4+ Exam Confusion

These last few weeks I’ve spoken to a lot of parents preparing their children for the 4+ Assessments.

There seems to be quite a lot of confusion going around.

Rather than focusing your thoughts on this confusion, please direct that energy to ensuring that your child is best prepared for their Assessments.

A lot of parents that I’ve spoken to have attended open days at the schools that they would love to send their child to at 4+. There have been many mixed messages. Or at least this is how the parents I have spoken to have interpreted what they have been told.

And here is what I have to say about it.

If you are preparing your child for the 4+ , please ensure that they are best prepared in ALL of the areas of the EYFS curriculum. At the end of the day, regardless of what your child is asked, at least you know that you have covered all bases.

Please don’t neglect certain areas.

Cover everything! And more!

Children at this age LOVE to learn. They are like sponges. Absorbing everything and remembering so much. It is incredible to see.

They are capable of learning everything that you teach them. Trust me, children at this age love to learn. So teach them. Have fun with it. Laugh. Joke. Enjoy it. And if your child absorbs it all, that is the cherry on top!

If you need further support with 4+ Assessment preparation, book a Sample lesson today. We will be delighted to support you every step of the way.

If you are sitting the 4+ Assessments this Academic year, attend this incredible workshop!

Don’t worry it can be completely confidential if you would like it to be! Just don’t switch on your camera for the entirety of the workshop. We will still be able to interact perfectly well and enjoy an evening of phonics and hot chocolate!

On Saturday 21st October, we will all meet on Zoom at 5:30 pm. This is the time of year to wrap up warm with your favourite blanket, grab a delicious cup of hot chocolate and revise some phonics!

If you want to:

Ensure your child knows all of their phonics up to phase 3 (single and double sounds)

Identify any gaps in your child's phonics knowledge.

Spend time with other children and parents also embarking on the same journey as you (you can also keep it confidential by keeping the camera off at all times if you prefer)

Then join us!

This will be your perfect opportunity to work with me. Get to know me as a teacher and the incredible value that I bring to each and every one of my lessons!

After the workshop I will provide a bespoke programme of study to support your child with learning the phonics that they need to know in order to be successful in their 4+ Assessments.

This will be specifically tailored to your child and how they performed in the Workshop.

Resources will be provided and you can simply send these back to me for me to analyse for you.

Ensure your child succeeds in the reading aspect of the 4+ Assessment by attending this incredible Workshop.

Only 4 spaces remaining!

Book here

The Top Schools we prepare for at 7+ and everything that you need to know about them!

1. Habs girls

Haberdashers’ girls’ school is a very popular choice amongst the girls that we prepare for their 7+ Assessments. Our girls who are sitting 7+ at Habs this year either were not successful at 4+ or their parents adore this school and would love for them to go there. One of the things that most fascinates me when I speak to potential new clients about this school is that they don’t know how many spaces are actually available at 7+. And when I tell them, they are often really shocked!

There are only approximately 10 spaces available at 7+

This is of course very surprising because this is a very over subscribed school and hundreds of girls will apply to sit the 7+ Assessments. It is very important to know this information so that you can manage your expectations. It is very simple. In order to be successful, your daughter will need to so very well academically. She will need to score the highest marks in her Assessments.

It’s really that simple!

So here are a few key dates to keep in mind if you are considering the 7+ Assessments this year.

Registration deadline - 10th November 2023

Group Activity Sessions - 28th November 2023

Formal Assessments - 11th December 2023

Interviews (with parents) - 15th and 16th January 2024

All girls who apply will be invited to the Group Activity Session on the 28th of November. The girls will be asked to do a series of tasks in the group activities and they will be assessed according to a certain criteria. Half of the girls will then be called back for the formal assessments. Your child does need to be prepared for the Group Activity.

The formal Assessment consists of Reading, Writing and Maths and a group discussion. If your child is successful in the formal Assessment, they will be invited to an interview togther with their parents.

So essentially Habs Girls has 3 rounds of Assessments.

All 3 rounds need to be carefully prepared for.

Many parents make the mistake of only preparing for the formal Assessment.

We have had excellent success rates for Habs at 7+ which I think is truly a testament to how amazing our tuition is.

2. NLCS

NLCS is yet again another very popular choice of schools that we prepare our girls for at 7+. Again, similar to Habs a lot of our girls apply to this school at 7+ after not being successful in the 4+ Assessments. Other clients just really love this school and really want their daughters to go here.

Just like Habs girls, places offered are minimal. There are only 8-10 places offered at 7+.

So again, it’s very important to manage expectations.

Competition will be high.

Here are some key dates for NLCS:

Registration closes - 8th November 2023

First round - 17th November 2023

Second round - 5th December 2023

The first round involves written tests which assess literacy and numeracy. 

The girls will also need to write an imaginative story using full sentences and some interesting vocabulary, read fluently with understanding and give answers to written questions, write the answers to these questions in simple sentences and complete a maths paper.

Girls who are successful in the first round will be invited to round 2 which will be a full day spent at the school.

So as you can see the Assessment processes at NLCS and at Habs girls are very different. This is why I always say that it is so important to know your school.

Your children need to know exactly what to expect at each round and be thoroughly prepared to them.

We have had excellent success rates for NLCS at 7+ which I think is truly a testament to how amazing our tuition is.

3. Highgate

There are 50 places available for Highgate at 7+ for boys and girls.

Key dates for Highgate:

Applications close on 8th November 2023

First round is Tuesday 5th December 2023 - This will be the academic Assessment and students will complete Assessments in Maths, English and Reasoning.

Second round is in January 2024 - There will be a taster lesson and group interviews.

There is a ‘reserve’ list (waiting list) and this remains open for the rest of the academic year.

We have successfully prepared hundreds of boys and girls for Highgate.

4. South Hampstead

Another popular choice at 7+ with the girls that we prepare.

South Hampstead welcome 24 new girls after the 7+ Assessments to join Year 3.

Key dates for South Hampstead

Registration closes - 6th October

First round - 13th October 2023 - This will be an Academic Assessment (maths, writing, reading and collaborative exercises)

Second round- January 2024 (date not yet specified) Group Assessment

5. UCS 7+

Another popular school at 7+ with our boys.

