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Mathematics includes the study of such topics as quantity (number theory), structure (algebra), space (geometry), and change (analysis). It has no generally accepted definition.
EnglishEnglish is a West Germanic language first spoken in early medieval England, which has eventually become the leading language of international discourse in the 21st century.
Verbal ReasoningVerbal reasoning is understanding and reasoning using concepts framed in words. It aims at evaluating ability to think constructively, rather than at simple fluency or vocabulary recognition.
Non Verbal ReasoningVisual thinking, also called visual/spatial learning or picture thinking is the phenomenon of thinking through visual processing.[1] Visual thinking has been described as seeing words as a series of pictures.
11+ Exam Bords
GL – Exam Format
CEM – Exam Format
IGLS – Exam Format
The eleven-plus (11+) is an examination administered to some students in England and Northern Ireland in their last year of primary education, which governs admission to grammar schools and other secondary schools which use academic selection. The name derives from the age group for secondary entry: 11–12 years.
The eleven-plus was once used throughout England and Wales, but is now only used in counties and boroughs in England that offer selective schools instead of comprehensive schools. Also known as the transfer test, it is especially associated with the Tripartite System which was in use from 1944 until it had been phased out across most of the UK by 1976.
Within the Tripartite SystemThe Tripartite System of education, with an academic, a technical and a functional strand, was established in the 1940s. Prevailing educational thought at the time was that testing was an effective way to discover the strand to which a child was most suited. The results of the exam would be used to match children's secondary schools to their abilities and future career needs.
When the system was implemented, technical schools were not available on the scale envisaged. Instead, the Tripartite System came to be characterised by fierce competition for places at the prestigious grammar schools. As such, the eleven-plus took on a particular significance. Rather than allocating according to need or ability, it became seen as a question of passing or failing. This led to the exam becoming widely resented by some although strongly supported by others.
Does my child have to take the 11+?
The 11+ is not a compulsory test and it is completely up to you to decide if you want your child to apply to a grammar school.
However, in some areas (Buckinghamshire, for example), children are still automatically registered for the 11+ and you need to opt out if you don’t want your child to sit the exam.
If you’re unsure about what the registration process is like in your area, check your local authority website.
The 11+ is designed to identify the most academically-able children for entry to grammar schools.
If you’re unsure whether grammar school is right for your child, it’s worth considering the following questions:
Is your child gifted academically?
Are their school reports always well above average?
Are your child’s results above average in their SATs/CATs/PIEs/PIMs or whichever system your primary school uses?
Does your child’s teacher feel that passing the 11+ is achievable for your child?
Preparing your child for the 11+ can be rather daunting, but here’s some simple, straightforward advice on how to start preparing your child for the 11+:
Step 1 – Find out about the 11+ in your area
Before you do anything else, it’s crucial that you find out about how the 11+ works in your area.
The 11+ exam is highly regionalised and the subjects your child will be tested on will depend on where you live and what grammar/private schools you’re applying to.
To find out exactly what the 11+ exam is like in your area, it is worth contacting the schools you’re hoping to gain entry to directly.
Success in 11+ tests is most likely where children are well prepared, both academically and in terms of their exam technique.
Ideally, this means that you’ll start developing your child’s subject knowledge and skills from at least Year 4 and introducing the development of some exam techniques, such as working under timed conditions, in Year 5 before the 11+ is taken in Year 6.
Many parents use a structure learning programme such as www.goto11plus.com to help prepare their child for the 11+.
In Year 5, it is recommended that you create a preparation plan for your child to maximise the time they have left and ensure that they’re sufficiently prepared for the exam.
Here are three steps to creating a preparation plan for your child
Find out your child’s strengths and weaknesses – to really prioritise and target your child’s revision effectively, this will help to identify which subjects you child struggles with and needs more practice on. To help with this, Bond 11+ offers a Placement Test, which can be set as a mock test to discover how strong your child is in English, maths, verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning. You can download the Bond Placement Test for free as part of the Bond Starter Pack.
Create a revision schedule – the Bond Placement Test results will help you work out which subjects your child needs to spend more time working on. Ask your child how much 11+ work they feel they can fit in each week in order to develop a realistic schedule that you and your child will be able to stick to.
Schedule in exam practice – children will benefit from practice in developing the exam skills required to pass the 11+, so do make time for this in your revision schedule.
Although it can be important, try to avoid depicting the 11+ as a be-all-and-end-all – it is counterproductive to make your child unnecessarily stressed.
