11 Plus Exams Forum

Hi All,

My DD loves learning history but when it comes to exams and tests, she found it a challenge to score high marks and structure her answers. She gets rather disappointed that this is one of her favourite subjects yet she cannot handle exam Qs competently.

I explained to her that knowledge is different from techniques and for as long as she is curious about the topics, exam techniques can be learned and improved along the way.

Can you give us some advice on resources and exam techniques for managing year 8&9 History learning ? How & what practice does she need to present her opinions & analysis more structurally ?

Please help us to find new ways to handle test more comfortably together? Thank you.

I can’t advise personally as I didn’t study the current history syllabus and it has changed a lot since I studied but can tell you the observations of my DD who got the top grade in her GCSE history.
- she had a copy of the exam mark scheme - you can get these free on the relevant exam website
- school shared ‘exemplar’ essays or 12 mark questions and picked out what made the difference between a 6 and a 9
- she read more widely than the core texts
- there are different theories or interpretations and you need to know the ‘accepted’ version and a few other versions, DD did mention these but can’t remember now what they were called
- it isn’t just knowing the facts it is a combination of seeing the different versions and arguing
- there are questions that have different marks eg a six mark question will have different level of detail to a 2 mark question. Your DD needs to understand the mark scheme to know what is expected
- a lot of it is about politics so having an interest in current affairs can lend context to history

Good luck to your DD

Thank you so much PettswoodFiona!
Mark schemes and review sample versions as a start . Brilliant principles & pointers. Thank you .

Hi

Just a parent, but I think these are the key history skills:

Causation: Explaining why things happened.
Using evidence: comparing/contrasting sources, explaining why they are similar / different and evaluating them in context.
Historical perspectives: Understanding the past, (and its people), on its own terms.
Change & continuity: Exploring and describing the ways in which things changed or stayed the same over time.
Historical interpretations: Understanding how and why people deliberately explain the past in a particular way.
Historical communication: The ability to communicate clearly and precisely. To juggle evidence and form a line of argument to answer a question.

They can be applied to any historical situation.

My DD's school talk very often of PEE paragraphs...point, evidence, explanation..across English, RE & History. Hope it helps.

Many thanks Octsmum for breaking down the skills.
You made them very appealing to try and adopt.

Thank you all for your tried & tested advice and encouragement. DD has just started learning Renaissance. We will find marking schemes and
road test your techniques to rebuild confidence. It seems more manageable to earn marks & enjoy historian stories now !

You are both right, these are transferable techniques that apply to multiple subjects. Thank you for tapping in to help .