Don't make this one mistake if you are preparing for a 4+ Assessment!

Don’t make this one mistake if you are preparing for the 4+ Assessments for 2025 Entry

 This week, I’ve been receiving lots of enquiries from parents of children who are sitting their 4+ Assessments for 2025 Entry.

 The parents I speak to always have hundreds of questions for me!

 One sentence I keep hearing over and over again is this, ‘We will wait a few more months and then we will be ready to begin.’

 Please don’t make this mistake.

 The time to start is now and not in 2-3 months.

 Let’s think about this carefully.

 In 3 months it will already be July.

 That means that you are only leaving between 3-6 months of Assessment preparation (depending on when the first round of the 4+ Assessment is).

 This is not enough time.

 I only every share the results of our students who have at least 9 months of preparation.

 There is a reason for this.

 So if you are preparing for the 4+ Assessments for 2025 entry, please don’t delay starting your Assessment preparations.

 The time to start is right now.

Make this very important investment into your child’s future.

 Book your Sample Lesson Today.

Is one nursery better than another when preparing for the 4+ Assessments?

Is one nursery really better than the other when it comes to preparing for the 4+ Assessments?

I honestly think that the answer to this question is no.

I have prepared hundreds of children for their 4+ Assessments over the last 14 years.

I’ve prepared children who have gone to very prestigious nurseries who have not been successful and I have prepared children who have gone to ‘normal’ nurseries who have been successful. I’ve also prepared children who have never attended a nursery in their lives and have been very successful!

 Many of my clients fixate on the idea that their child needs to go to the ‘best’ nursery in order to have a higher chance for success in their 4+ Assessments and this is simply not the case.

These are the questions that I’d like you to ask yourself.

 Does my child’s nursery know the schools that I am applying to well?

 Does my child’s nursery know what will happen on the day of the Assessment?

 Does my child’s nursery know the expectations of the schools?

 Does my child’s nursery benefit from my child being successful to the schools that we are applying to?

 If the answer to all of these questions is YES, then great!

 Most likely the answer to all of these questions is NO.

 To be successful in the 4+ Assessments, you must work with someone who is able to do two things and do them very well!

 1.     Know the schools and what they actually want

2.     Has actual experience at getting children into the schools that you are applying to

 So please don’t spend too much time choosing the ‘perfect’ nursery to prepare your child for their 4+ Assessments. There’s no such thing. Choose a nursery that you like and choose a nursery that your child likes. That’s all that matters. Then choose a teacher who can do the two things that I mentioned.

Does it matter which nursery your child goes to when preparing for the 4+?

A lot of my clients spend a lot of time worrying about the ‘right’ nursery to send their child to.

They want the best for their child. I totally understand. I want the best for my child too.

But ultimately where you send your child to nursery won’t make much difference to how your child does in their 4+ Assessment.

Unless your child is very unhappy in their current nursery, I wouldn’t move them. I had one client who was very unhappy with her son’s nursery. She had been asking them to help him with his emotional and social development but this wasn’t happening and he wasn’t flourishing. In our lessons, he was withdrawn and often wouldn’t answer my questions.

In this instance, I suggested for him to be moved to another nursery. Together we chose a nursery that we thought would suit his needs and as soon as the move was made, he was much happier.

Notice that I didn’t suggest we move him because of the 4+. I suggested we move him for his own personal wellbeing.

Another client of mine sent her child to a top Nursery in Kensington paying nearly £4000 per term and she had huge difficulties in getting the Nursery to support her with her daughter’s 4+ Assessment preparations. The Nursery didn’t put a big emphasis on phonics but her daughter needed to be able to read for several of her 4+ Assessments.

I didn’t suggest we move her.

In our lessons we work on everything that we need to work on in order to be successful in any 4+ Assessment.

So my answer is No it doesn’t matter which Nursery you send your child to when you are preparing for the 4+Assessments. As long as you see that your child is happy and is enjoying nursery that’s all that matters. If the nursery is able to support you with some aspects of the 4+ Assessment preparation - that’s even better. I find that most nurseries are very open to helping parents. It just takes a conversation and some information about what you are preparing for.

Is your child 'emotionally ready' for school?

‘Emotional readiness’ will be assessed in the 4+ Assessments.

