SW London Grammar and Private year 7 entry 2024

[lolo99]

Not sure if this thread has been started but if not, I would like to share experiences, tips and generally talk about schools and their pros and cons and processes to ease the anxiety and pain for us parents :)

@Brugmansia sorry to hear that you’re feeling despondent, that’s completely understandable. I think you know your DC best and what they’re capable of. I’ve heard of boys being rejected from KGS but getting into St Paul’s, King’s etc (happened last year at DS’s school) so please don’t think it is a sign of things to come, it could have been a bad day or not the right format of exam etc. I hope the new year brings you good news.

Im sorry @Brugmansia i know how this is disappointing.
you are waiting to hear from Emanuel aren’t you ? What else are you waiting for ? You might have a good surprise 🤞🏻it is true i notice it can be a bit of a lottery ! We were almost convinced our DS will get an interview for LU but we did not (got quite disappointed) .
we thought our DS would not manage KGS as they firmly told us pass mark is 80% and we thought oh well this will be a good practice but surprisingly he got an interview (now worried if he will get an offer at the end or not lool).
so yeah i think its not because you do not get a second round at a specific school that you DC won’t succeed at another school.
finger crossed for January good news.

@Brugmansia sorry to hear that. Try not to worry too much though. These exams are very unpredictable but just because your DC didn’t get one offer doesn’t mean they won’t get others. Emanuel interview a good proportion of those sitting (2/3), so fingers crossed for that and any others still to come. It’s a bit of a marathon not a sprint but hopefully better news will be around the corner.

@Brugmansia it’s a brutal process and most of us are not enjoying it. I concur that there is no rhyme or reason sometimes why some offer and others don’t when you take away the obvious super selectivity. Just to add, so many don’t get in places they had their heart set on but do thrive in the places they do get in the end.

Agree @Brugmansia . At our school a child last year got a scholarship to Dulwich and Brighton and not even waitlisted at Epsom. That result came first and cussed much panic understandably! First round at St D is ISEB and that is also notoriously hard to predict as I think the algo means you have to get the first few questions right to get high acores. Maybe written papers will suit your ds more

Vetiver444 - we have been invited to the 'beyond the classroom' at Radnor also.... I think it will be some kind of team building exercise where they can observe the kids socialising and problem solving together.

DC2 did Radnor interviews 2 years ago and it was a group chat where they had to bring a book and talk about what they were reading... it was nowhere near as challenging as her other interviews.

This sounds a bit more interactive.

@SkaterGrrrrl@Vetiver444 yes my DS1 did a group interview 2 years ago and had to bring a favourite book. They haven’t mentioned that this year. I assume the group activity will be some sort of problem solving / team building thing. At IPS they had to solve a mystery with mythical creatures. No right or wrong answers but about how they all interact, contribute, listen etc. Maybe that sort of thing?

@SkaterGrrrrl @travelturtle thanks both - if it’s along those lines it sounds not too intimidating and like it might actually be fun for them with any luck!

My DS might be in your DC's group! We should wear the Mumsnet scarf at drop off!

Thanks very much everyone.

Fortunately we have some decent state options and have an ok chance at getting into our first choice. Our back up option, which I'm pretty certain he should get a place at, is outstanding but I just personally didn't like it much.

I'm not particularly optimistic about the other private options as they are more selective and it has always felt a bit of a stretch for DS to get into any. He is bright but dyslexic and not typically academic. I think the ISEB was not a great format for him. Certainly in practices he was very hit and miss on the English as there was so much to read, which he still struggles with.

We'll just need to wait and see I guess with the rest and maybe the more traditional paper based exams will have been better. It's very frustrating though, as if he gets an interview he would hopefully have a better chance at showing his potential.

Hi all, I'm a lurker here (DD1 just past 16+ , so 11+ was quite some time ago) and I just wanted to send my good vibes and reassurances💐🍀, especially to those who received not so great news before the hols. If that helps in any way, I can share our testimony that a disappointing result in 11+ is not the end of DC's academic story, especially as at 11, they are still so young, sometimes shy and immature.
DD, from a bilingual state primary, tried for 4 south London schools, ...got 0 offer (waitlisted in Alleyn's).
In year 7, she decided to try again for occasional places in 2 other schools (WHS & PHS), got both. NB. For us, occasional place assessments were MUCH less stressful. Y9, she was offered a scholarship while at WHS.
Now in 16+ she tried for 3 coeds, got all 3 (incl. Alleyns with scholarship), and she accepted the offer from KCS. She definitely grew in confidence in those past years!
Happy to answers questions you might have on WHS (really lovely school!!) and best of luck to all!!💪

Thanks for sharing @Lilleaudesniges there’s definitely life after 11+! It’s such a brutal process. Well done to your DD.

Thanks for sharing @Lilleaudesniges , congrats to your DD. Setbacks certainly make us more determined and resilient. If you don’t mind me asking why did you/DD choose WHS over PHS? We are hoping to be lucky enough to have that choice when the time comes.

So reassuring Lilleaudesniges!

Thanks! PHW vs WHS : I think it was really personal feeling, you can't go wrong with either I'm sure. We/DD liked the atmosphere of WHS more (girls felt relaxed, down to earth, unaffected) and we liked the area of WHS more than PHS's. Travel was the same. We also received the whs offer first, said yes immediately, and felt confident with our response and didn't want to hesitate further. DD never regretted her choice. :)

Hope you all had a good Christmas and kids all enjoyed time off studying (except maybe those with exams still to come - feel sorry for them 😔 ). Slowly waking up now for interviews later this week and then everything crossed for some good news from Emanuel next week. Hope all doing ok and surviving this madness.

We have Epsom coming up and interviews. Busy week ahead.

Hi👋🏻happy new year🥳 same here , interview on Friday and next week.
and crossing my fingers for Emanuel and DC my DS did not do anything during the holidays but he deserves it ! Only trying to prepare a bit for the interview… good luck !

Happy new year everyone! same here, interview on Friday. I know some experiences were shared here but any final tips for KGS general interview is appreciated :) wishing all good luck for the upcoming exams and interviews !

@allaboutmychildren if you have a general interview, it is quite relaxed and your DC can expect the usual questions - favourite subject / book / what do you like about this school / what do you like doing outside school, etc. And there is the opportunity for DC to ask questions (I always think it is a good idea, but really think that it has to be DC-led).
Good luck, it is a lovely school.

Dd had a total break over Xmas which I’m now wondering maybe was an error! Did a maths paper this morning and it’s all a bit rusty! Meep. Lacking motivation to keep going as am I.

Exactly the same here 😬

I do think that is one thing schools could do to improve this process. Get all the exams out the way in December!

@farfallarocks I totally agree. Everyone recognises that kids get rusty over a 6-week summer holiday; they get rusty over a 3-week Xmas one too. And it's miserable if they're having to work over the vacation. They're all geared up psychologically for exams in the autumn term, and it would make much more sense to get all exams done pre-Xmas and then just do interviews in the new year.

Very few schools have exams after Xmas, most of these schools are very competitive and attract parents who want their children to succeed in such highly selective environments, creating a competitive atmosphere. Parents can always choose not to apply for these schools.