Year 11 GCSE exam support thread 3 - the exam weeks

[HSMMaCM]

New thread for those of us starting the exams.

Keep calm everyone.

DD is just weird! She comes home reasonably happy and then as darkness falls she becomes more and more anxious and unhappy - we've had tears both evenings this week. Then in the morning she's full of the joys! I think she just wears herself out over the day. Trying to encourage her to have some downtime before bed and get to sleep earlier.

no exams here today. Took DS out for pizza last night for getting through 1st week.

Hes having a wobble over his a level choices. He wants to do quantity surveying and has chosen maths, graphics and physics as a levels, but as hes a b student is worrying about wether he can do them or not.

Sorry to hear that TWF, I hope she manages to brave out the exams.

DD is very nervous, but I am hoping that she manages to brave it out too. After this morning it will be 9 down here, 13 to go, so nearly half-way through already, although most of the biggies are still to come.

DD's school is definitely doing revision, including one tomorrow including breakfast from 8. I would be amazed if DD made it in for 8 on a Saturday!

DS's school has a full maths revision day on the sunday of 1/2 as well as lots of after school classes! No breakfast club though.

nothing like that back in my day

IrianofWay we are having a similar problem with DD2. I am trying iron tablets. Last year we thought DD1 had glandular fever as she was so tired and unhappy, but in fact she just had incredibly low iron levels.

Thanks tranquility. I will try that.

Oddboots My son goes to breakfast revision class and he said it is just like a normal lesson, the teacher goes threw notes with them and helps anyone who has a question. It seems to help him as he feels more confident when going in to the exam. I am sure no school would cheat as it would mean every child fails.

Perhaps it is just that comprehensives don't tend to have the resources to do revision classes? What do you think? Or maybe we are unlucky / or lucky depending on your viewpoint.

DD is revising with a friend after school so they have created their own little revision club. I guess that will have to do.

Eve - Physics is probably the one to watch at A Level as the step up is big. DD has also chosen it (although she changes her mind every month) so I'm a bit worried about that one too. Maths seems ok at AS level but steps up a lot at A2.

Dd1 reporting that Spanish listening was really difficult and she had to guess a lot.Reading was also very hard.A lot of questions not normally asked were in the exam .She's going out for lunch to cheer herself up!

My DS's school (comp) doesn't have any after school or weekend revision sessions, but is having a few during school days between exams. He has been to a couple and not found them very useful.
Personally, at this stage I would have preferred to just do my own thing as knowing which areas I needed to focus on and having my own style of revising.

thanks Littleham - there is an open day coming up at the 6th form college.. I have said we will go and ask questions.

Mine is at a comp.. and has lots of revision classes, must depend on the school. They have had revision classes every day since xmas, sometimes my son has been the only 1 attending.

dd has had study leave since exams started and I think that's been better for her than going into school for revision classes - I think she needs that time and space to look at things for herself. So think they've got it about right for her - though maybe starting the study leave just a bit before those first exams would have been helpful too - felt slightly like we were straight into them after that first weekend. I'm sure they did lots of good preparation at school too - more past papers than we ever did and a better idea of what to expect I think

My dd goes to a comprehensive and they are running revision classes. They don't do breakfast revision (what teen gets up that early? ) but there will be some over half term. Maybe it's a question of luck, but IMO it absolutely shows the dedication of the teachers.

Mine are at a Comp. DD decided not to go to revision today, but is going in for tomorrow (yes Saturday) for a morning session on English Lit. She also has some sessions at Half-term.

The funny thing is she has to go to school next week when her little sister has an INSET day, as she has Physics I think.

I think the classes reflect the dedication of the teachers, and the value the school puts on exams. DC's school couldn't really put on before school sessions as the early buses don't arrive that early.

It is really variable on the revision sessions isn't it? Thanks for the replies.

Sorry to hear Spanish was difficult. My dd does German and French. German is after half term.

Littleham, DD's school IS a comp! They have a truly comprehensive intake in every sense of the word, so the revision classes are a must. DD goes to some but also revises on her own or with her friends at school in empty classrooms or at the library where there are loads of them revising!

Eeek re the Spanish. I dread to ask DD

Both mine reported that Spanish listening was tougher than usual ( and they do different boards ).
But writing/reading was fine.

DD is feeling much better. Still a bit dizzy and sick ( though she are nachos and guacamole for lunch ).

Ds1's first day of study leave. He gets up at 6am having a panic in case he has an exam. We know he doesn't-his exam timetable is stuck to the kitchen wall, the next one is English on Monday.
We dig out the complete exam timetable and it says there are Spanish & PE exams. he is doing neither. He looks all relieved and goes back to bed.

Sparkling

Oh dear re Spanish. No doubt DD will be in bits about it.

DSs comprehensive school have done lots of revision classes, DS was in over Feb half term finishing course work, then there were Easter revision classes, and now breakfast revision classes....but nothing over may half term. The teachers have worked incredibly hard....it's not about resources, it's about teachers being willing to give up their own time to get the best results out of the students.

I'm signing off for the weekend ... DS is revising physics today, geog tomorrow and English Lit on Sunday in time for Monday's lit exam ...

Good luck and peaceful weekend to you all ...

Catch up on Monday x

DD decided to go into school to day - she said that although it takes about an hour and a half on the bus, if she didn't get up at the normal school time she'd probably not get up and start working till later anyway. I think part of it is that she wants to see her friends at least at lunchtime, which seems fair enough - I think she probably is getting the balance about right. There's no formal revision sessions but they work in the library or an empty classroom (yesterday afternoon she and a friend shared one with a friendly teacher who unexpectedly produced cake ). I think there may be a couple of sessions for FM because they're after nearly all the other exams and they were extracurricular anyway.

dd doesn't have anything until after half term now. Today, she suggested we become 'ladies who lunch' next week

Whilst I do like the fact she's not worrying herself sick over these exams, I think she may have crossed a line of 'laid-back-ness' which worries me a tad

DS said PE was weird and like no other PE paper he's seen He said he's not sure how he's done and he's hoping to do it at A level.
He's going to footy training tonight, will do him good to let off some steam, I think.
Oh well, that's the first week done and dusted! Geography on Tuesday - another of his A level choices...