In fact, I believe that this is the most important deciding factor when considering the students that these top schools want to attend their schools.

So what does this even mean?

Being ‘emotionally ready’ means exactly what it says.

It means that your child is ready to go to school. It means that your child is ready to leave you for a good period of time. It means that your child is ready to go into their assessment independently. It means that you child is ready to complete tasks with enthusiasm and confidence. It means that you child is happy to be left alone in a new and unfamiliar environment.

All of these aspects will demonstrate to a school that your child is ‘emotionally ready’.

What will show a school that your child is not ‘emotionally ready’ for school in an assessment?

Not going in happily - If your child is upset to leave you when you get to the Assessment this will be an indication that they are not ‘emotionally ready’. I do think this is harsh because children are not robots and perhaps on that particular day, they are not feeling great or they’ve not had a good sleep or they’re just not in the mood. It doesn’t matter. On the day of the Assessment, if they don’t go in happily and calmly, it will show that they are not ‘emotionally ready’.

Not wanting to complete tasks independently - If your child doesn’t want to take part in the activities set up by the schools in will demonstrate to them that they are not ‘emotionally ready’. For example, if they say that it’s too hard or that they can’t do it, these will all be key indicators that they are not ‘emotionally ready’.

Being ‘emotionally ready’ is a huge ask at the ages of 3 and 4!

The main thing that I will tell you is to at least make sure that your child will leave you when you get to the Assessment. So many parents have received calls to come and collect their child from their 4+ Assessments because they just wouldn’t calm down. They wouldn’t have been successful.

You will know that your child will be happy to leave you when you’ve practised it enough times. This will be different for each child. Essentially, you want to be able to have left your child somewhere new and unfamiliar to them many times before they get to their Assessments.

Intellectual Curiosity will be observed in all 4+ Assessments

I went to visit a top London school last week. I am currently looking around for my own son to see which schools would suit him best. The school I visited mentioned ‘Intellectual Curiosity’.

These types of words do not surprise me at all when referring to the 4+ Assessments.

Some parents who were at the school with me were very surprised.

‘How can they expect this from a 3 year old?’

‘This is ridiculous!’

‘My child is only 2/3!’

These were some of the comments that I heard in the room.

So what exactly is intellectual curiosity?

It’s just a fancy phrase for ‘actually wanting to learn’. Wanting to find answers. Wanting to know more. Asking lots of (interesting) questions. Well thought out questions. Learning new things quickly. Finding solutions to solving problems.

To me this is what intellectual curiosity is.

Why are these top schools looking for children who are intellectually curious?

These top schools will have hundreds of children applying for very few places.

They want children who actually want to learn.

When a child actually wants to learn, you don’t have to teach them to want to learn.

I believe that all children want to learn. So I disagree with this.

Perhaps some children just haven’t been given the environments to learn and thrive in.

I believe that all children are naturally curious and inquisitive. So I disagree with this too.

However, I understand that this is what these top schools want. And I understand that this is what they will be observing. And I also understand that if your child doesn’t demonstrate intellectual curiosity that they will not be successful in their 4+ Assessment.

We prepare our students so that they will go into their Assessments and demonstrate intellectual curiosity.

It can be taught and it is taught through our carefully planned bespoke packages of learning.

Book your School Choices Free Consultation to discuss your choice of schools and the next steps for your child.

The truth nobody told you about online 4+ Assessment preparation.

After doing this for over 14 years let me tell you this truth.

This is the biggest misconception that I’ve come across with preparing hundreds of students for their 4+ Assessment.

The misconception that in order for a child to be able to focus, the teacher needs to be physically in the room with them. In order to have success, the teacher needs to be physically in the room.

I disagree.

Having taught children online and in person, let me tell you why this is simply not the truth,

In person, the teacher can be more ‘controlling’ and therefore remove that sense of independence from the young student. Teaching online is a skill and I absolutely agree that not every one is highly skilled to be able to teach a two year old online. But if you find the person who is, it is just magical.

Online, your child has to develop the skills of:

focus

resilience

independence

In person, the student doesn’t have to work so hard to focus because the teacher can guide them to focus and manipulate that focus by helping them to do it. Online, my students practise the skill of focussing because I am not physically in the room. This skill will serve them very well in the real 4+ Assessment. Being able to focus at the age of 3 or 4 is the hardest skill to master. Also, during our online lessons my students develop their communication very quickly because they need to explain everything to me.

