The 3+ pre-prep entrance examinations
We offer support with the preparation of the 3+ entrance examinations. You will be allocated a teacher who is a specialist in this area and who has many years of experience in supporting our youngest learners to progress and succeed with their learning at this stage. All of our specialist entrance exam tutors are fully qualified teachers with many years of experience. All of our tutors have had exceptional results and continue to provide the highest quality tuition to our youngest students.
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About the 3+ examinations & nursery pre-prep admissions
The 3+ examinations are assessments that children will attend to gain entry at selective schools in pre-prep. The 3+ assessments vary substantially from school to school. Top, selective schools will be looking at children’s communication, focus and concentration, personal and social skills. They will be looking for children who can follow instructions, be able to concentrate on a given activity for a specific amount of time and show good communication skills for their age. In the assessment, children may be asked to listen to a story and then answer questions based on the story. Therefore good comprehension skills will be demonstrated. Children may be asked to complete something creative such as drawing a picture or making something creative. Schools will also look closely at children’s physical development. For example, are they able to climb stairs and drink water from a cup, are they able to hold smaller items and complete tasks such as threading beads or cutting with accuracy. The most important thing to remember is that at this age, schools are looking at how ready the child is for learning.
What are schools looking for in 3+ pre-prep admission assessments?
3+ assessments generally take place within small groups of 4-12 children the October-February before September entrance. The rooms will be set up with a selection of learning activities (drawing, puzzles, books, small world play) and children will be observed in the way they focus on activities as well as how effectively they work alongside and with other children and adults. Children should be able to show a good level of focus and concentration and follow instructions (e.g. tidying up, sharing, listening and taking turns.) Teachers will sit with the children and complete an activity together. This could be drawing, puzzles, matching and sorting games etc. Teachers will be looking especially at communication skills, how confidently and clearly children can respond and how well they engage with the activity. Stories will be read to the group and teachers will look out for children who have good levels of comprehension and can make comparisons to their own experiences, retell events or identify their favourite parts or characters. Schools will also be looking for children who can ask questions as well as answer questions by showing that they have truly understood what has been read to them. Some schools are looking for how engaged and curious a child is, how quickly they absorb new ideas as well as their resilience in their learning. Others are looking for how focused children are and how well they concentrate and follow instructions.
English
Reading
You can never read too much! At this young age, read every single day with your child. Read to them, point to simple words and ask them to sound out the phonic sounds that they may already know, ask questions about pictures, ask questions about the text and encourage your child to answer the questions. It’s not about getting the questions right or wrong, it’s about developing a love for reading and a curiosity in what has been read to them. Read a variety of books and re-read favourites! Encourage your child to ask their own questions about the books that they are reading.
Phonic awareness
Once your child is able to identify the letters of the alphabet, you can begin to develop their phonic awareness. Begin with CVC words (consonant , vowel, consonant eg. DOG) and then move onto digraphs (sh, ch, th). This will support them to begin reading new words. There are many wonderful books and online resources out there to help to support your child with their phonic understanding at a young age. We will be more than happy to guide you to specific books that you can use with your child to help to support their reading. At this very young age, children can certainly begin to learn their phonics sounds. It is never too early! Just ensure that you make it fun and engaging!
Early writing
Letter formation is very important from a young age. This can be taught in a variety of creative ways that will engage and motivate your child to want to try themselves! Mastering letter formation at this age is crucial because it will avoid issues in older years when they need to be focusing on other aspects of learning. Be imaginative! Use play dough, cornflour, chalks, paints, felts, water and washing up liquid. Use anything that you can get your hands on that allows your child to use their hands and encourage them to form letter. Model how to do it correctly and ask them to copy you. They may not quite be aware of it, but this will stay in their memories for when they come to practice again. The more you practice, the more beneficial it will be. Get your child involved with writing the shopping list. They can copy what you have written and simply be involved. It definitely doesn’t have to be perfect but the more exposure your child gets to writing, the better. Practice writing their name from a young age. Practice writing numbers.
Maths
Number
At this stage of learning, your child will have a greater understanding of numbers to 10. They should be able to recognise and write these numbers. Number formation is again very important. Using objects will be a great way to support your child with counting. Find objects that interest your child and that will engage them. Use interesting games that include numbers such as dominoes and cards. Ask children to look at items that have numbers present such as clocks, watches and cookers. Ask them if they know which numbers are being shown. When hanging washing, ask children to count how many items they can see. Be creative, numbers are all around us!
Shape
Look for shapes in their environment. Children can draw shapes and name them. Have a discussion about their properties. Ask children to tell you how many sides the shape has and to discuss where the shapes can be found around the home.
Measures
Give children their own watch to wear. They don’t need to tell the time at this stage but this will expose them to numbers for the whole day. Ask children what time of the day it is and ask them which activities happen at certain times of the day. Ask children to sort items in size or weight or colour. Ask them to use specific language such as ‘heavier’, ‘ lighter’, ‘bigger’ and ‘smaller’.
Fine motor skills
Developing their fine motor skills is somethings that can be focused on daily to build children’s strength. This will help to support your child with many different aspects of their learning. They will be stronger with their pencil grip and this will therefore help them with their handwriting and writing stamina. They will be able to hold scissors and if they are taught from a young age, they will have more accuracy in their cutting skills. They will be able to hold a ruler and draw a straight line. These are things that we take for granted. However, children need to b given plenty of opportunities to be able to practice. It will support them with tying their shoe laces, doing up their coat and many other simple everyday tasks. If these skills are mastered early on, they won’t need to worry about these later on life. There are plenty of activities and you can be really creative and choose activities that will suit your child as an individual. Many children love to do puzzles and this will really help to support their fine motor skills as they need to manipulate all of the pieces. Some children love to build lego. Others love to pick up items using tweezers and collecting them into a basket. These activities also boost concentration and teach children the skill of persevering, resilience and the joy of completing a task.
Personal, Social and Emotional development
The ability to work collaboratively with others will be something that will be closely observed during the 3+ examinations. These top schools will be looking for children who can show patience, team work and also good listening skills. Being able to share and show kindness is also of importance. The way to work on this at home is to provide your child with experiences where they are able to interact with new people. Simple things like going to the shops and asking for certain items in a polite and confident manner, paying for the bill at coffee shops and restaurants. Going to play groups where they will need to interact with new children. Observe how your child interacts and plays. If you feel that something isn’t quite right, explain it to them. Similarly, if they do something really well, show them praise and they will remember this in future situations. Developing appropriate social skills is very important and is certainly something that will be observed during the 3+ examinations.
The 3+ pre-prep nursery admission can certainly be prepared for at home but with the added support of one of our tutors, you will be sure that your child will go into the exam with confidence and be prepared so that they know what to expect. At this age, it needs to be a fun experience for the children. We will ensure that the learning process is a calm, fun and positive experience for all involved.
If you are interested in private tuition to prepare your child for the 3 plus entrance exam for nursery pre-prep admissions, please contact us.
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