Y11 2025-26 - Trying not to melt and pushing through the final weeks

[Stowickthevast]

I finished the thread so started a new one. Welcome all Y11 parents, support and solidarity for the next big push here!

My DD1 is doing Maths, Further Maths, French and Psychology and she is really enjoying it. Particularly the Psychology. There are lots of degree options open to her. She has looked at French/Business options but is now thinking she wants to focus on psychology

@Funkylights yes, we have been having lots of these conversations. Dd1 is at a grammar but is tempted by moving somewhere that is a bit closer to home and in a more attractive part of town - London so lots of options. A couple of her closest friends are leaving too which is influencing her.

I think she's going to stay though, for similar reasons that @waitingquietly gave. It's really only 18 months for 6th form and will be over in the blink of an eye. The teachers at her current school know her and will be able to give her the best advice for uni etc. It is so soon from when they start till they are doing their summer mocks which are then used for uni predictions. I've got a couple of friends in the year above that have gone to great 6th forms but haven't been advised brilliantly about what A levels to take or drop which are now affecting their options.

That said, not everyone has a 6th form that goes through or is a good fit. If she really wants to leave, she can. And dd2 will have to move as her school doesn't have a 6th form. I do think the whole system could do with a rehaul, there's so much pressure to make decisions so young.

DS will probably stay at his current school unless he absolutely smashes his exams and then will try for another local one which he was super keen on but is on the waiting list for.

RE today - philosophy and ethics in Catholic Christianity. He was planning to read the revision guide on the bus 😚

Physics tomorrow, then maths (urgh), French writing, History and English. Full on week.

I massively relaxed on screen time over half term so need to reinstate those which will go down like a lead balloon.

Dd is still unwell. Hopefully she will be able to do the exam tomorrow (and the rest of week), but we have to get a doc’s note in case special consideration is needed, and she’s lost a lot of revision time.
Such crappy luck, I really feel for her.

My DS has chosen a 6th form that none of his friends are going to. Most of them are going to one that’s quite a journey away. Initially he wanted to go there too, primarily because of friends, but I’m really proud that he’s actually considered which is going to be the best for him and realised that this other one is the better choice. It’s still a schlep from home but manageable. He’s a very laid back and sociable kid so he’ll be fine wherever he goes.

I thought the half term break would fly by but it actually seems ages since the last exam. DD's first one is tomorrow. I wasn't particularly pleased with the amount of revision that happened in half term (very little!) but she did get back to things properly at the weekend. I would have preferred just a couple of days off revising to the best part of a week that actually happened, but she does seem more herself now.

A Level choices are being thought about and probably changed here too but it really comes down to the results I think. It's not out of realms of possibility that A Levels won't be possible at all. First choice is A Levels at current school, then A Levels at sixth form college. Current school requires grades that haven't been reached in mocks so no idea how likely that is really.

I'm counting the days down until the end now...

Dd has computer science paper 2 this afternoon, the long coding one. It’s the only paper she isn’t that worried about although there’s always the potential that she’ll do something utterly random.

She headed off with dh to the library this morning so do some revision.There wasn’t a great amount of revision this weekend, she’s another one who hasn’t been well. Physics tomorrow then the dreaded maths & geography double on Wednesday,

atm she’s planning biology, geography & computer science A levels but has decided she hates all of them after having to revise! I’ve told her not to worry about it until the results come in.

We’ve really had enough of it all now.

DS going to a revision session in school later but overall has worked fairly steadily over half term. He’s fed up with it but very much on this is the final stretch then I’ll get my life back.

He is even more sure on his A levels after revision. It took ages for him to decide on subjects but he finds history revision interesting and that’s the only one he’s continuing with

Good luck to all DC this week.

@Callmejudith DD has the same RE paper this afternoon, it’s her favourite of the 3 so hopefully will go well.

She seems to be mainly focusing on History revision at the moment as like so many of us have said…the content 😌 She’s been doing bits of other subjects around that but definitely seems a bit over it. Really hoping these next 2 weeks don’t drag.

Dd has done Maths all morning and Physics all afternoon at school. Definate benefits to staying in school as theres no way she would have done that much at home!

German (AQA) officially completed here. Didn’t get much other than a “fine”.

4 more to go this week (after which, 6/10 GCSEs will be finished, hoorah!).

I am more worried than DD is about English language on Friday; she made an unexpected mistake in not limiting her answer to the specific lines on one of the questions. I’m trying not to panic (she seems fine!)

For English Lang paper 2, it’s just Q3 where they have to limit the lines. I advise my students to read the questions first and draw a box around the relevant lines before they read the extract. I wouldn’t panic - it’s good to make these mistakes in mocks, as it means you’ll be hyper aware of not making them again!

Physics, maths, history and English language for us this week. Tomorrow’s physics paper will make her officially half way through the exams. I swear it’s relentless.

Dd exhausted & completely uncommunicative about the com sci this afternoon ☹️ it’s been an incredibly long day for her.

Hope your DD feels better @Drivingselfmad

Tough week all round I think but do feel for the kids who started today.

Sorry I meant she made this mistake in paper 1 already, so I’m very nervous she needs to make up some ground in paper 2.

She’s never made an error in reading a question like this before so it happened at the worst time.

Is anyone else's child doing AQA Physics tomorrow?

DD said they will be given a formula sheet and they don't need to memorise formulas, something about Covid? Apparently next year's y11s will be the last one given the handout during the exam, and following years will need to memorise them.

Is this true? She had handouts for Y10 mocks and the mocks in January, but I am really anxious that she has misunderstood

Yes that tallies with dd.

Yes @Anonymousemouses they get a sheet. See the attached link from AQA which explains in detail.

www.aqa.org.uk/news/gcse-maths-and-gcse-sciences-formulae-and-equation-sheets-for-2025-2027

Hi, I’m sorry but could you please explain this? My dd had no idea? Do you mean limit the number of lines you write?

Thank you so much

No. It’s the question where they give an extract but the instructions tell you to refer to only a specific set of lines from the extract. My DD referred to the whole thing rather than just the specific lines she was meant to.

Hopefully she’s been reading the questions properly in the other exams .

Sorry that was my poor wording (bad English teacher!). As @Crispsandwich25 said, it’s a question where they ask you to analyse language from specific lines of one extract only. So you need to make sure you have the right source (A or B) and the right line numbers.

Big week here, RE today, then physics, maths, french, history and English lang. I’m so ready for this to be over, I know DD is. It’s almost crueller giving them half term off and then asking them to start over again

My DS would have definitely done better just doing exams straight through but then some kids needed the break so you can't please everybody unfortunately. He is not at all in the zone now like was before half term.