Year 11 - 2024/2025 - In the thick of it!

[QueenMabby]

New thread. Sorry. Forgot to start it - I hope everyone finds this!

I bought huge quantities of school supplies - e.g. two compasses, two geometry kits, spare calculator - in the Easter break, in case anything gets “dirty”. DD has two complete sets of everything in her backpack.

Glad I found the new thread (thanks @QueenMabby ).

DD had yesterday off and Maths today. She did take her calculator "just in case", but I'm now worried she hasn't taken the geometry stuff. I'd rather not look... Had to laugh at @OhCrumbsWhereNow 's DC coming back for the calculator, that's exactly the kind of thing she'd do.

Like @groovylady's and @ChannelLightVessel 's DCs (my best wishes to them), DD has also been through the mill for the last few years, and we're happy that so far she's been going in for the exams and finishing them. Relatively calm too!

It's hard to know what to expect results wise. She is capable but anything can throw her, so nothing (high or low) would suprise us. We're having to concentrate on reminding her that we can only ask her to try her best and that there's always a way to get to where you want if things don't go your way right now.

Good luck to everyone's DCs today!

I've been keeping a lid on my own nerves so far, but I'm a bit on pins for maths today for some reason.

Good luck, all DC, especially those doing it in tougher circumstances than most.

Am a bit worried now as DS definitely hasn't taken any compass, protractor etc, I offered him an eraser this morning and he said no need, the school provide everything?! He does have a pre-school revision session and I've not received a frantic text so hopefully, all good. 😬

I asked him and he said there are 3 questions in section 3 and you only answer 2 of them. He said the teacher reminded them at every mock and also just before this exam. One topic they hadn't even been taught so there would definitely not be any point in answering that question. (The one where you have a choice, you know the general topic areas in advance eg. Coasts and rivers, glaciers etc. They hadn't covered glaciers so teacher just said to not answer the glacier question every time).

Kudos to your DS if he could even answer all 3 but I think he'll only get marks for 2, hopefully the best 2 but maybe just the first 2.

Absolutely the same for me. They've just started! Eeek. DD didn't sleep well, she said it's not nerves.

I had to buy DS a kit the other day as he didn't have compasses, it was 6.00 in Sains!!

Ok thank you clary really appreciate you looking it up. Yes that sounds like it would make sense. He didn’t finish the paper so is annoyed with himself - he always panics and doesn’t read the question properly, hope he’s done enough to scrape through with the other paper after half term.

Yes… but at 8.35 for a 9 am exam

@queenofthesuburbs that's a 'just in time solution'! I do suspect DD2's houseparent must have a huge supply of compasses but wasn't prepared to chance it,

Finding it very hard to work this morning I must admit. Just waiting to hear how this one was!

Also, does anyone know what they actually do with a set square? Don't think DD2 knows

@cakeface1234 DD's school provide each child with an exam set- pens, pencils, rubber, maths set etc so it does happen!

DD is dreading maths, teacher and tutor say she has the capability, she just has a mental block that she's going to fail. Everything else so far has been "fine".

DD loves maths and is good at it, so is hoping not to mess up this morning as she really wants a 9 in this. She gets extra time and doesn’t always need it but will be using it all today to check herself. She recently commented that she often mixes up her ‘p’s and ‘q’s when they’re used in equations (dyslexia) - this had never even occurred to me!

Good luck to everyone with Maths today! My DS likes it but I used to hate it so it’s taking me right back to my own GCSE stresses today. DS also has German this afternoon which he’s planning to continue for A Level. Tomorrow is History and Latin Lit: lots of writing and not his favourites so it’s an intense couple of days.

I found a drawer full of maths equipment and clear plastic pencil cases at home last week - well done past me!

DS gets better marks in the calculator papers. I think things like surds and the sin cosine rules in non-calc trips him up as they are more "rules" to them and he's not got the greatest memory. My DD who's in the lower year is better at the non-calc paper. Her recall is much better, so maybe there's something in that.

Hoping it goes OK for dd today. It's her last exam til Monday

Same exams next week here! Hardly any revision done for Eng Lit Paper 2, so will be concentrating on that mostly and also Eng Lang towards the end of the week. It's a very tough week.

We have an easier week next week 4 exams compared with 6 this week in that sense but 2 English papers in a week is hard!

DD is much more STEM (Biology/Chemistry/Geography) so the 2 English will be tough

we have Wednesday off which is good as she is off to a concert Tuesday!

This week has been DD2's nightmare - she'll have had six - only two next week, and four after half term.

But then DD1's A-Levels start on Monday, and our foster daughter's have already started and ramp up on Monday. There's no end!

2 English papers in a week is tough. They are so content heavy and the longest exams 😫

That does sound busy in your family!

Only 12 GCSE exams???

She'd had three the week before @Hollyhedge - but yes, she only does 8 GCSEs/IGCSEs and there was a lot of coursework.

Might be 5 the week after actually.

Oh sorry I keep forgetting a lot here are doing iGCSEs so fewer exams…

My DD sitting GCSEs “only” has 14 exams. The core 13 and one other, as her other subjects are all coursework/practical.

This is also our busy week. 6 exams this week but only 3 next week - Chem on Monday, Physics on Thursday and Eng Lang on Friday. Our school do iGCSEs for both Lit and Lang so only one exam for each. They’re long though - 2 1/4 hours.