In the 4+ Assessment, there will be no one helping your child to focus.

In person, the student is not as independent because the teacher is there by their side. I’ve seen this happen hundreds of times before where there is far too much support for the student but I will talk about this in a separate blog.

In the 4+ Assessment, there will be no one helping your child to be independent.

We offer the highest quality support with our incredible online lessons. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to have the best quality support because you think in person will somehow be superior.

It isn’t.

See for your self by booking your Sample lesson today.

What if my child doesn't pass their 4+ Assessment?

An important question to consider?

The 4+ Assessments are not ‘easy’ to pass.

Without thorough preparation, it will be challenging to pass these Assessments at most top inner and outer London schools.

Many parents don’t consider this question until after the fact.

I think it’s an important question to think about.

If you are preparing for the 4+ Assessments for 2025 entry, no doubt you have been preparing your child for the last few months. Whether you have a private tutor or not, my hope is that you have started Assessment preparations.

You have your list of schools and you are preparing your child specifically for each individual school (remember that the Assessments will be very different at each school that you are applying to)

Go all in and prepare your child for their 4+ Assessments.

So what if your child doesn’t pass their 4+ Assessments?

Hear me when I say that it does happen (not if you work with us for the needed time to prepare for these Assessments)

Here are your options if your child is not successful.

1. Choose a good pre-prep school to send your child to (there are selective pre-preps and non selective ones) We also support our students with being successful at gaining entry to top pre-prep schools across London and outer London.

2. Choose a good state school to send your child to.

3. Start preparing for the 7+ Assessments + choose one of the above in the interim.

If you’re ready to go all in and get the support your child deserves for their 4+ Assessments, book your School Choices FREE consultation today. In our 30 minute consultation, we will discuss:

• Your choice of schools.

• Expectations at each school and how to start preparing your child.

• How we can work together to achieve the best results for your child.

Where to start if you are preparing you child for their 4+ Assessments.

So you’ve decided that you’d like your child to sit their 4+ Assessments for 2025 entry but you have no clue where to start?

You are definitely not alone.

If you are like most clients of mine when they start working with me, they will be preparing their first child for their 4+ Assessments. Some of my clients are preparing their second child for their 4+ Assessments and therefore have some knowledge and understanding of the schools that they are applying to. But this is usually the exception.

Perhaps you’ve been to an open day and you’ve been told to absolutely not tutor your child or perhaps your neighbour sat their child for their 4+ Assessment last year and had 2 years of Assessment preparation. Who do you listen to? These are two extremes after all!

Whilst you don’t need two years of tuition to prepare for the 4+ Assessments, your child absolutely does need to be prepared appropriately for each school that they are sitting Assessment at.

Whether you do it yourself or seek the help of a professional, please hear me when I say that your child definitely will need preparation in order to be successful. Even if a school says that their Assessment will be play based (it won’t be!) please prepare your child.

So here is where I advise you to start with your Assessment preparation.

You need to choose your target schools and ensure you apply before the deadlines.

Choose 3 of your favourites

Choose 2 that you like

Choose 1 or 2 back up schools (ideally schools that don’t have Assessments) Should your child not be successful (highly unlikely if you work with us with at least 6 months of preparation time!) you can then prepare them for their 7+ Assessments starting from January of their Reception year.

You should then schedule your School Choices Free Consultation to discuss your choices of schools and how to best prepare for them.

In our 30 minute consultation, we will discuss:

• Your choice of schools

• Expectations at each school and how to start preparing your child

• How we can work together to achieve the best results for your child.

Ultimately what you want is for your child to be successful to as many schools as possible so that you will have the choice of where you would like them to go. Choosing the best school for your child is one of the most important decisions of you life. We will support you every step of the way.

Ready to book your Sample Lesson, click here! I will be in touch with you to book your lesson.

NLCS 7+ Assessment update (2024 Entry)

First of all, it’s very important to note that this school only has 8-10 places available in Year 3.

So, only 8-10 girls will pass their 7+ Assessment.

