Should I not book a family holiday in GCSE year?

My kid is at a highly selective grammar and no-one goes away at May half term. The GSCEs are important and most at school and also in other circles have a big holiday AFTER GSCEs to look forward to.

Dd will be year 11 in September. Her mocks are November and then I think they have mini mocks in February too. We are going away at Christmas.

You need to ask the school. And you need to check the exam board/s timetables. Also ask your dc.
Different schools will do things differently. Some may offer intensive revision/catch up sessions over Easter some don’t - how would your dc feel if they missed them?
Would they be anxious and not enjoy the trip? Even if they brought revision material with them in reality how much will they get done?
When do the exams start ? When is Easter its a big difference between early March and late April if exams start mid May.

Maybe if you are super chilled and can relax despite having a huge “thing” looming over you it would be ok. Sadly neither I nor my two are of that mindset! Roll on 16 June…

Although you do need to factor in cancellations etc.
One family moaned as their DC missed a maths exam as flight was diverted

Trip of a lifetime shouldn't have GCSE revision niggling away at the ba k of your minds. Also, if your child doesn't achieve as expected, you'll always wonder if not revising at Easter was to blame (and you would be right!).

Depends when mocks are - our kids' school has so many it was almost impossible to take a holiday. Mocks were in December, so Christmas was about the only option, which we didn't take last time but I think might with DS in GCSE year

This is exactly what we did but apparently it's wrong to do that and my DD would have resented me for taking her and allowing her to relax when she should have been at home stressed out.

Having a week on holiday isn't doing minimum work. They should have been working hard for that last 2 years (well 5 really) so to just be locked in and work hard during exam period is possibly a case of too little too late and quite likely the reason they are stressed.

The rest of the family don't have 10 weeks off though so they. Other children are still in school till the end of July and parents that are teachers can't just book time off and take the whole family out of school.

My son is only Year 9 at the moment but I know Year 11, had revision sessions during the February half-term, Easter 2 week break and May half-term. I'm not sure when my son's school do mocks but I think it was November, so October half-term was again revision sessions. Your best bet would be to check with the school, as I think they all work differently.

Maybe you have the magic super brain teens that effortlessly get 8s with minimum work. Mine are not like that!

Yes, we did. And A levels. Accommodation included plenty of study space and good Wi-Fi. One of mine did a past paper on the plane iirc. They studied quite a lot. And also relaxed by the pool, swam, and played tennis. As long as the location is quiet and comfy and there’s no pressure to spend days out sightseeing I think it’s fine. It was just the same routine but in a warmer climate!

I dont put the pressure on so thanks for that accusation 🙄🙄. Just advising op that many teens would be stressed out by a family holiday smack before the exams. Mine would anyway.

Oh she has a very balanced life thanks. Had the odd day off and evenings with friends. A week away? No way. They have 10 weeks off after 16 June! Just seems odd call to make.

If you don't know the content by May half term, then spending a full week locked in your room with your mum going all Mumsnet and project managing your revision will make zero difference. If you see it as having them hanging over you then you are clearly putting too much pressure on your child. Even if we had stayed at home she wouldn't have revised constantly as she would have been out with friends or boyfriend, working shifts or just sleeping. Oh and my daughter loved having the break for your information, she came back relaxed and refreshed with a lovely tan.

@abnerbrownsdressinggown do you mean that moving the holiday to the Easter of year 10 was a good idea or a bad idea? Thanks

Not in my circles they don’t. I would have hated that as a teen. How can you enjoy yourself with 9 GCSEs hanging over you?

I'd say at least 50% of my dd's year went away this May half term so it's not that unusual.

Really depends on when mocks are, what your DC would prefer and whether they are doing any coursework subjects (as PP have said, Easter can be quite a crucial time for those).

I can't think of anything less relaxing (for everyone) than bringing revision on a proper week+ holiday. Taking a couple of very short but complete breaks over the course of the year has worked for us.

My DTs have mocks in January 2026. One of them has a 5 day school trip in October half term but they get 2 weeks.

The other has silver DofE at Easter 2026 and that's it. We won't be planning any other trips during year 11.

We often go long haul at Easter but planning on doing a summer one instead next year to accommodate GCSEs. I've got a younger child too so can't do the late June/early July trip - will have to wait till the GCSE/A level year.

We were also thinking of short Europe trip at Christmas but think eldest may have mocks in January which would mean that's out.

Don’t know anyone that went away in May half term. Dd still has 9 GCSEs after half term. Definitely a punchy decision. Seems odd to me when they then have 2 months off after the exams but you do you I guess!

That was my dd's choice to do that with no pressure from us. A quick 15 minutes every few hours around the pool while sunbathing isn't exactly spoiling the holiday. It's just the same as reading a book around the pool.

We've already been. Flew out at 6am on the Saturday morning and landed back at 1pm on the following Saturday afternoon. My DD didn't have any exams then until the Wednesday so had Sunday, Monday and Tuesday full days at home to prepare. I see your point though. This is why I wouldn't fly on the Sunday.