Description: English tutor Nicole shares her vast knowledge and experience on top tips to help students pass 11+ exams.
There is often very tough competition for places in the top independent and grammar schools in the country.
It appears that it’s constantly becoming tougher, every year.
This can be a very overwhelming prospect for both parents and children who have their hearts set on a particular school and learning path.
This article will outline the twelve best ways in which you can prepare your child for the exams.
Although there is a lot of preparation for these exams, if you structure a routine that works for your child you can find it is a lot more manageable.
Preparation
As already mentioned, preparation is key.
As the old saying goes, ‘fail to prepare, prepare to fail.’
I cannot stress enough, the importance of being prepared for these exams and it is never too early to begin that preparation.
Preparation will be different for every individual child.
It is paramount that your child gives themselves enough time to study so that they are not cramming information at the last minute.
This will not give your child enough time to relate the information to the world around them.
The techniques that they memorise at the last moment will not stay with them as they will not have practised them widely enough.
The aim of the revision is for the information to become second nature and to constantly be in the back of your child’s mind as they go through life.
One of the best ways to ensure your child has enough time to practice and revise is to create a timetable for learning.
Make sure you put set times aside, on the same day, every week for different subjects.
This will enable your child to get into a routine and will get them accustomed to the materials.
This timetable will ensure that your child has the maximum amount of time to prepare themselves for their exams.
Once you have made your plan, make sure that you stick to it.
Ignore what other parents are doing. Remember, every child learns differently and you know what is best for your child.
Effective Teaching Methods
Every single individual learns in a different way.
Your child may learn better in 1-1 lessons, alone with a teacher. Or they may learn better in a group setting, bouncing ideas and opinions off other students in the same position at themselves.
It is always best to work out HOW your child wants to learn so that it is an enjoyable experience as opposed to a chore.
People and children have different ways of learning and your child needs to discover the most effective way for them to absorb information.
Whether it’s visually, by making lots of mind maps, graphs and charts; or through auditory learning whereby they absorb more information upon hearing it spoken.
Auditory learners tend to consolidate their learning through speaking it aloud and therefore thrive in group discussions and activities which require
them to listen to others’ explanations and give explanations, themselves.
Your child may prefer a kinaesthetic learning style, which in essence, is learning by doing.
These learners require a more tactile and hands-on experience in order to absorb the maximum amount of information.
They will learn more effectively by being able to relate their learning to their own personal experiences so that they can practice, simulate and recreate what they have learnt.
The fourth kind of learner is the reading/writing learner.
This learner is able to absorb information most effectively when they write it down and re-read it in their own time.
These are all vastly different ways of learning and therefore it is important to pinpoint how your child learns best so that they can get the most out of their studies and revision.
Revision Strategies
Which revision strategy works best for your child will be a lot of trials and error because, we know, every individual learns differently.But here are two really great revision techniques that you can try with your child:
• Flashcards: these can be really fun and memorable for your child to make.
• Memory aids: diagrams and mnemonics can act as cues and trigger recall for certain facts.
Read Everyday
By reading every day, your child’s range of vocabulary will grow very naturally and almost automatically.
They will make inferences about the words they are unsure of and therefore, not only are they broadening their vocabulary, but they are also putting their critical thinking skills into practice.
However, books are not the only way to enlarge your vocabulary. Listening to the radio has also proved a very good method of improving understanding.
This will be particularly applicable to auditory learners, but it can be enjoyable for everybody.
Having grown-up conversations with adults will also ensure that a child’s vocabulary grows and increases at a good rate.
They will overhear new words, new phrases and new forms of expression which they will be more likely to remember.
They will be able to relate it to their own lives, in a very personal way.
Therefore, their vocabulary will grow. Whilst simultaneously making connections with the world around them.
It will enable them to extrapolate their learning and apply it to real-life situations.
Practise Times Tables
Your child will need to have an unshakeable knowledge of their times tables in order to ace their 11+ exams.
By knowing their times tables off by heart, they will be able to move confidently and quickly through the questions without having to second guess their own mental arithmetic.
This mental agility will improve their accuracy when answering and it will also help them with regard to time management.
A good way to help your child learn their times tables off by heart is to play lots of multiplication games with them.
Fun is absolutely key in learning and your child will recall their times tables much more easily and quickly if a healthy dose of fun is
involved.
Click here for a great list of times tables games that will provide a lot of fun, as well as help your child to remember.
Don’t Add Extra Pressure
Your child is already feeling the pressure of their looming exams. Try not to spend too much time talking about studies or school.
Parents tend to pile pressure onto their children without even realising it.
Every child worries about disappointing or letting their parents down and this pressure can cause even the brightest of
children to underperform.
Try and make preparation, practice and revision as much fun as possible, so that your child understands that their learning
the environment can be fun and relaxed instead of something akin to a pressure cooker.
As previously mentioned, fun and games are two of the most important tools in any educator’s repertoire, including a
parents.
Organise Your Study Space
The amount of time that children spend studying and revising makes it very worthwhile to customise and personalise their
workspaces.
This will help to make learning feel much more personal and individual.
Organised study space will lend itself to much better concentration and focus.
Make sure that external distractions are eliminated. The environment should be a fun place to learn as it will enable your child to get the most out of their studies.
Do NOT Test Before Revision
This may seem obvious, but don’t test your child’s knowledge on a subject or topic that they have not yet had the chance to practise
and revise.
Even if you are just trying to gauge their level, give them a chance to look over the materials beforehand.
It will seriously dent their confidence and could affect their overall performance if they suffer a setback so early on in the learning of
any particular subject matter.
It could cause them to become extremely demotivated as nobody wants to study and practice something they believe they are bad at.
Past papers are a really great way to practice, but always let your child revise for them
beforehand.
Remember, mindset is imperative to performance. It is therefore of the utmost importance that your child has self-belief, the motivation and the desire to work hard.
Maintain a Healthy Lifestyle
Do NOT stay up all night revising before the exam.
A tired mind will not be able to match the performance of a fully alert mind.
Remember, you have prepared, studied and revised.
You have practised all of the methods and techniques that you need to know. All you can do is try your best and everybody will be happy with that.
By tutor Nicole. Contact Us