Motivation Needed

Eleven Plus (11+) in Birmingham, Walsall, Wolverhampton and Wrekin

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brummum
Posts: 67
Joined: Tue Sep 21, 2010 1:48 pm

Motivation Needed

Post by brummum »

Does anyone have any tips on how to keep my son motivated and on track for the exam - which is now approaching rapidly?

He's been tutored for a year - doing well, I think - 98% in Letts Practice Papers Maths, same for VR, bit less for NVR (consistently). Have tried a different tutor this week, still hitting those marks.

Unfortunately (in my opinion :) ), he's been selected for District football team, scouted by Aston Villa, so now four week nights, Saturday and Sunday mornings are taken up with training and matches.

He seems to have forgotten how important the 11+ exam is :!:

I'm going to really crack-down on him during half-term - as suggested by KenR, do you think that it is okay for him to ease up a bit on the exam work - still has tutoring and does papers at home during any (rare) spare time - or am I letting him ruin his exam chances by doing the football?

Any opinions please
no_ball

Re: Motivation Needed

Post by no_ball »

has he sat a test yet this season? My DS sat Stratford last Saturday for acclimatisation purposes, we have eased off the tests for now. Just spot tests now and then, maybe 20mins per night with 1 hr at the tutor.
fm

Re: Motivation Needed

Post by fm »

I am sure, like most children, he is fed up of hearing how important the exam is!

Most of my pupils can't wait until it is over and I have actually decreased the work they are doing in the last month.

If I were you, I would be selective about what practice you give him--go for quality, not quantity. On English, just cloze test and some vocabulary work--you aren't going to shift his comprehension much in a month. In non-verbal, find a different diet to Lett's, but again 10 minutes here and there. For months, do short bursts of mental arithmetic and also some data reading.
brummum
Posts: 67
Joined: Tue Sep 21, 2010 1:48 pm

Re: Motivation Needed

Post by brummum »

Thanks for your replies.

No, we haven't entered him for any other exams, the tutor recommended doing the Bishop Vesey as a practise, but of course it doesn't have its own exam now.

There is a tutoring school locally that says it does a 'mock' 11+ for £35 a time, but I'm rather cynical - I don't see how it can re-create the atmosphere of the real thing.

I'm going to keep up the hour at the tutor's, with a few quick tests as and when we can fit them in (I must be the only parent in Birmingham hoping for some torrential rain - no football :D ). Then a bit more effort in the half term break.

This may sound daft, but I bought the Schofield & Sims Mental Arithmetic 5 - are the answers supposed to be it in?

I've looked through the book thoroughly but I can't find any :?

I'm thinking of trying the Bond 11+ Papers as they explain the answers - are they useful?

Does anyone have any useful tips about the actual exam day?

My son is taking his at Sheldon Heath School. Will we be sent info about whether or not to take drinks in, toilet breaks etc?
JaneEyre
Posts: 4843
Joined: Sun May 09, 2010 1:04 pm

Re: Motivation Needed

Post by JaneEyre »

brummum wrote:
This may sound daft, but I bought the Schofield & Sims Mental Arithmetic 5 - are the answers supposed to be it in?
You can buy the answers separately:
Mental Arithmetic Teacher's Book 5 [Paperback]
T R Goddard (Author), J W Adams (Author), R P Beaumont (Author)

Good luck for everything!
no_ball

Re: Motivation Needed

Post by no_ball »

cast the net wide with revision material, some of it is likely to be close to the cem style questions...
brummum
Posts: 67
Joined: Tue Sep 21, 2010 1:48 pm

Re: Motivation Needed

Post by brummum »

Thanks to everyone for your replies :)
um
Posts: 2378
Joined: Sat May 30, 2009 1:06 pm
Location: Birmingham

Re: Motivation Needed

Post by um »

I know a lot of people don't think much of doing the mock exams, but I found it useful for my son. It was done in exam conditions, so that hopefully on the real day, it doesn't feel so strange, and it gave him an understanding of what he was working towards. If you had a nervous child, or one in a very small school, that experience alone could be useful.

The results, in all honesty, were not a huge surprise - we knew by then what he would come out well in, and what would be his weaker areas, but seeing how he had dropped marks in vocab was certainly an incentive for him to work harder in that area.
no_ball

Re: Motivation Needed

Post by no_ball »

DS sat Stratford grammar last weekend, it was free!
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