GCSE Survival Guide

[honscupboard]

Not what you might think, but after reading the previous topic on baking your way through the stress of exams, perhaps others might add their pearls of wisdom for those of us yet to embark on the GCSE ship.......

[moved]

With DS I aim to work/research from home as much as possible to ensure he applies himself.

With DD I plan to take a month of work away from home, attend/present as many seminars as I can and if possible go to an international conference.

Her stress is alleviated by inducing it in me!

[honscupboard]

Oh goodness, yours sound just like mine.......... DD will accept no help, because even testing her is "cheating"!
DS will take all the help I can muster, because he is amazing (he added that bit!)

[aliportico]

My pearl of wisdom?

Make sure you raise your children to be calm and hardworking, then you should be fine

Dd1 (this year) is calm but does nothing. Well, the bare minimum, I guess. Dd2 (next year) is very diligent, but very stressy. I still haven't decided which is worse - it's quite good though, because when one is stressing me out, I can be glad the other one's not like that!

[wonderwoman]

Well, DH and I provide a lovely home for our DC. They have space and privacy to do their work and revision and of course a plentiful supply of cakes.

I expect them to take full responsibility for their own learning. I do make suggestions about revision, sometimes when I'm not even asked, but I really do try to let DC organise themselves. And on the occasions when it has all gone wrong, because teenagers know far more than any adult, we have been there to help them move forward.

[ginx]

Ds1 is in year 10, apart from French which he really struggles with, we left revision to himself (having checked regularly he was doing something!) He's done ok for him - C's predominantly. The one subject he revised really hard in, he got a B. Surely that should be a lesson ... revise hard and he could do better. He has a year to go before doing the whole lot at once.

I'm going to leave him to revise (peeping through the crack in his door to check he's doing something), remove his iPad, ask to see some evidence of revising. We're not planning to help as it just seems to slow him down. He's not good at revising, he doesn't seem to have a technique eg mind maps. He just uses a revision book and writes it down. Still, whatever works!

Unlike wonderwoman, our home isn't lovely! It's noisy! We have four children and all noisily bicker. He has his own space and privacy though and also a plentiful supply of cakes - and biscuits - and foods he likes. I'm not looking forward to next year. I've been moaning about Sats but of course GCSE's are far more important. I think if he needs too much help to get through GCSE's, how will he cope with A levels? The food will always be there, though!

[Amber]

Well, DH and I provide a lovely home for our DC. They have space and privacy to do their work and revision and of course a plentiful supply of cakes.

I expect them to take full responsibility for their own learning. I do make suggestions about revision, sometimes when I'm not even asked, but I really do try to let DC organise themselves. And on the occasions when it has all gone wrong, because teenagers know far more than any adult, we have been there to help them move forward.

Perfect!
Exactly my thoughts WW .

I would add to that 'just be there'- a throwaway remark from one of mine recently made me realise how much they just like/need to feel that you are around, doing 'mum stuff' and, I guess, making their world feel 'right'. I've reorganised my diary a bit during the exam period so I'm not away overnight, though of course not everyone has this flexibility so I'm lucky.

And yes, food very important- decent meals, a ready supply of snacks and baking too. I think the smells from the latter (usually!) are comforting for everyone, and stressed siblings benefit too.

And finally, though harder now that going outdoors involves the risk of being blown away, hit by tumbling structures loosened in gale force winds or washed off one's feet by deluges of incessant rain- fresh air and exercise always good too, and not just for the students.

[wonderwoman]

Unlike wonderwoman, our home isn't lovely! It's noisy! We have four children and all noisily bicker.

That sounds exactly like our home - what's not lovely about that?

[KS10]

Is it still lovely if it's not the kids doing the bickering ?

[Amber]

Is it still lovely if it's not the kids doing the bickering ?

Did you ever read the book by Quentin Blake called 'All Join in'? I used to substitute my own children's names in here when I read it to them.

When Amy throws a tantrum it is wonderful to see
And when Eric starts his wailing there is noise enough for three
When Bernard kicks the dustbin it really makes a din
But the very best of all is when WE ALL JOIN IN

When we note ruefully that our children seem rather, er, 'spirited' at times, we have to remind ourselves that OH and I could also be accused of the same trait.