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Original poster

DIY eleven plus prep - not sure how to tackle this

31 replies

howtodrainyourflagon · 20/07/2015 18:35

DS1 (9) will take 11+ in a year's time, and DS2 (7) in two years.

So I sat both kids down with a GL eleven plus maths paper and both kids sat for 50 minutes doing the questions. DS1 did 28 questions getting 25 right and DS2 did 22, getting 20 right. There are 50 questions in a paper though! Neither kid has ever done anything like this, so their exam technique is rubbish (in particular DS2 spent 15 minutes on a question he clearly didn't understand given he's only just finished y3 and this was for 11 yo) - neither of them skipped the hard questions or used the rough paper I'd given them.

There are a few voices on mn that echo the "kids don't need any preparation, the ones that get tutored struggle through secondary, it's morally wrong to tutor etc etc." I wasn't planning to send them to a paid tutor, but to try to help them prepare myself. Now I've realised there's a pretty steep wall to climb, particularly for DS1 as he only has a year. It could be down to exam technique, but getting from a 50% success rate to a 90% they'll need does seem a bit insurmountable. Yet they're not struggling at school at all, and I'd have thought they'd have a good shot at grammar school entrance.

So can I have some tips on how to get the kids to speed up, and what I can do to help them on exam technique? Is it possible to make the progress DS1 will need in a year, and is it worth getting a tutor rather than my amateur approach?

OP posts:
Ladymuck · 20/07/2015 20:23

There are a finite number of 11+ papers which have been published by the actual exam compilers (eg GL published 8 maths papers), so it isn't a great idea to use these up so far in advance. Are you definitely in an area which will require 90%?

In one sense the exercise has done them no harm - you know not to be complacent. But testing them is pointless until you know that they have covered the curriculum. The Bond "How to do 11+" Maths, English etc series is quite good at picking up gaps in what has been covered at school (though obviously isn't aimed at year 3s). Once they have covered the actual curriculum and are secure in it, then you can look at exam technique and speed. Starting timed papers around 3 months before the exam should be plenty of time.

Just checking though - are you certain about the format for the schools you are aiming for?

Elevenplusexams forum is very good depending on your area. However they have now stated that they won't allow information of exams to be shared unless the school in question confirms that either they are happy for it to be online, or that there is no possibility of any child sitting the same test in the future. As many tests have changed in the last year or two the information on there is not that up to date for a number of areas. It is nevertheless a good starting point.

poisonedbypen · 20/07/2015 19:14

Mine did GL in an area where they needed about 85% to pass. it really is about practice - 1st time they did a paper (early July) they completed about half the paper. a paper a week gave them both passes 2 months later. Really demoralising for the younger one too. Teach the older one the various types of question then do papers in the run up to the exam. in about a years time!

morethanpotatoprints · 20/07/2015 19:09

Why are you doing this? Are they not on holiday yet? The scary bit for me is that your ds sat for 15 mins on a question he had no idea about.
I'm not anti grammar at all nor employing tutors, but this is ludicrous.
50 mins Shock

GoodArvo · 20/07/2015 19:06

I wouldn't get a 7 year old to do an 11+ paper. Of course it's too hard and will demoralise them. There are Bond books aimed at younger age groups.

Really you should build up to the 11+ papers for your older child too. Try Bond books for 9-10 year olds first and get him confident with those first. You will also need to go through the answers with him and teach him.

You still have over a year, but it will mean work for both of you. Frankly, you can't expect a child to leap straight to 11+ without learning the maths first. I wouldn't send my child into an exam unprepared.

People will say that their child got in and they only wafted a practice paper in their child's general direction. but those people are probably lying.

RashDecision · 20/07/2015 18:46

He was going too fast - pesky autocorrect

RashDecision · 20/07/2015 18:46

Best place for tips on this is elevenplusexams.co.uk forum section.

An MN thread will usually just degenerate into anti grammar frothers and posters that think that tutors are ultimate evil.

Speed IME is about practice. DS was slower to start, but having said that we built up more gradually. We started with Bond books, in his own time to start, then timed, then easier papers before moving onto GL. We only started timing around Easter. Then he was young too fast and making silly errors, so we spent the summer trying to slow down. And then the actual exam threw a curveball and hardly any kids finished the test!