Blasé to brilliant: Nichola and her son’s year 11 story 

Is it possible to go from grades like 2s and 3s in year 10 mocks to passing all your GCSEs and getting into your chosen sixth form?

Yes it is!

In this post, I'm going to share with you Nichola's story of how she and The Extraordinaries Club helped her son to succeed in his GCSEs and get into the sixth form of his choice.

He didn't know how to revise…

Over to Nichola…

“At the end of Year 10 it became apparent that my son had a very blasé attitude to his study and his effort and grades had declined. I was very concerned that he wouldn't achieve the grades to enter into Sixth Form and to go onto study for his A Levels/IB. My other concern was that whilst revising for his end of Year 10 exams he admitted that he didn't know how to revise; he just didn't know where to start and seemed totally lost, which was reflected in his results.

This prompted me to find a way that we could support him to become motivated, disciplined and find revision techniques so that he could confidently, study towards his GCSE grade goals stress-free. This is when I came across Lucy and the Extraordinaries Club.”

I should interject here – initially, Nichola didn’t sign-up to the club. They had already engaged two private tutors to support her son, and her husband said that the Club was another expense that they couldn’t justify.

However, Nichola joined anyway saying, “I’m convinced that this is what we need to get us through this year.”

Nichola's experience of the club

“The amount of advice and the way in which it is conveyed through workshops and coaching calls in the Extraordinaries Club is exceptional. After just two months my son had more direction and he feels he is becoming better prepared and more confident as he gains the necessary tools required to study more effectively. The modules on time management, overcoming distractions and revision techniques have not only benefited my son but also myself as I have confidence in how to support him. My son now has strategies in place to become more organised and to manage his time better. If he starts to veer away from these then he can revisit the videos, blogs and even the Coaching Calls to help get back on track and keep motivated to reach his goal.

As the Extraordinaries Club is aimed at both parents and students we are now both singing off the same sheet – whereas before this wasn't the case. I also know that if it was just me making the suggestions and giving him advice he wouldn't take it seriously. Lucy has a way of engaging with the students and they do listen. As a parent I feel that Lucy genuinely does care about how well our children perform and she is passionate about delivering the different methods and coping strategies to them.

After the Year 11 Parents’ Evening, it felt as though we were discussing a completely different boy. It seemed that he’d taken on board a lot of the advice in the Extraordinaries Club – the importance of homework being one that stands out and the one that his teachers made many positive comments about.”

So how did he do?

After the GCSE results came out in the summer, Nichola emailed me to say:

“Well, he passed them all! When I remember back to this time last year and how worried we were about him even passing, I am very relieved that he has shown he can do it. And, he can go to the school he wants for sixth form!”

What does Nichola think about the club?

“There are many benefits to joining the Extraordinaries Club but I think what my son will take away from the club the most is that revision will not feel as though he's just been let out into the wilderness to fend for himself. He can make a plan, he can apply the relevant techniques and study habits, he has a good infrastructure that he can work with. The skills, techniques and study habits he is acquiring from this course will continue with him through to his A levels and higher education.

I felt that you [that’s me, Lucy!] truly did and do care about the members and that made such a big difference and is what makes The Extraordinaries Club stand out. I felt that the parents in the Facebook group all became friends and the support was amazing.”

If the Extraordinaries Club sounds like it offers the kind of help and support your family needs this year, sign-up today. Click here to find out more and sign-up.