Advice needed on anything else I can do

Eleven Plus (11+) in Redbridge

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Poonkymonkey
Posts: 16
Joined: Sun Jan 26, 2014 12:42 am

Advice needed on anything else I can do

Post by Poonkymonkey »

My first post on here, so a little nervous. My dd is currently with a tutor centre in redbridge. She seems to be doing ok... But still unsure as to how to help her further. She's doing a VR and NVR Bond paper everyday age 10-11 and 11-12. Papers from tuition centre including Maths and English. Similar meanings etc. I'm trying to get her to read more books to help with vocab. And she's in level 5 SATs group at school. Is there anything else I should be doing with her? So so worried about doing the right thing with her. Will be trying for Redbridge, Chelmsford and Essex tests.
Araucana girl
Posts: 492
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2012 5:48 pm

Re: Advice needed on anything else I can do

Post by Araucana girl »

Poonkymonkey wrote:My first post on here, so a little nervous. My dd is currently with a tutor centre in redbridge. She seems to be doing ok... But still unsure as to how to help her further. She's doing a VR and NVR Bond paper everyday age 10-11 and 11-12. Papers from tuition centre including Maths and English. Similar meanings etc. I'm trying to get her to read more books to help with vocab. And she's in level 5 SATs group at school. Is there anything else I should be doing with her? So so worried about doing the right thing with her. Will be trying for Redbridge, Chelmsford and Essex tests.
Hi Poonkymonkey, cannot help much with Redbridge but my dd sat the CSSE and CEM for CCHS in Essex last year. We are currently waiting on allocations in March :shock: Not sure how successful we will be but hey ho!

For CSSE, the format has changed for this year. You do not say what year your dd is in, I presume she will be sitting this September. The old stand alone VR paper has gone, and I for one, am not sure how much VR will be in the new English paper, there is going to be some. The new addition is a creative writing section and no-one is too sure how hard that will be yet. The sample papers are on the CSSE site so worth looking at. Getting your dd reading is very important as it will expose her to lots of different texts and vocab.

For CEM for Chelmsford, I would get the CGP books and practice timed sections - this is the killer for CEM. Your dd needs to be prepared to not finish a section and move on when told to do so without this throwing her confidence. I don't think the standard of comprehension and maths is so bad for CEM, although I have never seen a paper, but it is the timing that throws it is very time pressured: 6 minutes for 20 NVR questions etc.
Has your dd looked at cloze - texts with letters taken out of words and they have to say what the word is? This is usual for CEM and can be quite nasty. Your dd needs to be used to this, I think there were two passages with this last year so worth being prepared.

PM me if you need more info etc. Hope this helps. Hopefully someone has helped you with Redbridge.
"Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere."

Albert Einstein
Poonkymonkey
Posts: 16
Joined: Sun Jan 26, 2014 12:42 am

Re: Advice needed on anything else I can do

Post by Poonkymonkey »

Hi Araucana girl

Thank you so much for this. She will be sitting this year, September. I'll have a look at the CJP books as you said. She's been reading David Walliams and the wimpy kid books. But I think she needs something meatier so she's now on Lemony Snicket and then the golden compass books. Thanks again.
Araucana girl
Posts: 492
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2012 5:48 pm

Re: Advice needed on anything else I can do

Post by Araucana girl »

Poonkymonkey wrote:Hi Araucana girl

Thank you so much for this. She will be sitting this year, September. I'll have a look at the CJP books as you said. She's been reading David Walliams and the wimpy kid books. But I think she needs something meatier so she's now on Lemony Snicket and then the golden compass books. Thanks again.
yes you definitely need to move up a bit from those. Lemony Snicket is great,any classics you can get her to read. Really important that you get her to read to you as well, they are great at skipping words they don't know.
We read: I Coriander, The Boy in The Striped Pyjamas, lemony Snicket. Philip Pullman's Northern Lights series is brilliant as well but only have these now :roll:
"Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere."

Albert Einstein
Poonkymonkey
Posts: 16
Joined: Sun Jan 26, 2014 12:42 am

Re: Advice needed on anything else I can do

Post by Poonkymonkey »

Just seen yesterday that they are changing the Redbridge exam to CEM. So thanks again for your help.
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