11 plus

bhatti3000

hi friends

how are you going to prepare your children for the 11 plus?

my children will take the 11 plus in October 2013, i have one year (i know i have left it late), i would like to know what other parents are going to prepare their children.

i dont have enough money to get tuition for them, so will be doing much of the work with them myself. i have bought an online 11plus preparation website account and they use it once a day for 45 minutes.

i am from Buckinghamshire but have moved to Luton, Bedfordshire. my children find Luton Schools rough, every second word from local Luton children is a swear word. i really want my children to be educated in Buckinghamshire, i think there is more respect in there schools. for this reasons and others the children MUST pass their 11 plus.

Any help/advice will be very welcomed.

thanks you

podperson

Are you trying to get them into a state grammar school? As I don't think many others are too strict on the results.

There's not a great deal you can do to prepare them as the test is meant to be designed not to need extra preparation. Have you spoken to them and their teachers to find out if there are any particular areas that they might be behind or not as strong in? Also I would try practicing with them exercises that will help with the 'reasoning' side of things as well as maybe doing practice tests so they won't be thrown by seeing things set out in that format. These are probably all things that their school will look at with them though.

I appreciate you want them to go to a good school but try not to put too much pressure on them. It's not the end of the world if they don't pass - in the grand scheme of things they can still do well in the future.

go_cat

Sorry but regardless of where you want your children educated you are putting them under far too much pressure what on earth would happen if they god forbid failed !!

I passed the 11 plus, my brother didn't he has become equally if not more successful than me

bhatti3000

go_cat wrote: »

Sorry but regardless of where you want your children educated you are putting them under far too much pressure what on earth would happen if they god forbid failed !!

I passed the 11 plus, my brother didn't he has become equally if not more successful than me

if they fail, they fail,
there is no pressure on the children.
but i would like to help them try to pass.

Kildare

I don't have children but from when I took my 12+ in the 90s the aim of it was to divide up the classes so they go a school with children of the same acdemic level. For me this worked really well - I was an average student in middle school, 'failed' the 12+ (if you wish to call it fail) and went to the secondary school of my choice. It worked well for me as I become a top student at my school, have all As in my GCSE, went on to A Levels and University and am now in a well paid career. However I know people who scraped through the exam and were in bottom set at grammer school and didn't do as well academically as a lot of the students that 'failed'. Don't push your children through the exam, they should go to the school that is going to be best suited to them.

Additionally, I grew up in South Bucks and I believe the secondary schools there are as good if not better than the grammers - if the issue is the schools in Luton perhaps you can apply to the secondary schools in Bucks. Sorry, I don't know how the school catchment areas work.

peachyprice

Pushing your children to pass the the 11+, which is designed to be a test of their natural ability, is not going to give them the skills they will need to be able to survive at grammar school.

It's a shame you didn't research schools thoroughly before moving from Bucks to Beds.

hardpressed

If they need extra tuition to pass the 11 plus then how will they cope with a school that may well be above their abilities, they will probably struggle to keep their heads above water.

cheepskate_2

Not all children go into these test on a level playing field- hence the extra tuition.
If you come from a good school, the chances are your ability(not intelligence) will be above these children that come from a not so good school, So its not an even playing fiels.

As for "go-Cats"- assumtion God forbid if they fail.................words fail me. Do you honestly live your life not trying anything in case you fail.

Op I would strongly if u can to get a good tutor who has passed children for these exams. Cut back on whatever you can as 1 year of cutbacks is preferable to having to find the money for tutors in 3/4th year if your school is not acheiving.

ebaybaby

The 11+ brings out the abosolute worst in people and Im not talking about the kids!
I know a lady who told me some of the other mums now do not speak to her because her child passed and theirs didnt!

In my opinion, a parent should question whether their child is suitable for grammar if they have to be tutored for the 11+.
Its not just one exam, its years of school work then to cope with.
Both my children were given the choice, they both chose to go the local comp, all of their other friends went to the grammar so it wasnt because they were following friends.
The teacher of my youngest DD said I was a fool for not letting her sit the 11+ !
My eldest is now in 6th form and has just gained 2 A* and 9 A's. It didnt come easy to her, she had to put the work in.
I find the whole 11+ thing snobbish and I often wonder who wants it more...the kids or the parents?

Judith_W

For those saying that shouldn't 'need' to tutored, all the other kids will be, and from my experience (15 years ago tbf), the more test papers you do the easier you find it.

geoffky

Look in the mirror....

The children MUST pass their 11 plus.
And if they do not?
I bet they will enjoy the pressure you put on them...
Its who you know and not what you know in this life...And a very very large slice of luck...

I turned down top apprenticeships in the area at 16
and at 18 i turned down a place at Oxford...I still managed to retire at 40
The paperwork is not all its made out to be...