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11+ tutor Altrincham.. help please

9 replies

Sdya · 11/09/2017 22:13

Hi I have just moved to Altrincham from newcastle. I have a 9 year old son and ( like all parents) I want him to go to grammar school. The problem is I don't know anything about these 11plus exams or grammar schools in short. I am ready to get him a one on one tutor for the preparation of these test. I have been searching online but instead of getting everything sorted out I am getting more confused and anxious. Please help can anyone who have first hand experience with their kids passing these tests recommend any tutors for these admission tests ( esp Altrincham Grammar School please)
There are some online review but not really helpful in making a decisive choice !!!! Cheers

OP posts:
busyboysmum · 11/09/2017 22:16

Try www.time2tutor.co.uk/

She's lovely and her son is at AGSB.

Jaykri · 19/10/2017 16:38

Hi sdya, I'm in the same situation. I have no idea on tutors here in the Altrincham area and though I can prep him at home on maths, English, NVR, VR. I need him to be tutored in creative writing. That's one of the tests in AGSB.

Sdya · 20/10/2017 06:04

Hi Jaykri, thanks for your reply. Honestly speaking my situation is not changed much. It's just I didn't know where to take a start from!!! I can teach him at home too!! How have u started ? Are u doing specific books or papers and what about vocabulary? I have talked to a few ppl around but their advice is very general !! I want someone to just specifically tell me do this, this etc

OP posts:
whiteroseredrose · 20/10/2017 06:45

I'm assuming you've already asked around at the school gate? People put names down with good tutors in about Y2 or Y3 but they often have waiting lists or can give you names of others to try.

In the end my DD was tutored by one of the teachers in her school but that was 5 years ago. She's a Deputy Head now so she probably doesn't do it any more. School did do some pre school sessions free of charge for those who wanted to attend.

Failing that I'd call one of the preps and see if any of their teachers do tutoring.

MrsHathaway · 23/10/2017 10:45

We have had a chat with DS's class teacher, and have started looking at the sample papers. The teacher has gone through the process with her own children so has both a professional and a personal opinion! She had one child tutored but the other didn't need it. Both got into their chosen school.

I would highly recommend starting with the person who knows your child best, academically speaking, before launching into tutoring which might not be needed.

In DS's case she is confident that there won't be any gaps in his knowledge or understanding that will need filling, which is where a tutor would be helpful, so it will simply be a matter of practising the kind of tasks, practising managing the answersheet, and eventually practising the discipline of concentrating on a single paper for 50 minutes without stopping, and of managing those fifty minutes to ensure that every question is answered.

There is a lot of creative writing in the normal Y5 curriculum, so our sons should be well prepared for it, as well as being used to including constructions "have I used direct speech? have I used adverbials?" and using the correct tone and formality (eg diary v newspaper article v story).

You could look at searching for "writing prompts" on Tumblr or Pinterest to have a bank of resources for practising at home, though.

Matildatoldsuchdreadfullies · 23/10/2017 10:52

Look up the 11+ forum - it'll give a lot of information. Just look for your region on the site.

Jaykri · 23/10/2017 15:59

Thank you everyone for your valuable inputs. Parent teacher meeting is coming up so that should be good start.
As suggested I'm also looking up on internet for resources and making a timetable for him to stick to.

Hope that will give me an idea to start with.

Thanks again

ladybirdpoppy · 29/10/2017 12:21

Hi
We have just gone through the 11+ for 2018 intake. Firstly I would look at each grammar school you are interested in as they have their own entrance exam format and admission criteria, also you must register by a particular date for the tests. Altrincham Boys follow the GL Assessment which consists of 3 papers (Verbal,Non Verbal and Maths) plus a creative writing paper if the results are within 10 of the pass mark, held on a Saturday in September from 0900hrs - 1230hrs, it is very competitive and has a priority catchment for approx 170 spaces, you would have to score high if out of catchment. The day of test was over whelming as it puts it into perspective how many children are applying. Sale, Stretford Urmston and Altrincham Girls follow the CEM test, this consists of 2 x 45 minute tests (covering verbal, non verbal and maths - designed to be tutor proof so based on child natural ability) these tests have sections which are timed so may have 15 minutes for comprehension, 10 minutes for nvr - unable to revisit the sections if time runs out. Again, each school has their own admission policy so if you do pass it does not guarantee a place, catchment area is critical, although they do take the top 20 children with the highest scores regardless of where they live. You can share your standardised score between the schools, my DS just scraped through for Stretford without any professional tutoring/tuition centre, we are 0.8 miles from the school, he did not pass for Sale or Urmston - 3 marks short. My DS would only do the 11+ with support from his us, we started in January with the GCP CEM books for an hour at the weekends, then in summer stepped up to an hour a day with mock tests. There are no past papers for the CEM Test so you are really in the dark about what will appear on the test, we covered all year 6 maths topics and not one appeared on the test. To be honest I could not go through it again, both parents and child must be committed for the whole process, sometimes you eat and breathe 11+. Perhaps ask current teacher or buy one of the books and do a benchmark test. Wishing you every success.

Sdya · 29/10/2017 13:06

Thanks you ladies for all repliesxxx

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