11 Plus Exams Forum

I have been wondering for quite a while now and have just decided to 'throw the question out there'

If a child is in the top 5% of their class how intense should their 11 plus preparation be?

Can we discuss please?

Thanks
Coolmum

oh dear..do we have to?

It's still the holiday season, albeit the independent exams are around the corner.

Well, I think it depends how bright the class is in the first place before you can factor in whether being in the top 5% is in the running with the exam/area cohort/candidates.

Some years, the top 5% have good 11+ results and some have outstanding results in my children's schools. Having said that, the top 5% will require probably what has been bandied about so much on the forum, familiarisation for speed and accuracy for 2 to 6 months, definitely no more than 9 months.

AB

Sorry - forget it's still the 'holidays' it's more like 'worklidays' at ours because the Indies are around the corner!!!

It's because we have been working quite hard since the summer holidays which has made me wonder! My Ds is bright (not genius!!) which got me thinking because if you had asked me before the prep started I would have doubted as to whther he would have been able to make it through, now that we are coming to the end of the prep I think he stands as good as chance as any. My doubts aren't because of his ability but more to do with exam technique, familiarisation with questions, layouts of papers etc.

Hence my yearning to 'discuss'!!!!!

No problem!
I am just about getting out of my merry-making mood too as the end of the year is around the corner.

Your son sounds as prepared as can be. You are feeling a quiet confidence at the end of his prep and getting through the first round in December exams must have given him (and you) a boost!

It all culminates after the new year and if you have gone through different papers with different 'styles', he will feel he can tackle anything.
And if he encounters something he has not seen before, remind him that this is a test for 11 year olds and if he thinks it through, he might just be the child who cracks it!!

Good Luck!

AB

My Ds is bright (not genius!!)

I thought if you were in the top 5% you were a genius!

Well as you may be aware DS2 (apparently in top 3% with IQ test) is sitting some last minute exams and gaging from him I think once a week for 9 months would have been more than enough and I would have felt confident and we would both have been relaxed and covered what we needed to. DS1 would be fine after a month, but I hink its more about how relaxed you both feel with the process and how confident you both feel that everything has been understood.

coolmum123 wrote:
If a child is in the top 5% of their class how intense should their 11 plus preparation be?

AB is quite right.

5% is dependent on many factors...
Cohort in class, cohort in year and cohort taking the test. Schools have varying size classes so top 5% of a 3 form intake i.e 90 children in year and a one form entry school i.e 30 in year, would differ. Also they may be in the top 5%, but is that in all subject areas or just one?

If the test they are to sit are VR or NVR and they have never come across these previously, preparation would of course be an advantage.
But do you do it slowly and steadily over 9-12 mths, or cram in 4-6wks?
Varies by family; parents, child and their individual circumstances. I don't think there is a right or wrong way. Whatever works for you and your child, is the best way for you.

Only thing I would advise is by starting earlier, you can check for gaps in learning, especially if tests will be in Maths and/or Eng. If there are any, you have time to bridge them.

The thing is being in the top 5% in your class / year doesn't necessarily mean your are in the top 5% in the cohort does it? I don't think that there is a way to gage one child's performance against others outside of the class / year until it is D - Day surely?

Is there anyone out there who has been told their child is bright / in the top 5% and then not really gotten down and prepared like mad? or at least left it until the last possible minute to begin?

I havn't come across any certainly on this forum who is quietly confident right from the get go! I may be wrong tho!!!

both my children only did a couple of practice tests 2 weeks before, we just looked at what they had problems with and showed them how to do it.

If only I knew then what I know now I would have panicked!


Both passed, I have no idea what Miss yoyo did, but master yoyo was between 137 and 140 on all

sometimes ignorance can be bliss!!

That is some acheivement from both your DC's!!

Looking at the Forum tho I think you are probably the exception, now i'm thinking maybe it's a parental confidence thing then.

I say this not as a criticism to you but as an observation of myself!! I don't think I would have been able to wait till so close to the exam - and it's more a thing of not wanting to kick myself for not starting earlier if you know what i mean?!!!

PS People - if I start rambling and not making sense (what do I mean if?!! it should be when!!) it's because I've hit the Vino and I can feel the effects!!

coolmum123 wrote:The thing is being in the top 5% in your class / year doesn't necessarily mean your are in the top 5% in the cohort does it? I don't think that there is a way to gage one child's performance against others outside of the class / year until it is D - Day surely?

Pretty much.

coolmum123 wrote: Is there anyone out there who has been told their child is bright / in the top 5% and then not really gotten down and prepared like mad? or at least left it until the last possible minute to begin?

I haven't come across any certainly on this forum who is quietly confident right from the get go! I may be wrong tho!!!

Primary schools in the state sector, do not usually advise parents if their child is considered G&T; This only openly happens at Secondary.

I would guess that parents with Super Genius children might be quietly confident, but then from watching programmes about such brilliant children, school is not where the parents would choose to educate them