Dyslexia, dyscalculia and 11+ in West midlands
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thirdtimemum
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Dyslexia, dyscalculia and 11+ in West midlands
Hi all. I cant believe how quickly I am back here. Ds started bvgs in September and is loving it. I'm now stressing about dd who is taking her test in September. She will be taking the walsall,birmingham and kehs exams. I was wondering what allowances they will make for her as she has dyslexia and discalculia. She has also seen a occupational therapist around other minor concerns we have. I have asked her what will help and she has requested use of her own pencil ( she has problems holding her pencil) , her question and answer sheets in yellow , use of a slope and being allowed to use a special cushion she sits on which stops her figgiting. I will also be requesting extra time. Will there be any problem with these requests?
I'm also concerned with her spelling. She really struggles with it and regularly puts letters in the wrong order. Her writing us also very difficult to read and her numbers are often back to front. Is there anything that can be done with regards to marking this. She is a very bright child but just struggles to get it on paper. I do wonder if grammar school is the best for her even if she passes, but then I don't feel that the local school is right for her. She is an end of July birthday which hasn't helped either.
Any advice would be really appreciated.
I'm also concerned with her spelling. She really struggles with it and regularly puts letters in the wrong order. Her writing us also very difficult to read and her numbers are often back to front. Is there anything that can be done with regards to marking this. She is a very bright child but just struggles to get it on paper. I do wonder if grammar school is the best for her even if she passes, but then I don't feel that the local school is right for her. She is an end of July birthday which hasn't helped either.
Any advice would be really appreciated.
Last edited by thirdtimemum on Fri Feb 03, 2017 5:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Dyslexia, dyacalculia and 11+ in West midlands
What adjustments are put in place for her at her current school?
Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read.Groucho Marx
Re: Dyslexia, dyacalculia and 11+ in West midlands
For dd I requested that she was able to use her large soft pencil grips as recommended by her OT, who also wrote a supporting letter.
She has hyper-mobility syndrome.
This was accepted. However when we arrived to the exam, the staff there did not seem to know but luckily I had copies of all the letters with me and I had to explain everything again.
We did not ask for any other adjustments so I don't know if they will be accepted. Your requests don't seem unreasonable - the only answer is really going to be from the foundation so it is worth contacting them.
I don't know about getting extra time, though.
Dd writes slowly and painfully and now uses a laptop for longer writing tasks, but we did not ask for, nor were given, extra time for the exam. Had there been an essay writing section I would have asked.
I know she certainly did not finish a number of sections.
You will need a letter of support regarding any request, presumably from a medical professional or the Senco/school.
She has hyper-mobility syndrome.
This was accepted. However when we arrived to the exam, the staff there did not seem to know but luckily I had copies of all the letters with me and I had to explain everything again.
We did not ask for any other adjustments so I don't know if they will be accepted. Your requests don't seem unreasonable - the only answer is really going to be from the foundation so it is worth contacting them.
I don't know about getting extra time, though.
Dd writes slowly and painfully and now uses a laptop for longer writing tasks, but we did not ask for, nor were given, extra time for the exam. Had there been an essay writing section I would have asked.
I know she certainly did not finish a number of sections.
You will need a letter of support regarding any request, presumably from a medical professional or the Senco/school.
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thirdtimemum
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Re: Dyslexia, dyacalculia and 11+ in West midlands
Thanks for the replies. She does have all of these in school already. They were all recommended by either the educational psychologist or the Occupational therapist. Dd too has difficulties with hyperflexibility hence the pencil. She prefers a round one rather than one with edges. The only issue I can see is extra time. In school I've been asking for ages, her teacher has said she is entitled to it. I'm not sure that he has been allowing it. The issue is that she takes longer to read things and then has to rush which makes it harder to read and she makes more errors. As dd then scores 'average' it is seen as ok. When she is not timed she performs better. The educational psychologist did recommend her having longer so I will see.
Does anyone know how they will score them with back to front numbers? I know this won't be a problem in Birmingham but might be for walsall.
Does anyone know how they will score them with back to front numbers? I know this won't be a problem in Birmingham but might be for walsall.
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kenyancowgirl
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Re: Dyslexia, dyscalculia and 11+ in West midlands
I suggest you contact them direct. Every child has slightly different needs and allowances, if any, are based on those needs and very strict criteria. With public exams (like GCSEs etc) there has been a lot of tightening up on allowances, especially extra time - and it tends to be based on the usual way of working as recommended by recognised experts. Check with them now, so there is time to get any additional reports etc before your dd sits.
Re: Dyslexia, dyscalculia and 11+ in West midlands
Please note the time limits for requesting special measures for both the Birmingham and Walsall consortium were much earlier than the cut offs generally when my youngest dd did the exams some two to two and half years ago.Any request has to be backed up by evidence and from memory by the headmaster of the existing school.The exams where special measures are requested can take place on another date or on the same date.For us the Walsall exam was on a different date and the Birmingham exam on the same date as children taking the exam without special measures.In our case we didn't have any extra time as that was not our request but to ensure she was aware and heard all the instructions at a time she had lost hearing in both ears rather than be hard of hearing in just the one as at present.
