11 plus support thread

[user153876909]

Hi folks,

My DS is sitting the 11 plus for some of the superselective grammar schools in London next month. We did a mock test today and got the results back, which have put me in a bit of a panic mode. I thought we were almost there with the prep but it seems we still have quite some work to do.

Anyone else have DC taking the 11+ next month and what last minute prep are you doing?

Great question, Pipsquiggle

I would say it’s important to know as much as you can about the type of test your DC will be taking. It sounds really obvious to say that, but I know people that were trying to teach their children more advanced algebra when we knew the maths questions wouldn’t require anything more complicated than the primary curriculum. Similarly, there’s no point in practising essay questions for a multiple-choice test.

Also, exam technique and experience paid dividends for our DD and others. She came out a bit shellshocked from a mock test, but it focussed her mind on the timings and meant she wasn’t fazed by the setup in the room, the positioning of papers on her desk etc. A friend (who had paid for twice weekly 1:1 sessions with a national tutoring company for a year) felt it was the experience of the mock test that got her DS over the line in the actual exam.

What I wish I’d known a year ago? That, with a little bit of sensible prep, the results won’t be a surprise. In my small sample size of classmates and friends’ children, the children generally considered the brightest passed easily, the borderline children got borderline scores, and the average children missed out. This, of course, is what is supposed to happen (it’s CEM in this area, so theoretically less tutorable) but I found it reassuring that it actually did happen, despite a variable amount of input from parents/tutors. Here, many children sit two tests (both CEM format), one for each LA, and the results were broadly consistent for each child for the two tests.

Best of luck to you and to your DC.

Interestingly, our experience was the opposite of Lockdowndramaqueen’s. We’re in the West Midlands (CEM test in VR, NVR and Numerical Reasoning), and with these tests the VR is worth half the marks, and I think it tends to split the pack.

Here, the maths ('Numerical Reasoning') is all about problem solving and thinking outside the box, with a very tight time limit, but the complexity on the maths itself is not high. Most bright children can do well in the maths with reasonable preparation.

With the verbal reasoning, they are trying to find the children that read widely and have great inference skills and a rich vocabulary. This element is harder to prepare for: many families resort to word lists, with limited success.

In maths, my DD comfortably reached the standard with steady practice. Her strength is VR which gave her the edge – she is an avid reader and a wordsmith, so found all the VR prep and tests easy, and this was unusual amongst her peers.

It comes back to knowing as much as you can about the requirements of the test.

We're Bucks which is CEM. Feeling slightly out of my depth but soldiering on.

Really interesting @LetItGoToRuin - I guess the lesson already is as you say understand the format and requirements of the local tests.

@Pipsquiggle my DD did her exams in September, we're Essex which for the girls means 2 sets of exams for different schools, one of which was CEM. We found the 10 minute tests by Schofield and Sims or Bond etc were great, little and often sort of prep so it didn't become a huge stressful thing. I found exam technique was important, knowing to work quickly through the ones you can do so you don't get timed out having spent too long on one question.
For my sins I'm now going through it all over again with my DS who is yr 5.