13+ and the Easter Non-Holiday

[imelda3]

Does anyone have any survival tips for the Easter holidays with Common Entrance looming? Trying to organise some fun stuff as well as the revision but it seems such a grim way to spend a 4 week holiday!

Have 1 week holiday DS2 went away for a week in the Easter Holidays before his IGCSE's and Pre Us it didn't do him any harm. Assuming your DC is at a good prep and being aimed at the right school they'll be fine.
Good luck.

Thanks happygardening. Did he then have Saturdays and Sundays off too? Sorry - I think I am micromanaging this but after all these years I dont want to mess it up at the last hurdle!

Get used to it- Easter and May half terms become non holidays from GCSE year onwards. Oh and either Xmas or Feb half term depending on when mocks are.......

I think he did about three hour a day but he had days off as well to do fun things and went away for a week. I just don't buy into this no holidays at Easter or Xmas and Feb 1/2 term because of exams interestingly DS2's senior school didn't either frequently organising school trips in holidays especially the Easter break. I believe getting off the tedious revision treadmill is a very good way of giving the brain a break and enabling it to consolidate and organise knowledge.

My DH swears by holidays and sleep. They really are part of the learning process.

If I did this again with children who did what I told them to do I'd set up traffic light charts for the broad topics in each subject and aim to get them to do 6 x 20 mins each day, 2 of each color.

DS had 3 weeks off (London prep). I teach in a state school so for his first week (when I was still at work), he went to Granny's house where he did some Maths every day, plus Duolingo French. For the next 2 weeks, he did 3 subjects in the morning, went out all afternoon (swimming/tennis/park) and then did another 2 subjects in the early evening. Once CE is over it's all fun fun fun, so he saw the point of getting his head down in the Easter hols.

He did have to get 70% in everything, though, which may have concentrated his mind a bit!

Gosh, I am pretty impressed by these experiences. My son did a scholarship paper which was about 10 days after the start of summer term so Easter hols were indeed a deeply unpleasant experience for all concerned, but there is no way he'd have done that much if it had been for CE which isn't until after half term. Lots of boys at our school in CE go on the geography or ski trips that holiday so I don't think school expect them to be flat out either

He needs to make a revision timetable and stick to it. He can't have four weeks off.