Speed – the Key to 11 Plus Exam Success?
Speed and accuracy are essential for 11 Plus exam success. Many children fail the exam because they do not finish the paper – it is not just because children do not have the knowledge to pass.
In terms of speed, the 11 Plus exams can be a more daunting task than anything children have previously taken. The tests take place before they have sat their Key Stage 2 SATs in Year 6, although many may have already sat a few timed ‘Optional End of Year SATs Tests’ in Years 3, 4 and 5. However, these exams are sat in school – a familiar place.
If you have a child who works well in their books, when not being timed but does terribly with timed papers, the chances are he or she is struggling to complete the paper because of the limitation of time. If your child is in Year 5, you must start introducing a timer into their practice so that there is enough time to build up the pace required for success.
Preparation For the Big Day is Key!
It can be heartbreaking to hear of children not passing the 11 Plus selection tests because they were ill-prepared by a tutor. Many inexperienced tutors do not expose children to timed papers in time. If a student knows how to answer the questions in an 11 Plus paper, it is essential to complete timed tests on those questions by completing 11+ papers.
Some parents recognise the importance of this and book their child in for mock tests, to see how they will perform in such exams, in addition to being in an unfamiliar environment – as they would experience in the real exam. However, just taking a mock test will only highlight the problem with timing – it will not help a child overcome the issues.
We see children like this every year, who often come to Geek School Tutoring after failing to cut the grammar school exams; their parents often want to get some urgent help in time for the independent school entrance exams.
That’s why we have produced a series of 11 Plus Mock Timer videos to help your child prepare adequately for these exams on our YouTube Channel.
https://youtu.be/z9TFL2z3nr4https://youtu.be/E5ARQokL0kYhttps://youtu.be/PyBvsYdac88
