Moving a child from yr 5 state primary to prep

[mozzarella22]

Hello lovelies, hope you’re having a lovely festive period. I am considering moving my capable, but dyspraxia, boy from an Ofstead Outstanding primary to a prep school for the last term of yr 5 through to end of yr 8. Mainly to avoid the ridiculously competitive 11plus process in SW London and to prepare him for secondary. Anyone done this? Anything I should be mindful of? All thoughts are welcome. Thanks loads.

The priority I referred to was where an Inde has a prep AND a senior Dept. At DDs school they can go from 4yo to 18yo subject to passing the entrance exams. If you went to the prep you are given priority. If you didn't then they don't prefer Inde applicants over state, it's just the Indes prepare them for the interview and tests so they have an advantage. Didn't mean to scare you!!

As for GS 11+ prep - state schools in my area do prepare the students and they take practice papers.

OP I think I know which school you mean (does it begin with E?) if so I just looked at their site and they have 6 places available at 13+.

6 places is a pretty slim chance to base a school move on, especially if you already know your DS will find entrance tests more difficult than some.
Do you have a back up plan or two?

Also, from what I’ve heard (may be mere rumour) the E school prefers to take 50 per cent plus from state. If so then purely from an entry perspective, your DS might actually be better off staying at state (use the money for coaching/OT) and trying for a place at 11. If that doesn’t work out, perhaps he could move to the prep and try again (or elsewhere) at 13?

Thank you bpisok, I understand now your point. Apologies for not picking that up the first time round.

Thanks Minipie you are correct about the school I'm aiming for - it begins with E. You're absolutely right - 6 places at 13+ is madness to pin my hopes on, but 96 places at 11+ (out of 1K applicants) also feels madness, and overwhelming, but I take your point and am currently rethinking, thanks to everybody's valuable contributions. Huge thanks.

I was going to come on and say about the 11+ pretest but see that has already been covered. Some schools still have non pretest entry for year 9 - Trinity and Whitgift certainly used to but there isnt a lot of less/non academic boys schools left in SW London - the girls of course can go for one of the GDST schools.

You may need to consider commuting the other way out of London to somewhere like Ewell Castle. A good prep school head will tell you that you need an aspirational school, a realistic chance and a banker. E if it where I am thinking is aspirational with those odds.

Does you DS do anything else - music? sport?

If I were to be moving a child with SEN to a private school, I would ask to be put into direct contact with the parents of a current / recent former pupil with similar difficulties who had been there for several years, to hear about the actual support given first-hand.....

Completely agree cant. Schools quite often talk the talk about SEN provision but don’t really mean it. And if the OP’s intended prep school begins with T I would be particularly cautious.

Hello Christopher, thank you for your advice. Yes, I'm looking in to Ewell Castle. Lastly, yes, my son does swimming stage 7 and guitar grade one.

Thanks Can't yours is a really good idea, I will look into that.

Thanks Mini, my intended prep school doesn't begin with T. Not sure where you mean!

Do you have an Ed Psych report and will your child qualify for extra time?

I would suggest tutoring and doing 4-6 schools at 11+ with a state application too. You still have time

If the prep has space now in Y5 they will probably find space for you in Y7 if you don't have success at 11+

Do the prep not have any provision for teaching touch typing? Our private primary offers it as a extra club. I would question the level of SEN support if it's not offered

My son is dyspraxia and a late developer. Was at prep from aged 4-13. He loved it and thrived and is now at one of the most competitive public boarding schools in the country.
Build on his strengths, support his weaknesses.
Good luck, the extra couple of years will make all the difference before you need to decide where he is going next.

Thank you AveEldon, my DS does have a recently published Ed Psych report which measures his handwriting speed, I believe the measure allows for extra time (82). The prep told me they don't take children on in Year Seven. Does that sound right, I will follow up and ask why. Lastly, I don't think they do touch typing lessons, so will follow that up too.

Wow, congratulations Yodelsay. That all sounds encouraging and I feel positive going forward. Thank you for sharing your story.

Year 9 entry can be just as competitive as there are fewer places available and you are committed to independent schools. If he needs adjustment for 13+ entrance tests or CE , like extra time or laptop use, you have time to get this in place but do check how supportive the prep actually is of splds. How sporty is the prep? Ds found that aspect particularly difficult and was teased fir lack of coordination (by staff and pupils), although there later were options to do non competitive sports such as sailing and climbing which were more beneficial. Having said that ds did well by staying in prep until y8, getting a secondary scholarship which he may not have at 11+, due to small group teaching , learning support which assisted exam technique and greater self confidence.

This may sound like throwing a completely new set of problems your way... but have you considered more music lessons?
Drumming and piano have helped my dyspraxic son hugely- I think it's the having to co-ordinate both sides of the body, hands and feet (for pedals), and the brain to read the music/notation. You'd probably see quicker results with drumming (rock drumming) as it would take some years with piano to be using the pedals regularly- with drums you're using them straight away.
Feel free to ignore

Thank you LIZS. Yes, I think the prep is quite sporty. I think they said two afternoons a week! Groan. I chatted with the coach and asked if DS could learn refereeing. He seemed uncertain. DS's Ed Psych report states that due to hypermobility he will need to be risk assessed for all sports.

Thanks Haba! All that mid-line crossing with drumming does sound beneficial! Plus all the feedback from the hitting will offer feedback and grounding. DS does two lessons of guitar a week at present as we are focusing on bringing that up.

We have seen a marked affect on his handwriting and co-ordination in general, though it could be maturity coming into play too (my DS is also Y5, and has matured a great deal in the last six months)

Haba, that's really interesting. I'm so pleased for you. We have a tiny house and don't have room for a drum kit sadly!

DS hypermobile have you seen a pediatric rheumatologist? I was advised the best thing for hypermobility is to exercise for 30 minutes a day. As I'm hypermobile myself it's true the more exercise I do the less pain I have. DS even does contact rugby, as he hasn't dislocated ever. He is not very good at sport but enjoys it which is really important. His writing has improved through strengthening from sport and instrument playing.

Hi OP,
I've had both my boys at Preps in sw London, and in my experience very few prep schools cater for dyspraxia or other learning difficulties.
In fact most boys with issues such as these end up going to state schools where their needs tend to be better catered for.
I have a number of examples of this, so would suggest don't discount state schools.
In terms of 13plus, I don't know which school you are thinking of but in my experience some of the top private schools look on state school eduated children very favourably. In fact my experience of DS1 is that their education of a prep school educated child is much higher, and also just my person experience, much harder to get decent scholarships/bursaries.
Just something to think about.
x

'their expectation' sorry not 'their education'

Sorry, just to add, I don't think year 5 is a great time to join. Most prep boys usually prepping for 11plus for GS and Indies, and not much socialising. Might be better to wait until year 7?