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As a parent, youwill already know that you are your child’smost valuable teacher. The lessons they learn at
homewillaffecthowtheyinteractwithotherpeopleandtheworldaroundthem.And,likemostparents,youwill
probablywanttodoallyoucantomakesuretheyhaveagoodfutureaheadofthem.
IntheSixthFormthereisamassivejumpfromGCSEstoA’Levels.Theworkloadincreasesintermsofthesizeand
quantityofassignmentsset,andthereisaneedforstudentstoreadaroundtheirsubjects,toundertaketheirown
research,maketheirownnotesetc.
Academiccoasting isnotanoptionatKSAandstudentsneed tobeable to take the initiativeanddealwithwork
whichrequiresbothmoretimeandmoreeffort.Timemanagementbecomesahugeissueintermsofbeingableto
juggledeadlines and social life, prioritisingwork andplanning ahead for revision. The almost inevitable result of
thesenewdemandsisincreasedstressandstudentsneedtoacknowledgethisandtodevelopwaysofdealingwith
this.
Ouraimintermsofstudyistoequipstudentstodealwiththedifficultiesofadegreecourseandworkinglife,they
needtobecomeself-organised,self-motivatingandindependentlearners.
Oftenwhenyourson/daughterenterstheSixthFormyoucanfeeloutofyourdepthintermsofthesubjectstheyare
studyingandfeelatalossastohowtosupportthemwiththeirhomework.This,combinedwiththedesiretofoster
independence,canleadtoparentsbackingoffalltogether.Therearehoweversomebasicpointsyoucanfollowat
hometohelp:
Improving your
child’s chances
Sixth Form Parental Help
Booklet
7.Getagoodattendancerecord.Atwoweekholidaymeansyourattendancedropsto94%andmiss40lessons;that’salotofworktocatchupon!
17daysmissed=1gradedropped
1. Show them you’re interested.Get to know their timetable andtalk about what they’ve learnedthatday.Ifyou’renotfamiliarwitha subject, get them to teach yousothattheyareputtingtheirnewknowledgeintopractice.
2.Workhabits.Give themaquiet place to do homeworkand revision. Encouragethemtowork ina light,airy,uncluttered environment,with the necessaryequipment around them,with room to display notes,etc.No distractions such asmobile phone, email,Facebook, etc. Sufficientsleep, drinking water and abalanced diet can also helpthebrainfunctionwell.
3.Helpwithcourseworkandrevision,but don’t do it for them. Be there tohelpthemfindanswerstoproblems.Ifthey need to research a particularsubject, go with them to a library oruse the internet.Putall thekeydateson a calendar and make sure theymeetcourseworkdeadlines.4.Timemanagement.
Discuss deadlines with them andencourage them to display themsomewhere at home. They shouldhave short and long term plans andwillbenefitfromdiscussingwhatworktheyhaveandwhentheyaregoingtodo it on a weekly basis. Encouragethem to plan their weeks, includingleisuretime,sotheyhaveaclearideaof what time they have to work (it’susuallylessthantheythink…) 5. Take days out that are
relevanttoschoolwork.Plan family visits to places ofhistorical interest, museums,galleries or even the beach;thesecanbringlessonstolife.
8.Revision&StudySkills.Haveahandyboxofpens,pencils,andsoon.Buyadictionarysothattheyhaveallthe‘tools’theyneedtodotheirwork.Readingthroughworkisnotrevision!Soencouragethemtouseavarietyoflearningtechniques:
• Makenotesincolour/onpostits• Usediagrams• Mindmaps• Doingdifferentworkindifferentrooms• Discussionorgroupstudy• Testing/self-testing• Teachingyouatopic• Newworktobedoneinthemorningandknown
workreviewedintheafternoon
6. Get to know the examboardsothatyouknowwhatthey will be studying. If youhaveaccesstotheinternetathome, visit AQA, Edexcel,OCR.
Ten practical t ips to get involved in your child’s education
9.Stayintouchwiththeschool.Theirteacherisagreatsourceofhelpandadvice–notjustifyourson/daughterishavingproblems.Theywillbeabletosuggestotherwaysinwhichyoucanhelpthemwiththeirwork.
10.Don’tforgettosay‘welldone’.Weallneedpraisenowandthen,butit’sparticularly important for a child.Congratulating your son/daughter willencouragethemtodowellnexttimeandshow them you genuinely want them tosucceedatschool.
GradeProgressPathway
GCSE AS A2 UniversityDegree 1st A* 2:1 A A 2:1
A*/A 9/8/7 B B 2:2B 7/6 C C 2:2
B/C 6/5 D D 3rdC 5 E E
C/D 4/3 U U E 2
Pleaseenteryourson/daughtersALPStargetgradesbelow:
Subject ALPSAStargetgrade ALPSA2targetgrade
Thereisnogettingawayfromit,thenexttwoyearsaregoingtobetough,lotsofworktodoinverylittletime. But if they want the gradesthey will have to put the hoursin.
http://university.which.co.uk
What’s in a Grade?