Competition will be fierce. Hundreds of girls will apply for entry at 7+.

A lot of parents want their girls to get in at 7+ so that they can avoid having to do the 11+.

Understandable!

The Sample papers on the website do not give you an idea of what the Assessment will be like. Those papers have been the same since I first started my teaching career (14 years ago!)

Use them - but the level of the Assessment will be far higher than this.

Round 1 -

The first stage involves preliminary written tests which assess literacy and numeracy.    For the first stage tests, candidates will be expected 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.

Understand the concepts of addition, subtraction, multiplication and ‘sharing’/division and be able to apply these rules in order to solve word problems.

Know the 2, 3, 4, 5 and 10 times tables.

Have a basic understanding of shape, time and money.

Interpret simple tables and charts.

Round 2 - Selected students are called back for the second stage of the process, which consists of a day at school where they will be taught as a class and experience the learning and excitement of a busy school day at North London.

Round 1 is extremely hard to pass.

Your daughter will need to be scoring 85% in all of their practise paper in the lead up to their Assessment.

Please ensure that your daughter is able to do this independently and without your support.

This will be the expectation on the day.

Story writing expectations at this school are very high.

We have an incredible success rate for preparing our girls successfully for 7+ at this school. Each year 1 or 2 of the girls who gain entry to NLCS have been taught and prepared by Creative Minds Tutors. This is something we are extremely proud of.

Preparing for NLCS at 7+?

Book your Sample Lesson today.

3 Reasons why you should attend our 7+ Easter Story Writing Workshop!

Our phenomenal Easter Story Writing Workshop will take place on Wednesday 10th April @ 10.

This 30 minute workshop will be a game changer for your child’s 7+ Assessment preparation.

For only £60, here is the incredible value that you will receive:

1. A 30 minute intensive Workshop with our Company Director, Maria Mazarese.

   Maria has prepared hundreds of children for their 7+ Assessments at all top London schools with exceptional results year after year over the last 14 years.

2. There will be a maximum of 5 children only in the Story Writing Workshop.

3. After the Workshop, your child will write their story and you will have the opportunity to email it to Maria. It will be marked with detailed feedback and send back to you.

4. Your child will then write their second draft.

5. You will have the opportunity to have unlimited contact with Maria for the duration of the time it takes for your child to complete their second draft.

Highgate 7+ Assessment Update (2024 Entry)

A very challenging Assessment.

50 children will pass their 7+ Assessments in 2025 to join 60 children who are already in the Pre-prep.

Registration hasn’t opened yet for 2025 Entry but on their website you can register your details and they will inform you about when Registration will open.

Round 1 will be the English and Maths Assessment.

There will be two maths papers - one arithmetic and one reasoning.

The maths sample test provided on their website is just a selection of a few questions and is not indicative of how long the test will be at Highgate! The test is a lot longer than what is shown in the Sample paper! (Same goes for English!)

The English paper will be two written comprehension. Yes, two! And a creative task (story writing) The story writing will be an extended answer based on the comprehension passages.

When you sign up for tuition with us, we will prepare your child so that they will be confident in all of the areas that they will be assessed in. We know this school very well and we know exactly what is needed in order to be very successful at this school.

The second round will be an interview and activity day. This will consist of a lesson at the school together with other candidates and a group interview.

I cannot emphasise enough how important it is to prepare for Round 2. It is just as important as preparing for Round 1.

Don’t leave this to the last minute please.

Preparing for Highgate for 2025 Entry? Book your Sample Lesson today.

Habs' Boys 7+ Assessment Update (2024 Entry)

The second round at Habs’ Boys surprised most parents this year. Not us!

We prepare for all eventualities.

I of course will not reveal why it surprised most parents in this blog. But if you are preparing for Habs’ boys for 2025 entry, we will ensure that your child will not be surprised in this round! Or the other round!

So there are two rounds of Assessments.

Round 1 assessed:

English

Maths

Reasoning

Round 2 is a group assessment and a chance for the school to get to know your child on a more individual basis.

To pass round 1, your son will need to be very strong academically. We aim to prepare our boys so that they are at Mastery level (Year 2) and we also dip into the Year 3 and 4 curriculum (where relevant)

Knowing this school so well historically gives us that slight edge over other companies.

