Kendrick 2010

[Complete Novice]

My DD is sitting Kendrick this November and I would really love to hear any experiences of those who have daughters at Kendrick and those who sat the exam this last year. I am very much in two minds as to whether my DD is really a Kendrick girl (if there is such a thing) and sometimes worry that I could be doing the wrong thing by entering her for the exam. She is very able but very unfocused, and more than a bit dippy! I sometimes think she has a good chance of getting through the exams if she has one of her "good days" but then worry that she may hate it or not cope when she got there if everyone else is an organised and efficient learner. THe advice we have had from her school is that her Nfer VR and NVR scores are up there with the girls who have gone to Kendrick in the past but ,that they have never sent a girl quite like her there before!

I also wondered whether any of your DDs found it a particular challenge to complete 100 questions in 45 mins. My DD finds it just about okay to do the 80 questions in 50 mins (Susan Daughtrey, Walsh) but as they contain long word codes, it is still quite tight. I just can't imagine if those codes are in the paper, especially without the benefit of a a multiple choice answer sheet to help you, that it would be possible to get to the 100th question. I notice on other area's forums that quite often the girls don't finish the paper and still get a place but as you seem to need to be in the 90s at Kendrick, it doesn't really seem feasible to pass without making it to the end.

Any advice/ experiences would be very much appreciated!

Many thanks

CN

[melodycool]

I too would be keen to hear of others' experiences. I would like to know if last years paper had net cubes questions......I know this question was asked on this forum a few years back.

[stevew61]

Hi CN,

I would go for it and make the decision of which school is best when the results are out, a lot can change, DC grow up a lot in year 6.

Kendrick is 100 questions in fifty minutes so 30 seconds a question, I guess the technique is to gain time on the vocab. questions and use it wisely on the code questions if they come up.

Melodycool - nets of cubes - I think you have to prepare for all possibilities, Bond How To Do NVR has a good explanation of nets of cubes and a link to their web site where you can download the nets, cut out and play.


steve

[Complete Novice]

Thanks Steve, I suppose 50 mins is marginally better!!

[kmore97]

Can anyone please suggest a tutor in or around Reading for Kendrick preparation?

[NaomiHi]

My DD is just about to complete her first year at Kendrick (goodness that went fast!). She started doing practice tests shortly after starting Year 6 and did approx 5-6 practice tests/week until about two weeks before the exam when she did at least one VR and one NVR test/day. We used Bond and NFERNelson practice tests and initially just worked through the practice papers to see which sections she struggled with, and then focussed on those. She didn't have a tutor because I felt pretty strongly that if she needed a tutor to get in she may struggle with the work once there . . . but if you have a DD who needs test-taking coaching I can see the sense in tutoring.

At first, my DD struggled with getting everything completed w/in the time, but once she got accustomed to the shape and structure of the test, her timing improved, as did her scores. We charted her scores so that she could see her progress and see what she needed to spend more time practicing (with her it was VR stuff). By the time she took the test, she was consistently getting in the 90s (percentage-wise) in her practice tests.

On the day, she completed the test w/in the time and came (joint) 46th . . . I'm afraid I have no idea whether girls who didn't complete got in.

As for whether you should put your DD forward, only you know your daughter well enough to answer that We struggled with this too initially . . . but after talking to her we realized that if she didn't get in she wouldn't see herself as a "failure." She understood how tough the competition was and, while after visiiting the school she really wanted to go, she went into the test being very realistic about her chances (no guarantee). I would never have put my older DD forward, though, not because she isn't bright enough, but because she would have put herself under undue stress and pressure, which I felt was unfair on her.

If you do decide to put your DD forward, I wish you both (all) the best of luck . . . and please let us know how she gets on. I know it all seems daunting, but it's probably harder for the parents that it is for the children. ****** was very sanguine and grown up about the whole thing, while I was a nervous wreck waiting for the test results!

N

[mad?]

Hi NaomiHi. What a helpful post. One thing though...

My DD is just about to complete her first year at Kendrick (goodness that went fast!). She started doing practice tests shortly after starting Year 6 and did approx 5-6 practice tests/week until about two weeks before the exam when she did at least one VR and one NVR test/day. We used Bond and NFERNelson practice tests and initially just worked through the practice papers to see which sections she struggled with, and then focussed on those. She didn't have a tutor because I felt pretty strongly that if she needed a tutor to get in she may struggle with the work once there . . . but if you have a DD who needs test-taking coaching I can see the sense in tutoring. N

Your DD did have a tutor...you!
Also, you have used DD's name in the post, which you may be completely happy with but in case you have inadvertantly identified her I thought I should point it out to you so that you can edit accordingly.

[stevew61]

mad?,

thanks for hilighting the use of a name.

NaomiHi, I have **** the name, I know how hard it is when you write not to use names, infact I struggle with DS1, DS2 and DD.....

And thanks for the info. on Kendrick.

steve

[Complete Novice]

Thanks Naomi for the helpful post. I keep going back and forth about this one. The main problem we have with the Kendrick standard format is that her spelling is poor. So, when she is unscrambling an anagram for example, she knows the word but then writes it out with a spelling mistake which I am guessing would get a zero mark! I don't think I can fix this problem in time and am wondering, not for the first time, if she might be very mildly dyslexic. Certainly for a girl who reads as much as she does, she has very little instinct for what is a correct spelling. On the plus side however, she has just had her optional Sats results for year 5 and got a creditable 3 level 5s . So, she does seem to be able to pull it out of the bag sometimes.

Has your daughter enjoyed Kendrick so far? I visited the Spring Fair with my daughter and I was very impressed by the girls helping out there. Oh well, back to the practice tests!

CN