If you live in Kent, Medway or Bexley, you’ll be aware that your child must take an 11 plus test to attend a Grammar School, but how do you know if your child is ready to sit it? We explore the test and how our 11 plus tuition could help your child prepare.
What is the 11 plus?
The 11 plus is the generic term given for tests that Grammar Schools use as part of their admissions process. It is called the Kent Test for Kent schools (including Gravesend, Dartford and Maidstone) unless the school is in Medway. Medway has a separate test called the Medway Test. In Bexley, it is called the Bexley Selection Test. All three areas use GL assessment to administer the tests, but they are different papers. If you’re looking at schools in different areas, your child will need to sit each separately. The exam takes place each September, but you must register your child before this. Further information can be found on the Kent County Council, Medway Council, and London Borough of Bexley websites.
You must sit the 11 plus to be considered for a place in year seven at any Grammar School. However, passing it does not guarantee a place; each school has its own admissions criteria, and you will still need to follow the application process.
How do you know if your child should take the 11 plus?
The first step is to discuss your child’s academic achievement with their school to see whether a Grammar School setting may suit them. The Extra Tuition Centre 11 plus tuition always begins with an assessment, so you can see how your child is likely to perform. We use this information to tailor our weekly 11 plus tuition so they can focus on the areas they need to work on most.
How can 11 plus tuition help?
Schools don’t provide work on verbal and non-verbal reasoning, so your child will need to practice those types of questions outside their regular school day. Tuition introduces the style of questions they are likely to get on the test so they can ensure they’re prepared.
Sometimes nerves can get in the way of a child’s performance. 11 plus tuition can help them feel more comfortable and gain a better understanding of what to expect. Some children may be much stronger on one part of the test than others. A tutor can work with them to help strengthen their knowledge in weaker areas so that they can ensure that this doesn’t set them back.
Why choose the Extra Tuition Centre?
The Extra Tuition Centre has been providing 11 plus tuition in Gravesend, Medway, Maidstone, Dartford and Bexley for over 45 years. This gives us valuable insight into how children learn and what methods work best. We ensure we’re up to date with the tests in each area and tailor our learning specifically to help your children prepare. We offer a range of 11 plus tuition options to suit all families and price ranges, including one-off intensive courses and weekly tuition. Our paper courses and mock assessments are designed especially to help your child with pre-exam nerves. They can be booked even if you’re not receiving tutoring from the Extra Tuition Centre.
We offer:
- 11 Plus tuition intensive courses across most of the school holidays – these can be booked as a standalone or to complement weekly lessons.
Weekly lessons – regular 11 plus tuition from year 4 or 5 to strengthen your child’s knowledge and help them prepare for the test at their own pace. - 11 plus assessments – all of our 11 plus tuition starts with an online assessment to explore areas your child needs to focus on so you can track their improvement.
- 11 plus paper courses – This is a series of courses in which your child will sit practice papers and then go through model answers with their tutor so they can better understand how they should be responding.
- 11 plus mock tests – set under exam conditions, these assessments are the perfect opportunity to help your child prepare and show them what the test would be like.
You also receive a full report of their performance, so you can clearly see the areas they need to focus on.
Find out more about our Kent, Medway and Bexley 11 plus tuition
