Hi @Langus, All the suggestions and advice you have received is great. The only other thing I would suggest is talking to her Year Advisor at school. It will be beneficial for them to be aware of her tendency to feelings of overwhelm, especially since you mentioned she is at a new school, therefore they may not know her very well yet. The year advisors job is to have a connection with students in that year and to be a liaison between student/parents and the subject teachers. At most schools, hopefully hers too, the year advisor will move through the 6 years with their allocated year, so establishing rapport with that person will be beneficial for all of you for Year 11 & 12. Once you or your partner have had a discussion with the year advisor, they may be able to discuss her subject ideas with the individual teachers for you, focusing on her strengths from year 10, to save you speaking to 6 or 7 different teachers. Then they may be able to come back to you all with suggestions and ideas about possible choices that may work for her. I agree though, from experience as a teacher and a parent, the pressure that is put on these kids at school and the emphasis on the HSC is at times too much. I have taken the approach with my own daughters, (one who is currently doing the HSC, and another also in Year 10) that the HSC isn't the be all and there is ALWAYS other ways to get where you want to. And it's ok and normal to not know what they want to do at their age. If the message they get at home is...."do your best and try hard but it really doesn't matter" then I think we reassure them and they come home to a place of less pressure, which is needed if there is a lot of emphasis on high marks at the school. The most important thing I think they need to learn through Year 11 & 12 is to be organised and plan and prioritise, ensuring there is balance in their life. Keeping a detailed diary with all commitments in it, social, work, sport and then assignments and exams too. Then planning when they will be allocating time to complete things and having a weekly timetable. I hope this helps. Good luck. Come back and let us know how it goes. :)
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