11+ help?

[OneAmusedLemonScroller]

Hello, I've currently got a daughter revising for the 11+ gl maths and verbal reasoning tests. She is aiming for St Clement Danes school, but is having trouble keeping her focus when doing practice tests. Any suggestions?

I would also like to ask about everyone's experiences with atom learning. We are currently using it, but my daughter is complaining that it's a lot harder than the other practices and tests she has done! Does anyone have suggestions on where I can get some excercises for her that will help?

We looked at Atom last night for CSSE, the problem is we only want to focus on improving comprehension scores as we already subscribe to a CSSE exam practice questions site and I don't think its possible with Atom just to focus on comprehension as the island is locked until you complete the other English islands. Unfortunately we didn't get to access the practice test on Atom as we were using the free trial access so not sure how it compares.

Can someone advise on improving comprehension scores please, I have just received Schofield & Sims comprehension books 3&4, Katie Heap's Developing Comprehension skills years 5-6 Classic Children's Literature and CGP year 6 Comprehension Book 1, I'm hoping that spending a couple of weeks on one of them before going back to the exam practice questions will help but not sure which one is best for CSSE?

Hello, it may be different in the free trial period but with a subscription you can set your own practices on Atom on specific subjects only, you don’t have to follow the islands. So you can definitely focus on just comprehension.

From memory, go into the “track”
section, select English and then you can choose which subjects to set a practice on.

thanks - I did actually just take a look at the csse practice test and it really didn't seem similar to the exam papers that I've seen so I don't think we'll continue with Atom, the books I've mentioned seem more similar to the English paper, I just need to pick which one to use.

Atom learning isn’t known to have harder questions than the actual exams. It’s either at the level - for most independent schools. Or it’s a bit at lower level - for highly competitive grammar schools.
That’s what I have heard from a lot of parents.

We have a very experienced 11+ tutor and she says some of the Atom questions are insanely difficult and much harder than the questions that come up in the actual exams.

We’re doing independent exam prep but she does a lot of Kent grammar tuition. But maybe the ultra competitive grammars set harder questions still.

I'd agree with this. DS took the 11+ last year and Atom showed him performing in the top 30% for most subjects. Three schools we applied for gave feedback and they both advised he performed in the bottom 20%

St Clement Danes Chorleywood? It’s all ability is it not?

St Clement Danes is a comprehensive, but with x% (can't remember what x is) of places allocated on performance in the SW Herts Consortium test.

There might be an odd hard question but mostly I have heard of children doing much better in their mocks than in actual exams.

We are using Atom and the level is generally OK, I’d say good for practise but not aimed at exam level. For exam level questions Exam Paper Plus is good. But it’s rather difficult and 75% onwards is considered a good score. The aim is to pick and do well the questions you are able to.
Bond is also at an easy level. It’s easy to get mis-led if you use the simpler papers. Depends on which schools you are aiming for. The super selective London grammars are the toughest of all exams.

My experience with 11+ is that atom is much easier than the actual exams. And the actual mocks are harder than the actual exams and for us it proved true and we are in a highly
competitive area (top 3 in England). I would advise to get her privately tutored if you are thinking about it seriously and your area is competitive (hopefully you’re not talking about sept 2025 entrance exams) and also get the bond books.

Susan Daughtrey? Local ish I think and books good too.

This school is 2 miles from the Bucks grammar school area and very leafy lane! It’s a comp. Yes it has some selection but London grammar it’s not. In fact any selection must mean some dc don’t get in but live nearer than those who do. Plus dc very close to Bucks might well get into Bucks grammars. SCD was always popular with parents whose dc didn’t pass for a bucks grammar.