17th March 2020
Dear Parent/Guardian,
During this period of uncertainty, we will be able to continue supporting your child through the outstanding GCSEPod service, which all students have access to through the school subscription.
GCSEPod is the award-winning digital content and revision provider used by over 1,400 schools worldwide. As a subscriber, your child has access to GCSEPod’s library of over 6,000 ‘Pods,’ 3-5 minute videos designed to deliver knowledge in short bursts. Every Pod is mapped to the correct exam board, and contains all the right facts, quotes, keywords, dates and annotated diagrams that your child needs for GCSE success – all neatly organised into topics and exam playlists.
During this period, teachers may be setting your child work on GCSEPod. This may take the form of Assignments, which students can access and complete via the GCSEPod platform, or teachers may recommend specific Pods for students to watch at home to continue their learning.
In addition, we ask that you encourage your child to make use of this amazing resource independently. Once they’ve activated their account, they can browse the GCSEPod library and create their own playlists – just as they would when they’re listening to music.
GCSEPod can also identify knowledge gaps and automatically send playlists to your child to help them strengthen their knowledge. After completing any Assignments set on GCSEPod, your child will get a personalised “Boost Playlist” of Pods relevant to their identified areas of weakness. We strongly suggest you encourage your child to review these playlists regularly as this will speed up their progress.
As Year 11 approach exams, students can access a section on GCSEPod called “My Courses.” Here they can view upcoming exams (including exam dates) and view playlists of Pods covering the topics relevant to each exam. We ask that students review topics that have been taught in class and revise their knowledge. Students can tick the star icon to favourite any Pods they wish to return to.
Finally, in Maths and English Literature, students can test their knowledge independently using GCSEPod’s fantastic Check & Challenge feature. Simply visit any Maths and selected English Literature playlists and click the purple “C&C”. This will start a short self-marking assessment.
For more ways to support your child using GCSEPod, please visit www.gcsepod.com/parents where you’ll find lots more information and resources.
Your child has already been registered with GCSEPod, so all they need to do is activate their account by following the instructions below. If your child has already activated but can’t remember their username and password, please ask them to contact a member of staff.
- Go to www.gcsepod.com and click “Login” in the top right-hand corner
- Click “New here? Get started.”
- Select “Student”
- Enter your child’s name, date of birth and the school name.
- Create a username, password, and a password hint to help them remember the password.
If you have any questions regarding GCSEPod please contact Mr Butterworth (pbutterworth@samuelward.co.uk) who is leading on GCSEPod, or message support@gcsepod.com
Yours faithfully,
Mr P Butterworth
Assistant Headteacher