Current Year 10 2020/2021 support thread

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I can’t see a thread for upcoming new year 10s, so I thought I’d start one, as the long-running GCSE one I’ve been part of for DD has been a life-saver.

DS has opted to take history, German, drama and music, plus double science, maths, English x2, and RE.
He’s pretty bright and does well without having to break a sweat (much to my frustration!), but doesn’t really know what he wants to do in the future. He’s a music scholar at his school, so does a lot of music (DH and I are both professional musicians...or were, before Covid hit...) but loves history and English.

His school provided excellent online schooling and he was lucky to be able to go in 2 days a week for the last 3 weeks of term.

His sister has just finished year 11, so we are biting our nails, waiting for results next week. She has quite a different academic profile, having ADHD and possibly dyspraxia, and has had to work hard throughout the last few years.

I hope us parents of DCs just starting the GCSE journey can help and support each other over the next couple of years. 🙂

Dd working from home at the moment so I largely left her to it mon & tue with occasional reminders of what she needed to get done.... of course next to nothing got done so today I've removed her phone until I see the completed work. She's doing it without a fuss now but it's just the drama to get her to knuckle down and actually get on with it

@thestudybuddy those are helpful tips. He doesn't seem to have big exams often, only end of topic assessments, and they get maybe a few days' notice - so no time to plan revision. Apparently. I might reach out to the school who will doubtless tell me they have extensive resources that he should have been using.... Ds is prepared to work at least, but doesn't really know how to memorise stuff which seems pretty key for sciences. Any help I can offer is not acceptable, naturally.

@Aramox always happy to help!

You find that a lot. "My memory's no good" but the key is to strengthen the storage and retrieval bonds. You can only hold 5-7 things in working memory, so good encoding to get things into the long term memory and out is the real trick. And research shows that testing (flashcards, questioning, past papers etc) are the most effective way.

These don't have to be formal sessions either. Why not just have a biscuit tin of keywords or similar on small index cards and randomly shout some out over dinner (you get the idea). Or he can ask you - without looking at the back himself!

Also mixing things up from revision/studying being sat at a desk highlighting might help to disassociate study from dull and isolated.

DS now has to self-isolate until next Friday as a close contact has covid. Fearing he may see this as a holiday I said so this will be like lockdown we will do the lessons from home. Then he got super excited realising he will miss PHSE sex education day, we will be giving that one a miss from home The rest of the lessons I had a commentary on computing no-one likes, science is so easy you learn nothing, French well that'll be an improvement not to have the teacher might be able to understand it without her, maths that's just going through a test, I'll have them all right, waste of time ... So 6 days of home education for me. Though apparently I don't need to worry about him having covid at all "as he has been doing a lot of deep breathing in his mask".

He is very frustrated not to know who it is. He said he'ld message a couple of people to find out. I pointed out he won't use a phone or e-mail so that was the end of that plan. He said I should message school and say I needed to know their name. I explained I couldn't but he wasn't impressed. Think DD is jealous.

Hi everyone,

I've been lurking for a while so I hope you don't mind me joining in. Loving all the revision tips.

My DS is in yr10 and has ASD, he is spending today in isolation (at school) after getting very angry and throwing things at another child who was winding him up. It's tricky for him, especially after months of being at home learning online (which I think he quite liked!) School have been pretty understanding about it but I am feeling like a rubbish parent at the moment.

I was just wondering about how the news of the extra bank holiday in 2022 (for the queens platinum jubilee) will impact the exams that summer? Will they just move the half term? What do people think?

Also waves to SilkieRabbits - my DS did the SMC last week as well, the school at first said it wouldn't be possible but then on Wednesday he came home very excited with a log in code to do it online! If we had had some notice we would have done some practice with him but he enjoyed doing it anyway so that is the main thing.

I think they’ll move the half term - pretty sure that’s what happened for the one in 2012. Does assume she’ll still be going then of course...

Just had an email from school to say that school will be closing for 2 weeks from Monday for all students other than Years 11 and 13. As of yesterday afternoon there were 21 new cases recorded this week and there are 350 students currently out having to self-isolate. They are planning to offer the pupils their full timetable via live lessons on Microsoft teams. They are confident that they will be able to re-open at the beginning of December for the remainder of the term. But I can imagine the government will then announce a national early closing of schools ahead of Christmas because infection rates aren’t coming down quick enough.

So back to a variation on home-schooling for me! 🤦‍♀️😬

21

We are on day 1 of home ed but its going really well. DS won't do anything in computing at school but I got him to do the end of term assessment with me and he got 94% and excelling. The computing teacher was but very happy. He was also asking DD about computing GCSE and asked her if her test was on paper or on computer and she said on paper and he said that was good. It seems he is refusing to do computing on a computer but will do it on paper or with me typing on computer. Though how computing with a computer works I don't know.

Also did Of Mice and Men and English teacher has confirmed right book and he loves it. She says he's started writing an amazing essay but has hidden it from her and she wants to get hold of it so that is my next task. Then its French and Business to do. He's so much happier though now he's home.

