Year 11 - 2024/2025: Half way, half baked, half term!

[QueenMabby]

Continuation of the year 11 support thread. Go!

Thanks. He is doing triple which has pros and cons for those who arenot all 8s:9s. Bio he should do well, others are looking unknown. Agree paper 2s have better timing! Good luck..

The disadvantage of the double award is that one bad mark brings the whole lot crashing down....

Or a more positive spin for the optimists:

The advantage of the double award is that one bad paper can be counteracted by 5 good papers...

@TeenToTwenties unfortunately in the board DD takes , those who do triple (ie single sciences) do three hours per science over two papers, but those doing double sit one two hour paper per science.
Today is crunch time- it’s now or never 😳😵‍💫

I agree re the oblique questions on past papers, frustrating as I feel he knows the facts but struggles to apply them to the question. Let’s hope this year is full of clear questions and they all do well!

Exactly. . Pros and cons. Also less content which may be better for some! Best of luck all 🍀🍀

What last minute revision should DC be doing this afternoon for AQA Eng Lang Paper 1 on Friday?

Making sure he can tell you how to answer each question.
Make sure he knows the timing for each question on the paper.

Mine has a PowerPoint from school with exactly this timings, major things to include etc. think that’s her afternoon plan..

@INeverSeeYou- I would just do practice papers. Much of eng lang is about the techniques.

Today's probably the day DD is dreading more than any other. Was v tearful last night. I think she’ll be ok, she is definitely not after a 9 (or 8, or 7 to be fair), and tbh she’ll be happy to get a 5. Her teacher has consistently given her a fine predicted score of 6, which DD just can’t understand… but she’s not doing it for A level, so I’ve just said to do her best; she’s got 3 more science papers after half term. She was offered the chance to do the foundation double, but refused saying she wanted the chance to get more than 5 in all 3 sciences. I didn’t push her either way, it has to be her decision imo.

Huge luck to everyone’s DC for today. That’s us done now until 4th June and Maths.

Yes agree re the timings – very easy to lose time on this paper and not have time to finish as there are several questions.

Make sure he knows what they are looking for in each question – it’s in the mark scheme and the spec but it’s surprising how many DC are seemingly not aware.

Make sure he knows all the terms and how to apply them, what they can show etc (thinking metaphor, simile, pathetic fallacy, rule of three).

Bank the first qu – an easy 4 – and move on.

I am talking AQA btw, don't know the spec of other boards so well.

Hope everyone has a good couple of days with physics and Eng lang. Two big ones!

My DD left the house at 7:15 and won’t be home until after 5 due to the extra revision sessions. Considering they are in school full time I don’t know why these sessions can’t be in school hours.

That's the way we are looking at it!

Well. Dd has just left, looking rather glum.
She hates physics and is nervous about media.

I asked DS how he felt today as I dropped him off - he said 'I just don't care, I'm just too tired to care'. He's got revision/exam fatigue and he's on study leave, so I can only imagine how tired the kids are who are in school on top of this. Not the reaction I was hoping for from him for Physics - a subject he's chosen for A level - but it is what it is I suppose. I just have to trust he's done enough work before now and the adrenalin will kick in when he enters the exam hall.

A bit late for the exam start 😬, but I've just cleared up a pile of past papers that DC left on the floor and they've all got the same formula sheet at the start.

I annoyed DS on the drive in as I was talking too much, so I put the radio on which was also annoying apparently ,hey ho!

We are finding these two docs really helpful, they are from two random schools but they are the best knowledge organisers i have seen for the 'less organised' kids! They are basic but really helpful, they give a suggested structure for the questions. It sets it out really simply, let me know if the links don't work:

www.stokenewingtonschool.co.uk/asset/4332

www.richardlander.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/3.-AQA-Language-Supporting-Booklet-2024.pdf

In the car this morning dd spent the whole journey talking about the English language exam tomorrow. Nerves for that definitely eclipsing any for physics this morning!

We are intrinsically annoying at this point!I had explained a concept to DS last night and he said all fine got it. Asked him this morning and he got it completely wrong. Was surprised! Tired, burnt out, disengaged??? Thank god he can get a break after tomor. Hope today goes well because he needs a boost!

I'm feeling unexpectedly a bit emotional this morning, I think because they have their leavers assembly after Physics and they never got to have one for primary school. She has taken a little book for signing rather than a shirt. They also have an ice cream van coming, shame the weather is not so great today! They officially start study leave today and DD has been very good about staying in school but she did come home at lunchtime yesterday as the afternoon was entirely study periods so she felt it would be more useful for her to be at home.

She is wiped out with tiredness and very much in need of a rest in half term.

DD2 is terrified for physics. She has previously done quite well in them (edexcel GCSE combined) but says she doesn't actually understand the concepts at all, is just parroting stuff back - teacher always says she doesn't NEED to know more about the concept than she does, but does try to explain it to her. She's just one of those people who hates it when they think they only understand half a concept. So it could be disastrous.

She is then done until maths on June 4 and we're going to her gran's for half term - south of france - where grandma can help with lots of maths revision.

She only has science, music and maths to revise now, which is beginning to feel more manageable. Hasn't touched the music appraising paper yet though, which is HARD.

@IThinkImAMathmoMum icecream van sounds brilliant! How lovely...

Not surprised you're emotional, this is a big thing!

I've just gone into dds bedroom and she's left her media books here 🙄
Hoping she's got her text book with her!

Oh sometimes we can never get it right. I was apparently super-annoying to my family today and no one is even doing any exams 🙄