Tutoring: The Last Taboo
In cosmopolitan London pretty much anything goes around the dinner party table, except that is, the admission that you tutor your child. Parents agonise over whether to begin this expensive habit having already spent a small fortune on their child’s private school. Their Head has told them that they do not recommend tutoring and schools say they can spot a tutored child a mile […]
Top Tips for Enlarging Your Child’s Vocabulary
Having a wide vocabulary is vitally important for a child facing the 11 plus. Most schools across London will assess prospective pupils in verbal reasoning and comprehension, and some will also test creative writing skills. To do well in these areas it is important to be good with words so we have compiled some helpful […]
State Primary Schools versus Independent Schools – what is the difference?
With private schooling set to be more expensive than ever before it is a perfect time to really consider what is the best route for your family. State primary has been an increasingly popular choice for London families with many families choosing to send children to ‘state till 8’ or increasingly all the way through […]
Single Sex or Co-Ed
What should you choose for your child during their Primary Education Years? If you have half an eye on the news, you will have read the rumours that Eton will be moving to a co-educational format at some point in the future. If this happens, the school will be following the recent trend of prestigious […]
How to Prepare Your Four Year Old for Reception
Attend all open mornings, fêtes or events happening in the new school to familiarise your child with their new environment. Support your child with preparation for phonics by playing games such as ‘I spy…’ to encourage them to hear the initial sounds in words. If your child is a “picky eater”, opt for packed lunches […]
Preparing for and settling into nursery
My Baba Spending 6 years as a nursery and reception teacher both in the UK and abroad, I have seen my fair share of children struggling to settle into school. Having recently settled my eldest son into his first nursery experience I saw the whole thing from the other side and deeply sympathised with the […]
What can parents do to help prepare for 4+ assessments?
What can parents do to help prepare for 4+ assessments? Independent junior schools are divided into those that assess for entrance into Reception class and those that don’t. There are even some independent schools with nursery classes that assess for entrance when children are only 2 years old! Thankfully assessing this young is a rarity […]
2021 School Places
Changes to the 4, 7, 8 and 11+ assessments during a year of Covid. After a topsy turvey year, UK schools have had to adapt the assessment process to accommodate social distancing and lockdown. With the younger years this has been a mixed blessing as zoom assessments for children under 6 are often ineffective and […]
11+ Preparation Suggestions
The summer prior to your child’s 11+ can feel like a race against time to cover all the different components of the exam process. Our advice to you is prepare early and have your summer strategy well in place before that first week of July. Below are some suggestions for online and in person courses, […]