GCSEs 2019 - support thread part 2

[AtiaoftheJulii]

Here we are again

Hello binkom! Hope you are having a lovely time and phew for art being over with!

Ds1s school are not doing any form of exam leave so he will be in revision lessons til Friday 10th may!

I'm undecided whether this will be a good thing for ds1 or not.

The low scores in the Jan mocks for eng lit, chemistry and history are being looked at.

Eng lit is obv...quite a few students didn't turn the exam paper over so.missed half the available marks.

I think chemistry and history are very hard and content heavy and its apparent that some students are struggling.

DD school are doing revision lessons up to the last chemistry exam in June! Attendance expected, with threat of no prom if non attendance.

flatmouse same at DD2's school - you attend the revision sessions until the subject is completely done, so towards the end you might get the odd half day off.

DD2 has her French speaking tomorrow - the real thing - and has been revising like a mad thing. She also has a chemistry end of topic test but has decided to wing that in favour of an actual GCSE - her teacher is on board with this.

Then on Friday she has her prefect reward trip - a day out to Thorpe Park paid for by the school - so is looking forward to unwinding.

So strange, DS only has seven more days of school. They break up for Easter late, and then study leave after that.
French oral will apparently be in that period, so likely to be around 5-6May.
He thinks he will go into school most days, the teachers will all be in their regular classrooms and available for help or revision, but none of it is apparently compulsory. DS just thinks he will get more done that way, as the walk to and from school (it is about 40 minutes by foot, although DS is so tall these days that he may do it faster) is a nice exercise break, he can access the canteen or one of the bakeries or shops en route, and he can always work in the library if he doesn't think it will be useful going to a particular class. But there is nothing compulsory about it.

flatmouse!!!!

Neither I nor DD are impressed. The school have to be fair put a lot of effort into figuring out normal timetable revision vs special subject revision and tailoring to exams as much as possible, but personally I feel Dd would be better placed to be at home, resting and top up revision in a morning before an afternoon exam, not doing 4 lessons of revision beforehand.
DD has decided to suck it up instead of me approach school to see if we can work out an alternative.

DD now on holiday until after Easter.

Currently in her bedroom putting together a detailed list of everything that needs particular focus on. Last report all predicted 7's and 8's so no complaints here. Even the German went up a grade .

She goes back for one week after Easter, does her German Oral, then on study leave. Interestingly she would quite like the routine of going into school, so it seems they are never quite happy with what they have. It's always going to be a balance of having the support of teachers versus revising what you, as an individual needs to focus on. I think we are the same as Bimkom, in that if you need the teachers, you can drop in to school, or request a one to one, which is really useful as a backup.

I think ds1 will like the routine too

DD2's French speaking went really well, teacher reckons that by her extremely insanely harsh marking she will be just inside the boundary for a 9, but the real examiner may well award more marks so the 9 could be a thing. She's really pleased.

She also didn't bomb the chemistry test.

Today was her last day before Easter - she has a trip tomorrow. She has 3 more weeks of school after she goes back and then that's it.

Binkom I hope you're having a nice time!

Wee break up for Easter next Fri and it all feels very close now. School want them in until 14th June! Ds not sure if he wants to attend school for that long as he thinks he would prefer you revise at home. Apparently a lot of the revision at school is quite generic and not differentiated between those aiming for higher grades and those aiming to get a solid 5-7. They also have their prom in 3 weeks.

Lots of flashcards being used here too. School had an assembly for parents last well and told us and the kids that they should not be doing more than 2 hours an evening and no mote than 3-4 hours on the weekend. Me and ds looked at each other. It takes him about an hour to get settled in... getting comfy, getting his charger, finding since music to play in the background...Deciding on snacks.. texting friends... checking snapchat one last time, checking the room temperature is ok etc etc. Personally I think each child is different. For some 2 hours is enough, others take ages to get into it and get started once they've sat down.

Well done minipointy
DS1 breaks up next week.

pointy That's fantastic news for your DD. So nice to have that under your belt going forward. Good for morale.

Just to share, because I am proud, DD got Distinction for her LAMDA grade 7, that's a full house of Distinctions now for every grade. Also, hopefully bodes well for the GCSE Drama performance. She banked a solid 7 for the Devised, but would dearly love an 8 overall.

Dd now finished school except for exams. Students have to go in until they after exams but parents can request study leave as long as they can guarantee their child will revise

sister brilliant!! :)

Sister that's fabulous! DD2 is doing drama too, but isn't in that league.

She's out on her prefects reward trip today, due back in a few hours.

And I'm glad she's going to 6th form, because her school has decided that as of September they are going draconian uniform batshit crazy. New PE kit, skirts from single supplier only, mandatory expensive PE fleece for winter, black socks only. It's going to cost parents more. The cause? Yep, a new head. Fortunately the 6th form is a separate entity.

Anybody else’s child just not on the map? DS (16) is certainly anxious, but is just refusing to face it, consequently no revision. Or at least minimal. 😞

Ds1 doesn't really want to talk about the exams tbh.

But he is revising.

That’s a worry freddie but you know, I’m more concerned about getting through the process without any undue mental stress.
The pressure they are under is immense but in a couple of months will all be over!

Agree about down time...
Ds1 goes to badminton, speedway.and we will be watching game of thrones when it returns :)

How many hours of revision are yours doing a day? Dd is adamant she is doing plenty but I think she's timetabled herself 4 hours a day which I don't think is enough.

4 hours is fine imo.

Ok. She has plenty of downtime then!

DD is doing about 5 hours, tries to do 5 different things a day. Some practice papers, some focus on areas of concern. So, basically a school day. She doesn't do anything in the evenings at the moment, and is fitting in a run or a bike ride every day.

On a completely different note..... just received bill for GCSE exams £525.00 . I had forgotten how expensive they were.