There are approximately 30 places available to join Year 3 at UCS.

Key dates for UCS

Registration closes - 30th September

Round 1 - In October (date not specified) Small group activities to test the boy’s reading abilities mainly

Round 2 - Formal Assessment (date not specified) English and Maths Assessments.

We have successfully prepared hundreds of boys for UCS.

These are just a few of the schools that we prepare our 7+ students for. There are many others such as Latymer, Westminster, St Pauls, Habs Boys, City, Eltham College, Notting Hill and Ealing, King’s, Wetherby, St Margaret’s, Dulwich College and Godolphin.

If you need support with 7+ Assessment preparation, we offer the highest quality tuition available. All of our exceptional online lessons will take your child’s learning to the next level and ensure that they will receive the best possible results in their 7+ Assessments. We have had had incredible results year after year for the last 16 years and I have no doubt that we will continue to do so!

Why is it so important to know the differences between each school at 7+?

Ive seen this year after year after year.

Parents calling me after the 7+ and telling me that they weren’t expecting this and that. When in reality it was all perfectly written on the school’s website.

I totally get it though. With everything else going on in your life, it can be challenging to pay attention to all of the intricacies of 7+ Assessment preparation.

It is however, so important that your child knows exactly what to expect at each round. Because each round is so different at each school, your child just needs to know and be aware.

Of course, we cannot predict what will come up but by telling your child what to expect, they can be prepared and not be caught off guard. It also ensures that you have the ability to prepare your child to the best of your capacities.

I would suggest you simply create a table of all of the schools that your child will be sitting assessment at and write down exactly what is expected at each round. If you need support with this, simply email me and I will be more than happy to create it for you! (office@creativemindstutors.com)

Book your Sample lesson today with with our Company Director or with a Senior Teacher.

What I would do if I only had 3 months to prepare for the 4+ Assessments!

Phonics

I would cover the 22 graphemes in phase 2 and 3. These are:

P A T I N S M E D O G U B R F L W J Y Z V X

Once my student is confident in all of these and know both the letter name and the sound, I would move onto the digraphs in phase 2 and 3 (2 letters that make 1 sound)

Maths

I would make sure that my student is confident with their place value to 10.

Then subitising to 10.

Writing numbers to 10.

Counting backwards and counting forwards.

Addition and subtraction to 10 (adding on and counting back)

2D and 3D shapes.

Length and height - using language of longer and shorter, heavier and lightest.

Weight and volume - discussing capacity and using language such as more and less.

Creative

I would want my student to be confident with drawing anything that I ask them to draw.

Eg.

house

butterfly

family

face

Animals come up frequently.

Practise drawing. Show your child to scale how big you’d like the drawing to be. Model for them how it should look and get them to practise.

Cutting tasks

Make and create - Junk modelling eg. make a robot out of the egg cartons. Make a boat using only the materials provided.

Writing

Ensure that your child can hold their pen ‘properly’

Show them and model it to them and the practise lots and lots. The writing hand should lean gently on the paper and glide along the page as they write.

If you find that pencil grips will help, use these.

They don’t work for every child. Do what works for your child.

Your child will want to be able to write numbers to 10, all the letters of the alphabet and of course their name.

Knowledge and Understanding of the World

Find some great website that have general knowledge for 3 year olds.

Here are a few:

Constantly ask them questions about the world and discuss.

Do mini research project about the world. Create posters together and discuss.

Have lots and lots of discussion.

Get them to ask you questions. Take the time to answer them and then ask them another question.

Your child needs to be very confident in having conversations with an adult that they have never met before so please do ensure that you practise this.

Don’t let the Assessment be the first time that your child speaks to someone new and unfamiliar to them.

Confidence

Your child will need to display and element of confidence in the 4+ Assessments.

Please remember that we are all different. And all children are different.

The important thing is that they have a good go and answer questions.

You can be shy and still be confident.

To support your child with this, ensure that they are exposed to different people in the lead up to the assessments, perhaps people that they are unfamiliar with and encourage them to have a conversation with them. To answer their questions. To ask them questions.

Book your Sample lesson today and see for yourself how incredible our lessons are and how we can support your child to shine in their 4+ Assessments.

Tips to support your child to go into their 4+ Assessments happily, calmly and with confidence.

I care too much about my clients to let this happen to them.

I care too much about them to not tell them that the most important part of the 4+ Assessment (in my opinion) is HOW their child will go into their Assessment.

HOW your child goes into their Assessment will determine how well they do.

Therefore it is probably (in my opinion) the most important part of the 4+ Assessment process.

There is no point working so hard to get your child ready for the 4+ Assessment and then not being ready for the most important part of the Assessment.

The most important part of the Assessment is getting to the school and going into the Assessment.

You MUST prepare for this.

You MUST make sure that your child is ready to be left in a new and unfamiliar place. Not all children like to go to new places. Some do and some don’t. Those who don’t need to be prepared.

Go somewhere new.

Leave them for a certain amount of time with someone unfamiliar (that you know and trust obviously!)

Practise, practise and practise some more.

Here is the number 1 secret to preparing your child to go into their 4+ Assessments and shine!

You must practice.

I hear a lot of parents saying, ‘They’ll be fine on the day’ and ‘Let’s just go with the flow’

Please don’t do this.

Your child must practise being left alone somewhere new and unfamiliar to them.

It takes us all time to adapt to changes in our lives. It’s the same for children.

Remember that when they go into their 4+ Assessments that they won’t know the people that they meet there. They won’t be familiar with the school that they are visiting.

If they haven’t practised being left in new and unfamiliar places, they will struggle with this.

So please do practise by taking them to new places where you can leave them even just for a few minutes and then extend the time frame each time. Meet new people and encourage your child to talk to them, to answer their questions and to even ask them questions.

Have fun with it!

3 signs that your child is ready to be left at their 4+ Assessments

1. They actually like to go somewhere new and unfamiliar to them - when you take them somewhere new, they will go in happily.

