Anyone's DD not get into Nonsuch and wallington?/

[Roz12]

Hi all

Congrats to all that did get in. I noticed the other regions admit their children didn't in to chosen grammar school.

I'm very proud of my dd for trying so hard I knew she would struggle at a grammar but still a super proud mummy.

I also believe she will be successful in our local outstanding comp and will only need to cross the road to get there!

Roz

[2tinkers]

Well done you!!! I was wandering the same thing as all you seem to read about are the DC who have passed. My DD missed out by two marks for Nonsuch and didn't qualify for Wallington. In all fairness to my DD we only prepared for a very short while compared to many others.
I am sure my DD and yours will do fabulously wherever they go as the process of sitting these exams will have helped her for her future immeasurably.
My concern is the primary school and the lack of information and motivation they fail to provide parents and the children to help them strive for Grammar schools.
I too am very happy with the prospect of my DD being able to safely get to and from school alone without relying on a parent to drop her off. My husband and I both work fill time and cannot fathom how we would get our DD to a school miles away, so actually we are happy with the results. My DD, as we, feel very proud of her achievements and will continue to be supportive no matter what.

[One_Shot]

Good luck to your dds in their choosen options.

I agree with the comment on lack of information that the school provides for helping parents choose secondary schools. It really seems down to parents putting the effort at the right time to get information but i suspect this puts some at a disadvantage. The schools could easily do more to inform parents of options at the start of year 5.

[2tinkers]

One_shot I agree with the schools providing more options at beginning of year 5. My DD asked to sit the exams as we had not considered the schools in the first instance.
It's only when we realised what was involved that fear kicked in. I really thought the exams were testing ability of girls deemed to be at level 5 at the end of year 6 ( which is where we are).
Foolishly I has no idea of the competition involved, 2 years of preparation for some and mega tutoring. For those of us who cannot afford tutors but have able kids miss out on these opportunities as the bar is raised so high by the 'super intelligent' kids or those who are as mentioned above.
Don't get me wrong I'm not bitter with our outcome more angry with myself for not being more proactive/ pushy.
Well done to all the successful DD's.

[One_Shot]

I really thought the exams were testing ability of girls deemed to be at level 5 at the end of year 6 ( which is where we are).

This might have been the original intent ages ago but certainly with the limited places and growing demand and probably more accessible information through fantastic forums like this, the increased demand supply gap has meant that the tests have gotten way beyond level 5 progressively. It is not realistic for parents to know this unless they run around and speak to those who have gone through the system (and are willing to share). The primary schools seem to not want any part of this. On the other hand the schools are not shy to tout the success of those getting into coveted schools assuming that the work that they have put in is what has gotten the students to these schools. As any parent of a successful child will admit in private, this is far from the truth.

[Roz12]

One_shot I agree with the schools providing more options at beginning of year 5. My DD asked to sit the exams as we had not considered the schools in the first instance.
It's only when we realised what was involved that fear kicked in. I really thought the exams were testing ability of girls deemed to be at level 5 at the end of year 6 ( which is where we are).
Foolishly I has no idea of the competition involved, 2 years of preparation for some and mega tutoring. For those of us who cannot afford tutors but have able kids miss out on these opportunities as the bar is raised so high by the 'super intelligent' kids or those who are as mentioned above.
Don't get me wrong I'm not bitter with our outcome more angry with myself for not being more proactive/ pushy.
Well done to all the successful DD's.

Hello

You should be so proud that with little prep you DD did so well, it shows natural ability and she will thrive in High school. Also the distance to school for both of our DD's will really help-long journeys to school impacts on revision time during exams and general alertness.

Also I like to add many over tutotred children struggle at grammar schools and become miserable, I rather my daughter is happy and receives the attention she deserves. I don't want her to be left behind others and feel bad about it. I know comps focus on ALL individuals not just the academic and try hard to get the less able become able.

Thanks for supporting my cause. I noticed so many people have read my post but many feel shy to admit their DC didn't get through.

All the best

[Hrhgh]

Just to commiserate with those whose DD's did not make the cut. I understand your feeling having gone through similar emotions with our DS after the boys' exams some years ago now. In hindsight he might have struggled if he had made it through but is now flourishing in his A/levels at Greenshaw, where a lot of Grammar School children end up. On the other hand, our 2 DDs passed the girls exams, the eldest now in Uni and our youngest passing both Wally Girls and Nonsuch at this round. This has helped us to appreciate the different abilities of our children's as they are meant to enjoy any flourish at school.

[2tinkers]

Just to commiserate with those whose DD's did not make the cut. I understand your feeling having gone through similar emotions with our DS after the boys' exams some years ago now. In hindsight he might have struggled if he had made it through but is now flourishing in his A/levels at Greenshaw, where a lot of Grammar School children end up. On the other hand, our 2 DDs passed the girls exams, the eldest now in Uni and our youngest passing both Wally Girls and Nonsuch at this round. This has helped us to appreciate the different abilities of our children's as they are meant to enjoy any flourish at school.

Totally agree with you. Sometimes things happen for a reason and only the future holds those reasons. All anyone wants is for their child to be happy and advance at a pace which suits them. I have no doubt that my dd will do well wherever she ends up going. The last thing I would want us for her it scrape into a grammar and struggle.

[Sherwood]

I think there's a lot to be said for local schools. We're in Kingston and decided not to apply for any of the Sutton schools because we felt it was too far for our ds to travel. If he doesn't get in to Tiffin he'll go to the comp that's a ten min walk from our house.

With the best will in the world, I think it's easy to fall into the mindset of grammar or bust. But most bright kids will do well in most schools in Kingston.

And there are other issues with grammar schools too. Dd is at TGS and, although very happy there, finds that a lot of the girls are much more affluent than us - as a result she sometimes feels hard done by (no iPhone 5 or iPad or foreign holidays!). This was something I hadn't considered when she applied several years back, not realising then how many privately educated girls go to TGS.

I'm not sure ds will make the cut-off for Tiffin, and if he doesn't I believe he'll do just as well at our local school. And there he'll be with children from a wide social background, he'll recognise many children throughout the school from his primary, and he won't need to get up at the crack of dawn to get the bus!

I guess what I'm trying to say is that, while grammars are good, there are lots of advantages to local comps too and I feel they're often overlooked in the crucible of 11+ prep.