Thread 3: Continuing to GCSEs Summer 2020 - Happy New Exam Year!

[OrangeCinnamon]

Continuation of previous thread
Thread 2

Thread 1 Year 10

At the end of last thread there was a bit of talk on prom dresses ( recommend Fonthill Rd in London if you can get there) by @proggymat and @crazycrofter

@TigerMum had a query regarding moving to foundation level at this stage.

Sorry peeps thread progressed without me noticing so none can reply to your queries!

Popcorn if he knows the content but just couldn't express it, I think practice questions and checking the mark schemes afterwards is probably the way to go. It's easy to write an answer but not to include all the things the examiner is actually looking for. Plus the old check of "if it's 4 marks, you probably need to have made 4 points".

You may be aware of this already but www.savemyexams.co.uk/gcse/ has some good questions by topic for the sciences.

Also, mathsandphysicstutor has questions by topic, with mark schemes.

DD’s BF has an epileptic seizure in class yesterday, after the teacher had a go at her about a mock result.
Rather puts things in perspective - no child should be made to feel that stressed and distraught at school.

Redsky and Also thanks for the links, will look at those. Yes he’s just not using the terms in the marking scheme but seems to understand the theory.

Also that is horrific about your DDs friend! I have more examples of bad practice going on with the mocks but would put myself if I wrote it here so will keep quite until parents evening...

Oh Piccolo, the poor girl. I think I’ve said before that we have had 3 take their lives locally over the last few years. Not all to do with exams but one was in part and it does put everything in perspective .

Tigerswife that’s what I meant , MN not very representative and I think there will be some people who look and get a bit put off. It would be great if anyone lurking and does feel like that would come and stick their head in and say hi. Popcorn I can’t help on the chemistry but really pleased to hear DS is getting 6s and 7s, very solid and absolutely to be celebrated - as is a 2 for some DC.

It would be lovely if we could keep this going and be a support over the next few years whichever path they go down. It’s often not easy that transition from child to adult at times for both child and parent and it would be great to have support through the variety of challenges we’ll come across.

Absolutely agree Post.

Hi all,

I should stick my head over parapet here and say yes am proud Mum.

DD got everything over a 5 in her mocks and a 7 for her favourite subject...my goodness it has been a struggle and just doing this gcse thing is in itself. We are slowly getting better with managing with her anxiety etc. She loves music and is exploring that atm. (If anyone's child is into Jazz we have happened upon a great charity that does subsidised workshops ...so impressed with them). For some children a 3 or 4 is an achievement for some a 7 or 8 we are all here together in the common aim of helping them get to the best place they can.

I'm chastising myself at present for worrying about Dd results day. Her cousin has his A level results the week before and is a predicted 4 A stars or something. I pondered amongst the wider family they won't care about hers so much . It really doesnt matter though me and her Dad are there for her and we know how much work she has put in

Well done to Orange DD. Music might well help with stress relief?

Also the poor lass!
I do think we need to bear in mind that some DC are at selective or super selective schools-Im taking about 90% plus grade 7-9 results.
For those DC, the pressure to achieve 'the norm' must be immense no matter how academic they are and I'm sure some parents would like a support space like this thread.
I'm sure the stresses and worries and potential impact on health are just the same as for them as it is for 'middling to average or struggling'
My DD is not at such a school but the grades she needs to do the A levels she wants are very high.

That’s so good to hear OrangeCinnamon, really pleased to hear that you’re managing her anxiety. And you have hit the nail on the head with results day, you are there for her and you know the amount of work.

Thought I had better ask DS and friend on way in today when they are planning to start revising for mocks and was swiftly told they are halfway through revision. DS just finished History syllabus this week which Is relief. I think he is most worried about that and English lit due to the amount of writing. He has declined use of a laptop which may or may not have been a good decision, time will tell.

Well done Orange DD!
crossed post.

Yes that is a very good point Proggy. It’s about recognising that there are a big range of pressures that they are all facing across the board.

I am pretty stressed about DS and sixth form if I’m honest and I think he is under a huge amount of pressure at the moment.

