11 + appeal spalding
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11 + appeal spalding
Posted: Wed Mar 24, 2010 11:02 am Post subject: spalding high school
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Hi all,
I am writing to try and gat some advice with regards to spalding high school, this is a grammer school for all girls. Has anyone had any experience of appealing for this school.
My daughter failed her 11+ by four points, we are going to appeal on the week begining 10may and I am really nervous, she has good predicted grade in school, currently
Math was predicted a 4 however her very recent test for sets/practice sats were 1 mark of a 5b her literacy was a 5 and science a 5.
any help would be great also. my daughter wears glasses however it was found that she has not been wearing them in school since september we have discussed this with her and I have a letter from her options explaining that she need to wear these for any reading as she is long sited, I am unsure weather to out this in the appeal.
Further to this I went and veiwed her papers last week and she did exceptional in the second paper and not so well in the first, it clearly indicated that a lot of her problem was with spelling and not with understanding as she was showing how she worked the answers out, since this I have looked at her schol work and it terrable, school have not really picked this up or it is not being addressed, it this going to hinder her appeal do you think?
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kitty1509
Joined: 24 Mar 2010
Posts: 2
Posted: Wed Mar 24, 2010 11:03 am Post subject:
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please excuse the spelling, I was typing too fast, he he he
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Hi all,
I am writing to try and gat some advice with regards to spalding high school, this is a grammer school for all girls. Has anyone had any experience of appealing for this school.
My daughter failed her 11+ by four points, we are going to appeal on the week begining 10may and I am really nervous, she has good predicted grade in school, currently
Math was predicted a 4 however her very recent test for sets/practice sats were 1 mark of a 5b her literacy was a 5 and science a 5.
any help would be great also. my daughter wears glasses however it was found that she has not been wearing them in school since september we have discussed this with her and I have a letter from her options explaining that she need to wear these for any reading as she is long sited, I am unsure weather to out this in the appeal.
Further to this I went and veiwed her papers last week and she did exceptional in the second paper and not so well in the first, it clearly indicated that a lot of her problem was with spelling and not with understanding as she was showing how she worked the answers out, since this I have looked at her schol work and it terrable, school have not really picked this up or it is not being addressed, it this going to hinder her appeal do you think?
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kitty1509
Joined: 24 Mar 2010
Posts: 2
Posted: Wed Mar 24, 2010 11:03 am Post subject:
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please excuse the spelling, I was typing too fast, he he he
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hermanmunster
- Posts: 12897
- Joined: Fri Sep 15, 2006 9:51 am
- Location: The Seaside
Hi Kitty
Welcome! There is a fair bit of info on this site about appeals - have a look here first and then look at the link on Q&A's in the article.
http://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/forum/ ... php?t=8255
Welcome! There is a fair bit of info on this site about appeals - have a look here first and then look at the link on Q&A's in the article.
http://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/forum/ ... php?t=8255
Hi,
Spalding High School has not filled its places this year though it has fewer left over than last year. Strange really as the boys' grammar has been allowed to put in an extra class to accommodate all the boys who passed in area this year.
Last year there were 11 successful non-qualification appeals all with scores between 215 and 219.
Spalding High School has not filled its places this year though it has fewer left over than last year. Strange really as the boys' grammar has been allowed to put in an extra class to accommodate all the boys who passed in area this year.
Last year there were 11 successful non-qualification appeals all with scores between 215 and 219.
If you have already submitted a report from the school it would be a good idea to ask them to supply you with a brief update on current curriculum levels.Math was predicted a 4 however her very recent test for sets/practice sats were 1 mark of a 5b her literacy was a 5 and science a 5.
I think this depends on whether or not neglecting to wear her glasses has impacted upon her work - has she been struggling to see clearly and would this have slowed her down? If you are going to mention it at appeal you should really have some sort of evidence from the optician or from school as to how much not wearing glasses would have affected her.any help would be great also. my daughter wears glasses however it was found that she has not been wearing them in school since september we have discussed this with her and I have a letter from her options explaining that she need to wear these for any reading as she is long sited, I am unsure weather to out this in the appeal.
