1. Welcome to our Year 10 Parents’ Information Evening 2015

2. Programme for the evening ahead
Mr Gray – Welcome Mr Smith – Assessment Heads of Core Subjects (Mrs Dillerstone, Mr Hamilton, Miss Neale) Mrs Warkman – STAR + curriculum Booklet

3. Activities Week July, 2015

4. Key Dates 2 November – School resumes November – Data sheets issued
18 December – School closes for Christmas
5 January – School resumes
January – Data sheets issued
19 January – Science ISA
11 February – Schools Closes for Half Term
12 February – Teacher Training Day
22 February – School resumes
1 March – Science ISA
21 March – Business Studies Course work starts
24 March – School closes for Easter
11 April – School resumes
April – Data sheets issued
20 April – Parents’ Evening 4pm-7pm
29 April – Business Studies Course work ends
2 May – May Day Bank Holiday
27 May – School closes for Half Term
6 June – School resumes
13 June – Geography Field Work
7 July – Year 10 Celebration Evening
July – Reports issued
14 July – Careers Search commences
19 July – School closes for summer

5. Key Dates Focus on: 20 June – Exam Week July – Reports issued
14 July – Careers Search commences
Busy Points
Controlled Assessments

6. Our New School

7. Learning Apps

11. English
Mr N A Hamilton

12. English Students prepare for two qualifications: GCSE English Language
GCSE English Literature
Both are new specifications for first teaching from 2015 assessed entirely by terminal exams in the summer of 2017.
No early entry.

13. GCSE English Literature
Exam Board Edexcel
No tier of entry
Every student sits the same exam
New grading system 9-1

14. GCSE English Literature
Examination texts will be studied during Year 10 and 11 working towards two written exams in the summer of 2017

15. English Literature exams
Paper 1:
Shakespeare and Post-1914 Literature
1 hour 45 minutes, closed text (worth 50%)
Section A: Shakespeare: Part A on an extract,
Part B linking to the whole text (Macbeth)
(worth 25%).
Section B: Post-1914 Literature: choose one question out of two; on setting, character or theme (An Inspector Calls) (worth 25%).

16. English Literature exams
Paper 2:
19th Century Novel and Poetry since 1789
2 hours 15 minutes, closed text (50%)
Section A: 19 Century novel, Part A on an extract,
Part B on the full text (A Christmas Carol) (worth 25%).
Section B: Poetry since 1789: one named poem from
a cluster in the anthology (Conflict) that will be printed – students compare it to another (unprinted) of their choice. Students also compare two thematically linked unseen contemporary poems (worth 25%).

17. GCSE English Language Paper 1: Fiction and Imaginative Writing
1 hour 45 minutes (worth 40%)
Section A: Short / long questions on
unseen 19th Century fiction (1 hour) (worth 15%).
Section B: Two images provided as stimulus for Imaginative Writing (45 minutes) (worth 25%).

18. GCSE English Language Paper 2:
Non-fiction, Literary Non-fiction and Transactional Writing - 2 hours (worth 60%).
Section A: short answers on two non-fiction texts, followed by a longer response question which is a comparison of writers’ use of language
(1 hour 15 minutes) (worth 35%)
Section B: two options of writing tasks linked to themes of reading materials – letters, job applications, articles etc. (45 minutes) (worth 25%).

19. Three Top Tips for English
Become familiar with the texts your son/daughter is studying and discuss them with them.
Specimen papers, mark schemes and other resources are available on the Edexcel website: ns/edexcel-gcses.html
Encourage your son/daughter to read and discuss non-fiction texts e.g. newspapers, leaflets, letters and magazines. The internet is awash with older 19th Century fiction and non- fiction texts because most are out of copyright.

20. Revision Guides
English Literature – specific text guides are commercially available to buy
English Language guides and workbooks are also available to buy commercially.

21. Maths
Mrs K A Dillerstone

22. GCSE Maths
Two Tiers
Foundation and Higher – both with the AQA exam board.
New GCSE Mathematics Specification (8300)
Grades 1 – 9

23. NO Coursework!
Both a blessing and a curse.

24. How can I help? Talk about numbers
Real life situations: shopping, offers, best buys, interest rates, commission payments, bills
Mental maths: the more automatic responses that a candidate can accurately recall the better
Discuss problem solving strategies: drawing diagrams, underlining important facts and reading questions carefully can all help
Does their answer make sense? Estimating as a checking strategy is useful

25. QWC Questions (4 Marks)

26. QWC Questions (5 Marks)

29. Science
Miss S Neale

30. GCSE Sciences Exam Board AQA Two Routes
Science A and Additional Science
Biology, Chemistry and Physics
Both routes prepare students for Level 3 study of Science subjects

31. Biology, Chemistry and Physics
Students will take three exams in each subject in May and June of year 11. These marks are combined with an ISA mark to give an overall grade.
All modules have equivalent weighting (25%)

32. Science A and Additional Science
Students will take both the Science A and Additional Science in year 11.
Students will take six exams, two in each subject in May and June of year 11. These marks are combined with two ISA marks to give two overall grades.
All modules have equivalent weighting (25%)

33. GCSE Sciences
Students are assessed regularly throughout the course in end of unit tests
Assessments will be STAR marked and graded
Students will then be asked to reflect on their answers and take some action to improve further

34. GCSE Sciences
Students are encouraged to prepare thoroughly for each end of unit assessment, making revision notes using:
Their own notes
Revision guides
The website : myGCSEScience
The website : BBC bitesize

35. Investigative Skills Assignment (25% of a science qualification)
What is an ISA?
Investigative Skills Assignment (25% of a science qualification)
Research
Exam 1: Hypothesis, Plan, Results Table
Practical Work
Graph
Exam 2: Own results analysis, Case Studies

36. QWC Questions (6 Marks)
In this question you will be assessed on using good English, organising information clearly and using specialist terms where appropriate.
Students are presented with an A4 side of information to read, often including charts or graphs.

37. QWC Questions (6 Marks) They are then asked to describe a process
give advantages/disadvantages
evaluate a new development
explain the data
In this question you will be assessed on using good English, organising information clearly and using specialist terms where appropriate.

38. Three Top Tips for Science
Download past exam papers and mark schemes from AQA website
Watch and make notes from the website myGCSEScience
Encourage your child to use the BBC website:
use the bitesize revision materials
watch science programmes from iPlayer
browse the scientific news articles

39. Science Revision Guides
Nelson Thornes revision guides are available from the science technicians.
They cost £3.50 (50%RRP) each.

40. What other things are we doing?
STAR feedback
Curriculum overviews