GCSEs 2012 support thread

Oh yes he'll get the same whatever grades he gets!

I think that a take away would be a good idea for the last day of exams. It's ridiculous what some of his friends seem to be getting, for one boy he's friends with his parents have offered £20 for a C up to £50 for an A*. So there's a niggle at the back of my mind that DS might not think we're proud of him if we don't give him some recognition, IYSWIM? Obviously we've been saying how proud we are, but when his friends are getting considerable financial incentives that might not be enough

We took DD out for a pizza last night, all her exams are over. (year 10)

We bought DD an expensive dress for her prom in recognition of all her hard work. She knows that is her big present.

On results day we will be drinking champagne whatever the outcome.

My mum will also give some cash.

We will do the pizza/ meal out stuff. We have four kids and I jsut couldn't afford to do cash!

DS last exam is on the 27th too.

DD ( yr10) has worked her socks off for these exams I have bought her the hoodie she has been admiring for a couple of weeks now. This will be given to her the morning of her last exam. DD has sat 10 exams this time - I don't want you lot thinking I was a soft touch and dishing out rewards for one or two exams! If no resits etc DD worked out that in June of yr11 she will have less exams then this time! As for results day where she will know if she's passed at least one complete GCSE she is planning to go out with friends so I'll stand her a pizza. Her Gran will more than likely hand over some cash but isn't that what Gran's are supposed to do?

we don't do rewards either, but we will celebrate the end of exams with a meal out (a sort of reward for effort I suppose). On results day we may well get a celebratory take away or go out for dinner again as the mood takes us.

Not as such, but DD is keen to take an underwater course in photography. She's a scuba diver and is taking photography at 6th form. Plan is to let her take the course as a gift when we're on holiday. Not sure if it's a gift really, we'd have let her do it anyway to give her a good start to 6th form.

I haven't ever given cash (or any other tangible) rewards. I know parents who have. I think I knew at the outset it would be invidious beteen the DC (I also haven't had sufficient spare cash).

I can't remember if this was discussed at the beginning of the thread, but is anyone else doing 'rewards'? I'm thinking of giving DS £50 no matter what grades he gets just as a congratulations for all of his hard work, but do others tend to do it based on grades achieved?

Well, History is now history.

DD is another with exams right up until the bitter end. She has Stats and German on Monday then German a week on Friday.

Ds doesn't finish until 27th June either, it caught one school out as they scheduled the 6th form induction day then. He started 15th may, but this was his worst week.

That's a very long exam window yellow, almost as long as it's possible to be (27 June is the last day for GCSE exams, but they started on 10 May I think). Have you anything nice planned for 28th?

Yes, 'fine' here too. Or 'fine except for one bit'.

DS3 not finished until the 27th June - and started on 14th May. With very few days without an exam.

I feel very sorry for them all - it seems so dragged out.

dd also had timing problems with chemistry this afternoon. She was checking through the paper in the last 5 mins & found she'd turned over two pages and missed a whole double side on rust. She managed to rush something down before the time was up though (thankfully it wasn't long answer questions) but didn't have time to think the answers through properly (or probably read the questions properly either) - she thinks the paper was 'fine' even so.

Beingfluffy your poor dd - it's so much worse with essays.

Chemistry this afternoon was fine.
Judging by the comments on here on communication from our DCs "fine" is the answer to everything
Monday is a heavy day with Geography and Statistics. Stats is one of the longer exams as it's just the one paper.
The science ones all seem to be 3 shorter papers, so although linear rather than modular they are in identifiable chunks.
DS1 would have been fine with all linear, whereas DS2 currently in year 9 would definitely have done better at modular. They are the wrong way round.

DS was doing Wjec History which today was German History, he resat Russian History last week.
Beingfluffy I can't really decide whether module or linear are better for him. He is good at remembering facts (when he is interested ) and analyzing, but not very good at organizing what he needs to put down on paper

Also reporting on History. Ds said it was difficult to get finished in time although he just did. Ds is doing AS history so is hoping he did well.

Cardi, must be nice to be past the finish line

DD said she and her friends all found the History (B unit 2 AQA) really hard - she has had some revision sessions with her history teacher this week and was told she was very well prepared for it.

She got a C in her unit 1 exam last year (which she really wasn't ready for) and A in her course work- hoping for a B overall- she needs a Humanity at B to go to one of her preferred VIth forms.

One more exam next Tuesday then the hell is over!

Bruffin my younger DD is dyslexic and will be suffering from the reintroduction of all linear exams by the time she does them. Well done to your son for finishing, it is incredibly difficult for them.

It's annoying to lose marks for bad timing. I told her not to worry, it happens and she might still get an A. Unfortunately I think the grade boundaries are on the high side for OCR history. Luckily not one of her A level choices - she would defo need A or A*.

DS said he thought he was running out of time for last question on the history this morning. He gets 10% extra time but it was still panic stations at the end.