AQA triple science

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If your dc did AQA triple science, what did they do to get a 7/8/9?

How did they revise? We know about flashcards and mindmaps but what else? What are really effective ways to learn this material and make it stick? How do they best learn about answering exam questions to get full marks? What are things to look out for to not lose marks? What to focus on in year 10?

Are there any online or print resources you can recommend? Any must read books or journals? Any great quiz sites? How about CGP books?

Did your dc do everything independently or did they have a study group or tutor?

Dd is quite shy and won't ask questions in class if she is not sure. She is determined to do her best but is a bit directionless. Her 2 best friends have been allocated different sets and dd feels a bit daunted by it all but also keen to give it her best. She is in set 2 and has a genuine interest in natural sciences, especially biology. However, her school is middle of the road and it's up to individual students to do well.

Two parts to successful revision for science

1. Do they know and understand all the material? This is where flash cards and mind maps can come in. Sites ilke Seneca can be useful. Depends how your DC learns best - if you can work this out it will help with every subject.
2. Can they apply what they know? Practice practice practice questions. Practice more questions.

If your DD is struggling to understand things and won't ask in class, can she approach the teacher directly? Is there GCSE revision classes after school (which might typically be smaller groups)?

Hi, Dd has just finished her GCSEs so no marks yet but should get at least 7s.

sciences aren’t her strongest topics (not doing them at a-level) and she has ADHD. I think her main issues were checking she fully understood topics and identifying her weak spots. She didn’t know really where to start with flash cards etc but by doing lots of past papers she was able to see where she had lost marks and then go through those areas again with her books, revision guides and BBC bite size (small quizzes on there on topics and it is broken down by exam boards so you can search for AQA).

I do have a chemistry degree and she found going through the papers with me helpful although I’m no expert, I never worked in science after leaving uni. I would mark the papers for her and then we would go over them together and I would explain stuff she really didn’t get (if it was something I had totally forgotten I would work through it first). I know this is a lot of handholding that other people might not be able to do but it was only in sciences and in the run-up to the exams and I know we are lucky I’ve been able to help her like this. Other kids did work well with friends who were probably doing similar for each other.

One thing that struck me about all three sciences was the amount of maths on the papers and DD was a whizz at that. It’s not that the maths was super hard but often the questions had several steps, even if the final answer wasn’t right if they have some steps correct and can show their working they can get some marks. It’s understanding what’s being asked, use the right equation, check your working out.

Good luck to your DD!

Freesciencelessons on YouTube is a good place to start. Then having a go at some relevant questions. The cgp revision books are good for that.

Are all the students in her year doing triple? If not I'm assuming that the sets are separated so there's not a mixture.
What year is she? How has she performed in her exams so far?

All good advice so far.
To add to it, use the specifications, read through them, check everything has been covered in class.
practice the six markers, link ideas, give the full “story”
definitely show your working for the maths questions
practice graph drawing and data interpretation
learn the compulsory practicals, think about how similar experiments may be carried out eg in bio for the photosynthesis prac students typically alter distance from the light source, past questions have asked about basically the same prac but with different colours of light.

Past papers from at least December. Mark them together and refine notes accordingly.

Second this suggestion.

DS has just done his AQA higher triple and used these extensively. Also do past papers and mark the answers using the mark schemes. Papers and mark schemes can be found on the AQA website plus the mark schemes. He's predicted 7-9 in all three.