Preparing for the end of the year 7 exam

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Chin123
Posts: 1
Joined: Mon Apr 23, 2012 2:45 pm

Preparing for the end of the year 7 exam

Post by Chin123 »

Hello everyone...Just registered on this wonderful forum...need your help and advice. My son attends a Grammar school and we are worried about the end of the year exam which starts from 14th of May....Does it cover the entire Year 7 syllabus? How does he cope? How do we prepare him for this exam?
Your ideas and words of experience would be really helpful and beneficial at this crucial stage.
Thanking you in advance
Best Wishes
chin123
hermanmunster
Posts: 12817
Joined: Fri Sep 15, 2006 9:51 am
Location: The Seaside

Re: Preparing for the end of the year 7 exam

Post by hermanmunster »

Chin123 wrote:Hello everyone...Just registered on this wonderful forum...need your help and advice. My son attends a Grammar school and we are worried about the end of the year exam which starts from 14th of May....Does it cover the entire Year 7 syllabus? How does he cope? How do we prepare him for this exam?
Your ideas and words of experience would be really helpful and beneficial at this crucial stage.
Thanking you in advance
Best Wishes
chin123
Please, please don't worry about year 7 exams - they really have only just started and the GSs tend to break them in gently. What is covered will probably vary by subject and it might be better for him to start coping on his own - I reckon most of the exams will be quite short .

TBH I wasn't even aware of my kids doing exams at the end of year 7 and they bumbled through fine (before you all think I am a lost cause, I have now registered that one of them is doing A levels and one is doing GCSEs this year :oops: )
Amber
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Joined: Thu Sep 24, 2009 11:59 am

Re: Preparing for the end of the year 7 exam

Post by Amber »

Completely agree with what Herman says...time to get him to start coping on his own. The school will give him guidance on what to revise and how to do it. It will be low key and certainly not 'crucial' in any sense. And if the worst happens and he makes a total mess up of it...well, lessons will be learned, no doubt, in time for the year 8 exams . :D
Belinda
Posts: 1167
Joined: Thu Nov 08, 2007 10:57 pm

Re: Preparing for the end of the year 7 exam

Post by Belinda »

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Last edited by Belinda on Sat Nov 03, 2012 5:26 pm, edited 1 time in total.
pheasantchick
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Joined: Tue Jun 02, 2009 10:28 pm

Re: Preparing for the end of the year 7 exam

Post by pheasantchick »

My year 7 ds has got exams also. We sat down and wrote out a revision timetable. It roughly equates to a couple of 30 minutes sessions per evening depending on other homework. I didn't want to overdo it. (Does this seem reaonable?). I gave him some tips on revision (ie. making notes) and have left him up to it.
suzanne

Re: Preparing for the end of the year 7 exam

Post by suzanne »

I wouldn't worry too much about year 7 exams. The one thing that might be of concern is if the result determines any sets for year 8 - eg. Maths in our case. However, if they aren't in the top set at Grammar school it doesn't really matter - they may get an A rather than an A* ;)
cherryvalley
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Joined: Sat Mar 31, 2012 8:22 am

Re: Preparing for the end of the year 7 exam

Post by cherryvalley »

I didn't find year 7 (or year 8 or year 9) exams any good for helping DS1 learn to revise. The subjects which would have required extensive revision (e.g. History, Geography) did not examine him on the whole year's work, only on the topic they were doing at the time. Maybe the school will have to re-think this policy now that modular GCSE exams are going to disappear.

I'm still waiting for DS1 to do more than 30 minutes' revision in one go, and he's now in year 11!
mum23*
Posts: 417
Joined: Tue Mar 02, 2010 1:28 pm

Re: Preparing for the end of the year 7 exam

Post by mum23* »

suzanne wrote:I wouldn't worry too much about year 7 exams. The one thing that might be of concern is if the result determines any sets for year 8 - eg. Maths in our case. However, if they aren't in the top set at Grammar school it doesn't really matter - they may get an A rather than an A* ;)
Actually, plenty of DCs at grammar school get a C for GCSE and some don't pass at all. :wink:
mum23*
Posts: 417
Joined: Tue Mar 02, 2010 1:28 pm

Re: Preparing for the end of the year 7 exam

Post by mum23* »

I meant they might not pass a particular GCSE rather than not pass any at all :) (that would be a shock I think)
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