When you say her work is terrible do you mean just the presentation and spelling? If she is achieving Level 5 clearly the content cannot be that dreadful! I think it would be OK to say that spelling is an area of relative weakness that may have depressed her score on the VR paper but emphasise that her reasoning, reading and comprehension overall are strong - and hopefully what school say will back that up.a lot of her problem was with spelling and not with understanding as she was showing how she worked the answers out, since this I have looked at her schol work and it terrable, school have not really picked this up or it is not being addressed, it this going to hinder her appeal do you think?
Thank you so much for your replys,
When i say that her work is not good, i mean that her work is readable but not neat, this is a coment that her teacher makes, she tell me that the context of her work is fantastic, her understanding of words and using level 5 dialog is not a problem. She writes with good structured paragraphs and punctuation but when I read her work the spelling is not good, in fact it can be bad. The head when i mentioned this recently said that this is not a problem when you go to secondary school her worked that is handed in will be typed.
I have to say that since I have mentioned this to my daughter that she does seem concious of this weekness and I have told the school but they seem to feel this is not some thing to worry about, I think that I just worried about when we take work to show them they will point this out.
School do not seem to feel the need to correct this and have not mentioned this in her letter of appeal. Below I have typed what the school have written and they tell me that they will send evidence of her current level and work as they feel that since sitting the 11+ she has matured and her grades just keep going up. Do you feel that I shoud mention this. The head has said that L has just sailed through school with out thinking but since we have spoken to her about wanting to go she has just really started concentrating and her works reflects this. The head says this her maturing and realising what it is she wants.
I know I'm asking a lot of question and advice, its just such a stressful time. I think that i'm more pressured becasue she really wants to go to this school and not simply because her freinds are going because there is only one going, the funny thing is that they only became good friends when they found out that they both wanted to go.
As for the glasses, I did speak to the options and I have a letter from them saying that not wearing her glases would affect her reading spead, L L did not finished the verbal paper but finished the non-verbal. she missed about 35 questions in total from the verbal paper. He say that the level of concerntration needed to simply focus would strain her eyes and affect her concentration, her teacher said that she did keep taking her eyes off the paper then going back. The problem I have is proving that this is the case, the options has written a letter confirming this but in general for any child.
Here is the school letter:
Dear Sir,
L is a lively and pleasant young lady. She has a hard working attitude in school. She always tries hard and produces good work of good quality. She is able to work independently and also effectively as part of a team.
L has made expected pregress throughout year 6 and she is predicted to achieve:
English -level 5
Numeracy -level 4
Scienve-level 5
I have since explained that we need more specific grade ie 5a ect..
L is a very talented and creative artisit. When problen solving L is able to think in innovative and unusal ways, often thinking outside the box. She communicated her ideas well to others. She enjoys drama and is innvoled in drama activites outside of school.
L is a sociable girl, she mixes well and is caring of her peers. L will be an assest to your school and I thoroughly support her application to join you.
Signed the head.
Agian thanks for all your help and advice.
When i say that her work is not good, i mean that her work is readable but not neat, this is a coment that her teacher makes, she tell me that the context of her work is fantastic, her understanding of words and using level 5 dialog is not a problem. She writes with good structured paragraphs and punctuation but when I read her work the spelling is not good, in fact it can be bad. The head when i mentioned this recently said that this is not a problem when you go to secondary school her worked that is handed in will be typed.
I have to say that since I have mentioned this to my daughter that she does seem concious of this weekness and I have told the school but they seem to feel this is not some thing to worry about, I think that I just worried about when we take work to show them they will point this out.
School do not seem to feel the need to correct this and have not mentioned this in her letter of appeal. Below I have typed what the school have written and they tell me that they will send evidence of her current level and work as they feel that since sitting the 11+ she has matured and her grades just keep going up. Do you feel that I shoud mention this. The head has said that L has just sailed through school with out thinking but since we have spoken to her about wanting to go she has just really started concentrating and her works reflects this. The head says this her maturing and realising what it is she wants.
I know I'm asking a lot of question and advice, its just such a stressful time. I think that i'm more pressured becasue she really wants to go to this school and not simply because her freinds are going because there is only one going, the funny thing is that they only became good friends when they found out that they both wanted to go.
