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There are some exams which a child’s school will be less likely or less able to help them prepare for. These are entrance exams for admission to schools such as grammar schools or private schools. While teachers will be well-versed in how to help their pupils achieve good grades in their nationwide exams such as GCSEs and A-Levels, they may not be familiar with what is required to succeed in exams such as the 11+.
How are These Exams Different? Entrance exams, including the 11+, test children on different areas of ability that standard exams don’t test. In addition to this the 11+ exam may differ in different areas of the country so it is important that parents check with their local LEA which type of 11+ their child will be sitting. The 11+ exam will consist of papers in the following disciplines: English, Maths, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning. How Can a Private Tutor Help? Many private tutors will specialize in preparing children for the 11+ exam or entrance exams for particular schools in the local area and may have been doing this for years. You could ask them what success their past students have had or which schools’ exams in particular they are familiar with. The tutors will know how the tests are put together and what sort of questions can be expected. Fleet Tutors, one of Britain’s leading tutoring organisations, are able to supply a private tutor that can devote time to doing practice papers with a child which a parent or the child’s school may not have time to do, quickly understanding a child’s learning needs and focus on areas to improve on. Most schools will not devote any time to preparing students for the 11+ exam and certainly not to preparing for entrance exams for private schools. Even if they do this will be taught within a big group and won’t provide the individual attention pupils need for the exam preparation. Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning The areas of the 11+ exam that will require some preparation on the part of the student are the verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning sections of the exam. This is because they are not taught directly in a day to day school timetable. Children can develop verbal reasoning skills by doing word games, puzzles, jigsaws, crosswords etc. Reading widely will help a child build a wide vocabulary which will help with solving verbal reasoning problems. Non-verbal reasoning questions can test a child’s potential regardless of their knowledge of English as they focus more on logical thinking and even maths concepts. With the closing date for 2015 entry in December, now is the time to start thinking and planning ahead for the 11+ and those fiercely competitive grammar school places. "
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Here are my nominations, be sure to make yours! |
| | While the children have their eyes closed take the children on an imaginary voyage. Prompt them using the following utterances. - Imagine you are weightless, floating without your feet touching the ground. - Look around - all is dark but you can see stars and planets and moons all around you. - What can you see in the distance? Is it a planet? What colour is it? Is it big or small? Who do you think lives there? - You head towards it, how do you feel as you near it? |
Play the verb game, ask the children to move around the classroom as an alien or an astronaut. Stop the children and discuss their movements. Ask what movement they have been acting out. Flying, floating, walking, waving, talking etc. Discuss what each child has been acting out. Each of these words end in the suffix -ing, all of these words are actions and we call these verbs.
Watch the following film 'Way Back Home'
Watch the following film 'Way Back Home'
Whilst watching the film, pause at appropriate points to check children's understanding.
Show the children the following image:
Ask the children to describe a part of one of the aliens. For example 'one bulging eye,' a large grey head' the children then move around the classroom reading out their post it. Children are tasked with listening and finding someone who has described the same alien as them. Ask if they think they can join the two descriptions together using a connective.
| Once this activity has taken place then ask the children to look at the image of this fantasy planet. The children once again make notes of what they can see on post it notes and place them on a language track. (two rows of masking tape on the carpet) Once the post its are stuck on the track all children then read all of the responses. Once the children have read all of the descriptions then the children choose their favourite. They then read their favourite description out as children take turns to walk down the track, a little like conscience alley. |  |
Rewatch the film so that it is fresh in the minds of the children. Pause at the point where our hero meets the alien. Ask the children to act out this dialogue with their partners and share some great examples with the rest of the class.
Children then retell the story using the story map - adding in their own descriptions of the planet and the alien.
Children then retell the story using the story map - adding in their own descriptions of the planet and the alien.
The children then rewrite the story in their own words. This needs to be done using the conventions that you usually use in class, the writing frames, support structures that the children are used to.
If you would like to discuss any of this lesson please use twitter @redgierob or leave a comment.
Thanks
Rob
We offer writing workshops from Y1 - Y9 and can cater for most themes and text types. Email rob@literacyshed.com for details.
If you would like to discuss any of this lesson please use twitter @redgierob or leave a comment.
Thanks
Rob
We offer writing workshops from Y1 - Y9 and can cater for most themes and text types. Email rob@literacyshed.com for details.
Rob from Literacy ShedJust writing down what I think about school and education. |
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