Show interestOne of the most important things that a parent can do is maintain an interest in what their child is covering at school and keep a watchful eye on homework. Very often, parents can quickly identify areas that need reinforcement and take action before they become problematic. 20 minutes here and there can make all the difference! Maintaining a positive attitude is vital!- ReadingReading is hugely beneficial in 11+ preparation. Encourage your child to read a variety of different books and where possible ask them questions about content, feelings, vocabulary and grammar. Sitting down together and spotting similes and synonyms etc. can really help to reinforce theory! If your child comes across challenging vocabulary, encourage them to look the word up in a dictionary and help them decipher the meaning and context of the word. See Recommended Reading List
- Time TablesTimes tables are hugely important and the value of knowing all tables off by heart cannot be underestimated. Use car journeys, dinner times, flash cards etc. to constantly challenge your child. (A little healthy competition amongst siblings can work wonders!)
- Homework – Support but Don’t Do!Support your child with their homework but resist the temptation to do it for them. Remember, it is important for your child’s teacher / tutor to know exactly what they are capable of and what may be a struggle for them. When your child is sitting their examination, they will have to think independently and so the experience of not being able to do something straight away is invaluable. They must learn to deal with tricky questions and find strategies to deal with them.
- Make Learning FunLearning CAN be fun. If worksheets, textbooks and practice papers are a battle, try and mix in some fun challenges. Fortunately there are numerous apps and games that can make even times tables fun!
- VocabularyFamiliarise yourself with key 11+ words and bring them into conversation where possible so that your child becomes familiar with the context as well as the meaning of more complex words. Pinning up a list of new or challenging words in a prominent place can be a great help!
- Key Word Flash cardsUsing a small key ring with crib cards can be a good and portable way of reinforcing homophones and spellings etc. and can also be useful for mathematical rules. (Ideal for car journeys!)
- Practice PapersThere is no escaping the fact that practice makes perfect. The more test papers that your child does, the more familiar that they will be with the style of questions and the timing involved in the real thing. You may wish to start by just getting your child to do the test untimed but once they are familiar with the tests, it is important for them to develop their time management skills. There are a huge number of printed and online test papers available but you must ensure that they are practicing the correct style of tests. S6 produce a variety of printed and downloadable papers that can be found in our online shop.
The S6 Hub is home to over 14,000 questions and is an invaluable practice resource.
See home testing tips
- Positive ReinforcementPraise your child regularly for their hard work and avoid telling them how clever they are. This approach is proven to be more successful!
- S6 Creative Writing ChallengeCreative Writing receives a lot of focus within the 11+ and yet many children struggle to develop their writing skills. The S6 challenge enables children to submit their work and have it assessed by the S6 tutoring team. It is completely FREE and open to everyone.
Check out our 11+ Resources Section
