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 son did ok on physics he thinks. He mistakenly spent ages revising forces last night which are paper 2! But he woke up early to go through paper 1 and did fine in the end

DD has Physics (Triple/higher) and Media today. She probably won’t update me until after school as she’s worried about forgetting to turn her phone off again if she turns it on in between exams.

History looming here too - she’s super-confident on Henry and his Ministers (although hoping for a question which involves Anne Boleyn as that’s her main interest). Slight worry she might include her extensive knowledge of the lyrics from SIX in her essay. Less confident on Cold War I think

Physics (AQA triple higher) was good here. My daughter said it was a good paper 👍

Russian reading/listening exam next this afternoon 🤞🏻

DD said it went ok (AQA Physics higher triple). Not as good as chemistry but better than biology... Not sure what that means. She said last page was hard. Not too sure what to make of it. Her post exam happiness is mostly relief it's over apparently lol.
@JustOneMoreMargarita your comment on SIX made me laugh. If only there was a GCSE on musical theatre, DD wouldn't even need to revise!

Not as good as chemistry but better than biology...

Exactly what my daughter said 😂 mostly relief here as Physics is her least favourite science

Physics AQA triple higher seems to have gone well here too, Maths tomorrow, then History, Music French and English Language rest of the week

Weve been pretty hands off with homework and revision and son seems to be doing well so if it ain’t broke we’re not going to try to fix it. I just asked him what he uses for revision. He said loftily that reading his own notes would not be a good revision method (school gives them advice on effective methods).

He said he mainly uses past papers to check what he doesn’t know and then revises gaps. He said he uses Cognito for science Seneca some some other subjects. For English he does his own ‘blurts’ for English and History etc. And looks back at notes to see what he’s forgotten. he sometimes uses AI to make himself quizzes.

apparently Edexcel higher physics paper 1 was ‘ok’ and that’s likely as much as I’m going to get from him.

Lol @JustOneMoreMargarita - agree with the musicals, if only Hamilton was on the syllabus!

Physics triple aldo reported going well here and managed to get home ok. DH drove her this morning as we were worried about the strikes - she has a 50 min commute.

DD said OCR Physics was a disaster and she cried at one point. I felt really sorry for her, she has done so much to try and bring her grades up in the sciences, but it is what it is.
Onwards, at least she likes Maths and History (2 of her A-levels choices alongside art) fingers crossed they go well.

Edexcel iGCSE physics was a mixture - two of the 11 questions were “weird” one frustratingly she figured out as she walked out (it was concept she knows well but they worded differently 🫥) quite a lot of complaints about from the other students. The other one she thinks was probably obvious but she was “too tired to think anymore”.

Trying to get motivated for maths & geography tomorrow now

DD finally reported back on AQA separate physics higher went well. Although in her words it went OK ! got in the 80s maybe 90s for marks.
Now to revise for Geography and Maths !

@Stowickthevast - Hamilton is a big fave here too

and yes, @Caddycat - mine would also be smashing it if there was a musical theatre exam (oh why can’t that be part of Media)

Kids Week tickets on sale next week I think - planning to try for Hadestown as a reward for surviving the exams.

DD says that AQA Triple Physics and Media Studies were ‘actually good’. One more subject ticked off too… feel like English Lit, Sociology and Media are the ones that she’s struggled with in some of the mocks so hopefully all good from here on in.

DD isn’t doing iGCSE, but said exactly the same thing about knowing an answer as soon as she walked out of her AQA paper 😂

@wincher how is your DS and how did he cope with the exam? Hope he is on the mend.
My dd (also ill) said it was ok, she didn’t need to use the extra toilet breaks, but she has been exhausted on the sofa since with stomach cramps. I keep cursing fate for the timing of this illness - but then there are many many kids dealing with all sorts of things much worse than this. It’s just life. Sucks though! My family keep suggesting it is down to anxiety which is winding me up no end.

Agh so DS's official diagnosis of autism has come through today. Do I tell him now and risk him being upset/confused/conflicted for the rest of the exams and also probably spend all his free time watching YouTube videos about it or don't tell him but then he does know it was expected this week so then he might think I'm keeping things from him.

Oh and in terms of physics it was "fine".

Perhaps tell him afterwards. Its a lot to process. Does he already have adjustments?

No he has no adjustments I'm not sure any would help in exam situations it's more social situations, conversations, verbal communication he struggles with.

I really think after would be better but he has huge issues with secrecy which he will see this as if he ever finds out we knew for a while before telling him

I would also wait until after the exams this week, but he should get extra time for A-levels. I think autism automatically qualifies him for extra time.

DS’s in depth analysis of how his Physics exam went today…

’Alright’.

I have name changed in light of how I'm feeling today. Physics was 'fine'.
It feels like there's a lot to go, but DD seems quite cheerful tonight so fingers crossed.

So sorry for those of you with poorly DC - I hope they do well regardless and get special consideration. It does seem like a lot of bugs flying around at the moment. Very bad timing.

DD says AQA Triple was ‘great’ then text to ask to go to the cinema this afternoon and then go over Maths when she gets in!

We’ve just been to school where they did an exhibition of all their Art coursework and final pieces which was lovely to see.

Thinking of all the poorly DC, really crap timing, poor things. Hope they are all on the mend soon.

@Littletreefrog That’s a tough call. I would also say wait but if you feel like that will cause its own issues it makes it very hard, are school supportive? Could they maybe give some advice?

@Littletreefrogcould you tell him at the weekend so you have time together to process?

DS verdict on physics was “sly chopped” errrrrrr I think that’s bad

@UncomfortableSilence unfortunately the school are not supportive and I think they are very much of the opinion that 2 weeks today he will no longer be their problem.

Not that he has been a problem to them at all for the 5 years he has been there. They haven't said a single thing about his communication difficulties but then I read in the autism report today they told them he had severe communication difficulties that made it difficult for him to engage in school life. Well a heads up about that at some point might have been useful!

@Littletreefrog - if he knows the timing will he ask ? I think I would be guided by that . I think waiting till the weekend sounds like a good call too .