LRGS Boarding

Eleven Plus (11+) in Lancashire & Cumbria

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givemehope
Posts: 32
Joined: Sat Oct 15, 2016 1:04 pm

LRGS Boarding

Post by givemehope »

Hello,
My DS has been offered a place in LRGS .He will be starting this september in year 8. Since we live some distance away, he will be boarding. Any mums on this forum whose boys are boarding at LRGS as well?
Though I am impressed with the facilities that the school has to offer, but since it is our first time, I am very nervous of my son living so far.
thx
Mumski
Posts: 36
Joined: Wed Sep 07, 2016 4:58 pm

Re: LRGS Boarding

Post by Mumski »

Hi Givemehope

Im afraid the Lancashire and Cumbria board is relatively quiet but there are a few like me who seem to come on now and again. Congratulations to your DS on being offered a place at LRGS. I'm sure your son will be very happy. My son is currently in year 7 so will be the same year as your son if he joins year 8 in September.

I also have DS2 who will be taking the 11+ in September and hoping to start year 7 in Sept 19 (fingers crossed).
DS1 is not a boarder but he has many friends who are and they seem to enjoy it. In fact in some ways they have an advantage over DS who has to travel the best part of an hour to get to school and back by being on site.

I have been very impressed with the school so far. DS1 settled quite easily and seems to fit in very well, obviously this is a very personal thing and can be dependant on the boy's personality. However I do think the school have enabled this by being open to regular communication and by being responsive to emails. His form tutor is fab and seems to really care about the boys in her form. The school have a strong focus on sports and DS1 has enjoyed getting to grips with rugby which he had never done before and he is now looking forward to cricket over the spring and summer.

Feel free to ask any questions and I will do my best to answer although I don't have experience of what its like to be a boarder I may be able to help with other queries.
givemehope
Posts: 32
Joined: Sat Oct 15, 2016 1:04 pm

Re: LRGS Boarding

Post by givemehope »

Thank you so much for getting back to me .
we will be going to see the school once again before we fully make up our minds.
so good to know that if we join, our sons will be in the same year.
would you be able to explain more on the academics side? are the boys pushed?
Mumski
Posts: 36
Joined: Wed Sep 07, 2016 4:58 pm

Re: LRGS Boarding

Post by Mumski »

Ill do my best to give you an overview of our experience so far.

DS got an OOC place so I am guessing that this means he is potentially above average for boys in his year as the OOC places are allocated on the basis of scores in the 11+. ie if there are 50 places left after allocations to in catchment boys who have achieved a pass ( and few other categories) the remaining places go to the boys with the top 50 scores rather than those closest to the school, hence many boys who achieve a pass OOC do not get a place.

This seems to be consistent with his experience so far in that other than for reading comprehension which is his weak spot he seems to be keeping up well with his class and is neither at the top nor the bottom.

There is a lot of regular testing, for example every term there is a reading test which sets a target for reading for the term and other academic subjects such as Maths and the Sciences have regular tests within lessons. Spellings are tested weekly on the basis of an initial blind test (ie they don't get to learn them first) and then a retest after a week of learning them. There are end of year exams which they seem to be starting to think about now. The pace of learning seems relatively fast as you would expect in a selective school and this requires the boys to be fairly well organised with homework and revision. The discipline seems very effective and most boys are eager to learn. Reports are sent out based on attainment and Atl (Attitude to Learning) scores and there seems to be a culture of aiming for a good Atl score. DS knows clearly what he needs to do to achieve this and I think they are given specific tasks on which this will be assessed.

Organisational expectations also seem high with 2 levels of praise (commendation and Heads postcard) and 2 levels of consequences (misdemeanours and detentions) all of which can be seen online and accessed by parents.

I was surprised when DS got his timetable that there is a lot of time given to less academic subjects eg within typical week there are 35 lessons of which 14 of them are used for sports, tech, creative and "supportive" lessons. I have no prior knowledge of a Grammar School environment so assume that this is possible because they expect the boys to move through the academic curriculum's at speed.

On the whole I do think DS is being pushed by the pace but I don't at the moment feel that this is beyond his capabilities so he doesn't seem to feel undue pressure. I don't have experience of what is done to help if a boy is struggling but what I can say is that the communication between school and parents has been good so far. What I am most pleased about is the culture of achievement and it being "cool" to do well which I suppose is what you expect in a school like this but it is noticeable to me as it is very different to the culture at his primary school but suits DS down to the ground.
givemehope
Posts: 32
Joined: Sat Oct 15, 2016 1:04 pm

Re: LRGS Boarding

Post by givemehope »

Thankyou so much mumski,
It has really given me some surety on the school.
You have put a lot of my questions to bed.
Would you know any mums of boarders as well? Wanted to know more about how do boarders get on with their day to day stuff and what kind of support system do they have.
Guest55
Posts: 16254
Joined: Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:21 pm

Re: LRGS Boarding

Post by Guest55 »

Mumski wrote:I was surprised when DS got his timetable that there is a lot of time given to less academic subjects eg within typical week there are 35 lessons of which 14 of them are used for sports, tech, creative and "supportive" lessons. I have no prior knowledge of a Grammar School environment so assume that this is possible because they expect the boys to move through the academic curriculum's at speed.
Why do you think tech and creative subects are not academic? They are part of a rounded education. Every GS teaches these subjects and some of these subjects are regarded very highly. A level DT is unseful for an Engineering degree and Music A level is certainly academic.
Mumski
Posts: 36
Joined: Wed Sep 07, 2016 4:58 pm

Re: LRGS Boarding

Post by Mumski »

Guest55 - You may consider that I have used the wrong word here but I was differentiating between subjects which have a practical element and those which don't and which are more reliant on desk based learning. Off course they are part of a rounded education and I did not say otherwise. I do not value creative/practical subjects any less than those which I would label "academic subjects" and as I have limited experience of grammar schools I was pleasantly surprised to see how much focus there was on the practical subjects as my (obviously incorrect) perception was that the school would spend more time on "theoretical" learning.

I went to a local faith based comprehensive which had a good reputation for getting very good O level results and I don't recall such a large amount of time being spent on practical subjects by children in the top sets so this may have been why I had this perception.

In fact the reason I made the point is because I would have loved to have had more detailed knowledge such as this to correct my perceptions whilst I was choosing schools as I was worried about there not being enough opportunity for the sports, art and food tech which my DS loves.
Guest55
Posts: 16254
Joined: Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:21 pm

Re: LRGS Boarding

Post by Guest55 »

Ok - apologies - but your post implied the opposite. Describing it as 'the curriculum includes .... ' would not have had the same implication.

I think the NC has made it clearer what schools should include in their curriculum. It is not that long ago since every student had to study Design Technology in KS4
Mumski
Posts: 36
Joined: Wed Sep 07, 2016 4:58 pm

Re: LRGS Boarding

Post by Mumski »

Givemehope

Unfortunately I have no real knowledge of the boarding environment that you wouldn't be able to pick up from the website.

I also don't yet know any boarders parents.

However, I do know DS is quite envious of the boarders as they don't have to get up as early as he does to get to school and they seem to have quite an active after school social life. I think they are in a better position than DS to take advantage of all the extra curricular activities on offer.

I definitely get the feeling that DS would love to board and whilst he would be keen to come home at the weekends I know he would cope well with it.
givemehope
Posts: 32
Joined: Sat Oct 15, 2016 1:04 pm

Re: LRGS Boarding

Post by givemehope »

Thankyou so much Mumski.
We went to see the school again and took DS also along. He is really impressed with the school facilities and wants to join the school.
Very excited for my son but at the same time, very nervous too.
Thanks again for all your input..
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