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.

No idea how we are going to work results day. They are meant to go in and get them and open them there so the teachers can support and if the teachers feel re-marking is warranted etc they can arrange it. But DS's mental health is possibly not up to that although he will want to go in with his friends and will resist any sign of us or the school treating him any different to anyone else. I guess I'll just have to drop him off and then worry until he's back home safe.

Must admit I haven't even thought about results day either - elder DS was Covid year so was banned from going to get GCSE results and only able to access via app. I think DS will want to go to school though.

Just a comment on the pressure DC are under - I agree it does feel like there is a lot but at the same time this doesn't always just come from their schools, to be fair - it's very often self inflicted and exacerbated by friends, the general media and social media, as posts on this thread demonstrate! I also think as parents we have to bear some responsibility for pressure DC are feeling if we've opted to send them to a selective or super selective school, whether this is grammar or indie. I am absolutely guilty of this myself btw - DS is at a really academic boys indie where around 10% of the year group are genuinely likely to get straight 9s and the majority of overall grades really will be 7-9. Of course this then creates additional pressure. But that was our choice. DS2 seems to thrive in that environment but I do sometimes worry that DS3 (at the same school but not quite so academic) will find it tough in the exam years.

Plan for results day - I will be in car she will run and get results come back to open them with me and then if all goes well run back to celebrate with friends. DD has done so well in improving her grades but it could go either way so we need a ‘get out’ in case she’s upset and we need to urgently find a plan B.

Any teachers about - she ran out of time on history and left out a 4 marker - lots of tears.

Is this a disaster??? 🫣🫣🫣

Same as DD. Although she came out happy as that was less missed than normal! Her history teacher once told us that lots of children struggle to finish in time as it's a very tightly timed exam so I'm sure it won't mean it's a disaster.

@TheBeatlesWhoarethey obvs 4 marks could make a difference between two grades (I mean 1 mark could), but no more than that. And if AQA it's less than 3% of the overall mark so surely not the end of the world.

Really hard day for dd. She felt she messed up History (which doesn’t mean she did, but she feels awful), and found out that she is likely to get borderline 7 for Art. That’s obviously a great grade, but it was her one subject where she felt she really shines, so was hoping for an 8 or 9. She feels that now she’s likely to get a mix of of 5s and 6s, with one 7 (if grade boundaries don’t change for Art) and she’s gutted. I’ve tried to tell her these are good grades and it doesn’t matter anyway - but she is so deflated.

I’ve not thought about results either - no idea if they can go into school or not.

he admitted that maths yesterday was hard and he’s a bit worried but I said let’s just knuckle down in half term for the next two papers.

I am having a big glass of wine tonight

DD panicking about today’s Sociology paper- she said there was a question about roll allocation and it was a 12 marker, and she couldn’t link it back to a specific Sociologist 😩 She answered it, but possibly a load of waffle. She wants to study it at A level so is now really worried.

Has anyone’s DC shed much light on today’s paper?

These are brilliant grades! Really solid. Why are these kids piling so much pressure on themselves 🥺

I’ve just finished a glass and am about to pour another!

I can see DD starting to over analyse everything and panic…

I know. That’s a fine clutch of grades! She was weeping and describing herself as ‘basic’, ‘I’m not exceptional at anything’ etc. I could have wept myself. She’s exceptional at being her amazing self. I have barely drunk for the last 10 months but am about to crack open my second beer!

@VillageFete I just finished my second and planning bed in a bit.
Hope ever robes kids are enjoying some rest before next week.
I will be driving DD to school on results day waiting outside in the car while she gets results hoping she can be as efficient in letting me know results like her brother.
If good will prob go of with mates if not will come home with me.

DD ended this week on a good note. Said P2 for electronics went well so might be ok for a 9.

Poor kids are so hard on themselves. Even the concept of all 9s is mad.

I've been lurking on your thread it's bringing back memories of two years ago when my DS sat his GCSEs. He is now sitting his alevels. Time has gone so quickly!

Re getting results - I think some parents were there, but my son went into school on his own and called me. Then he had to enroll etc. So I would have been a spare part.

No idea for results day. We were away on holiday for ds1, and they only emailed them across in the afternoon so we spent all day pretending not to be stressed and then came back from our day out in time for ds to check his emails.
We live around the corner from school so driving there to wait in the car would be extremely weird! Will have to decide nearer the time.

Like this plan!!

Even more brutal, for my degree results, due to tradition in the particular subject, we all went into one building and they read them out, first the firsts in alphabetical order, then the seconds, then the thirds.

That Is brutal! For A Levels ours were just printed on tables put up on the wall in the corridor, anyone could see at any time. Degree the same!

Question for the teachers - when do you get to see the exam papers? I imagined all the subject teachers in the staff room getting to open them once the kids were in the exam but DS didn’t think so. He said they’ve all been going to find their teachers to tell them the questions - but maybe that’s the teachers being cool

@TeenToTwenties that's awful.

My parents lived abroad so I was away for both of mine but was at boarding school so don't think anyone went in!

I think DD will want to go in and open with her friends but don't know if I'll be allowed to accompany her! She's not sure if she's staying or not yet, so there may be a 6th form scramble that day.

It’s supposed to be 24h later. We certainly don’t see them until quite a while after the kids have come out - so we are genuinely on tenterhooks waiting for them to come and tell us!

Oh that’s actually really lovely!

That’s interesting re the teachers wanting to be found - my DS has only mentioned a teacher that wasn’t about - one that has gone above and beyond for them with several weekend sessions so I think they were a bit gutted they couldn’t find him afterwards to report back .

As a former teacher in school, I would say one thing that is lovely is when a student finds you on results day to say thanks. I recall a student of mine, a lovely lad, getting a hard-won C and he came up to me to shake my hand. I knew how hard he had worked for that grade and I was delighted for him. So please encourage your DC to do that if their teachers are at results day (obvs not all will be).