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Original poster

GCSE revision without notes?!?

30 replies

MrsRabbitsCleaner · 08/11/2020 23:01

My yr 11 DS has ADHD, just recently diagnosed after a hellish time in lockdown 1. He’s a bright kid at a selective grammar but has really struggled the last few years with lack of focus, concentration and motivation. As a result his foundation knowledge in his core subjects is poor and he’s currently got no revision notes for any subject. He’s looking at 4/5’s possibly some 6’s if he’s lucky.

The issue is he refuses to make any notes at all. He’s very reluctantly started some revision today for January mocks and has managed an hour on Seneca. He tells me making notes doesn’t help him at all and he prefers this interactive way of learning. I get that and am supportive but I worry he has nothing tangible to take forward as he gets nearer to exams and has limited time to revise each topic. My process was always long notes getting shorter and shorter until just a few words on flash cards etc. I appreciate he’s very different but can he really successfully revise with no notes at all?

Should I be worried? He won’t listen to me. It’s a major deal to get him to sit and work for an hour in a day.

I feel guilty that I haven’t pushed for an ADHD diagnosis until recently. I’ve known since year 7 that he’s been struggling and have been in contact with school regularly but because he’s not disruptive or badly behaved I think it’s gone under the radar. We now have limited time to support him prior to GCSEs.

Any experiences welcome. Either to reassure me this might be enough or experience with similar kids and what’s worked for them.

Thanks

OP posts:
Zodlebud · 09/11/2020 07:41

Note taking really doesn’t work for all although it’s definitely reassuring for parents to see something tangible.

It may well be that the interactive stuff does work best for him but work with him to create lists of areas he needs to work more on so he can revisit, links and websites he has used so he has a “resource bank” etc.

It will help reassure you but also give him a little more structure and organisation.

TW2013 · 08/11/2020 23:42

By new ways of revising I mean taking notes, it might be useful to consider encouraging him to do it for A levels but at this stage it is time consuming.

TW2013 · 08/11/2020 23:40

Mind maps for more essay based subjects, seneca or similar and online past papers for all subjects. It is not the time to be learning new ways of revising and it might not help him anyway.

Does he know what he wants to do for A levels? Maybe help him plan a revision timetable prioritising maths, English and A level subjects for now. Get him to be specific so not just 'maths' but surds etc. Only the top eight GCSEs are usually relevant for University. Discuss with the school if he can drop one.

Firefliess · 08/11/2020 23:39

Have a look at revision apps for the phone. Very good for kids who struggle to maintain focus for long periods of time as can be done in small bites. They help pinpoint where the gaps in knowledge are and some of them let you have a parent account to keep track of progress.

kaffkooks · 08/11/2020 23:18

Making notes doesn't work for me either and I have done a lot of exams! As a teenager I used to read and re-read textbooks and underline relevant bits. That is difficult to do if it's a library book though. There are a lot of books of notes you can buy. I would read the relevant section then talk to myself/my cat/my mum about it to make sure I understood it. Past paper questions are v v important if you're not making notes as in the exam you do need to write stuff down. Also to practice concentrating and writing for long periods. Does your son use mindmaps as they are good too for those of us who don't think in straight lines.