My main advice to you is to not leave Assessment preparation to the last minute. It is very risky. You will want at least 6 months of Assessment preparation to be ready for this Assessment.

Preparing for Habs’ Boys at 7+? Book your Sample Lesson today.

UCS 7+ Assessment Update - Lessons learnt from 2024

UCS

UCS is one of our most popular boys’ schools that we prepare our boys for at 7+.

This is an exceptional school and very popular amongst our clients.

It is a tough school to get into.

With the correct preparation however, you will give your son the highest possible chances for success at this school. And at passing their 7+ Assessment.

In the Autumn term your son will be invited for a Reading Assessment and will do ‘listening and discussion’ exercises. This is just to make sure that your child can read well enough in order to actually be able read the questions asked in the Assessment. 60 boys will pass their 7+ and be admitted into 3 classes in Year 3 at UCS.

Registration for 2025 is now open. Visit the UCS website to register your son.

A report is requested from your son’s current school and this report will be very important.

In January the boys’ sit their Assessment which consists of:

Maths

English

Social interaction observation

Behaviour observation

The Assessment is long and stamina will be important - It is a 3 hour Assessment (including a short break)

The UCS Assessment in 2024 was as usual a challenging one. The level of questions asked was high in both Maths and English.

UCS 7+ Assessment Results 2024 Entry

Your son will need to have very high level of comprehension and be able to answer all question types to a very high standard. Excellent behaviour will be required as well as superb listening skills and answering questions to a very high standard.

Why being 'bright' isn't enough to pass the 4+ Assessments

Of course as parents we all think that our child has something amazing about them. That they have that spark. That they are the most talented, most beautiful and most amazing human beings.

And of course they are!

They are our children!

But please get this out of your head when you are preparing your child for their 4+ Assessments. You are not the one assessing your child. They will be assessed by someone who does not know them and who has no emotional tie to them. They’ve probably never even met your child before.

They will be one of many applying to the school/s that you have chosen.

I spoke to a mother yesterday who contacted me to find out more about 4+ Assessment preparation for North London Collegiate. After a brief conversation, she said to me, ‘You know Maria, I’m not worried. My daughter is bright. I won’t be preparing her. After all, she’s only 3. She will go in and do her best.’

I told her to not do this.

She thanked me and went on her way.

I highly doubt that her daughter will pass her 4+ Assessment at this school. Without preparation, it will be very challenging.

With preparation it is challenging!

So if your child is ‘bright’, just remember that this is not enough. They are not only assessing academia. The academic aspect of the Assessment is one small part of the Assessment.

How your child answers questions will be assessed.

How confident your child is when they speak will be assessed.

How your child follows instructions will be assessed.

How compliant your child is will be assessed.

I could go on and on and on.

Prepare your child if they are going to be sitting their 4+ Assessments.

Book your Sample lesson today.

DUCKS 4+ Assessment - Prepare thoroughly for this school.

I personally prepared three boys for DUCKS last year for their 4+ Assessments (Ducks Kindergarten and Infants school)

Children can also benefit from the opportunity of gaining a deferred Year 3 place at Dulwich College.

Out of the three boys that I prepared, two started with me in January (of the year of their Assessment) and one started with me in October (of the year of his Assessment)

Just for your information, if you are considering applying to this school - applications open online 16 months prior to the year of entry (so in May).

This is what the website says about the Assessment at DUCKS.

Children are invited to attend an assessment session during the Michaelmas term prior to the year of joining. The assessments take place on a Saturday and children are seen in small groups of between 6 and 8, according to their date of birth, ensuring we account for age related developmental differences in performance. The children are invited into a classroom setting to take part in activities very similar to those already familiar to them from other Nursery settings. A team of four adults will encourage the children to engage in activities within a stimulating learning environment and will observe both their levels of engagement and how well they play alongside other children, thus ensuring they would thrive within the current Pre-Reception cohort.

4 adults observing 6-8 children! Think about that for a moment.

The activities provided are highly academic and your child will need to be very academically able in order to pass this Assessment.

This school also looks for a range of behavioural factors and your child will need to be able to demonstrate all of these in order to pass the Assessment at DUCKS. For example, they will expect your child to follow instructions exceptionally well.

