Frequently asked questions

There are several benefits to be derived from small group learning. Children do thrive with some companionship when learning and enjoy the opportunity to listen to the ideas of others. We also find that a little bit of positive competition can help all participants in a group.

For older children, particularly in English we find that a good group discussion about general topics perhaps raised by the subject matter can be very interesting which helps in interview situations.

For younger candidates particularly, we find that the whole experience of coming into a classroom, in a different environment and sitting with children that they don’t know, having a teacher they are not familiar with and giving them instructions is a really valuable learning experience for what the children will face at the actual exams.

It is all very well sitting at home with a tutor or parents helping but that comfortable environment is not replicated in a competitive exam, but an unfamiliar teacher, classmates who are unknown and being expected to work alone is.

We also feel that we encourage the children, especially the younger ones to learn to actually take control of some of their own activities, taking off their own coats, sorting out their own folders, getting organised and ready for work without someone else doing it for them. This is also useful for exams. It is better to deal with being left at the door of an unfamiliar school now than face a melt down on exam day.

Group tuition is in our opinion the best way for able children to hone their exam taking skills. Individual tuition is helpful if a student needs to address a particular issue but for generally able children, learning in a group is often more fun and less pressurised than being alone with a tutor with no diminution in quality of teaching.

The children do one hour of english and one of maths in their groups. The English consists of dictation, comprehension or creative writing and grammar sheets. In maths they complete a times table grid and do mixed maths worksheets at their own speed. For older candidates we do not do dictation or times tables. The work is intended to be more or less finished in the lessons although the volume of work does vary a little. We do some reasoning but for young children it is best done at home with Bond Books or similar.

For the 11+ groups we do practise reasoning papers (written) in the Autumn term but we do not sit and watch children doing electronic reasoning tests. These are easy to practise at home and we also feel that children often do too much electronic reasoning leading up to the pre-tests and then have a panic when that is over and they have not done much written English or any maths papers for months. Reasoning tests serve one purpose, they are used as a screening process but in school thereafter the children will not be doing ‘reasoning’ but they will be doing Maths and English for many years to come. Many educational experts are worried about this obsession with electronic reasoning and recommend that children do crosswords, puzzles and other forms of real life reasoning.

All children are in a group with children of the same age. They have a teacher and sometimes an assistant. The groups tend to be 6 and a maximum of 8 and that is unusual. They are constantly attended too and helped especially the younger ones. We encourage the children to try to do the work by themselves once it has been explained in the English hour. In Maths they proceed through the various worksheets at their own pace. We try to encourage children to be confident in their abilities and not expect constant help or reassurance.

Very simply – years of experience and feedback from exam takers.

This is something that we feel strongly about. We do not run mixed ability groups with generic work books so one size fits all. We have been training children for these exams for many years and our success rate allows us to work out exactly what candidates need to be able to do in order to pass. Some of our work is quite difficult but that is the standard required. There is no point in pretending to parents that everyone is doing brilliantly if they are not. We pride ourselves on being very straightforward about the school entry rather than allowing parents to have unrealistic expectations.

The work is marked and returned in the folders after every session. The teachers make comments and write notes. As a general rule if your child has completed most of the work and it is marked as correct they are performing at a very good level. If the work is barely completed and there are lots of errors and comments then they need to focus more in class and consolidate some of their learning. All work is marked at the time of the lessons so you have an instant snapshot of how they are doing. We will provide you with a half term report and an end of term report.

The termly group classes are currently £125 per session. We do not accept any weekly payments so payment must be made for a term of classes or for the remainder of the term if you join later.

If you are unable to attend we can email the work but there are no refunds or alternative lessons available.

Holiday classes and other activities may have slightly different rates but that will be clear from the booking forms.

No we do not, because unless a school has actually permitted us to do so we would not presume to suggest that we know what will specifically be in their examination other than the normal requirements of an 8+. We understand that some companies claiming to be practice for this or that school are not always endorsed to do so by the school.  They have no more knowledge of each individual exam process than any other reputable tuition group where we base our decisions from anecdotal evidence and experience.  I consider it to be problematic to try to ‘game’ the exams and trust that you only need to do certain things.  The schools are entirely capable of altering their exam format any time they choose and may even choose to do so if they identify that their name is being used to market a set of exam packs.

Our suggestion is that you focus on core skills such as excellent reading, handwriting, reasoning, numeracy,  talking and having interesting hobbies and things to talk about at an interview.

Please see our guides for enhancing visits to Museums and Art Galleries.

Please also see our guides to interview questions  and our combined exam packs.

All children are different and all families feel comfortable with different levels of tutoring. I genuinely discourage excessive tuition. It really depends on where your child goes to school. If they have no preparation at school at all then our groups will certainly help but most children also need parental input to encourage them to read widely, learn by heart their times tables, practice handwriting and encourage good manners and debate about current affairs. What schools do not like are children who are prepped to death with maths, have a rigid over-tutored style of writing, are unable to communicate effectively with adults, have no hobbies and no other interests because they have excessive amounts of tutoring focusing solely on maths, English and reasoning tests.

Obviously a good tutor will encourage talking, discussion and generally encourage interest and learning but not all tutors are equal.

Like so many things in life everyone has different opinions. All families are different. I have parents who feel that a bit of short term pain (ie missing football) is worth it for the long term gain of getting into a top school. Some parents feel that extra work is beneficial and helpful as children start to do better in school anyway which is often a very positive thing. Some parents are also relatively immune to their children complaining but merely tell them to get on with it. Equally, I also have parents who feel that their children must make decisions for themselves about how much work they would like to do and that does not usually include signing up for extra lessons. Every parent and family must formulate their own level of comfort with this one. Naturally I consider the enthusiastic, rounded person who does sport and other activities to be desirable but equally the idea that children who are neither motivated or particularly committed to push themselves, get into the top schools, is unrealistic. These exams are fundamentally optional and no one is forced to take them. The reality is that competition is fierce and I worry about parents who genuinely do not realise the level required. I think a sensible approach which recognises that some extra effort is required and commits to it is the best one.

I hate to say this but some schools are a commercial business. Of course they do not want their customers leaving and if they can stop students vanishing after the 7 and 8 plus they will. Whether that is to your advantage is an interesting point. If you want St Pauls, Westminster, Eton,Harrow and Winchester they all begin at 13. You may need your little boy to be in a prep school or at St Pauls Junior or Westminster Under.

Lots of schools only go up to 11, herein lies a problem for boys. If you want to go to St Pauls or Westminster please be aware that in Year 6 you either sit for the 11+ or the 13+, you cannot do both. If you choose the 11+ you are actually applying to St Pauls junior school or Westminster Under as the senior schools do not start until 13. There are very limited places available as the schools just add on one additional class and frankly preference used to be skewed to State school children who have no option but to leave. These particular school exams are therefore arguably the most difficult in London.

Boys used to traditionally attend ‘prep school’ which went from 8 to 13. King’s Wimbledon do take more at 11, as do Latymer, Allen’s, Dulwich etc but if you want St Paul’s senior or Westminster School, or boarding school you will be better off doing a 13+. This does lead to the problem of where does your child go from 11 to 13 if you are at a school that ends at 11.