What would you do??

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cairo
Posts: 276
Joined: Sat Feb 21, 2009 3:09 pm

What would you do??

Post by cairo »

Five weeks to go before DS1 sits the grammar test.

I've been pretty relaxed about it until now, as he is a bright kid and seemed to be able to do the questions in the VR books that we flicked through together from time to time. Started him with a tutor a couple of months back, once a week and the tutor told me he was doing well.

However, he's just done 3 timed tests at the tutors' over the last 3 weeks, and each time only managed to finish 60-65 out of the 80 questions. AAGH! Major panic setting in at my end (although trying not to show it in front of DS1...)

I have read lots of helpful posts on this site dealing with timing issues and have talked through various tips to do with saving time with DS1, but it doesn't seem to have made any difference. There's nothing he struggles with particularly. He just seems to work consistently slower than required.

I don't know what to do now. Is this an indication that he's just not grammar school material and I'm putting him in for something he's bound to fail? Or is he likely to speed up with more practice? And do we have enough time to make that much difference?? It's such a shame because he often gets 90%+ when it's not timed.

In the meantime, my son knows he needs to work quicker and is consequently getting very anxious about the whole thing. Not helped either by the chat at school amongst his friends which is whipping him into a state of frenzy. God, this is a horrible process isn't it?

Honest advice/thoughts gratefully received. Thanks.
Glos_Mum
Posts: 660
Joined: Sun Mar 30, 2008 11:05 pm

Post by Glos_Mum »

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Last edited by Glos_Mum on Wed Jan 01, 2014 5:06 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Glos_Mum
Posts: 660
Joined: Sun Mar 30, 2008 11:05 pm

Post by Glos_Mum »

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Last edited by Glos_Mum on Wed Jan 01, 2014 5:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Tolstoy
Posts: 2755
Joined: Wed Aug 13, 2008 5:25 pm

Post by Tolstoy »

This came up earlier in the year see,

http://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/forum/ ... hp?t=10527

When I did eventually give my DS2 the long papers at the beginning of the summer his timing was fine.

However over the summer we didn't do anything and when he started doing practcie again the beginning of this month his timing was once more way off.

I just did the same, gave him a week more or less of the level 3 dailies. I only let him have 10 mins for them. If he didn't finish we marked as is even if he had guessed the last few. He had a couple of low marks he got cross but by the end of the week he had got back up to speed.

Like Glos-mum says it is cetainly no reflection on a childs ability. DS2 simply finds it hard to focus.

It is a difficult one the issue of keeping up confidence and I am certainly no expert but at this point I would say getting the timing is crucial. DS2 is certainly not hitting the 90's in his long practices and I am not in the least bothered, the main thing is that week on week his scores are improving. Tell your son that his scores will drop initially but that really doesn't matter at this point as there is still plenty of time to go.

DS1 was excellent with his timing but still missed the last question on the second, harder, paper last year. Hence my insistance on making sure DS2 keeps his speed up at the cost of a couple of mistakes at the moment.
Milla
Posts: 2556
Joined: Mon Nov 24, 2008 2:25 pm

Post by Milla »

Hi, Cairo
I think lots of us have issues with various elements of the ole test so, firstly, you are not alone. My boy's marks are quite good, but he makes silly mistakes which then make him either fly into cross denial or be despondent and cue lots of cheering up stuff from me. We all have something to deal with!!

Added to this there is the general hideous -itis of it all approaching. And yet still not here, a sort of limbo time in which panic can build.

Although you say he is consistently slow at all of it, have you tried timing him doing individual sections? I have recently and it's been very interesting. For instance, he flew through the early sections, the wordy ones, doing each 6 or 7 question block in under 2 minutes and by and large getting them right (except when assumed it was different from rather than similar to, or vice versa, d'oh!). However, come the ones which are 3 codes / 4 words, he was taking about TEN minutes to do half a dozen questions and it was hit and miss whether he was getting it right.

At least it gave ME something to focus on and am sure that I am the major fly in his ointment! :roll: I didn't know about this site when his lucky brother took it so didn't lurch into such a panic (much as I love it here!! :wink: )

It may well be that some section or other is slowing him down more than others. Plus we're all getting a bit bored of it by now, keeping the impetus going is quite hard, I think.

Good luck, and do report back.
alisonc
Posts: 23
Joined: Sat Mar 07, 2009 5:59 pm

Post by alisonc »

I'd put him in for the test anyway. At least you'll know the test result before putting your preferences in. To be honest I had a book on tests that my daughter tried. Each test was 10 questions. She was getting on average between 5 and 10 correct. I didn't have a clue how she would do in the test. We left it a bit late as we didn't consider grammar until her headmaster suggested it a few weeks before the test. We even missed the open evenings. Not sure whether I would have considered a grammar school if she needed a tutor to help pass the test. Anyhow, I'm just a parent and in no way connected to teaching so just giving you my opinion. Hope it helps.
Milla
Posts: 2556
Joined: Mon Nov 24, 2008 2:25 pm

Post by Milla »

yes, alisonc? and? are you saying this was last year and she passed? Please say yes! give us sad panickers straws!
(by us, I of course imply nothing sappish about any other fine people, just state of self with too much time on my hands and one subject only flying around my head bothering my one brain cell.)
EmeraldE
Posts: 431
Joined: Mon Sep 29, 2008 5:56 pm

Panic yee not!! :0)

Post by EmeraldE »

Hi there,
My DS was a slow burner. I realised he was 'congratulating' himself on answering each question. He would do one...think.."oh I have got that right"...little mini-daydream about how well he was doing...have a litttle think about moving on...and try the next question.

I told him...no sitting and thinking about the question just answered, do not life your head, move straight on. No inward congratulating until the whole paper is finished. This seems to work wonders!!! Also we eased off on the timing during the week on short papers but got strict on it at the weekend long test. Seemed to work.

I am in panic mode to, just trying so hard to hide it as DS has been saying at school he is stressed by so much work (which in reality is a lot less than it has been !!). Please let it be over soon and we can all have happy smiley kids again.
Glos_Mum
Posts: 660
Joined: Sun Mar 30, 2008 11:05 pm

Post by Glos_Mum »

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Last edited by Glos_Mum on Sat Aug 22, 2015 1:07 am, edited 1 time in total.
Milla
Posts: 2556
Joined: Mon Nov 24, 2008 2:25 pm

Post by Milla »

thanks, Glos-Mum!
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