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Secondary education

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Original poster

Year 11 GCSE countdown. Revision angst begins.

999 replies

Fastenurseatbelts · 01/04/2014 13:55

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!!!!!

OP posts:
nostress · 28/05/2014 12:34

Yes struggle here too! He had a strop earlier saying the break had been my idea! It was when I said he couldnt go to GF's house til about 3. He could of gone Saturday but he CBA and just wanted to play on the PC. Oh well at least I enjoyed the break!

Coconutty · 28/05/2014 12:53

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eatyourveg · 28/05/2014 13:21

yes ocr here too coconutty ds seems to think P2 has more to revise than any of the rest put together - they're not at the same school are they? Your ds seems to have the same boards for Geog and PE and I assume English (AQA) as ds

Coconutty · 28/05/2014 14:42

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AtiaoftheJulii · 28/05/2014 17:49

Coconutty that sounds right, is that OCR Gateway Science? My dd2 did Core last year (to give them the choice whether to 'just' do Additional or to persevere with the separate sciences). I remember being very confused last year when dd1 had only 3 units for each science (AQA I think) and I was sure dd2's went up to 6!

The grade boundaries are pretty low for OCR Gateway, so hopefully she'll think it was worth continuing with the separate sciences - although I don't think she's really started the Physics revision yet ...

Coconutty · 28/05/2014 22:16

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MissScatterbrain · 29/05/2014 08:06

DC is doing all triple science papers this summer rather than have these spread out across a few years Confused

YeGodsAndLittleFishes · 29/05/2014 08:31

Same here, Scatter. That's why DD has so many exams, the school swapped to linear and all the exams at the end of the 2 year courses. :(

AtiaoftheJulii · 29/05/2014 08:42

Everyone had to swap to linear :) And yep, if you want to do them separately, it's all in one go. (unless you do Core, Additional and Further Additional ... but let's not confuse the issue!)

DD2 has an A* in Core (all the units 1&2), so if she'd wanted, she could have just done another 2 Additional papers (units 3&4) this year for a second science qualification, but instead she's doing 6, 2 of each subject (units 1-3 and 4-6).

MissScatterbrain · 29/05/2014 08:59

It all sounds confusing but I think I get what you mean. I feel sorry for science teachers having to juggle all these exams.

YeGodsAndLittleFishes · 29/05/2014 09:06

Thanks Ataio that is as clear a description as I've come across to date! (Or perhaps it just becomes clearer with repetition.) I can see how it must be preferable to the old 'O' level system.

AtiaoftheJulii · 29/05/2014 09:59

giggle - I have spent large amounts of the last 2 years explaining it to dh! (where's that eye-rolling emoticon??)

Nocomet · 29/05/2014 10:40

Exams and school revision in fancy colours (the ones she shades her time table with) here.

DD's private revision time table is scribbled in her planner.

She seems to know what she's doing. She's very calm and collected.

Gone into school to day to do maths, I hope it's useful, she'll be seriously pissed off to have got up early if it isn't.

MorvahRising · 29/05/2014 13:57

DS is now dusting and hoovering the whole house for me having actually volunteered of his own accord! Amazing what a bit of revision avoidance will achieve. He runs screaming for the hills if I mention it usually.

sausagedog12 · 29/05/2014 16:08

My DS is still to hit the books after having a long weekend off. Knew this would happenHmm

SupportManager · 30/05/2014 10:06

Bank holiday time off helped here. DD had revision session at school yesterday and then revised happily for most of the evening as well Shock. Back at school for 9 this morning for revisionclass.
she and her mates have been talking about universities and looking on uni websites. They've turned into mature young adults overnight Shock Grin

eatyourveg · 30/05/2014 11:03

Atia doing 1&2 and then 1-3 and 4-6 is what ds1 did and it means he effectively has 4 science GCSEs. One of the reasons I'm glad ds2 opted for the 1/2 3/4 approach.

Don't like the fact that dc's school make them take 1/2 before deciding whether they can do double or triple as the triple students end up with a qualification which is basically negated by the singles and thus a complete waste of time and effort.

ds1 heading back to London today so proper revision starts again in earnest this afternoon

AtiaoftheJulii · 30/05/2014 14:13

support it's weird - in a very nice way! - to see, isn't it? Dd2 has managed to order 26 prospectuses - think she got a bit carried away. My poor postie.

She's also developing her revision techniques to creative scrapbooking levels - making cute little minibooks for each science unit. I think it's all getting to her a bit, she's been a bit down for the last day or two ... Still, 3 weeks today and she'll have finished her exams, had Prom, and be on her way to my mum's to have a proper wind down by the seaside.

MorvahRising · 30/05/2014 15:04

We've just been to buy the prom suit - Primark's finest! He's six foot one and still growing so I'm blowed if I'm forking out a fortune on it.

Revision avoidance today involved coming to Waitrose with me to 'help'. This just meant we ended up with more chocolate, crisps etc than was on the list. To be fair though he then did a two and a half hour statistics paper and is now doing physics.

Atia love the scrapbook idea!

Nocomet · 30/05/2014 16:21

We have walls covered in science mind maps.
And DDs nose has been in her RE book all morning and there is a threat of music for this afternoon.

When she starts singing, I'll know she's pissed off with it. I mutted up thread about music listening tests.

Best1sWest · 31/05/2014 08:55
Best1sWest · 31/05/2014 08:56

Short COURSE. Of course.

KatyMac · 31/05/2014 09:08

I pulled DD out of the RE & ICT short courses as I felt she had enough to do

Just to compound this next week, DD is doing her Ballet Intermediate Foundation today - she is more nervous about that than any of the other exams

eatyourveg · 31/05/2014 09:18

Short courses are usually half a GCSE iirc and when on a CV with a list of other subjects who's to know if they are short or long. As for whether they count, one local grammar asks for an average of 48 points from the best 8 GCSEs as an entry requirement. Each grade has a score much like ucas points. It goes as follows eg A*=58 A=52 B=46 C=40 D=34 E=28 F=22 G=16 If you followed a short course and got a B, you would score 26 so in answer to your question yes it counts.
Pob lwc hefo'r Gymraeg Smile

Best1sWest · 31/05/2014 09:30

Not a chance with the Welsh EYV. His dyslexia doesn't help but total lack of interest helps even lessHmm.

Useful info though, he should do ok at the ICT.

It's always frustrated me that both DCs hated languages. They were my favourites at school.