Sutton Grammar Mock Tests

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Would be grateful for any insights - Just how accurate are they in predicting future performance? DC scored 285 - nowhere near enough to pass this mock 11 plus yet his current school tells me he's in top fifth in Maths, VR and English and 'could go anywhere he chooses'. I know kids have 'off-days' but he didn't come out especially demoralised or anything so we thought he'd have done better. Now a bit glum at outcome. Views welcome. PS I know it is a snapshot view etc... really just interested in how others who did it in past have fared. Thanks

There is a company doing mocks at wallington which will send back the papers too so that you can see what went wrong. I think if you pay extra they give advice on what specific areas need work.

Thanks for encouraging posts. Like CustardCake's friend, also feel maybe shouldn't put ds through it - don't want him to feel a failure at 10! But just feel there's something not quite right. Ladymuck - do you happen to know name of Wallington company that will give you papers back? - though I may be too late for this route and wish I'd known earlier...

Here. They have mocks on 6th august and 20th August, so not too late I think.

Thanks Ladymuck - he is now booked on for course

Don't worry. My DDs didn't do well in those mocks either - and they're both in Superselective Grammars. The only exams that count are the ones on the day...... and there are no comparisons to those I'm afraid, IMO.

Unfortunately it really is all about how they do on the day. I know DC who are definitely extremely bright and grammar school material, who just did not cut the mustard on the day - very sad. Conversely, I know DC who, on another day, would definitely not have got into a grammar school.

Take some comfort in knowing that at least your DC is grammar school material, though I'm very surprised that any school would say that to a parent.

I think the company that LadyMuck linked to has had some bad reviews on the Eleven Plus forum, if you have a look on the Surrey board. Disorganised and mistakes on the papers I think...

A fool and his money...

For goodness' sake - why pay a company to send you back marked tests - just buy a pack of appropriate tests - the 11+ forum will tell you what is closest to the real thing in your area - get your dc to sit the test, in the correct time, in exam-type conditions, and then mark it. Then go through it with your dc and look at every qu they got wrong and find out why - have they not covered the topic yet (eg maths - much of it is yr 6 maths), did they misunderstand the qu, did they run out of time, or was it just a careless error? Then draw up a list of what you need to do to eradicate those errors, precisely, and stick to it, week by week.

In my case, I had to teach my dd yr 6 maths in 3 months, after I found out in May of yr 5 she hadn't covered most of the topics. That was the easy bit - the hard bit was getting dd to stop making so many careless errors, doing working out neatly etc - but a useful lesson for life.

I think for a lot of bright kids, because they can coast and do well without really trying, their careless errors are ignore and tolerated - I was much crueller with my dd! It was a shock for both of us - in my case how low the standards were at dd's school, and for her to realise that in the real world, careless errors wre not tolerated - I and dh explained that getting stuff right was essential to our jobs and doing it properly first time was not a needless waste of time and energy, but how the real world worked.

Thanks for that but I think different approaches suit different children even within families - my two DC respond to very different styles. DD is motivated, bright and focussed and sailed through into excellent grammar. DS not quite so focussed nor mature. He will benefit from a further mock in exam conditions (including big unfamiliar hall and scary looking invigilators) which I cannot truly replicate at home. He'll also give a bit more careful consideration of an 'official' declaration of his performance. Of course this will then be the stimulus for further home tutoring. I'm a secondary school teacher and for me it's not about absence of going through papers at home, which of course we all do, it's about the experience of realising he's growing up and competing in a big world. The organisation and accuracy of the company is altogether another issue of course... but will post my reveiw of their performance at a later date...

For maths, practicing with the style of exam paper your DC will be receiving should help a little with the speed of completing the test. Recognising formats often helps. And regardless of how easy it all seems - practice at maths - again and again.

For English writing skills, try Googling Creative Writing Magic Money Cards.

I tutor students for the 11+ and I recommend that students do take at least one mock examination at one of the grammar schools so that they are familiar with the setting. Before this, although I tutor students individually or in pairs, I arrange mock exams in my home with up to 4 students so they get used to timing and working with other children. I give them personal feedback on their own as soon as possible after the test.

tuitionsutton (or anyone else), do you know anywhere or anyone who does intensive exam prep for the Sutton exams during the summer holidays? We are working through material with our son at the moment but feel he could benefit from some specific exam prep from people who know the format when the exam is getting close.

Any suggestions would be gratefully received.

I run mock exams in the summer holidays in Wallington.

Tuition sutton - do you do them for children about to enter y5?

Do you have spaces for coaching? My son is to give exam in Sept and we are in croydon.