Year 11 GCSE countdown. Revision angst begins.

[Fastenurseatbelts]

Ok. DS1 has broken up for Easter and we now have to all accept that this is it. He has been doing dribs and drabs since mocks in February and an hour- ish in the evenings of stuff set by teachers.

Nowhere near what I remember doing for my o'levels a million miles ago. Friends tell me their kids are doing nothing yet. Not sure I believe them though!

Waiting for reality to kick in with him but he still seems to be treating it all like an end of topic test in class!

What's happening in your house? Are you staying well out of it or like me walking round waving a CGP guide 24/7!!!!!

I have to say, I'm finding GCSEs this time round with the normally anxious and stressy dd2 far easier than with so-laidback-she's-horizontal dd1 last year! It was soooo frustrating to watch dd1 doing so little revision. (She's working a bit more for her AS's, so it's not so bad this year.) But dd2 seems to have decided that the best way to manage her worries about exams is to revise, revise, revise. So far she's remarkably calm, and so am I.

(She will be really disappointed in August if she doesn't get the grades she's after though.)

This week she's only had 3 subjects, and she wants to carry all 3 on to A level, so she's been pretty confident. Next week is the toughest week - a maths AS module and Biology on Monday, English and RS on Tuesday, another English on Thursday and the second History on Friday. Let's hope the calm continues over the weekend!

History this am was fine.

But had some bad news re Geography - apparently Gove has ordered that next week's paper (OCR) is changed so that students do not get a choice as to which topic to do....

Evening off here too. So that's 7 exams done, 8 more to do next week and another 8 throughout June.

Dd forgot to text me! Anyway sounds like exam went pretty well. She'd hoped to do the Cold war questions but in the event didn't like the look of them so she did Cuba. She seems pretty happy.

Schilke - I have felt like throwing up for large chunks of this week and eaten crap at lunchtimes as was all I could face. It's funny because there's not a stressed out atmosphere at home at all. Just lots of loves and cuddles. I dropped them off at school yesterday v cheerily - then cried all the way home from sheer tension. It makes me think on a wider scale about how hard being a parent is. Because these are just exams and we'll deal with whatever comes but what's stressing me is pure and simple - is dd happy? Whatever happens on results day we'll be fine and move past this but at some point as parents we'll have to deal with things that aren't as easily overcome and seeing your child suffer is pure agony isn't it? My parents have lived through seeing my sister widowed. That was bad enough for me as her sister but as my kids grow up I see it differently and it's worse.

Arrgh - must eat more crisps!

MissScatterbrain that seems very 11th hour to change an exam surely they were written ages ago?

PE (AQA) was "odd" - that's about as much as I can get out of ds at the moment. Coconutty how did your ds find it?

The paper has been changed? How is that possible? Bloody hell!

I wonder how ohwhat's dd was today.

Sorry - been out on the longest school pick up ever in Friday traffic……I will have to fess up. I WAS joking about wanting to be back in 1980! However I do feel sometimes that it is hard watching someone else's stress and actually I would have been happy to sit my son's French exams for him (no revision needed as some of still resides in what is left of my grey matter).

I said up thread that I'd quite like a go at a few of them again especially maths which I hated back then but now love and Chemistry which I failed dismally in 1979 but fell I could pass now I know all about ionic and covalent bonds.

DS is still very laid back about it all, I suspect that will change soon.

When my DD was repeating questions from RE and History and I was running through in my head what I would have put, I realised how involved I have been in testing her on revision notes (this is why I love this thread - would never tell anyone that in RL!).

eatyourveg I got an "It was ok" text about PE(AQA). Back to his usual reply.

Dd reported that her history teacher's exam question predictions were way off the mark. Thankfully dd seemed fairly phlegmatic about the whole thing!

Busy week next week, biology, 2 x Eng lit, another history and something else I have forgotten!

I decided to do economics instead of a French at A level, which was a huge mistake. Helping DS revise his French for the CAs has made me realise I wish I was better at languages and I wish I'd done French. And amazingly whereas I couldn't wait to drop physics and chemistry for O level, I find chemistry curiously intriguing now. The quote which says 'education is wasted on the young' isn't entirely true, but it has resonance . . .

Re the geography paper - it was the school who told the students .

I mentioned this on another thread but "Aaaaaarrrrgggghhhhh DD has tonsillitis"

Morvah, I agree entirely. I took French and Economics at A level and dropped History. Huge mistake. Ploughed the French completely and I love History, would love a second chance.

Has she got antibiotics Katy? Could well be much better by Monday if she has.

I know but I'm panicking; She will probably be OK for Eng Lit (tues/Thurs) but she has missed a load of Ballet practises (Tues/Wed/Thurs/Fri) plus 2 days at college (sat/sun) for her Intermediate Foundation on 31st and6 day without exercise will be devastating, even allowing for the anti-biotics to kick in

She only saw the GP tonight as we weren't sure if it was a cold & sore throat or what I feel guilty she sounds like she smokes about 50 a day.....good job she did her Music GCSE last year

Thanks I'm sure she will - Antibiotics are great & the GP only gives them if they are really necessary so fingers crossed

Oh, such a nightmare - hope she is feeling much better asap.

Thanks - fingers crossed

Oh dear katymac, hope she feels better soon. With the weekend here it gives her a couple of days to recover.

Anyone know if scarlet fever is easily caught by a 15 year old? Dd1 been off school with headache, sore throat and temperature today. This evening she has come out in a red rash and scarlet fever is going round her school. Trying not to panic! It's my penalty for being so calm this week! I know that it's just a case of needing antibiotics, but wouldn't want ds1 to catch it.

Thanks schilke, fingers crossed for you that he doesn't get it