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Grade D student, possible to get A*s or As in GCSEs?

Hi all!
I'm going to be in Year 11 in September and I haven't done very well in Year 10. I didn't bother revising for most of my exams but I'm willing to revise and work hard now because this year is major. When I did revise a little bit I would get a B or an A grade.
In biology (I do better in biology for some reason) I normally get an A, despite all the odds, but are there any ways to achieve A*?

Do you think that I could get some A*s or As? I take French, Latin and Religious Education as my options. Oh and History.
And if anyone knows any great revision guides (not CGP) please say below + any tips for History GCSE :smile:

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You have got every chance of doing well in GCSE! You seem to have realised that this is serious, so you can definitely get those grades up; make sure you believe in yourself!
History was my hardest subject, and I bought the specialist revision guide for the textbook we had at school (i did OCR modern world history) and it was so helpful as it taught me everything I needed to know. I would also use spider diagrams (not just for history) to condense all of the information and note down key dates in timelines (eg for the events leading to the first world war)
I also cannot stress the use of past papers for science/maths enough; they are the best practice you can have.
Good luck!
Original post by heatherhoohoo
Hi all!
I'm going to be in Year 11 in September and I haven't done very well in Year 10. I didn't bother revising for most of my exams but I'm willing to revise and work hard now because this year is major. When I did revise a little bit I would get a B or an A grade.
In biology (I do better in biology for some reason) I normally get an A, despite all the odds, but are there any ways to achieve A*?

Do you think that I could get some A*s or As? I take French, Latin and Religious Education as my options. Oh and History.
And if anyone knows any great revision guides (not CGP) please say below + any tips for History GCSE :smile:


I went from a C/D student in year 10 to an A grade student in year 11 so it's definitely possible! Just put the work in and test yourself regularly, ask about anything you don't understand ASAP, look at markschemes and do all the past papers you can find! Good luck!
Original post by Parkleton
You have got every chance of doing well in GCSE! You seem to have realised that this is serious, so you can definitely get those grades up; make sure you believe in yourself!
History was my hardest subject, and I bought the specialist revision guide for the textbook we had at school (i did OCR modern world history) and it was so helpful as it taught me everything I needed to know. I would also use spider diagrams (not just for history) to condense all of the information and note down key dates in timelines (eg for the events leading to the first world war)
I also cannot stress the use of past papers for science/maths enough; they are the best practice you can have.
Good luck!


Haha thank you! I sure have realised after seeing my friends getting their results!:eek: Thanks for the history tips! I'm going to hop over to Amazon now :biggrin::biggrin:
Would you say memorising a CGP guide for sciences word for word to be sufficient or not? :s-smilie:
Original post by amelimoo
I went from a C/D student in year 10 to an A grade student in year 11 so it's definitely possible! Just put the work in and test yourself regularly, ask about anything you don't understand ASAP, look at markschemes and do all the past papers you can find! Good luck!


:colondollar:You are my inspiration!! I have faith! I have faith! How was your GCSE-preparation experience (just asking)? Am I in for a year of sleepless nights? :frown:
Original post by heatherhoohoo
Haha thank you! I sure have realised after seeing my friends getting their results!:eek: Thanks for the history tips! I'm going to hop over to Amazon now :biggrin::biggrin:
Would you say memorising a CGP guide for sciences word for word to be sufficient or not? :s-smilie:


I know how you feel; after doing my AS and seeing how well everyone did I really had to buck it up and A2 was ok in the end :')
To be honest I wasnt really a fan of CGP, I didn't like how it tried to joke with me :P But for science they are definitely helpful, cause they do condense it, BUT dont rely on it, make notes with a combination of the textbook, things like bbc bitesize and the revision guide, so you know like everything :P
Original post by Parkleton
I know how you feel; after doing my AS and seeing how well everyone did I really had to buck it up and A2 was ok in the end :')
To be honest I wasnt really a fan of CGP, I didn't like how it tried to joke with me :P But for science they are definitely helpful, cause they do condense it, BUT dont rely on it, make notes with a combination of the textbook, things like bbc bitesize and the revision guide, so you know like everything :P


Yup the book can be seriously patronising at times!! I shall pool into all the resources that my school has...my teachers will start hiding from me :')
Original post by heatherhoohoo
Hi all!
I'm going to be in Year 11 in September and I haven't done very well in Year 10. I didn't bother revising for most of my exams but I'm willing to revise and work hard now because this year is major. When I did revise a little bit I would get a B or an A grade.
In biology (I do better in biology for some reason) I normally get an A, despite all the odds, but are there any ways to achieve A*?

