How will a private tutor benefit my child with their 11+?

Would my child benefit from one-to-one tutoring? You wouldn’t be the first parent to ask yourself that question.

A private tutor can help your child in many ways, from building their knowledge to giving them the confidence to apply that knowledge. Tutoring will give your child the individual attention they might not get from school and or a parent is unable to confidently offer.

What does tutoring involve?

There are different types of tutoring: some will come to your home, whilst others may have their own offices and there are small group or one-to-one options.

There are many advantages to tutoring services:

• A tutor will supply customised lessons and activities for your child with frequent feedback for learning.

• There is a lot of communication in one-to-one tuition. The tutor will give regular prompts to support the learning and feedback on achievement or support on tasks.

• One-to-one attention or small groups – the tutor will adapt their teaching methods to your child’s learning style.

• A tutor can work at the child’s pace: their school may go through the curriculum too quickly, or even slowly, for your child.

• A tutor can challenge those who need it by helping bored or under-stimulated children reach their full potential.

• Children may be more likely to ask questions that they may not feel comfortable asking in front of their peers.

• They get the immediate response from questions asked, improving understanding, not just getting the answers.

• Tutoring can improve confidence and self-esteem.

• A tutor can teach the soft skills not covered by the National Curriculum: study skills, time management, how to organise and prioritise their work.

• Exam preparation – your child will be taught specific tips for exam success.

• A tutor will have experience of the entrance exams and know what needs to be done and when.

• A tutor can be a guide for a parent as well as a child.

• The National Curriculum is jam packed full of knowledge needed and teachers must move at a fast pace to cover all the requirements. A tutor can spend the time making sure the child understands, rather than just teach children how to work something out. A tutor can give equal weight to why a formula is used or why an answer is correct.

11+ - a unique exam

The 11+ is quite different from other exams, as there are subjects often in there that aren’t in other academic assessments. The 11+ isn’t only testing a child’s knowledge in English and maths but often a child’s thinking and reasoning skills. Verbal reasoning is a form of problem solving based around words and language. Non-verbal reasoning is a form of problem solving based around pictures, diagrams and shape.

The English and maths tests tend to follow the National Curriculum, the curriculum followed by state primaries, but verbal and non-verbal reasoning subjects are not taught as part of the National Curriculum in state primary schools.

How a private tutor can help with verbal and non-verbal reasoning assessments

An 11+ tutor will be able to give your child the strategies needed to confidently tackle verbal and non-verbal reasoning questions they wouldn’t normally come across in school.

• A private tutor can focus on the individual needs of your child: that may be developing their vocabulary skills.

• Tutors can provide strategies and a framework to help your child practice verbal reasoning tests.

• Tutors can help children develop their critical thinking ability to solve problems.

Before you go ahead and hire a tutor for your child, check they are a member of a professional body, such as The Tutor’s Association and have a DBS.