He loved the SMC as well, awaiting results - think the scores for the different grades will be sky high this year as done over 4 days and some online so very easy for some people to cheat assuming you had access to someone bright enough to help. He was day 1 in school but still was good experience and he said it went well. The JMC results went sky high when went online though he did very well in that and got best in school and top category with close to 100%. DD was really angry with DS as she was doing it in school on day 4 that DS wouldn't tell her any questions and she said a normal brother would have helped her cheat. A fine career in banking awaits her.

What are SMC and JMC?

I actually love exams and the process of revision, much more than I like essays (though I like those too). DS will pull it out of the bag because he will not want to fail but frustrating in the process.

I must say that if I had a little tin of key words and flashcards on the table and pulled them out at intervals as suggested it would provoke fury. Some teens must be more amenable but mine is impossibly independent!

SMC = Senior Maths Challenge
JMC = Junior Maths Challenge

Both run by UKMT

I think the Bank holidays are on the Thursday/Friday of the half term week and the Monday one will be scrapped so our Kids will be mid-GCSE for the long weekend!

My son has been panicking about assessments which will determine double or triple science. He is in top set and usually top set and sometimes set 2 do triple. It seems due to Covid they may be reducing the number taking triple so that they need to cover less content.

Ah yes it makes sense that they have put them on the Thursday/Friday - I read four day weekend and assumed they were doing Friday and Monday but it will just fit into half term. Scary thought that our yr10s will be in the middle of their exams then!!

My DD also worried about triple/double science. She has been having tests in all three Sciences this week which will be used as evidence in deciding which they should do. She's currently in a Triple Science class and has been working v hard so am hoping she'll be able to stay there.

@SilkieRabbits that totally explains why I don’t know what they are then.

Our school just lets you pick Triple Science if you want to. I imagine there is some guidance if they don’t think you are up to it. DS is just a humanities/languages bod so it didn’t come up for us.

DS confirmed over a game of cards that he is definitely not planning on staying in London for uni, which is a bit scary because he basically never goes anywhere!

Lots of people out in DD's year (her best friend is on her 3rd lot of SI so far!) but she's managed to stay in so far, only 5 in one class last week and 12 in another!
Triple science is compulsory for us, DD is definitely NOT blessed with mathematician genes so SMC was a new one on me as well . This is likely to be an issue later on as as DD is really keen on taking Physics through to A Level but I'm sure most places want you to do Maths alongside.............

First day of our two week home-schooling done today. DD is great and just gets on with it up in her room. She had 3 lots of double periods today which she said was tough sat on a call for 1 hour 40. DS was amazing and was pretty much self sufficient for all his lessons despite having assessments in three of his six subjects today. One positive to him being at home is I get a chance to see just how effective his medication is in a school (live lessons) environment. So much better to how he was in the first lockdown where I basically had to sit by his side for 5 hours!

DD is still at school and has managed to avoid isolations so far but DS is on day 3 and the novelty has definitely worn off, he's acting like it really should be a holiday now. He's pretending to be deaf anytime I mention work, or slumping to floor, or claiming to have an urgent need for the bathroom every 5 minutes then running past me afterwards. I managed to get him to listen to Of Mice and Men today with me reading but that was it.

Still awaiting the SMC scores but DD thinks DS beat her which won't go down well as he's a year younger and last year she was best in school. There's a new boy in school who's come from a top Malaysian private school who is really good at maths so wouldn't be amazed if he's top this year. Think results due out tomorrow. DD currently on a run. DS is on his usual slump with rabbit.

We are still waiting to hear about the SMC as well, I think results are supposed to be out tomorrow but DS doesn't have maths tomorrow so we may not hear until Wed. We are still waiting on the results of his Cayley paper which he did the day before school closed back in March!

He didn't do the SMC last year, don't know if anybody else at his school did. There is another excellent mathematician in his year (who usually beats him) so no expectation to get best in school here, we're just pleased they sorted it out so he could do it as initially they said it wouldn't be possible.

Good luck to those doing school at home again because of isolating! Feeling very fortunate we haven't had to do that (yet!)

We’ve had a positive case in DS’s year but he hasn’t been told to isolate. Apparently they’ve identified those who have had close contact.

We’ve still had no communication about year 10 at all, when we can expect some target/predicted grades etc though I am expecting something by the end of the month based on last year’s timetable.

Ds's year group had a case that meant he had to isolate over half term
I've never heard of SMC, it hasn't featured at his school yet - I'll have to ask him about that as he's a maths boffin so it'll be right up his street.

DofE stuff has paused during lockdown, then there are loads of catch-up meetings in December/January.

3 identified cases at school but DS not a close contact.
We should get DSs first year 10 progress report on Friday (according to the school calendar). It’ll be the first one since January this year so eagerly awaited to see what weeks of lockdown worksheets in year 9 equates to in terms of actual progress.

We've been really lucky in avoiding isolation so far. Having persuaded ds to admit to actually having some assessments, now trying to get him revising for them. There are so many distractions when everything's online but he absolutely won't allow me to oversee what he's doing, or help him make a revision plan - I suppose it's baby steps...

I don't think DS has assessments until middle of Jan and then we get some data in Feb just before parents eve. There is no up to date info on their online system - not even his current timetable.
I've just realised he forgot to take his mask this morning! Hope he doesn't get into trouble.
Still we heard yesterday that he did very well in the SMC and got through to the kangaroo so pleased about that.