You both will be Post- fingers crossed all goes well and he is offered a place.
I'm seething at the moment re sixth form for DD but trying to keep a lid on it whilst I orchastrate a bloody plan b!
Can we fast forward to 2022, please?

Thank you Proggy. That doesn’t sound at all good with sixth form, what has happened? I do think that about 2022 sometimes too !

Don't want to say too much at the moment but PM and I'll elaborate.

Understand, will PM you.

The sixth form stuff sounds a nightmare ! See that is one less pressure the local sixth form college which has a decent rep is not putting really high entrance grades on it's admissions - perhaps it can't if you are in a non-sixth form area??

@JustHereWithMyPopcorn Music definitely helps - i've witnessed her shaking like a leaf but still going on stage to perform as it means so much to her! Plus if she is feeling low a good bash on the keyboard or energetic strum of a guitar has got to help really .

At the moment plan is academic music degree plus masters in specialist music area that could be Music therapy, jazz, composition , music promotion etc.

Something to look forward to - is helping having a focus outside of GCSEs

I completely agree with keeping extra curricular going - DD uses her sport as an opportunity to stop thinking about anything related to GCSEs!

Well done to your dd @OrangeCinnamon ! It's such a hard balance getting everything in perspective this year and not letting GCSEs completely take over. Dd is at one of those 90% + 7-9 schools and in the past it's caused her to feel a bit rubbish about herself. We've worked hard at getting her to see the bigger picture and understand the fact that she's in a very skewed environment. She's actually really come into her own the last 6 months, as she's started to work harder and she's predicted high grades. I'm a little bit sad that whatever she gets, it won't seem as amazing as it would at a more mixed school - last year nearly half the year got 8 x grade 9s! But we will celebrate her results as a family, whatever they are!

I hope no one is put off joining this thread by talk of 8s and 9s as the pressure is just the same for all the kids (and parents). They want to achieve what they're capable of and get on to the next stage. Sorry to hear you're having sixth form issues @ProggyMat. Sixth form decisions seem to be taking over our lives a bit at the moment, dd keeps changing her mind!

I think it’s great to have interests outside school and bit sad DS doesn’t really. Hoping change of school will help.

Can absolutely see what you mean Kingscote, that is a hell of a lot of pressure for them. That’s she has come into her own

French result back, think we need to do a bit more work on that!! Seems like DS's worst subjects are French and Chemistry which is identical to me when I took my O levels.

DS got his mock results and they're in some ways great (well apart from French which is about three grades lower) and I congratulated him. I then said something like 'try to think about what you've learnt and see if you can turn some of those n grades into n+1 grades' (obviously I used real numbers, we don't talk in maths equations round here but I'm mindful of how annoying specific grades are).

I got accused of being a terrible parent and how I was so pushy and 'I'm sorry I'm such a disappointment to you'. And then beating himself up because lots of his friends got a string of 9s (selective school, he's friends with the nerdier element).

I felt awful but on the other hand, I do think he can do even better and should be encouraged to do as well as he can do. God maybe I am a terrible parent.

Patience please don't feel you need to talk in maths equations on here Specific grades not annoying. I started that earlier as was just a little worried we have been a little skewed towards higher grades and just wanted those who have DC not achieving them to not be put off .

You're not a bad parent at all, that's the point of mocks - to learn from mistakes and try to do better in the real thing. Some need more encouragement on that front than others and you know your DS - if you think he can do better then he most probably can. Let's face it, you can never win as a parent...

Popcorn I think our family radiate negative geography vibes !

It's so difficult to find that balance between encouraging them to work harder / cracking the whip on the one hand and cheering them on / calming them down / helping them to manage their stress on the other. I have gone wrong on that this afternoon too

Now booking tickets for me and DS to see 1917 at the weekend for a bit of r&r and stress-free pic-n-mix time together.

There is a lot going on with us at the moment - I am being made redundant in the middle of the exam period, DH is working away a lot when normally he works from home, I have some health issues with endless tests and appointments with consultants, work is getting busy for me too, poor DS has got a scary few months ahead of him and right now he seems to need a lot of propping up. Plus the dog has got an ear infection and we've got the builders in