Year 11 GCSE Exam Support Thread 2

[HSMMaCM]

New thread ..... (DD not sure about the prom dress she has bought!!!!)

Gosh T&T, you are so well organised for the Prom! I am taking notes.
Hope her last CA's went/go well.

Well done mini Dingit.

Good luck mini tulip.

No after school revision sessions here. She just got an A in her History coursework (which is one of her worst subjects, along with English). Not too keen on essays so just got to get through the next month or so and they will be swiftly dropped.

Tilly DD's prom is really early, a week after she finishes (and the same day some others finish), so we have to be reasonably organised. (Plus I'm at the very organised end of organised anyway ).

Well done to your dd too for her history littleham.

I thought I was a bit mad getting dd some ballet flats, but I don't think she will last the evening in her heels either!

Thanks - (think the history was a bit of a struggle).

My dd has insisted on her first pair of heels and she looks like a baby fawn learning to walk. Think that ballet flats may be a good idea.....

Littleham, that's great!

DD has a pair or two of boots with heels. She will need some for the prom if she wants to wear a maxi-dress

Great news on the History Littleham and hope Tulip ' s DD'S Art has gone well.

DD a bit brighter today and is going to have Maths tutor later.

Now, don't all pass out from shock but the individual timetable has arrived - thanks to all thd help from you all it is the same as the one I put together.

Also an email of the latest Ofsted improvement inspection has arrived. The inspector has recommended that they have a full inspection shortly and indicated they can expect to go back to 'Good'. Very positive comments re rapid improvement etc.

I actually feel for DD things have been much worse since the School received bad ofsted 18 months ago. Now they have caved and are becoming an Academy the monitoring reports suddenly improve. The full Inspection is due in the next few weeks so hopefully it will boost teachers' morale and it will be a clean slate for the new Head to take over. Plus a better final note for the current Head to retire on.

DD got an A in her maths mock calculator paper. She's over the moon.

Glad you got your timetable sugar plum

DD's school isn't doing extra revision sessions AFAIK. They're doing the normal timetable - still finishing final topic in Biology and Geography, but I think they're basically just doing revision/exam technique in the rest. She was pleased to announce yesterday that she'd had her last ever citizenship lesson and that it actually consisted of revising comp. sci.

'Study leave' is just that once the exams start (other than the Art, which the ones who take it did last week), then they only have to go in for their exams.

Sorry to break the news Errol, but General Studies is just as bad as citizenship. And often compulsory. Think my dd will have to do it alongside A Levels - currently Maths, Physics, Music and German.

Well done mini HSMMaCM!

Whether DD thinks it's as bad will depend largely on whether it's the same teacher as they had for yrs 10/11, I suspect. As I understand it, at her school they have to do it but don't have to do the exam if they're doing more than 3 proper A levels. (she's down for Maths, FM, Physics and comp. sci - but not so keen on the latter, wishes there was a 'further physics'!)

Excellent news on Maths HSM

There are after school sessions for some subjects at DD's school and study leave starts 15 May.

Here at Casa Wordfactory, we're instigating study leave informally, when we feel the need, prior to anything 'offical'.

DS has already said he probably won't go in tomorrow, and will spend the day revising at home. DD will probably benefit from a day off and TLC too after her camping exertions.

Word re your informal study leave. Have you discussed this with the school or are you just going to phone in saying not coming in?

I'm wondering, as DD has some empty sessions as dropped a subject and when they are last period I'd rather she just came home as she can work more effectively 1-1 with me.

No, not discussed with school, am simply making an executive and unilateral decision.

In the past, when DC have been ill, all I've had to do is call and say they won't be in. No one's ever actually asked what's up. So am assuming the same situation will apply tomorrow .

I think we will probably hit and miss until proper study leave.

BTW DD is back and had a fab time. She's in the bath now turning the water grey!!!! There's no way on God's Green Earth she's going in tomorrow.

Glad your DD had a good time, word. They're at private schools, aren't they? I'm not sure state schools are allowed to just let parents use their discretion now like that. Though I don't think my DD would contemplate an unauthorised day off anyway!

errol they are indeed [eyes bills sitting on sideboard sternly].

TBH though I still don't think they'd countenance our approach.

If necessary I will say they're ill with sickness and the runs ( both schools have boarders and fear this like the plague ).

That said, if DC are getting useful revision sessions at school then I think it's wise to go in. But both mine find it easier to properly get their heads down at home. They say that if you take into account all the assemblies/PE/PHSE etc plus actually getting there and back, there isn't much time to actually sit quietly and learn stuff or do past papers on your own.

I can only hope they're making good choices .

No revision sessions here either but after the GCSE the lessons become revision time. After DS has done art today they will be able to either revise or do whatever art they fancy in lesson time.

General Studies is done here as well, plus they can choose from the sports leader award, community volunteering, school community award, DofE Gold, Active-U (no idea what that is!), Extended Project Qualification (ditto), Pre-Graduate Certificate in Education, Work Experience or Critical Thinking. DS is already doing AS level critical thinking so he might do the full A level in that time but he hasn't thought about all that yet.

SugarPlum Art was fine, a bit boring but half of the work was done. I should add I have DD and DS both doing art. I use them interchangeably because I am lazy so my messages aren't as long winded.

Errol I know what you mean about the wasted time at school. DD no longer has to do PSHE (if she has some other work or revision to do) and I think the PSHE teacher is surprised if she has more than 5 people in each lesson. She has regular medical appointments, which she attends during PE (she dances, so does loads of exercise). This leaves her more time in the evenings.

DD's sixth form has similar 'enrichment' choices Tulip - though the gold DofE is in addition to everything else. Her HT has suggested that she does some sort of electronics project for an EPQ to make up a bit for the lack of the systems and control A-level.

She's a bit jealous of a school nearer to our sailing club which has started taking sixth formers there to learn to sail as an enrichment option.

PSHE is the same as citizenship isn't it? Dd has to do that as a GCSE, which she's not impressed with, but I think that's because of the teacher. However she got an A* in her mock, so it's good UCAS points innit?
DS on the other hand y9, doesn't do it at all.

PHSE/citizenship is compulsory at the DC's school, but I think some DC have dropped it now in Y11. DD is still doing it.

She went off quite happy this morning - saying that she has 4 hours of science

I didn't think PSHE was exactly the same thing, but at DD's they do them in the same slot in the gcse years, along with RS. They don't have to do any of them for gcse now (hurray) but I thought that it was compulsory for all kids through KS4 to do a bit of them all. Maybe your DS's year is just doing a bit in form time or something, dingit.