2. They will happily talk to new people - when they meet someone new, they are able to talk to them, answer their questions and interact with them.

3. They actually enjoy meeting new people and new children and interact well with them.

The main sign that your child is not ready to be left at their 4+ Assessments

Your child is NOT happy to be left alone somewhere new and unfamiliar.

If you leave your child somewhere new and unfamiliar how do they react?

If they are not happy to be left there then you have some work to do.

This is the most important part of the Assessment.

How can your child really show how great their learning is if they are in an emotional state?

This takes time and it takes practice. We will support you every step of the way to help your child to go to their Assessment happily and with confidence.

What will happen at a group Assessment at 4+

Your child will arrive at the school and will be escorted to a classroom or to the hall and they will meet the group of children who will also be assessed. In the room, there will be activities laid out. Usually like a circuit with a variety of activities ready for the children to do. Things like puzzles, lego, drawing and writing. Members of staff will be observing your child. They will be observing a variety of different things like how your child does the activities and how they interact with other children. There will be a set of criteria that your child will need to meet and this is what will be assessed. Each school will have their own set of criteria.

In the group assessment things like ability to share, listening skills, ability to listen to the other children and ability to focus on tasks will all be assessed.

This is why I say that it is so important to know your schools so that you know what they are looking for and can therefore prepare accordingly. Of course, these schools do mix things up year after year but working with someone who has prepared children for over 13 years will definitely help!

What could go wrong at a group Assessment or 1:1 Assessment

Being asked to do something and doing something else.

Being asked to do something and refusing to do it.

Not being able to respond to what another child has said.

Being asked to do something and saying ‘I don’t know how.’

These are just a few things!

In a 1:1 Assessment your child will be 1:1 with a member of staff that works at the school.

Things that could go wrong are:

1. Your child simple doesn’t want to engage in conversation with the member of staff doing the Assessment.

2. Your child doesn’t answer their questions or follows the instructions that they are given.

The way to work on this is to expose your child to new and unfamiliar people and encourage them to have conversations with them and answer the questions. Remember that the only to improve at anything in life is to practise. Don’t let the Assessment be the first time your child meets someone new and unfamiliar to them and be expected to engage in conversation with them.

Simple.

If you would like further support with the 4+ Assessment, book your Sample Lesson today. 

What you should and shouldn't tell your child when preparing them for the Assessment Day.

You definitely do not want to be telling your child that they are going on a ‘play date’.

It is definitely not a play date.

Although your child is still so young at this point, you really just want to tell them the facts. Of course tell them that they will have fun - they will! But be very factual.

In order to tell them about the Assessments, you yourself need to know the Assessment process very well. You need to know about each individual school because no two schools are the same.

Remember that children (like us adults) do not like change… at all.

So, make this easier on them by telling the step by step what they will expect.

Discuss each school in order of when they will be sitting it so that it is fresh in their mind.

Eg. ‘When you visit x school, we will drop you off and you will go in with a teacher from the school.

They will take you to a classroom where there will be a group of 10 other children who are a similar age to you.

You will be asked to do different activities such as puzzles, lego, playdough etc.

They will be watching to see how well you focus/listen/show kindness to others/ hard you work etc.

Please follow their instructions when they ask you to do something.

So you can see that you will be giving them very clear step by step instructions about how the day will be and how you would like them to behave.

I would start as early as possible doing this but go in order of assessments otherwise it will be confusing for them.

As always , please tell them that they will be left for 30/45/60 minutes (however long the assessment is) and that mum or dad will come back to collect them afterwards. Explain to them that you would love for them to go in happily and calmly and to not get upset.

Of course, children are not robots and we cannot predict how they will react to this on the day. The only way is to practise leaving them in new and unfamiliar environments in the lead up to the Assessments. The rest is not in your control.

If they do cry or get very emotional before going in, chances are they will not be successful. Not because of the crying or the getting emotional but because they simply won’t be able to perform at their best.

So please prepare them for this as best you can.

For tips, strategies and support with how to do this as effectively as possible, I will be running a Webinar on Saturday 30th September to help you to best support your child to go into their Assessments happily, calmly and with confidence. Click here to book your spot.

Why I believe preparing for the 7+ is just a matter of maths

It’s very simple.

 You’ve chosen your target schools and you’re ready for your child to sit their Assessments. You’ve done your research and you know exactly what to expect at each round. Ultimately, whether your child is successful or not comes down to maths.

 Each school will have their own criteria with regards to which children they will even consider to call back for interview. They will set a benchmark. Typically, this benchmark is between 80% and 85%. It could be lower, I’m just using these figures for simplicity and as an average of what I’ve personally seen to be true.

So, in order to pass the assessment (which is usually the 1st round), your child will need to achieve the pass mark.

 Children who achieve the pass mark will be called back for an interview (or the second round) If your child does not achieve the pass mark they will not be called back for interview. It is as simple as that.

 This is why, from around September time, we will begin doing papers with our students and giving them a mark. I believe it is important for our students to know the mark that they are achieving so that they are aware of the level that they need to be aiming for in their assessments. Up until this point, we have been doing papers but I’ve not been giving them their mark. I’ve simply been using the papers as a guide for me to know which gaps I need to fill. My students haven’t even really been aware that they have been doing ‘papers’.

 I have spoken to several teachers and parents who tell me that it is ‘very damaging’ to tell children their marks. I disagree completely. Why give a child a test to do if you’re not going to tell them how they did?

 And to be honest with you, my students would always ask me how they did.

 So, no I don’t think it’s ‘damaging’.

It’s reality.

Of course, we explain to them that if they didn’t get the marks they wanted, it’s no big deal. And if they did get the marks they wanted, that’s all good. It’s more about using that data and doing something about it. It’s about teaching my students to not fear this number. When I was a younger student myself, I hated knowing my marks. Because no matter how ‘good’ I did, it was never good enough to me.

 That’s because nobody ever explained any of it to me.

 We actually take the time to explain all of these things to our students.

 So if you want your child to be successful at your target school/s, aim for 85% in each paper that you do with them.

