Y10 woes-might not pass GCSE English

I'm glad they flagged this at this point in Y10. Others have given great specific resources (and I would echo the idea of a good tutor earlier rather than later).

I'm someone who was diagnosed as ADHD (well, ADD at the time) but wasn't medicated or directly treated until adulthood for various reasons. I was bright and was ultimately extremely successful academically, but I still really wish this hadn't been the case. I'm not suggesting you push medication on your DS, but I do think you should talk to him about trialing something now and seeing if it helps. Not only do our brains and bodies shift as we get into secondary school, the things we ask of them shift dramatically. It's perfectly normal to need to find new tools as we face new challenges in life, and that's what medication is - a tool. I would avoid discussion of whether or not he "needs" medication (which can be attached to the idea that he's deficient or inadequate as-is) and discuss the possibility that "medication might be helpful" and medication as a potential "effort-multiplier". This is also the time to start considering other helpful accommodations so that they can become his usual way of working (a requirement for having arrangements in exams).

I too work and study best with sound and movement, but that's not an option in exams. Separate out the idea of revision/learning and practicing for exams, and have him do each in the environment that optimizes that goal. That means studying/revising in a way that helps the information get into the brain as effectively as possible but then practicing pulling out that information onto practice tests in an environment that mimics an exam room. Talk about the latter as training like with sports, because that's basically what it is. Start in short increments and build up, and make sure he does this not just in your silent home but also in places like the reading room of a local library where there are other people breathing/coughing/turning pages/shifting in chairs and walking. I would definitely make sure to spread this training across his subjects - that will be more helpful for exams overall and it will reduce negative associations with English in particular.

You tube is a great resource there are teachers on there breaking down exam papers and explaining what the questions mean and what the examiners are looking for. Mr Bruff is great at explaining each of the lit books, he will need to also concentrate on his timings with English language paper 1 if he does not leave enough time to answer the creative writing section he won't pass as it covers around 40 marks

I think you've just found that he needs it.

Parent of dyslexic ADHD kid in Y12...

I would do everything possible to get the meds started asap and you may find the rest follows. Medicated DD is a whole different ballgame from unmedicated when it comes to focus and exams.

ETA: Also have one here who can't do anything without music and a film on at the same time. Fries my brain but apparently it is an actual thing for focus.

Have you considered a tutor? The English Language paper is very formulaic and involves specific timings and answering in a certain way to be successful.
In my experience a lot of Year 10 boys look like they might not pass their GCSE English, but a woeful mock result in Year 11 tends to galvanise them, and they then go on to pass comfortably, so I wouldn’t be too worried yet.

English tends to be a subject that takes the 2 years of the GCSE to get to grips with.

ADHD question - does he find coke or coffee helps him concentrate? ADHD meds are normally stimulants so lots of people with adhd will love coke / coffee as it helps them focus. Just a random thought that it could help him before homework or an exam. Worth trialling it out a few times to see if it helps or worse case it’s a placebo

@Needmorelego I'm glad to hear you love novels and plays :)

I guess we will have to disagree on this one – I think some understanding of our great literary heritage is really useful in life. I am not however particularly defending the current spec of GCSE Eng Lit, which I think has a number of issues.

@clary I love novels and plays 🙂
I just don't think analysing them to pieces is a vital life skill.
Interesting if you enjoy it. Horrible if you don't.
English Literature GCSE really should be optional in my personal opinion.

It’s not down to the school really. It’s basically a directive from the govt. School is judged on a number of factors and one is related to GCSE Eng lit grades. So it is more or less obliged to enter students for the exams.

On a practical level, what would a student do when they were supposed to be in Eng lit? Schools don't have the staffed resources to offer a space for YP to be off timetable and supervised. And they cannot be unsupervised.

Tbf it doesn't sound to me as tho the OP's DC is going to get a U/1/2 in Eng lit anyway. Or rather, it sounds as tho with some effort and better direction, plus focus on exam techniques, they could get a grade 4/5 which IMHO is more than worth it. It's never a bad thing to have to work at something and see that you can improve. I have to say I don't share your view about novels and plays, tho I do agree that for many, Eng lit GCSE as it stands has sadly sucked the joy out of their study.

It's a shame if the school won't.
I think it's crazy that they insist on carrying on with a subject that is being struggled with. It takes time away from the subjects that the student is actually good in.
Surely it's better to have (for example) 6 GCSEs at excellent grades vs 9 GCSEs at not so great grades (because they had to spend so much time focusing on a not so important subject that they neglected some subjects).
But obviously it's down to the school.

Unlikely that the school will facilitate this.

