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.

I had lost the new thread and thought perhaps no one else's DC had an exam today ;-)

DD has AQA history this morning (Germany and Interwar years for Conflict and Tension) and was the most stressed she's ever been. She's very aware that her knowledge in some areas is still a little confused (Why did they go to the polls so many times in Germany in 1933?) and we could have done with the week end before the history exam. I hope it goes well... I feel the relief from an exam going well is what carries her to the next one...

@BeasKnee I know what you mean about the group of friends. DD has very academic friends, they are in the same sets mostly but DD works so so hard to keep up with them when they do a fraction of what she does and often get better results... She was dreading this morning because only one friend does history and she is the most academic, 9s in everything and keeps bragging about how easy it all is... Not what you need when you are nervous.

DD has history today, at this stage I’m just wanting to get her to half term so she can draw breath. Exams next week are Monday - Thursday for her, and that’s it then until June, thank goodness!

DD also doing History AQA today. Wants to take A level history so is feeling the pressure a bit. It’s the longest exam so far (2 hours) and is the last of 6 exams this week. Not sure that spread has been very helpful.

German (reading - Edexcel) yesterday was apparently much harder than expected, though her friends all said the same.

4 exams next week then a very much needed half-term!

Oooh @Crispsandwich25 my student is taking Edexcel German and said it was easy oh dear! Nvm onwards to the writing.

ETA I mean oh dear maybe my student missed something or got it all wrong, not that your DC should have found it easy

Fingers crossed history has gone ok. Need to get to half term! Do any of your dc’s do any sport at a high ish level? Struggling to balance sports and revision here.

Eek! I didn’t get any detail on it but it’s the only one she’s felt went badly this week. She was hoping for an 8, so will wait and see!

Yes - DC does 2 sports that both have big comps in the summer. One they normally train 12 hours a week but have dropped to around 6-8 hours a week over the past couple of weeks. The other has continued at 4 hours a week. I think it’s great to keep up fitness etc but it feels like a lot of juggling and maybe not quite enough revision time.

None for us but DD has friends that do. It’s been a mixture, some of them absolutely sticking with their sporting regimes and others who dropped out several months ago.

Stick with it if you can - it’s so good for them!

Mine normally does about 15 hours. Dropped to about 8 at moment, it’s tricky.

Long time lurker and finding this thread very supportive as my DD goes through these exams. Edexcel History this morning went well (crime and punishment).

Big ones next week for her are English Lit (J&H and conflict poetry) and Chemistry and Mandarin writing on Monday. Can’t wait for half term for a breather. It’s been relentless.

Crime and punishment went well!

Edexcel History (Crime and Punishment) this morning and AQA Sociology for DD today, She was strong in history in the mocks but was having some doubts last night, Sociology could go ok or could be a nightmare, I’m pretty sure she’s not managed to do enough revision as she focused more on History, but at least that’s one subject from 10 finished after today,

Probably won’t hear until after school due to school phone pouch rules,

Aqa history apparently went well - most positive feedback so far. Phew - it’s been a long week!!

Mine kept up his sport until this week including a regional championship two weekends ago couple of weeks ago where he got a couple of silver medals.

This week he hasn’t trained at all, but he’ll do a couple of hours tonight and probably more on the weekend. He’s got a national championship the weekend before the final exam which at the moment he’s entered into but might withdraw. That will depend on how much physics he can get through in half term. He’ll go back to normal training over half term and his coach has planned it to try to get him to where he should be aerobically to make the weeks after half term a taper. We’ll see.
We’re being led by him atm.

No idea how history went. DS never calls me so I have to wait until he gets home But that’s it until we go again with another 5 exams… in our case eng lit, eng lang, chemistry, french and RS. That will however see 2 out of 7 subjects finished!

Oh I hear you!! DD is at a selective Indi and DD thinks anything less than straight 9’s or at the very least 9 9’s and 2 8’s is failure.

They’ve been conditioned to feel this way and it makes me so angry! Completely different to the vision we were sold 6 years ago when choosing the school 😡

History declared as “easy”

I thought Edexcel was History - Medicine this morning!

Am waiting for DD to get home from
History - the waiting is awful!

edexcel crime and punishment here. Paper 1 schools get to choose the unit.

Ahh ok thank you. Phew!

@EducaatingRita mine has just done the medicine paper, she said it went well.

Just relieved this week is over and she can have a bit of breathing space before next week.

Is anyone else in London? I'm slightly worried about the tube strikes but I think they aren't planned to start until midday on Tuesday so at least they should be able to get to English, though they may struggle to get home!

Message from DD history went well but she didn’t finish it 😟 timings have been a huge issue during mocks - she has extra time but dyspraxia slows her down.

But all we can do is learn from it and move on for next exam.

@Stowickthevast not in London but just wanted to send best wishes added stress you don’t need!

History was good here. She said she got upset coming out thinking she had confused Abyssinia with something else and messed up the 8 marker, only for someone to tell her she did talk about the right "crisis".

Hurray for the week end - even though DD has arranged an 8am tutoring session on Sunday 😳This is by far her worst subject, no amount of work has got her above a 6. She's desperate for a 7 but her teacher rather harshly told her that you can't make that sort of progress in chemisty... 😡

Edexel History (Medicine in Britain) This morning for DD, and in her words “It was nice” 🫠

She’s been tying herself in knots over History. She’s only interested in Nazi Germany and finds all over components boring.

Sociology this afternoon - This is one of her stronger subjects, she scored a 7 in her mocks with minimal revision, so finger’s crossed as she’s taking this for A Level, along with English Lit & Media studies.