 If they don’t achieve this mark, make a note of the incorrect answers and revise the concepts that your child got wrong. Perhaps there are some gaps in their knowledge and understanding. Perhaps they haven’t yet covered the concept that they got wrong. That will be up to you to identify.

 If your child is sitting their 7+ Assessments this Academic year, we have a good 3-4 months to do some intensive work.

 Book your Sample lesson with me or with one of our incredible Senior Teachers. We all have years of experience with all top London Schools and would be delighted to help you to support your child to be successful and unleash their truest potential.

 You will always have unlimited access to your teacher and also to me. Any questions you may have, we are here to support you every step of the way. We offer anytime access to us in between lessons, which is something no one else is currently offer. I consider this to me of most value because it allows us to discuss how your child is getting on and what we can do together to take their learning to the next step and give them the opportunity to show their truest potential.

We look forward to working with you.

Don't prepare for the 4+ Assessments...

Perhaps you are preparing for the 4+ Assessments and you have heard this phrase.

‘Don’t prepare your child for the 4+ Assessments!’

Perhaps you’ve been to an open day at your dream school of choice and you’ve heard this phrase being thrown around…

‘Don’t prepare your child for the 4+ Assessments!’

It’s up to you if you choose to believe it or not.

However, after 16 years doing what I do, I would caution you to think very carefully before believing this.

If children don’t need tuition for the 4+ Assessments why do 90% of children who sit the 4+ Assessments have tuition?

If children don’t need tuition for the 4+ Assessments why do I hear from so many parents each year who reach out to me after the Assessments and ask me to help to prepare their child for the 7+?

If children don’t need tuition for the 4+ Assessments why is it that usually the children who are unsuccessful (not always!) are the ones who don’t get in?

I’m just speaking from experience here.

It is very rare that I hear from parents who tell me that their child was successful at gaining entry to their dream school of choice without tuition.

The exception to this is parents of children whose sibling has already been successful and who has had tuition. These parents are able to know what is expected at the 4+ because they have experienced it before and are therefore better equipped to support their second child to be successful the second time around.

My advice is this.

Don’t pay too much attention to this phrase.

Don’t focus on what you cannot control.

Focus on what you can control.

You can control how prepared your child is so that they are best prepared to have tremendous success in their Assessments. You can control how much time you spend each day reading with your child. You can control how well they know their phonics. You can control how well they can hold their pencil. You can control if they know their numbers to 10 and can write them. You can control if your child can write all of the letters of the alphabet. You can control if your child can write their name. You can control if your child can answer general knowledge questions. I could go on and on!

If you’d like further support with the 4+ Assessments, book your Sample lesson today.

Further information about the 4+ Assessments August 2023

Let’s talk about subitising.

This simply means that your child can say the amount of objects without counting them, For example looking at the dots on a dice and knowing their value without having to count them individually.

Children will be assessed on this in the 4+ Assessments.

Your child may be asked to count items/objects individually or this may be asked to say how many they can see. Of course, your child can choose to count individually but in my experience, as children gain more skill and confidence with their counting, they will able to demonstrate subitising and immediately say, ‘That is the number 4 of the dice face’ rather than counting each dot individually.

This is the skill of subitising.

It is important because it will lay the foundation to support your child with more complex maths skills as they make more and more progress.

How often should you teach phonics?

There is no one size fits all here.

All children are different.

Some children will need more time and some will need far less. Some children focus for longer and some for less. Some children want to sit down for longer periods of time and some for far less.

If my opinion and in my experience, little and often is best. 5 minutes in the morning and 5 minutes in the evening every evening is optimum.

Short bursts of learning are key at this age. No one wants to sit for hours at the age of 2 or 3.

What are your thoughts?

Is your child happy to leave you?

All of my clients worry about this one. This one is completely not in your control because no matter how much you prepare for this, you just do not know what will happen on the day of the Assessment. However, it is very important to practice the skill of leaving your child in new and unfamiliar environments and ensuring that they are happy for this to happen.

If your child is upset on the day of the Assessment they will not show their best learning. They will either be too upset to focus or they will just be wanting you to come back the whole time.

Here are my two top tips to prepare your child for being left at the 4+ Assessment:

1. Practise leaving them for short periods of time in new places (eg. creches, nurseries, with friends etc.

2. Talk to them about it frequently and explain to them what it will be like.

To which number do children need to be able to count up to?

This will vary from school to school. Each school will have their own criteria in the Assessment,

At the very minimum your child will need to be able to confidently count up to 10, recognise numbers to 10 and write numbers to 10. In our lessons, we always aim to go up to 20 and beyond. Because regardless of what is assessed, if our students are confident up to 10, we can definitely move them onto larger numbers.

If you are teaching the numbers to 20, please make sure that you teach your child the value of the digits. Eg. That the number 12 is 10 + 2. This is very important. You can use physical resources like numicon to visually support your child to see the value of the numbers. You can also count physical items. This is where you can also practice subitising by asking your child if they can visually see what the number is without counting it.

Does your child show a good level of focus and understanding?

This is a big ask of any child who is 3 years old. However, this is one of the many things that will be assessed in the 4+ Assessment.

So how can you support your child to work on their focus and concentration?

Model it. Show them how you focus and concentrate on a specific task.

Practice it - Start with small amounts of time and build up to larger lengths of time. Eg. Today we will do a puzzle for 2 minutes and we will only focus on that. As time goes on, increase the time.

Don't make it a big deal.

If your 3 year old doesn't focus and doesn't want to concentrate please don't make it a big deal. We are asking a lot from them.

It's all good if they lose their focus, just tell them that you will try again another time and let them do what they want to do.

Come back to the activity another time and try again.

If they do focus for whichever amount of time you allocated to the task, make a big deal out of it. Praise them but make it specific.

Well done, you focused for 2 minutes on the puzzle. Amazing, you concentrated for 3 minutes.

3 months Intensive 7+ Assessment Preparation from September 2023

Perhaps you’ve been preparing your child yourself for the 7+ and would like that extra bit of support in preparation for the assessments in December/January.

Perhaps you’ve had tuition elsewhere and would like to try out what we have to offer.

