Are you the parent that hasn't read a single book, article or blog post about the 11+ and have no idea about what the process involves?
Are you the parent that's left everything to the last minute and now you're nervous about how to help your child pass?
Or are you the parent that's researched every area of the 11+ since your child's first birthday?
Are you the parent that's immersed themselves in reading as much 11+ guidance material as possible?
You see, there are two very different types of 11+ parents.
The first type is the one that leaves everything to the last minute and then freaks out when they realise that their child doesn't even know the basics.
The second type is the parent that's so well prepared that they've studied every piece of literature known to man.
As 11+ experts, we've noticed that the second type of parent is far more likely to have a child that passes the exam simply because they are prepared! They are an early bird and as they say, the early bird always catches the worm.
Time and time again, we come across parents that are the first type and they leave everything to the last minute. As a result, their child is overwhelmed and struggles to score higher than 50% in practice tests. Such parents have no idea how to help their child improve and quite frankly, they often expect miracles from tutors like ourselves. They expect us to magically take a child that doesn't have a grasp of the basics and turn them into geniuses.
Sometimes, there are rare instances where we can help such students but often enough it's the children that have been studying for at least 1.5 years and have worked consistently hard that end up passing the 11+.
So what can you take away from this?
Start preparing for the 11+ as early as possible! 1.5 years is the ideal amount of time.
The exam is meant to test natural ability and potential so ultimately a child that has built an exceptional vocabulary and has a wonderful grasp of English and Maths from an early age is much more likely to pass than one who is trying to cram at the last minute.
Leaving things to the last minute is one of the worst things that you can do when it comes to the 11+ so try to prepare as early as possible.
PS. It's okay to teach your child yourself but it's also good to have your child assessed by a tutor at least once before they sit the exam. It's even better to enrol your child in an 11+ mock exam so that you can find out how they're doing in comparison to other students and identify any weak spots that need addressing.
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Wishing you the best of luck with exam preparation.