Page 19 | 11 plus support thread for exams 2024

ElvenDreamer · 2023-10-11T07:55:13+00:00

Hi all, Anyone fancy joining me for for an 11 plus support thread for those yr 5s who are probably just starting a bit of prep now ready to sit exams in September 2024? State grammar is the angle I'm personally coming from but all welcome no matter if you're applying to private selective, state aptitude tests etc. This will be my 3rd and final time of going through this and I've found support threads here really useful the previous times.

pocketpairs · 17/09/2024 15:32

troppibambini6 · 17/09/2024 11:30

@Examstressargh the NVR got a lot of them. No one was expecting 3 minute sections. I spoke to my son's tutor last night and he said a lot of kids found it challenging. So you never know... fingers crossed for your dd.

Surprised no one expected 3 min sections, as they had same thing last year.

Wolfie88 · 17/09/2024 15:17

DC told me they saw a child using a ruler in yesterday’s Trafford exam. I thought they weren’t allowed?

peacypops · 17/09/2024 14:47

Feedback from our tutor today (Trafford) was that pupils generally happy with both the VR and NVR question types.

Danascully2 · 17/09/2024 11:47

We did home practice plus paid for website rather than a tutor, I think he was more or less there in terms of level by the end so mainly down to luck on the day, I didnt ask him too much about it afterwards as wanted to move on.

Danascully2 · 17/09/2024 11:42

I wish we had found this thread a year ago! Will look out for an equivalent when we come to younger sibling in a couple of years...

troppibambini6 · 17/09/2024 11:30

@Examstressargh the NVR got a lot of them. No one was expecting 3 minute sections. I spoke to my son's tutor last night and he said a lot of kids found it challenging. So you never know... fingers crossed for your dd.

Examstressargh · 17/09/2024 11:08

There does seem to be an extremely high level
of applications this year unfortunately

Chipsandcrisps · 17/09/2024 07:19

Sushiandsashimi · 16/09/2024 15:17

My child sat the Birmingham exams and couldn’t finish all of the NVR due to time. I feel so disappointed as my child has worked so hard but just not fast enough for the NVR. Does anyone else feel the same way?

Edited

My little one sat the exam in Birmingham too. They completed the NVR but had to guess on the VR as it completely through him! General feedback from peers is similar, that they had to guess a few on some sections as time ran out. I wonder if it was made particularly difficult this year with more private students applying due to increased VAT on fees

pocketpairs · 16/09/2024 22:54

Examstressargh · 16/09/2024 22:14

We sat Trafford too today, struggled with timing on NVR so I’m worried she’s out 😢

Maybe it's not that bad. DC guessed 6 NVR in total (out of 24), as ran out of time. Min 1/6 (out of 24) will probably be guessed correctly. As long as do well in other sections, not a disaster imo. If you get 50% guess rate, becomes more of an issue.

Examstressargh · 16/09/2024 22:14

We sat Trafford too today, struggled with timing on NVR so I’m worried she’s out 😢

Sushiandsashimi · 16/09/2024 20:13

pocketpairs · 16/09/2024 19:17

Yes, think timings were an issue for many children. My DC didn't complete either. How did they do is rest of exam?

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I think the rest of the exam was fine except the NVR timings. I know it’s my issue and DC is totally fine about it all.

peacypops · 16/09/2024 19:46

Trafford consortium today for us and all good. Just the wait for results now which is always tough.

pocketpairs · 16/09/2024 19:17

Sushiandsashimi · 16/09/2024 15:17

My child sat the Birmingham exams and couldn’t finish all of the NVR due to time. I feel so disappointed as my child has worked so hard but just not fast enough for the NVR. Does anyone else feel the same way?

Edited

Yes, think timings were an issue for many children. My DC didn't complete either. How did they do is rest of exam?

pocketpairs · 16/09/2024 19:15

SamPoodle123 · 16/09/2024 07:40

Unfortunately, this is the way it is. Some exams are so difficult, the questions seem impossible....even for adults! Children have to prep for it, as some things are not even taught yet when the exam happens. No matter how smart you are, you will not be able to figure out math formula's you have not been taught yet. But that being said if you have a few days and your dd is bright and determined she might be able to cram a few days (keep her home to recover from the cold and she can study while resting).

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Non pupil premium children, need to score 12% higher than the mean of everyone taking the test, so realistically here's no way of achieving that without covering NVR, even with craming.

yoshiblue · 16/09/2024 18:00

@troppibambini6 I'll send you a DM!

troppibambini6 · 16/09/2024 17:40

@yoshiblue hi nice to have someone in the same boat! Hope your son found today ok?

SpinningOutWaitingForYa · 16/09/2024 17:33

@Gobbolinothewitchscat I wasn't asking for specific information on the exam for this year.
I was trying to find out if it's usually 4 separate papers or combined papers. I'm totally new to it!

Is it the same exam across the country?

yoshiblue · 16/09/2024 16:58

@troppibambini6 same for us, doing Ambrose on Friday. That is our first choice too!

Araminta1003 · 16/09/2024 16:41

It’s quite typical for them to suddenly make the VR or NVR really hard one year or the comprehension or whatever and it is quite unpredictable. We have done 2 so far, 2 more to go this week. And then maybe stage 2. It’s very tedious and we only started prep in the summer,’not sure how others keep the momentum going for longer than that. Hats off! My kid is already bored and fed up.

troppibambini6 · 16/09/2024 16:32

My ds sat the Trafford consortium today. It was absolutely bonkers so busy. He came out happy and said he could do all of it and finished it all so what will be will be.

We have the Catholic exam on Friday which is his first choice. Will be so relieved when it's all over for him.

Next ds starts his tuition on Saturday. Thank god he is my last one!

BarqsHasBite · 16/09/2024 16:22

Sushiandsashimi · 16/09/2024 15:17

My child sat the Birmingham exams and couldn’t finish all of the NVR due to time. I feel so disappointed as my child has worked so hard but just not fast enough for the NVR. Does anyone else feel the same way?

Edited

My DC sat the South West Hertfordshire consortium test and he ran out of time for the NVR, as did 3 others we know (we know only one child who completed it). If that’s representative of the kids who sat it generally then presumably it won’t matter too much - hopefully it’s the same for you.

Sushiandsashimi · 16/09/2024 15:17

My child sat the Birmingham exams and couldn’t finish all of the NVR due to time. I feel so disappointed as my child has worked so hard but just not fast enough for the NVR. Does anyone else feel the same way?

Gobbolinothewitchscat · 16/09/2024 14:30

SpinningOutWaitingForYa · 14/09/2024 13:49

Thank you! Hope he came out happy 😀

Do you know if it's a mixture of all maths/english/NVR/VR on each paper or a different split?

Just a quick reminder that we shouldn’t be discussing any specific papers at the moment. Some children will be sitting the paper at a later stage and it would give them an unfair advantage.

Araminta1003 · 16/09/2024 10:51

@InsolentAnnie - your headteacher has a legal right to appeal on your child’s behalf.

NoWayRose · 16/09/2024 10:41

It doesn’t help that at the grammar school open days, they said ‘kids don’t need tutoring - just show them a couple of past papers’. Seems disingenuous, especially when some of the maths simply isn’t covered in Y5.

The reality is there’s a whole industry behind this and, rightly or wrongly, if you took the headteacher literally, the child would be at a disadvantage.

However, if you still have a few weeks, just getting to know the style of questions will still be useful