Perhaps you feel that your child needs that extra bit of support.

Perhaps you want to make sure that you’ve covered everything that you need to cover for each specific school.

Whatever your reason, there is not better time to book our three month intensive 7+ Assessment preparation.

You will book the Silver or Gold Package - 1 or 2 lessons a week (60/120 minutes) and you will see immediate progress

This intensive preparation package is by application only and only students who are successful in the assessment that they are sent will be enrolled. Successful applicants will score a minimum of 80% in all assessments. The assessments will be created bespoke for your child depending on the schools that they will be sitting assessment at.

It is FREE to submit your application. Once we receive your application, you will be sent an assessment with instructions as to how to complete.

Once returned, they will be marked and you will be informed if your child has been successful. If your child is successful, they will be invited to a 30 minute Sample lesson (£40) so that you can meet your teacher. If you are happy to proceed, tuition will begin the following week.

Click here to submit your Application today.

Sample story writing. An example of a 'good story' introduction

Story Title - Lost

Introduction

There was once a girl named Sally. An adventurous girl, Sally adored to visit new places and have new experiences. One dark, dismal morning, Sally was out walking peacefully in the beautiful woods. Admiring the tall trees that loomed above her head, she felt as though she were a tiny ant. Although she had walked in these woods thousands of times, the beauty of them always astounded her. Quietly, she crept behind a bush and lay her head down to rest for a moment. The sunshine made her feel all warm and cozy. Before she knew it, several hours had passed and she had fallen asleep. When she woke up, she could not recognise where she was. This wasn’t the place that she had fallen asleep in. She was totally lost.

This is an excellent introduction because the structure is very clear.

My student clearly introduces the character, the setting and the problem.

She uses excellent sentence openers.

She uses a variety of adjectives.

It is creative and imaginative.

Her use of punctuation is superb.

Her spelling and handwriting were also excellent.

Does story writing stress you out? Here's how to change that!

If story writing for the 7+ stresses you out, you are not alone.

Most of my clients feel an element of stress and anxiety when it comes to story writing.

I hear questions like -

“Why can’t she do it yet?”

“Why doesn’t she want to do it?”

and comments like -

“Story writing is just so hard!”

“There’s not way she will pass if she continues to write like that!”

First of all, take a deep breath.

Story writing does not need to be stressful.

It’s all about having realistic expectations. Knowing where your child is when you start story writing with them and knowing where you want to get them to is also very important.

Every child that I teach has a different starting point but they all have the same end point. To be able to write an effective story in their 7+ Assessments that will get them the highest possible marks.

So this is what I work towards.

I set realistic expectations for my students and I tell them what these are.

I don’t give them 10 or 12 things that I expect them to do. I give them 2 or 3. This is much more achievable.

I might say to them:

I would like you to introduce your character and use 3 excellent adjectives.

I would like you to introduce your setting and use one superb sentence opener.

I would like you to introduce the problem and be as creative as you can.

That’s it.

With time, you will see that you will be able to do more and more.

Trust in the process.

Take your time with it.

Definitely don’t leave it to the last minute and just enjoy it.

In my experience, children adore story writing (maybe not in the beginning) but trust me after a few months, they absolutely love writing stories and your child will too!

If you need more support with story writing, book your Sample lesson today.

The easiest way to teach story writing for the 7+ (for parents)

Story writing seems to create a lot of negative feelings. I love story writing. I love teaching it. I love the progress my students make. I love that they can be as creative as they want and use their wildest imaginations. I love to see the improvements that they make each week. I love to see them persevering and trying their best. I love to see the resilience in them when they get something wrong and they are not afraid to try again. Story writing creates a lot of positive feelings for me.

This is what I strive for my students and clients to also feel.

It is very rare that I have a conversation with a parent where they tell me, ‘I love teaching story writing!’ or ‘I can’t wait to write another story with my child.’

My ultimate goal is to change this!

So here it is.

The easiest way I know to teach story writing.

1. Choose a title (I have provided 10 title below)

2. Plan the introduction (Introduce the character, setting and problem)

3. Plan the middle (Go into detail about the problem)

4. Plan the ending (Resolve the problem.

5. Provide your child with adjectives and adverbs to use and ask them to choose a few to put into each paragraph.

6. After you have planned, leave your child for half an hour and see what they can write!

7. Mark the story and give feedback. Ask your child to use your feedback to write draft 2.

8. Repeat step 7 and ask your child to write draft 3. This will be their final draft.

9. Keep completed stories in a beautiful folder and show them off to anyone who will read them!

10. Enjoy!

That’s it.

Super simple.

So enjoy the story writing process and if you need any help at all, book your Sample lesson today. We will be delighted to support you along the way.

10 Story Writing Titles for the 7+ Assessments

1. The picnic

2. The day I woke up and found out I was 10cm tall]

3. The picture that came to life

4. The visitor

5. The Secret Garden

6. The birthday surprise

7. My favourite school trip

8. Lost

9. The hungry sparrow

10. The quest

Phonics for the 4+ Assessments and common issues.

When I teach phonics, I see this most common error frequently:

Students adding additional sounds to the pure sound. See videos below.

Please correct this immediately. The longer it is left uncorrected, the harder it will be to correct.

Another common error when teaching phonics is teaching children the phonics using capital letters. When children read books, the most frequent letters that they will encounter will be the lower case letters. So it is logical that when teaching sounds, you will exclusively be teaching lower case letters. Once they are confident with the sounds, you can begin to introduce capital letters. When I teach writing for example, I teach capital letters and lower case letters. When it comes to reading, lower case letters are key.

The first 13 sounds that I teach my students are p, a , t , i, n, s, m, e, d, o, g, u, b.

Watch the videos below, to hear me saying the pure sounds.

Common issues from the 2022 4+ Assessments

1. Not preparing the child correctly for each round.

It is imperative that you prepare your child in the correct way for each round.

2. Child not following instructions.

Children being asked to draw something and they draw something else for example.

3. Child going into the Assessment upset.

Children arriving at the Assessment and not wanting to leave their parents and then becoming upset.