Do you think that I could get some A*s or As? I take French, Latin and Religious Education as my options. Oh and History.
And if anyone knows any great revision guides (not CGP) please say below + any tips for History GCSE :smile:


of course it is! in my english lit mocks i received an E and C. When I done my actual exams I ended up getting A's in both papers! I worked hard for it after getting the bad grades. It's very very possible to be an A*/A student if you put your mind to it.
Original post by patronusleviosa
of course it is! in my english lit mocks i received an E and C. When I done my actual exams I ended up getting A's in both papers! I worked hard for it after getting the bad grades. It's very very possible to be an A*/A student if you put your mind to it.


Thank you!! I feel like I am able to do this :biggrin: I SHALL KNUCKLE DOWN AND CHAIN MYSELF TO MY DESK.
Reply 9
Of course I got D/Es in maths and physics and then got A*s at the end and am now continuing maths :biggrin: just read over the topics a few times and do past papers and repeat them if necessary. Also ask a friend or the teacher if you don't understand something and I also did study groups.
Original post by heatherhoohoo
:colondollar:You are my inspiration!! I have faith! I have faith! How was your GCSE-preparation experience (just asking)? Am I in for a year of sleepless nights? :frown:


Aww haha thanks!! And actually I found year 11 a lot easier than year 10 because I got motivated by my progress and got into a habit of doing revision and asking for help more. My advice to you is to try and spend as much time as possible on your coursework and ask your teacher to read it and tell you where to improve and then go back and improve it until you have the highest grade possible. I could have got 2 A*s this year but because I got bored and gave up at the end of my coursework I only got B's in the coursework yet I had 2 A*'s in the exams which gave me an A overall. Keep yourself motivated and use your progress to keep building your goals up. For example in English language last year I got a C. (I got a C in the exam and D's in my coursework) and my aim was to get C's in my coursework this year and try and get a B however after looking at markschemes, asking my English teacher to read and mark quite a few essay drafts and I kept rewriting them as practise so when I actually did my English coursework for Literature I got an A* (19/20) and an A (17/20) which then encouraged me to aim higher and I ended up with a B in English literature this year (I'm getting a remark because I was 1 mark off an A)

Same for RS in my year 10 mock I got an E one mark off a D. (I really hated RS) but then I made myself pretend to enjoy it and kept doing exam questions and giving them to my teacher and once I saw the progress I actually started to enjoy the subject and got an A in the actual GCSE this year.

My point is ignore the negativity around you, use it to drive yourself forward, focus on small goals and work your way up.

You will get stressed and you will have a breakdown at some point during the year but don't let it dictate your grades. If you can't handle the pressure talk to someone so you can deal with it quickly. When I first started year 11 I took product design as a my 1 year option (short course) and by October I was getting so stressed over it and wanted to drop it, my teachers and tutor encouraged me to continue with it and I then aimed for a C yet once I started the coursework I actually really enjoyed it and ended up getting an A overall. Make yourself enjoy learning new things and subjects. Focus on getting rid of your weaknesses before building on your strengths!

If you want any more advice or have any more questions just ask!

