Hi, my daughter will be choosing her GCSE options soon. She has narrowed it down to taking spanish, history, religious studies and art or swapping art for geography. She's certain on taking spanish history and religious studies. She loves art and really looks forward to her lesson every week.

A lot of students in older years have told her that art is too much coursework and that this will affect her other GCSE's very badly. This is really putting her off as others have said that its very difficult balancing other subjects with art and that organisation is key to getting a good grade. Mostly all of the older girls she knows are spending every lunchtime in the art rooms doing their coursework, a lot of their time is invested in art, and they've said to my daughter that they feel that this is impacting other pending tests/work.

My daughter is also thinking about geography instead of art, which she knows will be much less coursework. However if she takes geography she will be doing all three humanities, which I feel will be very demanding. She doesn't enjoy geography as much as art.

Any thoughts would be much appreciated
Thanks

I would say go with what she enjoys and loves.
It is a lot of coursework, but if she really enjoys the subject it will be worth it.
My daughter did art GCSE alongside other very academic subjects and enjoyed it as a foil to the others.
She went on to Russell Grouo uni snd thrived. Better to study something you like than slog through second best.

My DD did all three Humanities last year plus a mfl (and music as they did 11).
She really enjoyed doing all three but she definitely found there to be a lot of content. She's the sort of person that doesn't mind needing to remember lots and lots of information but I'm very glad my ds didn't decide to do all three. She would have said Geography was the hardest, both in content and volume.
I have lots of friends whose children did Art. I think they all felt it took a lot of time but most enjoyed it. The ones who didn't were students who were real perfectionists and could never be satisfied with what they'd done.

dd1 did History, Geography, RS, Music, AS Spanish, and Triple Science.

dd2 did History Geography, Music, French , PE and Triple Science.

I was so very very glad that neither of them were remotely interested in Art.

Everything you have heard is true. The Art students are in the classroom every break and lunchtime. We even had a student in dd1's year who did Art because she knew all her friends would be in the Art classroom all the time and she wanted to be with them rather than in the playground on her own.

One of the parents told me that she felt her dd spent 50% of her time on Art leaving only 50% for all the other options put together.

Both my dds loved Geography and dd2 did A level Geography and was serious considering it as a degree. My family comment on her high level of general knowledge , a lot of which comes from Geography.

DD1 would have done Geography as well if she could have fitted it in.

Dd1 was interested in Drama at GCSE but we were put off by the group performance element where your grade was dependent on the performance of others.

GCSE Art has a high drop out level at my dd's old school.

I also think that you need as many GCSE's as possible that you could take onto A level so you have a great choice range for A level.

Has she got any idea what she might be interested in doing at University? DG

dd1 did History, Geography, RS, Music, AS Spanish, and Triple Science.

dd2 did History Geography, Music, French , PE and Triple Science.

I was so very very glad that neither of them were remotely interested in Art.

Everything you have heard is true. The Art students are in the classroom every break and lunchtime. We even had a student in dd1's year who did Art because she knew all her friends would be in the Art classroom all the time and she wanted to be with them rather than in the playground on her own.

One of the parents told me that she felt her dd spent 50% of her time on Art leaving only 50% for all the other options put together.

Both my dds loved Geography and dd2 did A level Geography and was serious considering it as a degree. My family comment on her high level of general knowledge , a lot of which comes from Geography.

DD1 would have done Geography as well if she could have fitted it in.

Dd1 was interested in Drama at GCSE but we were put off by the group performance element where your grade was dependent on the performance of others.

GCSE Art has a high drop out level at my dd's old school.

I also think that you need as many GCSE's as possible that you could take onto A level so you have a great choice range for A level.

Has she got any idea what she might be interested in doing at University? DG

OP, the key to me is that she enjoys Art. She has a great range of GCSE options - keeping lots of things open, and if Art gives her a break from academia in some way, then that can be a real relief, as GCSEs are not overly hard, but they are a trudge. She may wish to take Art at A level, she may not, but she will certainly do better in subjects that she enjoys.

Students who are very arty will, naturally, spend more hours on the art subject - and may well spend many lunchtimes in the art room - DG sees this as a bad thing - however, I would respectfully suggest that I VERY much doubt, if they weren't doing Art eg the OPs DD, and chose another subject, she is highly unlikely to be spending her lunchtimes doing Geog or Maths or whatever - lunch is a social time (which can be as important as the academic side) and if a child can socialise whilst working on her Art, that is not necessarily a bad thing.

I agree, KCG, wholeheartedly.

My son also did Art GCSE, he didn't spend the hours on his portfolio that my daughter did but still did well (A). She spent the hours because she wanted to.

I agree, KCG, wholeheartedly.

My son also did Art GCSE, he didn't spend the hours on his portfolio that my daughter did but still did well (A). She spent the hours because she wanted to.

Also about to do GCSE choices in this house.

I am surprised that you say, DA, they should do as many GCSEs as possible that they might want to do at A level. We have been trying to guide our DD (who has no idea what she wants to do) to a broad base of things that interest her. It seems highly unlikely she will take Latin A level, but for her it is the lesser evil in language GCSE choice, where with the modern ones you actually have to speak to each other.

And, controversially, I think it might be ok not to get top marks in every subject!

Mine is also choosing this time, art has been ruled out purely because she doesn't love it and would resent the time spent on it (she is pretty good). If she loved it then I would be supporting her to do it.

We have suggested she does (god forbid) the subjects she enjoys. This has ruled out a lot of subjects! They have to do a language so she is likely to choose Latin for that. The other subjects she enjoys her friends don't, so she is worried about losing them as she won't be with them, this is causing more angst than anything.