As for the glasses, I did speak to the options and I have a letter from them saying that not wearing her glases would affect her reading spead, L L did not finished the verbal paper but finished the non-verbal. she missed about 35 questions in total from the verbal paper. He say that the level of concerntration needed to simply focus would strain her eyes and affect her concentration, her teacher said that she did keep taking her eyes off the paper then going back. The problem I have is proving that this is the case, the options has written a letter confirming this but in general for any child.
Here is the school letter:
Dear Sir,
L is a lively and pleasant young lady. She has a hard working attitude in school. She always tries hard and produces good work of good quality. She is able to work independently and also effectively as part of a team.
L has made expected pregress throughout year 6 and she is predicted to achieve:
English -level 5
Numeracy -level 4
Scienve-level 5
I have since explained that we need more specific grade ie 5a ect..
L is a very talented and creative artisit. When problen solving L is able to think in innovative and unusal ways, often thinking outside the box. She communicated her ideas well to others. She enjoys drama and is innvoled in drama activites outside of school.
L is a sociable girl, she mixes well and is caring of her peers. L will be an assest to your school and I thoroughly support her application to join you.
Signed the head.
Agian thanks for all your help and advice.
I have just had confirmation of practice SAT levels passed to me on headed paper by our Form Teacher for DS, are you able to get these from your school for further evidence of ability?
We too have a problem with writing, DS is so messy I can't read it, although I am told content is great. Have to trust them as I can't make head not tail of it!! HT says it is fine and that any panel will have seen similar if not worse (can't quite believe that!).
Anyway we also had DS1 with very poor spelling, passed the Kent Test some years ago, but in CAT testing in Y7 scored a dismal 106. My point here is that these scores are all just indicators of potential. Teachers said he would be lucky to achieve a C in English GCSE because his work was so bad, but he showed them and got an A! So it is really down to the individual.
If your DD will work hard and try her very best mention this, and from HT support this is evident.
Good luck with your appeal
We too have a problem with writing, DS is so messy I can't read it, although I am told content is great. Have to trust them as I can't make head not tail of it!! HT says it is fine and that any panel will have seen similar if not worse (can't quite believe that!).
Anyway we also had DS1 with very poor spelling, passed the Kent Test some years ago, but in CAT testing in Y7 scored a dismal 106. My point here is that these scores are all just indicators of potential. Teachers said he would be lucky to achieve a C in English GCSE because his work was so bad, but he showed them and got an A! So it is really down to the individual.
If your DD will work hard and try her very best mention this, and from HT support this is evident.
Good luck with your appeal
Hi 'kitty1509' .... just been reading your thread. Just to reiterate 'T12ACY' comment regarding predicted SATs from the school. Do make sure they put the details on school headed paper as this shows the information is confirmed by the school, not just you saying so!
Having recently been through appeal process
and was successful 
the panel were very interested in my DCs academic ability, producing the schools predicated SATs (showing sub score 5a, 5b ...) was much appreciated by them. If you have good school reports, showing evidence of academic ability then show these too. A confirmed reading age from your DCs school, anything around 2yrs+ over current age is good - so if you have this show this.
Bucks (where I am) is a different system, but if going in on non-qualification it is important to be able to show your DCs academic abilities (with evidence to support this) and any mitigating cirucumstances, if relevant, again with back up documentation.
Good luck in your appeal, it is stressfull and a lot of work, but if you don't try you'll never know x x x
Having recently been through appeal process
and was successful the panel were very interested in my DCs academic ability, producing the schools predicated SATs (showing sub score 5a, 5b ...) was much appreciated by them. If you have good school reports, showing evidence of academic ability then show these too. A confirmed reading age from your DCs school, anything around 2yrs+ over current age is good - so if you have this show this.Bucks (where I am) is a different system, but if going in on non-qualification it is important to be able to show your DCs academic abilities (with evidence to support this) and any mitigating cirucumstances, if relevant, again with back up documentation.
