How to prepare your child for the 11+ at home

When should we start preparing?

Many families begin 6 to 12 months before the exam, but there's no single right time. A gentle build from the start of Year 5, or a more focused run through Year 6, can both work well. What matters more than starting early is being consistent and keeping it low-pressure.

The two things to avoid are opposite mistakes: starting so intensely, so early, that your child burns out and comes to dread it — and leaving it so late that there's no time to cover the reasoning papers properly. A steady, unhurried build avoids both.

What should we actually cover?

Cover the skills your area tests — usually a mix of English, maths, verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning. The two reasoning papers deserve the most deliberate attention, because unlike English and maths, schools rarely teach them, so they're often where children have had no exposure at all.

Before you plan anything, check which papers your specific area sets — some test all four skills, others just maths and English. There's no point drilling non-verbal reasoning for months if your target school doesn't test it.

How much practice each day?

Short and regular beats long and occasional. For most children, 15 to 30 minutes on school days, with a little more at the weekend, is plenty and — crucially — sustainable over months. Ten focused minutes every day will take a child further than a two-hour session every Sunday.

Consistency matters far more than hours, and more isn't always better: watch for signs of tiredness or dread, and ease off when you see them. A child who's had enough learns nothing from the next twenty minutes anyway.

How do I build a simple routine?

You don't need an elaborate timetable — just a gentle, repeatable rhythm. A simple weekly pattern that works for many families:

• Pick a regular slot — same time most days, when your child is fresh rather than exhausted after school.
• Rotate the subjects across the week so nothing gets stale, giving the reasoning papers a fair share.
• Mix learning and practice — a short lesson or method one day, a few questions on it the next.
• Treat mistakes as the gold. Going back over what went wrong, calmly, is where the real learning happens — not racing on to the next worksheet.
• Build in breaks and small rewards, and protect time that has nothing to do with the 11+.

Understanding or exam technique — which comes first?

Build genuine understanding first, then layer in exam technique and timing closer to the test. This order matters: a child who understands why a method works can tackle a question they've never seen before, whereas a child who has only memorised patterns tends to freeze the moment a question is worded unfamiliarly — and exams are designed to do exactly that.

So early on, focus on making things click. Save the speed drills, the “spot the trick” tips and the against-the-clock work for the final weeks, once the understanding is solid.

Timed practice and past papers

Introduce timing gradually, and leave full past papers until later in your preparation. In the last month or two, sitting a complete paper under exam conditions — quiet room, clock running — helps the format and pace feel familiar, which takes a lot of the fear out of the real day.

Afterwards, resist the urge to just tot up a score. Go through every mistake together, calmly, and work out why it happened. That conversation is worth more than the mark.

Keeping it positive: your most important job

The single biggest thing within your control is how your child feels about the whole process. A calm, confident child tends to do themselves justice on the day; an anxious one often doesn't, however much they've revised. Protecting confidence isn't separate from preparation — it is preparation.

• Praise effort, not just results. “You stuck with that tricky one” lands better than “you got 8 out of 10”.
• Normalise mistakes as the way we learn, not something to be ashamed of.
• Keep perspective out loud. Remind them the 11+ is one exam and one route — not a measure of how clever or how good they are.
• Don't compare with other children, and try not to let the 11+ take over family life or every conversation.

Do we need a tutor?

No — a tutor is a choice, not a requirement, and plenty of children prepare well at home without one. A good tutor can add structure, expertise and an outside eye, which some families value; the trade-offs are cost and the risk of over-scheduling an already busy child. If you do use one, think of it as complementing your work at home, not replacing it — the day-to-day habits still matter most.