How to support your child with preparing effectively for each round.

Ensure that you know exactly what is expected at each round. The way to do this is of course to speak to an expert who already knows what is expected at each round. The other way is to spend time on the school’s websites and make a note of exactly what is expected at each round. Some website information can tend to be rather vague so you may want to call the school/s and ask. You can also speak to other parents who have already prepared their children for each round. Be aware that Assessments will change year after year so if a parent tells you something, this does not mean that the same will come up this year. In fact, I highly doubt that it will.

How to support your child to follow instructions

This just takes lots and lots of practice. You can also model yourself following instructions that your child has given you. Some children simply just do not want to follow instructions so they need to be taught how and why. It needs to be done in a very delicate and gentle way. Remember that nothing has gone wrong. Your child will be 3 or 4. It is completely natural for them to not want to follow the instructions all the time.

How to prepare your child to not go in upset

If your child is not used to being left alone for extended periods of time, it is vital that you begin to practise. Go to new and unfamiliar places together frequently. Ask your child to speak to a new and unfamiliar person (of course with your supervision!) Leave your child with someone new and unfamiliar to them for short periods of time (obviously someone you know!). Always remind them that you will come back for them. If they are really nervous about this, you can leave them a sand timer so they can monitor how long they have before you arrive. Of course only do this if your child is happy to do it. The more you practise this, the more comfortable your child will feel with being ‘left’. A lot of parents tell me that they are shocked that their child didn’t go in happily to their Assessment but when I ask them if that was the first time being left and they tell me yes, I don’t find this shocking at all. None of us like change.

Ultimately, they need to practice being left alone for at least 1 hour.

Some schools do allow you to stay but most won’t.

Be prepared :)

To book a Sample lesson with one of our exceptional 4+ Assessment preparation teachers, click here. You will be contacted immediately to book a day and time that suits yourself and your child.

Our amazing, brand new 10 minute Comprehensions for the 7+

We have provided FREE sample papers on our website for nearly two years. They have been accessed by thousands of parents throughout the country and we have no doubt that they have supported thousands of children with their preparations for the 7+. We use them with our own students from around September time before the Assessments as they are a little more advanced.

There are a few reasons why I created these incredible 10 minute comprehensions:

1. There aren’t many resources available for the 7+ Assessment preparation. There are the usual 7+ past papers which have been available for nearly 20 years but these are now very outdated.

2. Many comprehensions that I do find are very long. Whilst these work well with some students, other students prefer shorter comprehensions and these work more effectively with them. Of course, we cannot predict whether the comprehension in the Assessments will be long or short so it is important to prepare for both eventualities.

3. Many of the comprehensions that you do find online are not at the level or the standard currently expected in the 7+ Assessments.

4. I needed comprehension texts that challenged my students and supported them to boost their vocabulary.

5. Many of the comprehensions that I do find are quite boring and I needed something fresh, new and exciting that would make my students actually want to read it and engage them in a way that will get the best out of them when it comes to answering the questions.

When you purchase my 10 minute Comprehensions for the 7+ Assessments (available until October 2023 @only £10) you will have access to 5 comprehensions. Answers are provided for each comprehension. After you have purchased the 10 minute comprehensions, you can also email our Company Director with any questions that you may have about the comprehensions or your child’s answers to any of the questions. She will be in touch with you immediately to answer any of your questions.

All of the comprehensions have been written by our Company Director, Maria Mazarese and have been written to reflect the level and standard expected in the 7+ Assessments. These are the comprehensions:

1. The Ice Cave

2. The Avalanche

3. Lost

4. The path

5. An amazing discovery

The Ice cave is a story about a boy who needs to seek shelter from the snow and discovers an ice cave. The questions that I ask require the children to show a strong understanding of what they have read, give reasons, answer true or false type questions, answer ‘why’ questions and give the meaning of more complex vocabulary.

The Avalanche is about a boy who witnesses an avalanche and is so stunned that he doesn’t know what to do. Tho only think that he needs to do is to get to safety and away from the dangers of the avalanche. The reason I chose this title is because many children may not know what an avalanche is. There have been many occasions in these last 16 years where titles have come up in the assessments that children may never have heard of. This can throw them off. If they are not adequately prepared and taught that it is absolutely not a problem if they do not know the meaning of the title, they may just decide that the comprehension is far too hard for them. However, you can easily take a guess at what an avalanche is just by reading the first few lines of the text. This is the same with any comprehension title.

Lost is about a girl who discovers she has no idea where she is whilst on a trip with her parents in Tanzania. That’s when she notices an old, decrepit boat and is filled with hope that she has been found. Incredible vocabulary in this comprehension. Questions include word meaning and prediction.

The Path is about a boy who remembers a trip to Australia and a path that he had discovered. He had never seen this path before and he wondered where this path might lead. Questions include ‘How do you know’ questions, phrase spotting, word meanings and why questions.

An amazing discovery is about a girl who discovers a miniscule wooden door that she has never seen before. Questions include phrase analysis, inference and prediction questions.

Another point that I’d like to make is for parents to really NOT underestimate the importance of vocabulary in the 7+ Assessments. Your child will need to have very strong vocabulary. I don’t mean that they need to understand every single word that they read. They won’t. But they do need to have developed the skill to be able to infer the meaning of the word within the context of the sentence. This is what we work on in our lessons. We do not work on memorising words. This is not an effective use of our lesson time. We work on inferring meaning by reading sentences that include words that my students might not have ever seen. The vocabulary will be advanced and that’s ok.

Here are some ways to help boost your child’s vocabulary:

1. Read, read and read some more. I encourage my students to read everyday for at least 20 minutes.

2. Create a glossary and add new words into the glossary together with their meanings. Dip into the glossary each day and ask your child what a certain word means or even to spell that word.

3. Read a variety of comprehension types.

Why I wrote these 10 minute comprehensions for the 7+

We continue to offer FREE comprehension papers. These Brand New 10 minute comprehensions (releasing end of this week!) were primarily written because I wanted to have slightly shorter texts which are very high quality but are quicker to read. Specifically for my students who currently aren’t super keen on reading very long texts. These are very hard to find specific to the 7+.

