Year 11 - 2024/2025 - Support Thread - the final stretch

[QueenMabby]

A new thread to take is to exams and beyond! All welcome.

Art practical done!
Unfortunately dd came home and promptly threw up 😕
She also got her media coursework grade today which was very good 👍

Ds2 had his Spanish speaking, said it went ok, improved from mock.
He is home alone this weekend, as Dh and I have come to Dorset.

This is not the most fun May Bank Holiday weekend we've ever had 😫 I can't wait for it all to be over!

How is everyone doing?

Ok here. We’d actually forgotten it was a bank holiday so dd had only scheduled 2 revision slots for tomorrow. We’re leaning into that and going out for half a day but yesterday and today are pretty revision heavy. Dd has done both her mfl orals now so that’s brought some relief.

Dd didn't do anything yesterday
Today and tomorrow will be eng land and maths

DC have done no (zero, zilch, nada) revision this weekend 😫 but they did mow the lawn which was apparently a fair exchange. I'm going to insist on some revision tomorrow.

Study leave starts on Wednesday, first exam on the 12th!

Ds is off school Tuesday for PD day so a long weekend. Uniform is now finished with. So that is quite nice. He only actually has 2 pairs of trousers that he’ll wear. So clothes shopping will need to be done in May half term.

First exam Thursday, citizenship, Friday business studies, apparently no revision needed for either of those. I hope he’s getting on with revision of some sort.

Ds is annoyed that ds1 is returning home on Friday. He’s been mostly travelling since Dec 2023 he did return for 4 months last year to earn some more money. Ds3 says he’s only coming home to ruin his GCSEs. They don’t like each other. Ds2 has been on a uni year abroad in Australia, he will be home July. So it’ll be strange to have a full house again. The worst part is that I let ds3 move into ds2’s bedroom because his is tiny. I didn’t move him into ds1’s because we didn’t know how long he’d be gone. Ds2 is moving back to Sussex for his final year in Sept. So ds3 can keep the bigger room. But ds2 says no. So I’m not looking forward to him returning. The small room is nice enough but doesn’t fit a double bed or a desk like the other 2 rooms. At least the GCSEs will be over by then. They can fight it out between them 😂

Older dd has started her uni work after having 2 days off.
No doubt she'll be stressed that she hasn't done enough by end of next week 🙄
It's eng lit dd is doing not eng lang.
Eng lit is her first core subject exam 😬

In a Biology GCSE AQA past paper a 5 mark question is a calculation about magnification.

The question doesn't say show working so would DD get all marks if she wrote the correct calculation and correct answer but didn't write out the formula she used in words (the worded equation is shown in the mark scheme as earning marks)?

A lot of the time getting the right answer gives you the full marks.

However it obviously makes sense to write down the formula, and the rearranging if needed, and the plugging in of the numbers, and the answer before rounding.

Because if you get any of those stages wrong accidentally you can still get the method marks.

It’s surprising how many marks you can get from working out - even if you have the wrong answer!

Dd’s first exam is Thursday PM - German listening and reading, followed by Latin language Friday AM.

DD’s first exam is also Latin language on Friday a.m. but she is more concerned/panicking about English Lit the following Monday.

Drama is dds first written exam on Thursday
She seems ok about it 🤷‍♀️
She has really excellent grades for the performance and coursework elements so I think that takes the pressure off a little
Eng lit on 12th is the first of her core exam subjects, but I think that's the same for all Y11s
(unless they are doing the igcse)
I think that's when it will feel "real"

Yeah DS has Spanish speaking this week then off with Eng lit and quite packed until half term. He is working this weekend, trying to juggle everything. Cram, cram cram!!!

For dd, it's not too bad after half term, tbh.
I think she's got 2 x maths and 1 x Eng language that's she's focusing on after half term
I can't see much geography revision getting done!

What about sciences? DS has Spanish exams, 2 x history and a few others…

Yes, physics and chemistry.
Not much revision being done for those, either!
Dd prefers biology.

Not much being done here either.

No revision has been had at our household. Weekend has been spent at the beach and comic convention (with other Y11s!). DD promised she will revise during study leave. First exam on the 8th, German.

I'm at the stage that as long as she's revising maths and eng lang, which she needs for 6th form, I'm staying out of it.
I'll be surprised if she doesn't get decent grades in her practical subjects.
She may do OK in eng lit and biology, too
I must admit I'm curious what the grade boundaries will be this year...

Not much being done here, except for stressing over the prom dress and what accessories, shoes etc and lots of chat amongst the girls and plans. Most have done a few language orals and it hardly seems to have registered that this is just the beginning and prom is a very long way off!

From today's Sunday Times.

@NotAPersonalAttack
I saw that earlier.
And I agree with it.
At dds school well over 40% of Y11s are needing EAA of some sort.
And I'm aware of at least 3 local Y11s who are sitting their exams at home - they've never set foot in the school to my knowledge. Semh issues due to the pandemic.
Very sad.

Prom talk gone quiet here!

What is EAA?