The Autumn term can be a stressful time for Year 6 pupils – and their parents – as they make decisions about senior school applications and prepare for 11+ exams and interviews.
Mrs Sarah Glencross, Head at Redcliffe Gardens School, has a few tips to share with Kensington Mums to help us keep calm and carry on during the 11+ exam season:
- Do your research into local secondary schools that are a sensible commute from your home. Look at the schools’ websites to get a feel for their ethos and culture and try to imagine if your child will be happy at each school.
- Be realistic about how academically competitive the entry process is likely to be for each school and have reasonable expectations.
- Listen to the advice of your Head Teacher about which secondary schools will best suit your child and where they will be happy and will flourish. Your Head will know all of the senior schools very well. Try not to get distracted by what other parents and children are doing.
- Make sure that you have registered for 11+ entry for the schools that you are most interested in and found out about their Open Days.
- If you are applying for a scholarship or a bursary, make sure you know if there is an additional application process.
- Have a final shortlist of three or four schools that your child will sit the exam for and speak positively to your child about them all.
- Make a schedule of the exam days and know exactly where you will need to go.
- Ensure that your child keeps up with the homework school is setting and not just doing practice 11+ papers. Your school will have sensibly planned the 11+ preparation so that your child is at their peak for exam day.
- If you do employ a tutor – we know that in London there is a booming tutoring industry – be careful not to overload your child with too much work otherwise they will become bored and exhausted.
- Keep up the reading. Try to encourage your child to read age-appropriate news publications so that they are up-to-date with things going on in the world. But most of all, make sure that reading is a pleasure and a chance to escape from practice papers.
- Do things together as a family and make sure that you are having a fun time. Afternoons out, long walks, film night, pizza night; everyone needs a break from thinking about exams.
- Make sure your son or daughter has time for their hobbies and interests. They need to keep a good balance in their lives and to be able to talk about the activities they love and enjoy at their 11+ interviews.
- Try to ensure that your child is well-rested, has plenty of sleep and is eating healthily.
- Make sure that your child has everything they will need on exam day and leave plenty of time to get there.
- On the day, try not to display any feelings of stress or panic as you will trigger a sense of panic in your child. They will perform better in the exams and interviews if they are calm and have a clear head.
- After the exam, don’t grill them on the questions and their answers. Make sure you have lots of treats on hand and help your child to forget about the exam as quickly as possible and prepare themselves for what’s next.
At Redcliffe Gardens School we pride ourselves on having good relationships with many of the leading day and boarding schools around London – including, of course, our sister school, Godolphin and Latymer – which enables us to give excellent advice to parents about choosing their child’s senior school.
Each family has an individual meeting with the Head and our specialist 11+ team who help parents think about schools that will best suit their child’s needs and where they will be happy.
In Year 5 and Year 6 our teaching specifically and comprehensively covers the requirements for 11+ English, 11+ Maths, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning and our relationship with Godolphin and Latymer means that we are very up to speed with the assessment requirements for the leading senior schools.
Our pupils will have had regular practice in 11+ style questions and practice in sitting the 11+ papers so that they are familiar with the style of questions and managing the timing of the papers.
We also provide class sessions and one-to-one preparation on Interview techniques so that every child really is ready to run their best race!
We were absolutely delighted that our 2022 Year 6 leavers achieved a cluster of fantastic offers to top senior schools in London and beyond including City of London School for Girls, Dulwich College, Francis Holland, Godolphin and Latymer, Latymer Upper School and Putney High as well as a number of academic scholarships and a Music exhibition.
For more information and to book a personal tour of Redcliffe Gardens School please go to our website.
Head: Mrs Sarah Glencross
Redcliffe Gardens School
47 Redcliffe Gardens
London SW10 9JH
T: 020 7352 9247
E: office@redcliffeschool.com
You can also read other related articles by Redcliffe Gardens School here.