I know they can be quite strict on extra time from an application a friend made for his daughter and in his case it probably was the difference in his dd not gaining a grammar school.I would suggest looking for your application to be backed up with the appropriate medical evidence and supported with e.g the appropriate evidence she has been given extra time at her existing school for tests and exams so that she is not put at a disadvantage as compared to other children in her class.We found the admissions officer at QMHS very helpful as that is where we sat the exam even though our first preference was WGHS as the school was local. I cannot recall much personal conversations with admissions in Birmingham.When my dd did her exam in QMHS it was in a room with two other girls and she had no distractions and it was very well handled as it was on a separate date.The one in Birmingham at KE Handsworth was on the same date as other girls taking the exam without special measures was not very well organised and I believe it impacted on her performance.She was in a room with a number of other girls and the instructions were not that clear.Although she got all her options you really have to put in the effort to make sure you get the right arrangements.
Good luck to you and your dd.
I know they can be quite strict on extra time from an application a friend made for his daughter and in his case it probably was the difference in his dd not gaining a grammar school.I would suggest looking for your application to be backed up with the appropriate medical evidence and supported with e.g the appropriate evidence she has been given extra time at her existing school for tests and exams so that she is not put at a disadvantage as compared to other children in her class.We found the admissions officer at QMHS very helpful as that is where we sat the exam even though our first preference was WGHS as the school was local. I cannot recall much personal conversations with admissions in Birmingham.When my dd did her exam in QMHS it was in a room with two other girls and she had no distractions and it was very well handled as it was on a separate date.The one in Birmingham at KE Handsworth was on the same date as other girls taking the exam without special measures was not very well organised and I believe it impacted on her performance.She was in a room with a number of other girls and the instructions were not that clear.Although she got all her options you really have to put in the effort to make sure you get the right arrangements.
Good luck to you and your dd.
In the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years.
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
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thirdtimemum
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Re: Dyslexia, dyscalculia and 11+ in West midlands
Thank you all. I shall take you advice and call them now in case I need another report completing. I do believe the school will be supportive as her teacher is the senco lead. I'm not expecting any resistance to my requests except for the extra time although I would like to know if there are allowances for spelling and back to front numbers. Goodness can't believe I've got it all to go again after this one!
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nickynoodle
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Re: Dyslexia, dyscalculia and 11+ in West midlands
We tried with KE consortium last year, to get extra time for our dyslexic DD, sent in EP report etc..but they refused. I recall something along the lines of 'the only thing you can do is appeal after the results are out'.
I figured that if they weren't prepared to help in the entrance test, then would they really want to help her if she got in to the school? But that was my cynical opinion. She managed a decent 216, without any tuition. She goes to Wolverhampton Grammar now, where the dyslexia support is out of this world. Worth a consideration?
Good luck with whatever route you choose. ***
I figured that if they weren't prepared to help in the entrance test, then would they really want to help her if she got in to the school? But that was my cynical opinion. She managed a decent 216, without any tuition. She goes to Wolverhampton Grammar now, where the dyslexia support is out of this world. Worth a consideration?
Good luck with whatever route you choose. ***
Re: Dyslexia, dyscalculia and 11+ in West midlands
Hi,
Good advice given. I would like to add that you should make sure that she also gets extra time for SATs. Normally, a child gets the adjustments they get at school, so this is an important one. I've known of children not getting extra time for the 11+, but then the schools are quick to get them extra time for SATs, as the results affect their league tables! So, it would be something that the SENCO would have to say in their application. Then, as their SEN file follows them to secondary school, the children can get extra time when doing internal exams or GCSEs, etc.
Extra time given for dyslexic children varies from local authorities, I have a friend who got 25% extra for her severely dyslexic child in Bexley.
I am not from your area, but I believe that Birmingham do the CEM 11+, which is incredibly time critical, as you may know. So, I would definitely push for extra time.
I can totally understand that you are worried about your daughter coping in grammar school. Have you posted about this? Maybe others can tell you about their experience?
My friend's dyslexic son is thriving at grammar and she says that their SEN department is not overwhelmed as the one at her local comprehensive. So, it would be worth enquiring.
Good luck!
Salsa
Good advice given. I would like to add that you should make sure that she also gets extra time for SATs. Normally, a child gets the adjustments they get at school, so this is an important one. I've known of children not getting extra time for the 11+, but then the schools are quick to get them extra time for SATs, as the results affect their league tables! So, it would be something that the SENCO would have to say in their application. Then, as their SEN file follows them to secondary school, the children can get extra time when doing internal exams or GCSEs, etc.
Extra time given for dyslexic children varies from local authorities, I have a friend who got 25% extra for her severely dyslexic child in Bexley.
I am not from your area, but I believe that Birmingham do the CEM 11+, which is incredibly time critical, as you may know. So, I would definitely push for extra time.
I can totally understand that you are worried about your daughter coping in grammar school. Have you posted about this? Maybe others can tell you about their experience?
My friend's dyslexic son is thriving at grammar and she says that their SEN department is not overwhelmed as the one at her local comprehensive. So, it would be worth enquiring.
Good luck!
Salsa
