Is it too early for an A level support thread!

[HereWeGo2023]

Hello all, apologies if there is already a thread but I can’t find one.
May had finally rolled around and the first exam is a mere 2 weeks away. Exam stress has hit our house! It’s feels like everything is about waiting at the moment - waiting for the predicted grades, waiting for the uni offers, waiting for the exams to start, and then the long wait for the results!
This is our youngest DD but the first one in further education so would love to chat to other parents going through this

Ds did physics and said it was harder than past papers, and all friends agreed

He needs some A stars and As across four subjects

DD thinks she messed up a bit on one of the questions on AQA Tsarist Russia paper. It was one of the 25 mark questions. Hopefully she’s done enough to get a decent mark on it and other questions will carry her through.

Next one is after half term.

DD thinks History went ok, no awkward interregnum questions. Then for English the questions on streetcar and on other play (Othello? Or is that another exam???) they had three to choose from and had to do two and she felt like she had some good choices. Her hand had cramps in so just under six hours of exams is no surprise.

@GMH1974 my DS did OCR Physics today. He’s predicted an A but his teacher says he’s more than capable of getting an A*. Well after today he’s saying more likely a B. I’ve never seen him so down. It’s awful. He has done all the past papers and knows all the content inside out. He said the topics were easy but it was the wording of the questions that was so vague and strange and could be interpreted in different ways. He panicked and thinks he’s messed up big time. Needs at least an A for uni. Let’s hope papers 2 & 3 are kinder.

Hi,
May I join in?
Dd had Edexcel Politics yesterday afternoon, AQA History this morning and OCR English Lit this afternoon & now has two massive blisters on her finger!
She was rather disappointed with Politics-she said it was quite an easy paper, but she doesn’t think she answered the questions as well as she could have (?) and ran out of time.
She was really pleased with History (industrial rev) and quite pleased with English Lit. She does Richard III and said the question was on Act 1, Scene 1. She felt sorry for anyone doing Hamlet as the question was awful.

DD was happy with OCR Eng Lit, by great good luck the teachers had been spookily accurate in covering stuff that came up in their recent revision sessions.

I was invigilating A-level Music Technology (anyone's dc here do that?) - very difficult with the school in cyberattack mode. They had to share a large IT room with other subjects, which meant everyone could hear the faint strains of Funkytown through the MTech candidates' earphones - not ideal exam conditions. Felt very sorry for the kids trying to do Physics etc. in the same room.

Good luck to those with exams today. DD has psychology paper 2 this afternoon, I know she'd have preferred a bit more time for revision after concentrating on English yesterday but hopefully it will go ok.

Snap @Neversaygoodbye - and snap again as daughter says Psychology certainly has taken a back seat to History yesterday. But she finds Psychology 'relatively' easy, History she finds a hard slog.
And totally sympathise @scabby1 (huh - coincidence?) about the blisters! My daughter has MS and she said she could barely hold her pen by the end. She had to take a few rest breaks. It was the Tudors for her first History paper and she's happy to bury all those kings and queens forever.
Good luck to all and bring on half term break!

Good luck to all dc with exams today. Dd has Psychology P2 this afternoon- she seems ok and is certainly well prepared. This is only her 2nd exam as Biology and Chemistry don’t start till after half term. Re Psychology she says she’s pleased she does Biology as the Biopsych stuff is much harder if you don’t.

Shes off to schooo soon as has decided she’d rather spend the morning there - I’m not working today so planning on taking dog for long walk to take my mind off it!

Dd is also in for psychology 2 this afternoon. She's planning brunch for elevenish before heading into school for twelve.

DS also doing Psychology this afternoon. Best of luck for everyone.

Just dropped DD to the station as she is going to revise a bit at college before the psychology exam this afternoon. I think she has done enough revision but still feeling nervous for her as this is the exam she was most worried about. Fingers crossed for everyone doing exams today!

best of luck to everyone with the exams today.
not long until half term, which almost feels like a little island in the middle of shark infested waters. Which they have to jump back in to!

Good luck everyone, DS is having a day off after the horror show of yesterday's Physics paper (and btw thanks for the recommendation of looking at Twitter - the meme game was extremely strong). Nothing now til the Wednesday after half term. Counting down the days until this is all over!

Good luck everyone. My son has Further Maths this afternoon.

Good luck everyone my son had OCR physics yesterday and has just recovered for his FM this afternoon.

Another FM in the house here. Good luck to all

Further Maths here too. Hoping for a decent paper!

DS has Further Maths too. I’m praying all goes well to boost his confidence after yesterday’s OCR Physics shocker. Good luck to all the FM and Psychology students this afternoon.

@PacificState @GinandDubonnet @Ilovellamasandpenguins What are your children hoping to do? Mine wants to do Aeronautics and Astronautics.

@GMH1974 mine is doing straight Physics - he loves it all and doesn’t want to speaking just yet. It’s all very clever and confusing to me

Aargh DS just messaged me 10 mins before going into Psychology a level (his weakest) to say he’d been struck down with a migraine. He’s often really sick with them. He has stop the clock rest breaks to take meds for other conditions but that will be 0 use to him today :(

Oh no, what's he going to do, @GayPareeee ? Go in and see how much he can do before he feels too unwell? Or bail out now if that will stop the migraine from getting worse?

I missed the message from him so only saw it after the exam started, he said he was going to go in and try. Sometimes he can push through, sometimes not, DH will go to school to pick him up at least

Oh no @GayPareeee - is there anything to be done about logging it somehow in case any consideration can be applied afterwards?

@GMH1974 DS2 is going for engineering science. I don't know what I'll do when he goes to university - he's been fixing everything in this house for the last 10 years!