GCSE choice.. PE?

[sheep73]

DC1's school has come back and said that Latin and RE GCSE clash so DC1 needs to choose another GCSE from various including geography, PE, economics.
DC1 chose RE because she enjoys it and is good, she chose Latin because thanks to her prep school is well ahead and should get a good grade.
So we are a bit peeved she cannot do both.
DC1 is academic and we would hope she will get 8s and 9s.
So the choice is drop Latin and don't choose another and use that time to do homework and revision. Or choose another one.. She could do PE. She is sporty. Her top individual sport for which she is in a regional squad is not on the list.. she's also a county player in a team sport.. but I'm not sure it's a good idea to take on a GCSE that requires slot of coursework? Will she have time for all these sports in year 11?
She wouldn't want to do any of the suggested alternatives for A level so I'm not sure of the value of doing them for GCSE. It would mean DC1 does 9 rather than 10 GCSEs.

If she’s smart, it’s too soon to drop down to 9 GCSEs. I’d recommend Latin, as it’s very easy with good teaching. Geography is a good general option instead of RE.

I'd drop to 9. There is no need for loads of GCSEs; universities will not give a monkey's over the difference between 9 or 10 grade 8/9s. My 8/9 DS is doing 9 and an HPQ.

I'm surprised the school is offering the "self study" option - schools generally like students to be fully timetabled at GCSE option.

But, given that they are and your DC is ambivalent about another GCSE choice, it feels like the obvious choice. There will be absolutely no impact in taking 9 rather than 10 GCSEs.

Yes as others say, 9 or 10 GCSEs makes no difference. How aboit doing Latin and then geography as another humanity?

PE GCSE is fine, the coursework will not be an issue for an able student. My ds took it and the time was not an issue.

I am also surprised at the self study option but assuming it's a private school, maybe they have the resources to cover that. Unlikely in state IME.

9 is the maximum number of GCSE's for many schools so I shouldn't worry about her only doing 9.

The other option (if the teacher is amenable) is that she could self study for RE in the study time. My daughter did this for RE A level. Her school did not offer it and no other subjects they did offer were suitable for her. She self studied and the GCSE RE teacher agreed to mark assignments/had a tutorial with her once a week. Dd got A*

9 good GCSE's would be plenty, but if she fancies PE then she might as well.

comefromaway congratulations to your daughter that's really excellent!

The school have not suggested only doing 9 but I have suggested it to the school ;-). Tbh my feeling is less is more. I rather she do fewer and does better at those than we force her to do one she's not really motivated to do!

If she wants to do Latin and re I would fight the decision as they fit together if she wanted to pursue it beyond gcse! Divinity at university often includes Latin, Greek and ancient Hebrew. My DCs school changed the timetable so dd could do re and history

A school isn;t going to just change the timetable and risk lots of other students who have already had their subjects confirmed having to change just for one child.

They might consider it if there is a significant number of students who want to do those two subjects.

Latin
And Geography.

Wouldnt bother with pe. If doesnt enjoy geography at start of year drop it then.
Ive 10 gcses incl both latin and RS. But just because rs was compulsory.

If your DD wants to do PE I wouldn't worry about the time involved. My DD did PE and only plays one sport seriously. IME lots of them choose something slightly random for their second and third sports, it needn't be something they play at club level. My DD loved it as a GCSE and is predicted a 9.

Not sure she's going to be missing much. The RE GCSE syllabus is pretty rigid, which can be quite boring for students who genuinely like the subject. She might enjoy PE more because despite the written elements, there are some practical bits, so it'll be a change from all the sit-down lessons?

No one needs 10 GCSEs, it just makes the schools look 'good'

My dd did PE and really enjoyed it, especially the practical aspect, as having more PE lessons was a great thing for her. There is a lot of theory including human biology. Would your dd enjoy this? I personally wouldn’t drop to private study unless your dd is ok with this and fine to study alone. She could also study Latin by herself if she is ok to study alone and really wants to continue with it if the school would support her. She could be added to google classroom etc. There may also be online ways of studying GCSE Latin. Not much on oak academy.

My sporty and academic daughter absolutely loves PE GCSE, she finds the theory side interesting and easy and having more physical activity helps her focus on the rest of her subjects. She is also heading for 8's and 9's and I think having a less academic 'fun' option has been really beneficial and shows breadth of interests.

Do they have any enrichment time? My child's school allows study for a community language during enrichment, perhaps the same could be done for the Latin option?