11+ prep

[Tellmeifimwrong]

Would you say a child who passes the 11+ test with 6 weeks prep is very intelligent?

Yes

Significantly above average - some kids get very high scores though significantly in excess of the pass mark

6 weeks is about normal prep, so passing after 6 weeks prep puts you in the top 25% ish

Jade its not normal to do only 6 weeks prep.

I live in an 11+ area. The norm (for all state school pupils except a handful with additional needs who may not be taking the test) is tutoring for at least a full year. Most of the better of families start in early prep classes even 6-12 months before this.

That's true @Almondcakeismyfav
This was just over the pass mark with 6 weeks prep. Maybe loads of kids get just over the pass mark with little prep and the truly gifted ones get the significantly higher marks. I have no idea how hard the exam is!

What can you learn in a year that you cant learn in a few weeks? You only need to know how the questions work, and brush up on the maths. Children taking 11+ need to be articulate and used reading and conversation, but that comes from general life, not 11+ preparation specifically

All my children are in grammar schools. All practiced 11+ papers at home during the summer holidays before the exam in September.

You need to understand what the questions are asking, but once you know that, then you know it

I'd say normal as 'pass' in our 11+ area doesn't mean much as schools set their own result requirements which are much higher so while many do pass, few get into the most desired schools.

This is all well and good but I’d say your kids are the exception not the rule. Most kids going for grammar have more than a few weeks of teaching themselves using books.

and clearly, you can learn a lot more in a year than in 6 weeks. Otherwise why not only attend school for 6 weeks a year?

Ah ok well to be more specific this was just over the pass mark for the top school in our area and they were offered a place. This child is now incredibly worried that they'll be at the bottom of the class as they only got just over the pass mark for that school.

Yes. However plenty "pass" but not all get a high enough pass to get into the top flight schools.

Depends whether the school is 'super selective' or not. Also, most eleven plus exams test on the whole of the year 6 maths curriculum, but children sit the exam at the beginning of year 6.

They will be fine, Grammars are used to supporting the kids that just scraped in, and tbh, there isn't much correlation between 11+ mark and position in the class anyway. There are kids in Grammar who are below average in many areas, and sometimes you wonder how on Earth they passed! But students all vary in their abilities in different subjects and in different years, and even the very low achievers are helped through, and no reason to think this child is a low achiever.

All my children are in grammar schools. All practiced 11+ papers at home during the summer holidays before the exam in September.

Did they attend state primary schools?

Your children are the exception.in bucks children at prep schools are often being taught material a year or two ahead of state schools so are already heavily practised at the transfer test material at an earlier age. There's a lot of technique and state schools simply aren't allowed to prep so for the reasoning papers, a year of tutoring is what enables state school pupils to compete against better prepared prep kids. In reality even then prep school kids are over represented.

yes, state primary.

But of course, 6 weeks prep might not in fact be less than a year of tutoring, if the tutoring is an hour a week, and the 6 weeks is 2 hours a day

Thanks @JadeClade that is reassuring to know. I have no experience of grammar schools and wasn't expecting a pass to be honest. I've been questioning whether it's the right decision to send my child to grammar only for them to lose confidence if they don't do well in comparison to their classmates.

And yes the school is super selective and my child went to a state primary. I'm a proud parent!

They’ll be fine. My son just scraped through the 11+ with no tutoring and has done really well academically (now yr 11) - better than some of his friends who were intensively tutored to pass.

We didn't have a tutor and my daughter passed the 11 plus with flying colours. She even got 100% on the English paper. 2 of the children we knew were tutored for 2 years and didn't get in. I don't think tutoring really helps after a certain amount. Diminishing returns.

Quite a few in our area have little to no prep or just some summer holiday prep / summer term 11+ area.

Before DD took her 11+ the advice I got was to make sure she is well and widely read and that her maths is up to speed. She did a few past papers but no real prep apart from that. Imo, there is no point hothousing a child into passing an exam if they won't be able to keep up in a grammar school. Anyway, she passed, can't remember the score but enough for her first choice grammar. If your child has passed with minimal preparation they should find the academic side of grammar relatively easy.

6 weeks is about normal prep, so passing after 6 weeks prep puts you in the top 25% ish

Where I am, prep normally starts in Yr4!!

It probably doesn't help!

All my children are in grammar schools. All practiced 11+ papers at home during the summer holidays before the exam in September.

You need to understand what the questions are asking, but once you know that, then you know it

Where do you live?

Yes, where I am, I believe prep usually begins in year 4 too!

Sounds completely bonkers to me the amount of tutoring that goes in. Tests should be designed to pick the brightest children not the ones whose parents have spent the most on tutoring!
i know that’s a simplistic view. Pleased there is no such pressure in these parts

It probably doesn't help!

I don't know anyone who got in without tutoring because the schools here are so competitive that to get into the grammars or the comprehensives with the streamed sets you need to not just pass but score high.