Good luck in your appeal, it is stressfull and a lot of work, but if you don't try you'll never know x x x
Heartmum x x x
I think this evidence could be crucial. Your daughter has obviously made more rapid progress since the tests and the letter you have quoted from the school does not reflect this at all. It would be good to have specific grades for up-to-date teacher assessments for each subject (with sublevels) and the levels now expected to be achieved in the SATS tests.they tell me that they will send evidence of her current level and work as they feel that since sitting the 11+ she has matured and her grades just keep going up. Do you feel that I shoud mention this.
Again, I think this is very important - 35 is a huge number to miss out of 100 questions - were they all at the end?I have a letter from them saying that not wearing her glases would affect her reading spead, L L did not finished the verbal paper but finished the non-verbal. she missed about 35 questions in total from the verbal paper. He say that the level of concerntration needed to simply focus would strain her eyes and affect her concentration,
Would it be possible for the teacher to write confirming your daughter's behaviour during the test? Together with the letter from the optician this would provide some evidence of how the sight problem might have affected her. How general is the letter? I would have thought all that would be required is a statement of the degree of long-sightedness suffered by your daughter and then a general statement as to how much this might be expected to affect anyone reading normal print for 50 minutes in terms of speed, concentration and tiredness/strain.her teacher said that she did keep taking her eyes off the paper then going back. The problem I have is proving that this is the case, the options has written a letter confirming this but in general for any child.
It may be significant that in the NVR paper the questions are spaced out a lot more and the shapes are larger and may not have presented her with the same problems.
You do not have to rely on what you have already written and submitted with your online form. It is perfectly in order to rewrite your submission and send it together with any new evidence. You need to make sure that there is sufficient time to copy it out to everyone and at this time of year I would leave at least 2 weeks before the date of the appeal. Make sure that everything is clearly labelled with the name and the school being appealed for and ask for notification of receipt of anything you send - keep the originals and take them to the appeal and send in copies.
It is not necessary to take samples of school work to the appeal and many people don't, so if you feel that it is not going to do your daughter any favours I would leave it out. What is sometimes useful is work which is clearly marked by the teacher with a good grade and positive remarks in terms of attainment.
Hi guys thank you very much for your comments,
This is a very stressful time and I thanks all of you for your support, it is good to know that I can submit a further letter which thanks to you I will be able to lay out better, focusing on specific points, ie academic evidence. I think I am still very concerned about mentioning her glasses, I do have a letter from the optitions stating that this would affect any work that she does that requires reading and writing.
After reading some of the treads with regards to her reading ability, this has very much improved since she now wearing her glasses all the time, the optition was very helpful, he sat and explained to L that she would find her reading much easiler and enjoyable once she is use to wearing them. We still had issues for some time as she was getting headachs but he reassured me that this was stop once she is wearing them whenever she reads and writes.
You see L would not wear them because she said the hurt her eyes and she could see without them. She has since said that reading is better and infact she is reading every night now. She is currently reading the 3rd book in the sppoks apprentice series and loves them. It is so difficult to prove. Do they always ask what books she is reading.
This is a very stressful time and I thanks all of you for your support, it is good to know that I can submit a further letter which thanks to you I will be able to lay out better, focusing on specific points, ie academic evidence. I think I am still very concerned about mentioning her glasses, I do have a letter from the optitions stating that this would affect any work that she does that requires reading and writing.
After reading some of the treads with regards to her reading ability, this has very much improved since she now wearing her glasses all the time, the optition was very helpful, he sat and explained to L that she would find her reading much easiler and enjoyable once she is use to wearing them. We still had issues for some time as she was getting headachs but he reassured me that this was stop once she is wearing them whenever she reads and writes.
You see L would not wear them because she said the hurt her eyes and she could see without them. She has since said that reading is better and infact she is reading every night now. She is currently reading the 3rd book in the sppoks apprentice series and loves them. It is so difficult to prove. Do they always ask what books she is reading.
In our appeal ... yes.kitty1509 wrote:... Do they always ask what books she is reading.
The panel wanted to know what books my DC was reading, I think to see what level they were at (and I'm sure also to gauge their interests!). We gave examples of both fiction and non-fiction books/reading.
Heartmum x x x
