Dear Parent/Carers,
Firstly, I’d like to take this opportunity to say how proud I am of our current year 11 students. The cohort have matured and thrived through this year already. This is testament to the support and guidance you have provided. With only 4 weeks left to go before the students start their written mock exams, I wanted to be clear with our expectations of them regarding revision at home. The mock exam period is really important in embedding clear routines for revision and preparation as well as to give us as teachers guidance how your child is doing and the next steps of support for further improvement. Exam timetable found here: Year 11 Mock Timetable 2025.pdf
Quick wins to support your child at home
With Half-term coming up, this will be great opportunity for you to have powerful conversations about revision and what does and doesn’t work. We also want to help you understand more about the most proven revision strategies and approaches. The vast majority of students have already started revising and we are keen for your child not to miss out. Students have been set targeted revision homework on Arbor during the half-term break with set hours they will need to complete the homework.
Parent/Carer actions: Over the next few weeks and throughout the half-term break please:
1 Watch the short 10 top tips video about the best-bet revision strategies your child should be using and, most importantly, how you can help them right now.
2 Watch the quick 1-minute study hack videos: These videos beautifully articulate how to organise a space and how best to revise as efficiently as possible. https://www.fromthesidelines.uk/study-hacks
3 If you missed our Mock support evening on Thursday: please take time to look at the presentation attached here: GCSE Mock Support Evening
4 Go through your child’s TP4 report, emailed home on Tuesday. Sit down with your child and talk it though with them. What simple changes can they make to continue to improve?
5 Continue to support your child in their revision for GCSEs: The video above will outline how you can best do this in both a manageable and effective way. The key message is that the quality of revision (specific content and strategies used) is just as important as quantity. Please support them in finding a quiet organised space to work. The list below are links to of resources and apps that are useful with learning content and practicing exam papers.
- All revision resources are available above: All subject’s revision resources
- Apps that are helpful with content revision:
https://senecalearning.com/en-GB
- Please also use AQA and Edexcel past papers to support revision at home: The moderator reports are also a useful insight of where students have previously lost marks.
https://www.aqa.org.uk/find-past-papers-and-mark-schemes https://qualifications.pearson.com/en/support/support-topics/exams/past-papers.html.
How we will be supporting students in school to get them ready for revision?
This week, students had an assembly on Monday to outline our expectations and have then used DEAR time to start getting organised:
- Building a revision plan: Students have started creating the first part of their revision plan with a focus on the work they need to do during the half-term break. All students have been given a hard copy of the revision timetable in assembly today. It can be found here: Revision Planner
They will also be given their seating plan timetable after half term.
- Using the latest Apps to support building a revision plan: The following apps come highly recommended in supporting students with their organisation and planning of their revision. Please take a look.
- https://www.forestapp.cc/
- https://apps.apple.com/us/app/easy-study-timetable-planner/id993247888
- https://getrevising.co.uk/planner
- https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/mystudylife-study-planner/id910639339
- https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/exam-countdown-school-uni/id873279955
- Recapping and reteaching students about the most effective strategies to use to revise: During the assembly and in subject lessons staff will be recapping on exactly how to revise. This is not just about them knowing what a strategy is (e.g., flashcards), it is also about ensuring they know exactly how to use the approach for maximum learning benefit.
- Revision sessions: These sessions have been going for 3 weeks and have been well attended with 85% of students in regular attendance. It is vital that your child doesn’t miss out and accesses the revision opportunities with a subject specialist. Timetable (click the link to open the page and scroll down): P0 and P7 provision
At this stage the most important things to support them with is their organisation, revision and making sure they are getting in a good sleep routine ready for the exam period. Lastly, please do not hesitate to get in touch with me or Mrs Linscer (Exams officer) if you have any further questions or are worried about your child’s well- being. Worried about your child’s wellbeing – quick support links here.
Yours sincerely
Mr Atkins