Organisation is key. Being well organised from the
outset will make homework and revision quicker and
easier. A lever arch file with dividers will be needed
notonlyforeachsubjectbutforeachsubjectteacher.
4ASsubjects=8files.
Dueto lockersizeandnobagpolicyaday folderwith
dividerswillbeagreatidea.
ButwhatdoesanAgradepupillooklike?
http://www.bestcourse4me.com http://www.ucas.ac.uk
Writesdownandcompletestheirhomework/
courseworkwhentheygetitandhands
itinontime.
Revisionisstartedmonthsinadvanceiswell-structuredandconsistsofre-writingnotes,usingpastexampapersandmarkschemes.
Knowstheirfacts,figuresandspecificexamplestogivethemconfidence
whenansweringanexamquestion.
Hasarealpassionforthesubjectandwillreadaroundthe
subjectoftheirownaccordinbooks,
magazines,newspapers.
Classnotesarethorough,neat,tidy,colorfulandorganisedinto
teacher&subjectfiles.
WhatdoesanE/Ugradepupillooklike?
Classnotesareuntidy,
incompleteanddisorganised.
Homeworkisscribbledontoasparebitofpaper,handedinlateand
incomplete.
Hasapart-timejobandworksmorethan13
hours.
Doesthebareminimumandwillonlycompletetheworkgivenin
lessons.
Revisionisleftuntilthenightbeforeand
willconsistofreadingovertheir
untidy&incompleteclassnotes.
Getajob!Upto12hourspaidworkhasbeenshowntoimproveyourgrades.
It’sallaboutbeingorganised.
YouwillbeinvitedtoKSAtwicetodiscussyourchild’sprogress,atthebeginningoftheacademicyearand
beforetheexaminationperiod.Thesemeetingsaren’tjustachancetoseehowyouson/daughterhasdone
overthepastyearbutagreatopportunitytomeetteachersandtalkaboutpositivewaystohelpyourchild
moveforward.
Beforetheparents’evening
• Talkwithyourson/daughteraboutwhattheyhavedonewellandwhatcouldbebetter.Lookattheirreporttogether.
• Writealistofquestionsthatyoumayhavetotaketotheparents’eveningwithyou.• Takeyourson/daughterwithyoubecausetheyneedtohearwhattheirteacherssay.
Meetingtheteachers
• Attheparents’evening,bepreparedtolistentowhattheteachershavetosay.Youneedthemtobeclearandhonestwithyou,soyougetagoodpictureofhowyourson/daughterisdoingatsixthform.
• Don’tbetooembarrassedtoaskedquestionsifyoudon’tunderstandwhattheteacherissayingandtakenotesifyouthinkitwillhelprememberwhathasbeensaid.
• Ifyouandateacherdisagree,itisimportanttofindawayforwardthatputsyourson/daughterneedsfirst.
Aftertheevent
• Talkwithyourson/daughteraboutwhatwasdiscussedandagreedwiththeteachersandgothroughthelistofactionpointstogether.
• Pintheactionlistupwhereyoucanbothseeitanddiscusstheirprogressregularly.• Ifyouneedto,stayintouchwiththeirteacher;emailwillbebestandtheywillbeabletotellyou
howthingsprogressinlessons.
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/students
Making the most of parents’ evenings
https://www.futurelearn.com/AFutureLearncourseisfreeandwillcomplimenttheirA’levelcourse,itwillalsoberecognisedbytheuniversitytheywillbeapplyingto.
UseTwittertokeepinformed.
Followthefollowing:
@WhichuniUK
@ucas_online
@alevelmindset
@THEUniAdvice
Sharingourindependentinsightintothebestunis,colleges°reecourses.Maketherightdecision
aboutyourhighereducation.
WemanageapplicationstoUKfull-timehighereducationcourses.
CreatorsoftheVESPAinterventionmodel,writers(TheALevel
Mindset
Advice,universityguides,rankings,newsand
lifestylearticles.Tweetsbystudenteditor,Seeta
Bhardwa.
@LucyCParsons
@thestudentroom
@TheStudyRocket
@SF_England
StudentFinanceEngEmpoweringyoungpeopletogetthetop
gradesandintothebestuniversities.Makingkidscleverereveryday...
FollowusforA-levelresultsdayadvice,
Clearingtips&tricks&Fresher'swisdom.We'llgetyoureadyforGCSE
resultstoo
Theonlinecourseforyourrevision.Enhancingstudy
timeandreducingprocrastinationthrough
technology.
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