Week 1 of mocks done, going on holiday to Wales, and working as a playworker over the summer - My Trip toTanzania (Post 15) - Lifestyle Monday
Hello everybody and welcome back to another blog post,
I can't believe that I finished my first week of my first IB mock examinations. It sounds a bit silly to say but I could not see my exams ever ending. The work was piling on and I found myself gradually getting more nervous about the prospect of sitting these exams as I got closer to the time period. Last year, I did sit all of my GCSE mock examinations but I still feel like I was at a bit of a disadvantage for these IB mocks, having not done my real GCSE exams. There was so much time in-between last year's exams and now that I must say, I did forget what it was like to sit a paper again. However, I did it despite the odds and I feel a sense of pride in that regard. Some of my exams went better than I expected and others didn't go amazingly to say the least. I was probably the most worried about my history exam because there was so much to remember and so much to do in the exam. The first paper was the source-based paper on Apartheid South Africa and that was an hour long. The second paper was the essay-based paper on authoritarian states and the Cold War and that was an hour and a half long. I had both papers back-to-back with just a five minute break in between so I was freaking out about managing my time well, having enough water, and not needing to go to the toilet in-between. However, I think the exam went better than I expected it to. Despite it not being my strongest skill, I was able to answer all the questions on the sources in the Apartheid paper which was good. I was also able to complete both essays on the second paper, even though my second essay could have done with a bit of polishing up. We'll have to wait for the result but I'm proud that I was able to complete the history exam because it was a difficult exam. In terms of the other subjects, it was a bit hit and miss. Nature of Science could have gone a bit better on the first paper because I was a bit nervous in the middle of the exam but luckily I felt as though I was able to redeem myself a little bit on the second paper. Maths paper 1 was a bit of a let down because although I started off well, I kept putting down the wrong answers and changing them at the last minute, which meant that I missed one question out because I ran out of time. I also had an allergic reaction that day that developed half way through the first maths paper. I'm pretty sure I got Hives that was probably exacerbated a little bit by underlying stress. Luckily, I was able to redeem myself again in the second paper which went a bit better. I also had my Japanese reading and writing exam on Friday that went okay. I was able to write a fairly strong piece in the writing exam but I did find the reading paper quite challenging. The first part of the reading paper went well but towards the end, I was trying to word match the words in the question with the words in the text because I struggled to understand all the information. I don't know how successful that technique was but I guess we'll just have to wait and see. By the end of the week, I was just happy that I was able to get through the exams. I think that now that I've done the exams, I know how to tackle them in the future and I know how to do better. On Tuesday, I have my English exam and on Friday, I have my dance exam. I'll let you know how I get on with them.
On a positive note, this time next week I would already be in Wales which is exciting. The last time I went to Wales I was really young so I'm looking forward to going back there again. I don't know the exact place that we will be staying at but I know that we're going to be in a chalet that's in close proximity to the beach. Not that I'll be doing any swimming on the holiday but I guess it will still be nice to do some scenic walking along the coast. It looks like there won't be any Wi-Fi at the place that we're staying which is a bit annoying because I won't be able to update you guys on how my holiday is going but I guess it will be a good opportunity to do a digital detox. I'm sure that I will be able to update you after the trip. I know that I've not been as active with my sponsored walk as well so I'm going to take the time over the half term to do some walking as I'm sure that there are plenty of places in Wales to do that. If you want to donate to my sponsored walk to help fundraise for my trip to Tanzania next year, the link will be below.
In terms of fundraising for Tanzania, I'm also applying to work as a playworker in this kids club over the summer. My sister already works there over the holidays and she gave me the contacts to her boss so that I could work there too and I was able to get an application form. There's a lot that I need to fill out on the form so I'm just working my way through that now. At the end of the form there's a list of 12 requirements that you have to carry out as part of your role to be a playworker and I have to provide a short piece of evidence about how I aim to do that. It's going to take me a while but I guess that's what it's like working alongside children because they need to make sure that you're trustworthy and responsible. I also need to do a job interview with them once I've handed in my application form so wish me luck. We'll just have to wait and see if I get the job or not.
What are your plans for the half term holiday? I you relaxing at home or going away? Let me know in the comments below and I'll be sure to reply to them. I ♡ hearing from you!
Be sure to follow and subscribe so that you don't miss any more of my brilliant posts and share this article with a friend who might enjoy it too!
See you next time,
Bye,
XOX, Juliette
P.S. I wrote a story that I published on my second blog. You can read it here.
My sponsored walk fundraising page:
My social media handles:
My second blog:
Previous post:
Comments
Post a Comment
Thanks for leaving your comments! I really enjoy reading your positive and constructive messages. They really make my day! 💜