 with the new system, but at the end of the day, it is just putting the work in, and trying to not get too stressed. We have a mix of IGCSE and GCSE, we need 7 of A*-C or 8-5 and a B or 6 in her chosen A Levels, so actually very achievable. She hopes to stay at her current school as she is very happy, and she was offered a small scholarship to stay on, based on her summer examinations. Our mocks are before and after Xmas.

We don't have targets only predicted, and none of the students do early examinations.

[cantkeepawayforever]

Oh, 6th form plans... staying on at her current school is very achievable. Considering a transfer to another local 6th form, just because although DD's school is great, her year group isn't (though many of the worst may leave at the end of Y11, which would help). For the other, as she'd be an external candidate, while the grade results required aren't extreme, relatively few are given offers (so the selection is at the offers stage, not the results stage, if that makes sense). She's still somewhat scarred by her experience of starting at her current school - form group isolated her, took ages to find friends from other forms, and is scared that by moving school she'd have to go through that process all over again.

[Sat96]

Hello I’m new to this site...

My son is going into year 11 and he’s been working all summer, luckily we weren’t going away!

I am looking for a French GCSE tutor for my son, does anyone have any recommendations?
Thanks in advance

[Nelumbo]

DS is starting year 11 next week he is my eldest so this will the first time going through all this.
He has had a pretty rough time with medical issues over the years and then he went to a high school that went from outstanding to requires improvement in the 3yrs he was there, they completely failed him.
He started a new school for year 10 but is very behind and also has ADD. He is currently not meeting his targets so I'm hoping he is going to knuckle down this year and make a difference.
Its going to be hard keeping him on track!

[OddBoots]

DD is going into Y11, I have no idea what her target grades should be, I know what the school say they are but that was set in Y7 and she has had some mental health problems since so that changes things.

She has been doing about 30-45mins of study per day this summer - she and I have been working together to make sure it isn't overwhelming but keeps things ticking over and doesn't make her feel like she is falling behind.

I don't know when her first y11 mocks will be.

[portico]

I spent all summer downloading legacy topical qns mapped to 9-1 gsce subjects. Just got maths to go. For 8 subjects, I have printed the questions, and organised in folders. Is DS grateful. No, the fuck he is not!!!

[portico]

OldBoots, I looked at mark schemes for 2018. I looked at how Eng/Maths changed from 2017 to 2018, and decided target raw scores for each grades must go up by 5% in 2019.

[Mondschein]

Here!

My oldest girls (identical twins) start year 11 next week. They need minimum 4x7s and 2x6s (inclusive English and Maths) to stay at their school and 7/8/9 for A-Levels. Depending on the subject.
I'm German and 'our' system is so different. Everything about GCSE and A-level is completely new to me. I think they have mocks in January, but I'm not sure.
They're relaxed about exams and I'm too. The school is very proud of their great results and pushs the girls hart. Maybe a bit to hart from my point of view, but my daughters seem to be fine.
My girls are smart, lovely and confident personalities. They make their way. No matter what gcse results say. A few of their friends (and their parents) freak out about the exams already. Inclusive lots of tears and panic after year 10 mocks. I try my best to reduce the pressure.

Mondschein

[Satsumaeater]

My ds is also going into year 11, he has been predicted 6-8s in his subjects but that of course depends on him doing some work. His mocks are in December. I was hoping he'd do some work over the summer but he hasn't. But I didn't start revising for my GCSEs until May half term (did the first ones in 1988), so maybe I was hoping for too much!

His school is 11-16, so he will go to sixth form college. I think he needs 7s in the subjects he wants to do for A level; otherwise 5s will do.

[HPFA]

DD will only be Year 10 next year but a question for those with Year 11s.

Are you planning to scale back any after school activities next year? If so, for the whole year or just the summer term?

DD currently does rowing two evenings and weekend afternoons. Her rowing club is very blasé about effects on exam results which worries me a bit - DD is reasonably able (currently predicted 6/7s) but will need to work hard to achieve those.

How do you strike the balance between allowing relaxation (and obviously exercise is good) and having enough time for the work?

[Satsumaeater]

I'm not, ds has activities three times a week. I think there's plenty of time to fit in work around them and he doesn't have a Saturday job, I'll encourage him to get a job next summer. One of the activities is swimming and I think it's in his interests to carry on with that as he can eg do a lifeguarding course which gives him a great option for casual work both at sixth form and at university.

He'll also do a coaching course as his other activity is athletics.

There's no way you can work non-stop and I really don't think you need to. I mentioned I did GCSEs but presumably there are people on here who did O levels which I think are far closer to the current GCSE - how did they manage? Did you stop everything else in what would have been the fifth year? Did you start revising from September?

[KittyMcKitty]

My ds rows - year 11 it will be 5 x a week (plus all the Heads / Regattas). The schools rowers always do v well in exams - I think it’s the discipline maybe?

[CheeseTheDay]

DS won't be giving up his activities, and I'm glad, I want him to have a balance. His most time consuming activity is rugby, which is only autumn term.

[Bbbbb27]

Dd (pfb) going into year 11. No 6th form at current school so we need to spend some time over the coming months looking at options. There are quite a wide range of options so fingers crossed we find something. Predictions are 8/9s with a 7 in maths.

Then we have dd2 )precious baby) starting year 10. She has a completely different outlook and interesting to see how they both approach gcse’s. Very differently 😬. Predicted 5/6/7/8s 🤔

Both play a sport 3 times a week and will certainly continue, its their passion.

[Mondschein]

If I tried to scale back their activities, my kids would sneak out to go there

We're a music family and music is an important part in our kids life. They would be super unhappy without their orchestras, choirs and concerts. And they also need their dance/riding. I don't want them to study all the day!

[Pythonesque]

I'm another whose eldest is starting yr 11. We aren't UK educated so on a learning curve about the system! She's just got a 9 for her maths (1 class sat it early); I'm hoping that will help counteract any tendency to think she needs to work excessively hard in the several other subjects that have given her targets of 9 too. Balance is all ...

She does have plenty of extra curricular activities, helped by being in a boarding school. A major priority this year is looking into a broad range of career options as she has very little idea what she would like to do and narrowing it down might help with A level choices. (In the back of my mind I'm wondering about IB suiting her but that would require changing schools)