I took GCSE core and additional science, media studies, English literature, English language, maths (foundation and higher), Religious studies, health and social care, geography and product design.
Original post by amelimoo
Aww haha thanks!! And actually I found year 11 a lot easier than year 10 because I got motivated by my progress and got into a habit of doing revision and asking for help more. My advice to you is to try and spend as much time as possible on your coursework and ask your teacher to read it and tell you where to improve and then go back and improve it until you have the highest grade possible. I could have got 2 A*s this year but because I got bored and gave up at the end of my coursework I only got B's in the coursework yet I had 2 A*'s in the exams which gave me an A overall. Keep yourself motivated and use your progress to keep building your goals up. For example in English language last year I got a C. (I got a C in the exam and D's in my coursework) and my aim was to get C's in my coursework this year and try and get a B however after looking at markschemes, asking my English teacher to read and mark quite a few essay drafts and I kept rewriting them as practise so when I actually did my English coursework for Literature I got an A* (19/20) and an A (17/20) which then encouraged me to aim higher and I ended up with a B in English literature this year (I'm getting a remark because I was 1 mark off an A)

Same for RS in my year 10 mock I got an E one mark off a D. (I really hated RS) but then I made myself pretend to enjoy it and kept doing exam questions and giving them to my teacher and once I saw the progress I actually started to enjoy the subject and got an A in the actual GCSE this year.

My point is ignore the negativity around you, use it to drive yourself forward, focus on small goals and work your way up.

You will get stressed and you will have a breakdown at some point during the year but don't let it dictate your grades. If you can't handle the pressure talk to someone so you can deal with it quickly. When I first started year 11 I took product design as a my 1 year option (short course) and by October I was getting so stressed over it and wanted to drop it, my teachers and tutor encouraged me to continue with it and I then aimed for a C yet once I started the coursework I actually really enjoyed it and ended up getting an A overall. Make yourself enjoy learning new things and subjects. Focus on getting rid of your weaknesses before building on your strengths!

If you want any more advice or have any more questions just ask!

I took GCSE core and additional science, media studies, English literature, English language, maths (foundation and higher), Religious studies, health and social care, geography and product design.


You did great!!!:biggrin::biggrin::biggrin: You should be super proud! Hopefully, with the right amount of revision and motivation, I'll do just as well! :tongue: Did you find maths gcse okay? I totally suck at it :'D
Original post by heatherhoohoo
You did great!!!:biggrin::biggrin::biggrin: You should be super proud! Hopefully, with the right amount of revision and motivation, I'll do just as well! :tongue: Did you find maths gcse okay? I totally suck at it :'D


Haha thanks!!

Maths GCSE Hahahaha! Is literally my opinion I hated maths with a passion! I took my foundation exam and got a C in year 10 and then got shoved in a class with higher students for a year with a teacher who actually HATED me! Like seriously she made my life hell. I was getting D's in higher when I first moved up and in the January mock I got a U... I literally just bought a maths revision guide (I was on OCR) and I worked my way through it as well as using my maths occasionally. But I honestly found past papers the best way to boost my grade for me they were so much better than anything else I could be doing. I actually ended up skiving maths lessons and instead used my H&Sc teacher's office to do maths past papers (she was lovely and didn't mind at all) I then went over the questions I did wrong and redid them and then focused on the topics I didn't understand, in august I picked up my results and I got a B!! Although if you have a good teacher you could probably do better than me!
Original post by Manexopi
Of course I got D/Es in maths and physics and then got A*s at the end and am now continuing maths :biggrin: just read over the topics a few times and do past papers and repeat them if necessary. Also ask a friend or the teacher if you don't understand something and I also did study groups.


WOAH!! :eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:

Well done!!!
Original post by amelimoo
Haha thanks!!

Maths GCSE Hahahaha! Is literally my opinion I hated maths with a passion! I took my foundation exam and got a C in year 10 and then got shoved in a class with higher students for a year with a teacher who actually HATED me! Like seriously she made my life hell. I was getting D's in higher when I first moved up and in the January mock I got a U... I literally just bought a maths revision guide (I was on OCR) and I worked my way through it as well as using my maths occasionally. But I honestly found past papers the best way to boost my grade for me they were so much better than anything else I could be doing. I actually ended up skiving maths lessons and instead used my H&Sc teacher's office to do maths past papers (she was lovely and didn't mind at all) I then went over the questions I did wrong and redid them and then focused on the topics I didn't understand, in august I picked up my results and I got a B!! Although if you have a good teacher you could probably do better than me!



