Y11 2025-26 Exams have started - chat, support & drink of choice if needed here.

[UncomfortableSilence]

New thread for all of us with lovely Y11s to support them and us through the coming weeks.

That's brilliant @TheBeatlesWhoarethey! DD chose to describe the photo. I'm slightly worried as she always go for the story, never the photo but she said it went well, so fingers crossed. She said she stayed very true to the photo rather than "inspired" by it, after worrying about pre-prepared text not doing well. She said she only changed the weather, so she could include a pathetic fallacy 🤔
She messaged that she's feeling very poorly, but she's too scared to ask to leave after people were threatened that they won't be allowed to attend prom if they miss another revision session. Bring on half term!

Does anyone know what the creative writing prompts were for AQA please? Thanks

@BeasKnee
’the first meeting’

That is quite a mistake! I'm sure there were a few panicked students in that exam wondering how the hell they had misunderstood the story that badly!

Thanks. I reckon DD might have been able to adapt her prepared opening to that. Fingers crossed it went ok. I have had a quick look on the GCSE reddit and people seem to not be happy with the first half of the paper so I hope it's gone ok (for DD all others)

That's what my DC said - didn't like the first half of the paper. Interesting that other students have said the same thing - thank you for sharing. I daren't look at the reddit myself!

I'm very much hoping for a 'good' and not a 'fine' when I ask how it went today. DD normally good at English Lang. Will have to wait until later though.

These examples of mistakes are just awful, the poor students. It's all very well to retrospectively accept a wide range of responses, but what about the students who were completely thrown by it?

Being able to adapt to the unexpected without panicking is of course an essential life skill, but that is not the remit of GCSEs. Ensuring that papers don't contain fundamental errors is essential to ensuring equal access for all students.

@Caddycat hope she gets home and has a proper rest tonight! The pressure from school is crazy!

I remember many years ago there was an error in one of the questions in the Maths exam in my A-level equivalent exams (Abitur in Germany). Only the smart kids (not me 🥶) noticed and alerted the teacher to it during the exam.

Thank you! The pressure is crazy!

@BeasKnee DD said q4 was hard and she was pressed for time but otherwise the first part was ok. She was delighted with the prompt as in her last exam the prompt was a meeting with a stranger.

My DD also had a bad paper, did well in the mock and was hoping to do well today but has just realised she answered question 5 about the picture and it was meant to be an unusual house! Will she score zero for that one?

Sorry I know it's horrible but this made me laugh 😂

Exactly @harderthanIexpected - like I said, my DD, a very strong candidate but one who likes things to be just right (ND) would have totally been thrown and maybe fluffed the other question as well, but there’s no way to quantify that.

@molly1977 ive not spoken to dd properly yet but question 5 is usually a photo that they describe or write a creative story with a title given. If she has written about the photo that sounds fine

It is one or the other, she can answer Q5 by writing about the picture, she won't get a 0 mark for that. DD however was worried about making sure the examiner can tell which one they picked from their writing, she was advised not to be inspired by both, so I think it's perfectly fine for your DD to have written about the picture only!

AQA English was “fine and good” I am jealous of those of you who get more than 1 word in response.

Unmoderated photography marks were given yesteday and if nothing changes on moderation and based on last years thresholds that should be an 8 which is great

It says use your imagination and she feels her description was quite literal, she’s cross because she could have done a better one from her imagination. Nevermind, nothing can be done now. Hopefully the examiner sees the error.

That's great!

I hope so! 🤞

I think my DD did something similar, as in not quite stuck to the brief. I'm not sure whether they would lose marks for making the description story like (with a character walking through and describing what they see and feel with some plots bits too). So not quite just a description of the house but also not a story about meeting someone. Then again, writing for 45 mins just on a description of something is tricky and a bit dull? Oh well, I will try not to second guess things and hope she knows best!

No idea if it will be any good but I’ve signed up for this maths webinar tonight
https://email.kjbm.mathmo.com/c/eJxskMFu3CAURb_GbKoZwQODWbBo1Y7UdT_AwvBmTGLABRwrfx9NxpGiKEvOuVzpXbuuY7IRzbN9slM41ZYLXktOrZ7Wkv3mWsiJeCOYAO8JGqaU5opzGAhGG5bR4xJesLyO4Z7StO_FQBk7bPAGWK-GXlGpDxaxVnvDsb2uaB5oKtl6Z2s7IgVr3orDb_9X_L9hesgPtE3vbX_ur19fyr4zs6EcqNbuigOXahJDL9AzKaVEduVuuJJggIKkPTAmAGh_1lRzAOkYR2UnzTtBn5-meI62zTGfXY5kMXNra-34zw4uHVz2ff-kO7istmBqp5ureNpxCskW8rFHxeSxjD5HG5L5Wl3MkrdQ0aYU7YylE_R2v-kh0YU1YGrvg8mBS6G1BFJDOzYUSgGTTJJm_oWGP_7-7oB_wi8G3gIAAP__trOuTQ

It’s done now isn’t it, so no point dwelling on it. Hopefully they have done well!

I have got it went “well”. To be honest however DS can’t string a sentence together now. He’s been running in fumes and has definitely just crashed.