I also believe that there isn’t much material available out there for students preparing for the 7+ Assessments. Considering I teach children each year in preparation for the 7+, it is vital that I always have fresh and up to date material which reflects the current standard expected in the 7+ Assessments.

I want my students to be prepared for any type of text that they may experience in their 7+ Assessment. The only way to do this is to expose them to a variety of texts and to practise frequently.

Four Top tips when teaching comprehension:

1. Allow your child to try by themselves Try not to get too involved. Try not to intervene (as much as possible). Give them a chance to give it a good try by themselves first.

2. Read the questions together first and really ensure that they understand what the questions are asking. Let them tell you what the question is asking them to do. It’s not about you telling them. Trust me they won’t learn as much if you do this. Put the ownership of them. They will remember far more if it comes from them.

3. Encourage your child to underline new and unfamiliar vocabulary and discuss together. Make it safe and ok if your child doesn’t know something. Discuss these words and get to boosting their vocabulary.

4. Let your child attempt the question first themselves. You will be amazed how much more your child will learn when they try first by themselves Even if they get it wrong, they will be learning so much more than if you are telling them the answer.

Need more support with comprehension?

Download your 10 Minute Comprehensions for the 7+ Assessments TODAY!

Book your Sample lesson today.

Launching this week - The Ultimate Guide to 4+ Assessment Success!

So many parents that I have spoken to over the last few weeks have told me that there is so much confusing information online regarding the 4+ Assessments.

So I decided to have a look myself.

It’s not so much that it’s confusing but more that there isn’t all of the information that you might need in one place.

This leaves parents wasting a lot of precious time and energy searching for information that ultimately is not available.

I see the 4+ Assessments almost like a secret society. Many parents don’t want to share information because they fear that they ‘will be found out!’ or they themselves had a negative experience and would rather forget about it.

When parents ask other parents about the 4+ Assessments to parents who have already experienced them, often their answers are vague or overwhelming.

This is why I created this Ultimate Guide.

My truest desire is for it to be a One Stop Shop for everything that you need to know when it comes to the 4+ Assessment.

If you then need further support, you can simply email me or schedule a call with me and I will be more than happy to answer any specific questions that you may have.

This is what will be included in the Ultimate Guide to 4+ Assessment Success:

• 8 of the most important tips when it comes to preparing your child for their 4+ Assessments.

• Simple information to get your started in your 4+ Assessment preparation journey.

• Practical advice that you can use immediately to support your child with their 4+ Assessment preparations.

I am so excited to launch this new product and I hope that it will help support thousands of people with supporting their children to be successful in their 4+ Assessments.

If you have any questions at all about the 4+, simply send them over to office@creativemindstutors.com and you will receive an answer within 24 hours. You can also call us directly on 07956677783.

Why I've decided to offer an In person 4+ Mock Assessment 2023

After 3 years of being online, I know for a fact that online tuition is as effective as in person tuition. I have no doubt in my mind and I have the results to prove it. I’ve had hundreds of parents asking me to provide in person tuition and my answer has always been no. Our tuition is exclusively online. I simply cannot get to my students in time if I do in person tuition. I am always at full capacity (which for me is 30 students). My tutors are also unable to provide this type of service.

A few of my current clients have asked me to provide in person Mock Exams so I decided that I would. The Mock Exam will be an incredible experience. It will simulate what the 4+ Assessments will be like at your chosen target schools. Your child will get to experience what it will be like on the day. Of course, some Assessments are group Assessments and I will discuss these with both you and your child. Some Assessments will be 1:1 with a member of staff from the school.

I don’t think it’s that important to simulate the group experience because your child will already undoubtedly be mixing with other children. It is more important to discuss with them, what will be observed on the day of the exam so that they are aware of this. Also, it is very difficult to replicate what it will actually be like for them on the day, the types of characters that they will meet on the day and the types of interactions that they will have. I always tell my students to be themselves. To let their true character’s shine through and to let their personalities sparkle. Therefore it really doesn’t matter that they practice being in a group in my opinion.

How it will work?

Once you’ve decided that you’d like to Book your Mock Exam, you can make payment in our shop. I will then be in touch with you to discuss a few things and arrange a day and time convenient to both of us for the Mock Assessment to take place. Once organised, I will come to your home to do the Mock Assessment. I will bring all resources although I may ask you to provide a few.

What will happen on the day?

• Questioning and General Knowledge.

• A Maths Assessment.

• A literacy Assessment.

• A writing Assessment.

• An Art and Design Assessment.

• A physical activity.

How much does the Mock Exam cost?

£350

Where will it take place?

In your home.

When will it take place?

At a day and time convenient to both of us.

How often can I book the Mock Exam?

A maximum of two times.

Which locations will you travel to?

Any locations within 8 miles of NW9.

To book your Mock exam follow the link below.

Book your 4+ Mock Exam Today

Here’s to exceptional 4+ Success!

Why I do what I do

I thought I’d make this blog post a little more personal for those of you that are wondering who I am, what I do and why I do it. Most client who contact me know a lot about me already because they come to me through recommendations. Some clients don’t know anything about me but are intrigued by my website or by my testimonials. I think it is important to know a little bit about me so that you know why I actually do what I do.

I started teaching full time in a Top London Prep school nearly 13 years ago. This seems insane to me! 13 years have passed since I started teaching as a qualified teacher. However, I have been teaching far longer than this. At the age of 18 (20 years ago!) I started working in a little creche with children aged 3 months - 5 years of age. This is when I realised I had a gift. My gift was that of having an incredible ability to work with children. I was passionate about looking after these little children and teaching them.

After working in the creche, I went on to teach Spanish at a local Primary school and I loved it. That’s when I decided to do my PGCE. I studied full time at Goldsmiths University. As soon as I graduated, I got my first teaching job in a popular prep school in Hampstead.

I learnt so much here. I loved it. But the hours were long (7am - 6pm) and I decided to leave after 3 years. When I left, many parents followed me. They wanted me to tutor their children who were sitting their 4+ and 7+. They knew about the amazing results that I had had teaching at this school. I had an incredible success rate at 4+ and 7+.

