11 Plus Exams Forum

Hi guys,

Could you please inform me of what primary school your kids attended before doing and gaining access to the grammar schools in essex.

I am only at the primary stage (and I know things change) but I want my child in a primary school which will encourage doing the 11+.

Peer pressure counts for a lot and I want an environment where sitting the 11+ is the norm not the exception.

I am prepared to go private but would prefer not to have to spend the money (if possible)

Thanks

My daughter is in Thrope Greenway. Her school was having 11+ boost club in the morning. As I know at least 7 children,in her class, is going to grammer school.
Where do you live in Essex? We live in Southend-on-sea. Hope it helps!

Excellent, just the type of response I was looking for.

We are in Buckhurst Hill, hence are not close to any grammar schools. ilford county and woodford county are in redbridge LEA and do not apply to us.

Did you get private tutors as well and when did you start?

Thanks

I used to teach at The Daiglen School in Buckhurst Hill. They will do an excellent job preparing your child for 11+, if he's a boy - it's a boys' school!Private, but well worth the investment.

Great idea of yours, perhaps someone can point me in the right direction for a school around Billericay that does prep for 11 plus in local primary?

smiler wrote:Hi guys,

Could you please inform me of what primary school your kids attended before doing and gaining access to the grammar schools in essex.

I am only at the primary stage (and I know things change) but I want my child in a primary school which will encourage doing the 11+.

Peer pressure counts for a lot and I want an environment where sitting the 11+ is the norm not the exception.

I am prepared to go private but would prefer not to have to spend the money (if possible)

Thanks

my children attend Eastcourt independent school, Goodmayes,
The school works very well at preparing school for grammer<local and essex> and school entrance exams
This year there were 20 redbrigde grammer places, 12 essex grammer places and 48 public school places!!!!
That's lots of hard work and dedication from staff, children and parents
There is an open day on saturday.

A good primary school that achieves good results but does not support 11+ will be just as relevant as a primary school that does support 11+. Your child will be learning everything they need to know and you can help to fill the gaps, if necessary, with practice papers, extra tuition, etc. (see further on this site for all your needs).

As for peer pressure, well, that's down to the individual. If you think your child may succumb, then perhaps you are best off searching for a school that is very much in favour of 11+.

Schools are not supposed to prepare children specifically for the 11+. The whole idea is that children should all take the exam from a level playing field.

I am not from Essex but was interested in this thread. My children go to a very average-achieving state primary school in Kent, where only a handful of children sit the 11+. However, the 11+ material is so accessible these days that with some parental help/private tuition, then the choice of school can be irrelevant. 5 out of 6 children passed at our school, all with high scores and all they had was extra tuition. I certainly think my son flourished by not being in a competitive school. As it is such a specific exam and subjects such as verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning are not part of the curriculum, then there will not be masses of time allocated to it in a school setting. Our school did just 6 mornings of exposure to this and the rest was studied outside of school. If you can easily afford independent, then it's up to you but parental/private tuition on a 'one-to-one' level is just as successful. Also, by setting work yourself, you can see their true potential and make the right decision as to what grammar school will suit them best. I find that in West Kent, where we live, most of the children at the top prep schools still have 'one-to-one' tuition.

I agree with above post. My daughter sat the 11+ this year, all we did was some papers at home, we set aside one evening a week at first, and then nearer the test we took 2 evenings out to go through some papers. Also Patricia, from this site, will guide you in the right direction if you can't afford private tuition. My daughter was the only child from her school to gain a place at Grammar school, and we did it all ourselves