Hope to see my DS in a sutton grammar school - advice needed

[shaq]

Hi,

First post here, so please be gentle!

I've been reading through the forums here and have learnt a lot, so thanks all.

My DS is currently in Y6 and is preparing for the various grammar tests. He doesn't have a tutor, but I've been working with him on VR and NVR, and he's also started using Khan Academy for Maths.

He is reasonably bright - top of his class in most subjects, particularly Maths and English at a primary school in Kingston.

I had a strong ambition for him to go to Tiffin, but have recently been advised that I would be better off considering some of the grammar schools in Sutton - e.g. Wilson's, Sutton, and Wallington Grammar.

Having done some research into these, I'm liking Wilson's very much... question is how does it compare to Tiffin?

Of these schools, which is the "easier" one to get into? I hear that Tiffin's is the most competitive, but looking at the application figures, it seems to me that Wilson's for example is just as tough!?

Any other suggestions in terms of focus - with only a few months remaining to the tests, I'[m wondering whether the focus should be on the VR/NVR for Tiffin, or the Maths/English for the Sutton Grammars?

Thanks in advance!

Shaq, there have been quite a few threads discussing the Sutton Grammars - they are all in the topic Secondary Education, so you might want to have a look down the list. There's this for example:

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/secondary/1377700-Offers-Day-1st-March-2012

Very best of luck. Afaik the schools you are looking at are becoming Academies - check their websites for details about the entrance tests.

Hoping one of the MNers with recent experience comes along...

If he is in Y6 it's too late.

@TheLoneRanger - thank you, I will read through that thread. I saw that some of them have become or will be becoming academies - is that a good thing?

@SoupDragon - He still has another year in primary from September - he was born in Oct 2002, have I got his school year wrong?!

He's in Year 5 xx
I would take the exams for all 4 if I were you. Competition for the Sutton schools is still fierce but nothing quite compares to the scrum that is Tiffin!

You could try the Sutton pta's mocks. Not sure when deadline is. It will just all come down to how he fares on the september test as only the top 400 go through.

Thanks MotherOfSuburbia!

I really should know that!

The intention is for him to take the Selective Eligibility test, and assuming he gets through, then to take all the individual tests.

I think I'm going to get him to focus on his maths and english, and hopefully he can make it into one of the Sutton grammars.

Thanks clueless - I wasn't aware of the mock tests, but it seems that there are no more places.

By the september test, do you mean the Selective elgibility test? According to the Wilson's website, it will be 600-700 to go through:

What is the pass mark for the Selective Eligibility Test?
It is not possible to state a pass mark in advance of the test. The pass mark will be decided by the participating schools after the test has been marked. It is intended to set the pass mark so that between 600-700 candidates pass the Selective Eligibility Test.

Why would you want him to travel to Sutton every day when you live in Kingston? Go for Tiffin!

With regards to numbers applying to take the tests - what you have to remember with the Sutton school is that a large percentage of boys will take tests for all 3 schools but if they pass will obviously just go for one of them so the numbers are slightly more in your favour than Tiffin.

The different exam formats VR/NVR or maths/english will favour certain types of boys too.

I think it's mainly because I'm not confident that he would get into Tiffin. As bright as he is (when he was 7, his reading age was recorded as that of a 12 year old, and he is on the national register of gifted children), with everything I hear about the competition of getting into Tiffin, it seems that your child has to be a bona fide genius to stand a chance.

Also, things I've heard recently about some of the problems there gives me pause - drugs, bullying etc. Of course, that could be sour grapes from parents who didn't get their children in. Would love to hear from someone for reassurance that Tiffin is more than just living on past reputation.

@MotherOfSuburbia - yes, that's a good point, and I imagine that most having passed the Selective eligibility will be putting the other Sutton grammars as alternatives, so given that there is an intake of 120-150 to each one of the four schools, I guess most that pass the SE will get into one or other of the Sutton grammars.