High five about hating maths with a passion!:biggrin: Your teachers (not the evil one) seem pretty cool! At my school skiving lessons=internal exclusion :'D Gah! GCSEs are starting to seem like relationships...more effort, better the result!
Original post by heatherhoohoo
High five about hating maths with a passion!:biggrin: Your teachers (not the evil one) seem pretty cool! At my school skiving lessons=internal exclusion :'D Gah! GCSEs are starting to seem like relationships...more effort, better the result!


Haha exactly, think of maths as that weird cousin that you were always made to play with when you were younger even though you hated them! :wink: and yeah all my GCSE teachers apart from her were amazing!! They're actually the main reason why I stayed at my school! They used to give us hugs when we were upset (even though they' re not allowed to it definitely helped, sweets for mid-day or double lessons, bacon sandwiches or breakfast bars from my English teacher for Monday mornings and my RS teacher used to hate the scheduling of her lessons so she used to make songs and perform them infront of us with the school Chaplin - very memorable!! In fact all my teachers did weird things like that and definitely bent the rules and got very imaginative but it worked!!
Original post by amelimoo
Haha exactly, think of maths as that weird cousin that you were always made to play with when you were younger even though you hated them! :wink: and yeah all my GCSE teachers apart from her were amazing!! They're actually the main reason why I stayed at my school! They used to give us hugs when we were upset (even though they' re not allowed to it definitely helped, sweets for mid-day or double lessons, bacon sandwiches or breakfast bars from my English teacher for Monday mornings and my RS teacher used to hate the scheduling of her lessons so she used to make songs and perform them infront of us with the school Chaplin - very memorable!! In fact all my teachers did weird things like that and definitely bent the rules and got very imaginative but it worked!!


Eurgh yes!! Ahhh so lucky! At my school the teachers view us all as grades, not as students :frown: They have incredibly boring ways of teaching us and they put a ton of pressure on us to do well :'D Don't blame them since their pay is affected by how well we do! Whoops! :colone:
Original post by heatherhoohoo
Hi all!
I'm going to be in Year 11 in September and I haven't done very well in Year 10. I didn't bother revising for most of my exams but I'm willing to revise and work hard now because this year is major. When I did revise a little bit I would get a B or an A grade.
In biology (I do better in biology for some reason) I normally get an A, despite all the odds, but are there any ways to achieve A*?

Do you think that I could get some A*s or As? I take French, Latin and Religious Education as my options. Oh and History.
And if anyone knows any great revision guides (not CGP) please say below + any tips for History GCSE :smile:


Hello :smile:
I was in the same position as you.
In year 10 i was so happy if i got a C in the mock exams.
I got an E in maths 😃in year 10.
With A bit of revision your grade changes So much.
A Week before The Real Exams i got An E and a D in literature And spanish. With a week of Revision i Got Two A's in both.
Overall i Got 3 A*'s And 7 A's , i just Revised and you Will be fine :smile:
Original post by heatherhoohoo
Eurgh yes!! Ahhh so lucky! At my school the teachers view us all as grades, not as students :frown: They have incredibly boring ways of teaching us and they put a ton of pressure on us to do well :'D Don't blame them since their pay is affected by how well we do! Whoops! :colone:


Haha do you go to a grammar by any chance? I just went to an all girls comprehensive! I think they realised we all needed a bit more motivation to do the work and the only way they could give it to us was to try and make lessons interesting and a bit stupid at times! Our school definitely cares more about us than our grades. My RS teacher sat and spoke to me before playing basketball with me when I came to her and told her I had given up on trying in her subject because I never got anywhere so what was the point, definitely worked, after that 2 hour after school chat I felt much better about myself and had lots of tips for how to improve in her subject, if she had treated my like a statistic I would have just failed!!
Reply 19
memorising cgp guides really helped for science :smile:)

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