Tiffin talk

[Menagerie]

Did anyone go to the open day yesterday? What did you think? Does anyone have children at the boys' school? Was trying to see beyond the armies of parents to get a picture of what the school was really like and it was hard, but all the boys we spoke to were charming, kind, polite, honest about the school, confident but not pushy.

What do other people think? Is it worth going for?

Just joined Mumsnet and very late in adding to this discussion. Re tutoring for Tiffin, every child who gets a place will be tutored. I do agree that there are a lot of resources online and books for home tutoring, but it is important if you do want to get your child in to learn a few more techniques which a tutor can pass onto your child. Both of my sons got in, but I do think without the specific tutoring they would not have succeeded. Most of the children are extremely bright who sit the exam, but the ones who get in are the fastest and learn some inside tips from the tutors on how to be the fastest. I appreciate it may not be right for some DC's but if you do want to get your child in, tutoring is the only way.

Umm, no Surbsmum.
Tutoring is NOT the only way for Tiffin. DD was not tutored and she got a place. Her friend and her sister likewise.

What might these 'special tips' and 'inside info' be? Having been through the question types with DD, I can honestly say that we were not handicapped by missing out on this.

Wilferbell, well done to your DD, but she is truly exceptional, but most children are tutored, that is a fact. Tutoring gives most children the edge. I do not know any of my son's immediate friends who were NOT tutored. I think that if you are serious in getting your child into the school you do need to seriously consider tutoring; this is just my opinion. There are some reputable good tutors out there and they do give some children the edge. I don't wish to start an argument about this, I am just passing on our experiences to parents who may wish to get their children into Tiffin. Good luck parents whichever route you choose!

Surbsmum - Wilferbell has already said her DD has already got into Tiffin. and others on similar threads have done it by study at home.

So it can be done.

The fact is that a lot of DCs will not get into this school whether they have tutoring or not.

I think the tutors have a vested interest in persuading parents that they have some kind of sacred secrets to pass on that are not available to the general public.

Personally, I would take it all with a pinch of salt.

The parents of a friend of DD were persuaded that she needed a year of intensive coaching to have any chance of getting into her selective prep. The girl is extremely bright and there is no way that she actually needed any tutoring at all.

DD got in comfortably with no tutoring, and no coaching at home.

Don't believe all the tutoring hype. Remember it is a very lucrative industry which preys on the insecurities of parents.

Also know three children who were offerd places at Tiffin wthout tutoring - would agree that the tutors have a vested interested in the mystique.

I'm really glad to hear of other untutored successes!

I think it's a really unhelpful and damaging myth about tutoring being essential. But with tutors actively touting for business outside the school on open evening, it's not surprising that the myth has a wide currency. As I said earlier, you do need some confidence to go it alone, but it's perfectly possible.

Those who go it alone - did you get hold of the relevant practise books and go over them with your kids? My boys love doing those non verbal reasoning tests - they do them for fun. But If I hadn't bought a stack of them, I'd imagine they would struggle with the format at the exam.

I just looked on the 11+ website on the Surrey/Kingston section and found out there what practice tests are closest in style and difficulty to the Tiffin exam. We got hold of a range and DD did them under time pressure. After each session, we looked together at her errors to understand why and how she'd gone wrong.

To get some understanding of how to approach some of the question types, we used Chuckra and Bond's How To Do NVR guide.