5 weeks and counting - and now starting to worry

[loo1965]

I have been quite calm until this week regarding my DS taking 11+ but now starting to worry a bit. He does practice papers and gets anywhere between 80-86% mostly VR. NVR as been running around 75 % - until this week when he did the GL assessment paper A and got 60%!!!!! his VR paper dropped to 79% also - he finished in 25 mins though

He had last week off as he was away so it's not that he's doing too much.
I suppose im feeling like I should have a clear plan for the next 5 weeks - but I haven't!! We just do different practice papers- should we be alternating between VR and NVR each week?? Or concentrate on one or the other then swap.

I would welcome any ideas or tips
Thanks
Loo

[Desperado99]

Hi Loo,

I tend to go through the practise papers afterwards to see what DD's weak areas are and work on those, She did an IPS Verbal paper today and got 68% but dropped 10% in one section alone, so that's our area to work on this week. We're working a little more on VR as that's her weakest paper and her first exam, but obviously she still needs to work on NVR too.

We are yet to start the GL assessment papers, but I plan on DD doing one a week (both VR and NVR) and then looking at areas where she struggles. I also ask DD what question types she feels she needs to work on.

I think all the parents of children taking the 11+ will be pretty stressed out by now.

Best of Luck, Loo

D

[Alex]

he did the GL assessment paper A and got 60%!!!!!

This one is notoriously hard so don't worry too much.

his VR paper dropped to 79% also - he finished in 25 mins though

I expect he'll be a bit more careful in the real thing. It sounds as though he is switching off a bit from the practice tests. If he maintained that score in the real thing he would still very likely be OK for VR.

I agree with Desperado that it would be more productive to simply concentrate on areas of difficulty until shortly before the tests - it's less boring too. you can spice it up a bit by joining in, having races etc - nothing more motivating than beating poor old Mum - at least that's what I found with my lot.

If it is any consolation I think that the real exam questions are mostly rather easier than a lot of the practice tests. The most difficulty for Lincs VR comes in the sheer number of questions to be completed (this may be where your son wins through if he is zipping through the papers) and the fact that there is a relatively wide number of types of question which makes it harder to predict exactly what is going to come up.

The NVR is, at least, completely predictable - four of the five types as published in Letts/GL assessment will appear. It is worth remembering that because of standardisation and the fact that the NVR has fewer questions, each individual question is worth rather more than each individual VR question.

I think a lot of kids get fed up with practice over the summer and loads of parents find they just don't get through what they planned - if you have covered all the basics build in some complete breaks and fun time - it helps for getting back into it in the run up to the tests.

Good luck

and to you Desperado and all the other stressed parents out there.

[loo1965]

Thanks for your replies!!! Feel better today
He did 2 IPS papers today together (100 questions) finished in 30 mins and got 88% - he and I were really pleased.

The NVR paper he did -paper A GL assessment he got all but 2 wrong in section 3 - so the question I have is are the same types of questions in each section? In which case I can go through and see which types they are. If anyone can tell me what the question types are in each section of that particular paper it would be helpful.
Thanks for all your support
Loo

[Alex]

Each section consists of questions of the same type. There are only 5 types in all (4 of which will come up in any one year in the Lincs test).

There are proper names for all the types which I have forgotten and can't find the old posts with them on but they are basically:
1. Completing the pair of shapes in the same manner as the given pair are completed.
2. Filling in the missing shape in a matrix.
3. Filling in the mssing shape in a sequence of shapes.
4. Codes
5. Finding the shape which is most like the two shapes already given

[loo1965]

Thanks Alex (again)!!!! Any way I can find out which sections are which in the actual paper???
Loo

[Alex]

Do you mean which order do they appear in? Out of the 5 types it has not always been the same type which is missed out. I don't know if, apart from that, they follow the same order or not. Each section is timed separately so I don't think it would make much difference which order they came in.

[Jetster]

I too am panicking as it seems my son's scores are going down rather than up, and it is really affecting his confidence. I'm holding off doing anymore papers for a little while and just going to focus on question types. He seems to be better at the NVR paper and struggles with the VR, it was heartbreaking a couple of days ago because whilst sitting one of the GL VR papers he started crying .

We have reassured him that the worse case scenario is that he'll be going to the local comp which has a great reputation so in actual fact there isn't a worse case scenario. Thankfully he hasn't set his heart on the Grammar school, he just wants to do his best and that is all we are asking of him. There is certainly no pressure from us for him to pass it so I did feel awful.

[vasu]

Though I am not from your region but I can empathise. My son got a Gl assesment paper, few months back from his tutor and he scored 98% and we did the same pare last week and he got 79% . As the exams are approaching his scores are getting erratic. I want to scream and shout but that is not going to help, is it? Now I sit with him when he does his tests and give him clues when he is stuck. He is anxious, as all the other kids are, as the exams are approaching. Outwardly,they just pretend that they don't care but inside they are freaking out. . It is a trying time.

[Desperado99]

It is indeed a trying time

DD's percentages are consistently in the 60's despite her best efforts. We're away on holiday next week and we're not taking any 11+ stuff. The only thing that keeps us going is that having spoken to other parents this week, we are all feeling pretty much the same. We've also started 'talking up' the non-selective schools in our area as it is a distinct possibility that she may be going to one of them.

It didn't help today that another parent loudly proclaimed in WHSmith this afternoon that children who don't have private tutors don't stand a chance of getting in I should have known better than to get into a conversation with them about it as they are fundamentally opposed to the 11+ and "would never put their children through it"

Only 4 1/2 weeks until it is all over