I continued tutoring part time, whilst working full time in several different schools.

When Covid happened and everything went online, I also took my business online. I realised how many more people I could help online. So for 3 years now, I have been exclusively online.

A few months after everything returned back to ‘normal’, I was pregnant and made the decision to leave my full time teaching job and focus on my business.

Since then, it has been an incredible journey.

And here we are today. I am currently at capacity for the 4+, 7+ and 11+ but I have the most amazing tutors who are currently available.

So I do what I do because of this reason.

As a child, I didn’t feel ‘seen’ at school. I knew I had a talent. I knew that I was special but no one saw that. Only me. I felt other children were given more attention and I didn’t have the truest opportunity to really flourish. I didn’t want any other child to feel this way. Ever again.

I do what I do because I truly desire each child that I teach to have the possibility to reach their truest potential. To achieve any goal that they desire to achieve.

When I was in Secondary school, I wanted to apply to Oxford. I was simply told ‘no’. I didn’t know any better and I just believed that I wasn’t ‘good enough’ to go to Oxford. Of course, this is ridiculous and I was just as able as any of the chosen Oxbridge candidates. I ended up studying at UCL, Reading and Goldsmiths.

If any of my students tell me that they have a goal, a desire, I listen. And I support them every step of the way. And I support their parents to support them. To have a voice and to truly allow their child to flourish and succeed. Why shouldn’t each and every child have the chance to do what they truly desire to do?

This is why I do what I do.

And this is what I will teach my own son. That he is truly capable of doing whatever he wants. Whatever he sets his mind to. I will never tell him, ‘You can’t do that’ or ‘That’s too hard’ or ‘That’s meant for someone else’. This is what I was told as a child and this is what I believed until quite recently actually.

Now I know that I can do whatever I put my mind to and I want to teach all of my students the same.

Why I encourage my students to embrace the 'hard'.

As a child were you taught to embrace hard things? Or like me, were you taught to be a ‘good girl’, listen well and get things right. Were you taught to try not to get things wrong? Were you taught that if you did badly in a test that it was your fault, that there was something wrong with you, that you should have done better or that you needed to revise more?

I desire to teach my own son something different. And I feel the same with my students.

99% of the time, when my students begin tuition with me, they are petrified of getting things wrong. When I tell them they’ve got something wrong they become upset, frustrated, annoyed and even angry. They so desperately want to get things right.

They quickly learn that I feel no different about them getting things right as I do about them getting things wrong. In fact, I encourage them to get things wrong. We discuss how we feel. I tell them about my own life and what I do when I get things wrong. I tell them about how much success I’ve had because I finally allowed myself to get things wrong.

I’ve seen students truly transform.

From children who hated to get things wrong to children who embrace getting things wrong.

Children who tell me ‘We learn from our mistakes after all’ and ‘It doesn’t matter, I will try again’ and ‘Let’s go through this together and find out why I went wrong’.

Incredible.

What an incredible life skill to have. To learn from early on that it is absolutely ok to make mistakes.

Why I think everyone sitting the 7+ this year should attend my Summer Workshops.

Whether you are planning on going on holiday or not in the Summer break, my 7+ Assessment Summer workshops are for everyone who is sitting their 7+ this year. As they are all online, your child can login from their holiday (it’s only 30 minutes!) and get the immense benefits from all of these workshops.

What makes my approach different to what else is out there? 

It is very rare to find 7+ Summer Workshops at this price in preparation for the 7+ Assessments. It is also very rare to find Workshops run by the Company Director who has over 15 years of experience supporting children all over the country with their 7+ assessments.

Why does attending my workshops make sense? 

I have created my own bespoke curriculum for the 7+ which reflects the content of the 7+ Assessments at various top London Schools from the last 3-4 years. I study these assessments and I always update what I am teaching to be in line with what the children will be asked in the assessments for the specific schools that they will be attending. This is why I have such incredible success. Of course I cannot predict what will come up but I can plan and prepare based on what has come up previously. This is what I will cover in the workshops.

Starting Monday 24th July (for 6 weeks inclusive) we will do Creative Writing.

I will cover 6 different genres of writing. This is important because although it is very likely that your child will be asked to write a story, other genres have come up before. If your child isn’t exposed to the different genres then they will not be able to write accordingly.

Starting Tuesday 25th July (for 6 weeks inclusive) we will do Verbal and Non Verbal Reasoning.

I will take your child’s verbal and non verbal reasoning to the next level by giving them the opportunity to practise all of the different questions types and exposing them to a variety of questions.

Starting Wednesday 26th July (for 6 weeks inclusive) we will do Reasoning and Problem Solving.

I will cover all areas of the maths curriculum and focus on the reasoning and problem solving aspects in each area. It’s not enough for your child to be able to just do the calculations. They will need to apply their knowledge to answer those more complex reasoning and problem solving questions. I will provide them with the tools that they need to be able to do this.

Starting Thursday 27th July (for 6 weeks inclusive) we will do Comprehension Strategies.

We will focus on those more complex comprehension questions that are worth the most marks in the assessments. I will expose your child to different comprehension genres and boost their vocabulary. We will also create a glossary together (if your child doesn’t already have one).

How can I help your child to be successful? 

You will see by attending your chose workshops how much progress your child can make. I can guarantee that you will see your child become more enthusiastic, more motivated and more engaged in their learning. 

How do I know that your child will make accelerated progress after attending my Summer Workshops?

I've seen it time and time again. 

What ongoing support do you provide? 

You will have unlimited access to me before, during and after the Summer Workshops. Should you decide to continue working with me after the workshop, you will have two options. Weekly Tuition (meeting weekly on Zoom for 30 or 60 minutes) or Massive Action (bespoke learning emailed to you for your child to complete each week). This can be discussed upon completion of your workshop.

How much are the workshops?

The Summer Workshops are £270 for the six weeks (per subject). This is non refundable.

How do you book the workshops?

The workshops are on sale only in the month of May. Book your place by paying for your spot.

Book Here