OP is it AQA for lit paper as well? Let me look later at some tips I have used (MFL is my core subject but I have supported a number of YP with eng lit and lang).

Sparks notes have free study guides for An Inspector Calls online.
https://www.sparknotes.com/drama/an-inspector-calls/sparklets/
But really I'd get a tutor if you can, the difference one can make is shocking.

Well he obviously does need it doesn’t he?

all I’ll add to this is that with ADHD, some background noise can help with concentration. I take my son’s phone when he’s revising, but he always listens to music. If was up to him he’d also have the multiple devices going!

Could he drop English Literature and just focus on English Language?
To me that's the important one.
If someone can't analyse some old novels and plays - so what? It's not a life essential.

Oh and to support Justonkeepingon.. DD did have a dyslexia tutor from age of 9 and from Y10 they did totally switch into exam technique. So yes maybe not just my brilliant support 😂

I really liked this guy:https://www.aqaenglishrevision.com/an-inspector-calls AQA revision

It's very simplified and aimed at passing/ grade 6s rather than a lot of the YouTube ones who seem to be about getting higher grades.

For my DD dyslexia/ADHD we just needed her to get a pass. Revision needed a lot of input from me but she pulled out a 6 for Lit and 7 for Lang in the end.

To be honest… I’d get him a tutor. My DD sounds very similar to your DS, she’s also ADHD but no medication. DD knew her stuff but couldn’t get it done on paper. Was scraping through on every test. The tutor taught her how to pass the exam. It was an absolute game changer. She did really well in her GCSE exam, and what she learned also had the knock on effect of helping her to get answers down on paper in other exams. Would highly recommend a tutor.

my DS was exactly the same - ADHD and predicted a 6 but just couldn't get it down on paper. Tutor tutor tutor.......
Mine had a tutor at school but she went sick...in Y11 my DS got a 3 in English Language, retook in Nov, 3 again, retook in the summer of Y12 and got a 4. There is hope!!!

Dd in year 11 got 3s for her English mocks. I hired a tutor and she got 8s in her actual GCSEs. The tutor looked at her mocks and said they should have been marked higher than a 3 and were more of a 5 level. But the tutoring definitely made a big difference. The tutor said Dd didn’t understand the exam technique of what she was meant to put down. And once she understood that she was fine. I’m not sure I’d have been much help as i wouldn’t have had a clue though I suppose I could have done some research and tried to work it out. And yes YouTube videos and revision guides would probably have helped with that. But I knew Dd wouldn’t listen to me like she would a tutor!

I assume you mean both Eng lit and Eng lang? They are quite different exams and need a different approach IMHO.

Yes which boards and which books for Eng lit – then people can advise you better.

ETA: sorry it’s early! I thought he was in year 11 but if year 10, then there’s time to work on this for sure.

Firstly check which exam boards he will have. Mine had AQA for Lit but Educas for Lang.

There is a lot of free information out there to help. I can highly recommend Mr Salles on Youtube for both English Literature and Language. If you want to go one further you can buy his book on An Inspector Calls on Amazon. See how you get one with that as a revision guide and possibly buy the others for the books he is studying. He does overviews, which are the best quotes and a formula for it ie you want to mention the start and you definitely want to mention the end. Tell your son that everything he is reading for Lit and the poems is fiction, someone has contrived the language to make the audience feel a particular way.

Past papers are all online and easy to find. The best thing is for you to familiarise yourself with what is expected. I would start with English Language as he needs to know the Lit texts a bit more before doing this. Open the past paper in one tab and the corresponding mark scheme in another. Walk him through it one question at a time. Discuss your answer together, then look and see what the mark scheme is looking for. He will be being taught this in class so look at his school book too.

With Lit, have a look at a paper on Inspector Calls and look at the mark scheme. I think the most important thing that isn't conveyed to parents (although it was to us as our children went to an incredible school) is the AOs (Assessment Objectives) you have to hit all of these. They are laid out in the mark schemes before you get to the answers so don't skip ahead. The answer will also be listing it out under the AOs.

Exactly what @TeenToTwenties says. Treat this like a game. You start with zero points, you need to know what gets points to level up. The mark schemes and Examiner's reports are really helpful. It is easier for an adult to read them, understand them and then talk through them with their child.

Did you ask the teacher what they were going to do in school to help him and what the teacher thought you could do at home to help him?

Revising is not really going to teach him exam technique if he doesn't already have it.

My DS was on track to fail GCSE English at the start of year 11, he was put into a small group at school who just went over and over exam technique (instead of doing PE) and came out with a 5. And his school were particularly shit in general so a school that has teachers willing to call you and discuss this in year 10 I would expect to have some sort of strategy for this themselves.