This is a tough 4+ Assessment and one that need careful and thorough preparation and guidance,

Having had a wealth of experience with this school for many years, I can help you to ensure that your child goes on with the highest chances for success. As long as you start with enough preparation time that is.

If your child is very academically gifted, they may offer him a deferred Year 3 place through to Year 13.

For boys who perform strongly, and demonstrate an above average ability across all areas of learning during their 4+ assessment, there is the possibility of them being offered a deferred Year 3 place to the Junior School and through to Year 13.

Preparing for DUCKS 4+. 3 places remaining to work with me personally for 2025 Entry.

Book your Sample Lesson today

Habs' Girls 4+ V NLCS 4+ 2024 Entry

Each year, I prepare a maximum of 12 children for the 4+ Assessments.

Last year, I prepared 8 girls for NLCS and Habs’ Girls (they were or course preparing for other schools too).

Generally, girls who prepare for NLCS, also prepare for Habs. Not always. I did have girls prepare for either Habs or NLCS.

Because I have prepared so many girls for these two schools, I know exactly what these two schools are looking for in their students. I also know exactly what they don’t want.

When you book one of our packages, I will of course share this all with you.

This is so that we can avoid certain things that went wrong in the Assessments this year and make sure that your daughter has the skills that these two schools are looking for in order to be successful.

Habs’ Girls’ was ‘easier’ to get into this year in the sense that a lot of our girls passed their 4+ and were successful at gaining entry to this school. Four of our girls were offered a place at Habs’ girls. This is exceptional. After all, they only have 40 places available and 4 of those girls were prepared by me!

I say ‘easier’ in inverted commas because is was definitely NOT easy! But we had a lot more of our girls getting into Habs’ Girls.

NLCS was a different story this year. We still had a lot of success but all of the girls who were successful at getting into Habs were not successful at getting into NLCS. The student who was successful at getting an offer for NLCS hadn’t applied to Habs.

Perhaps the two schools communicate with each other? Could be!

This is how the 4+ Assessment works at Habs’ Girls:

All applicants are invited to an assessed group activity session, lasting about 50 minutes, in December. The groups are organised by age – those of a similar birth month are grouped together. Twins are invited on separate dates. 

The second stage involves a selected number of candidates, with their parents, meeting the Head of the Junior School and other members of the Leadership Team. These informal meetings are an opportunity for parents to ask questions about the school and to establish whether they think it is the right place to educate their child. It is also an opportunity for us to spend more time with the child and their family, to establish that the parents are seeking the education which the school is offering, whilst also identifying whether the ethos and values of the school and the parents are aligned.  

This is how the 4+ Assessment works at NLCS:

Round 1 - Play activities testing school readiness which lasts about an hour.  Children are grouped by age and there are about 12-16 children per group. Activities usually include pre-school tasks such as colouring, cutting and sticking.

Round 2 - A smaller group are recalled for the second round, which includes a group activity followed by one to one puzzles and games with a member of our teaching staff.

The 4+ Assessments to both of these schools are rigorous. They are challenging. And your daughter 100% needs to be prepared.

However you do this, please do prepare them.

Book your Sample Lesson today.

Only 4 places remaining to work with me (2025 Entry)

Highgate literally give nothing away about the 4+ Assessments

So let me give a few things away here!

First of all, this school is incredibly difficult to get into (at all ages!)

I would have to say that this was one of the hardest Assessments for my 4+ cohort (2024 entry).

My students didn’t give much away about the Assessments (I honestly think that they were told not to!) but they did give enough away for me to understand exactly what this school are expecting of their students at 4+. We had incredible results at Highgate this year! (and each and every year!)

The main reason that we have such exceptional results is that we know the school very well. We know what they want and expect so we can support our clients exceptionally well.

Highgate has 60 places available at 4+

So substantially higher than other schools at 4+.

However, it also has a higher number of applicants.

Highgate has a ballot system in place

Unlike other schools at 4+, Highgate have a ballot system in place. This is because they have such an incredibly large volume of applicants that they couldn’t possibly assess all of them. I don’t know the exact number of applicants they get each year but I would assume its in the high hundreds!

The first round is in October/November

Pretty early on in the year! Some of my students will have only recently just turned 3! The first round is rigorous. A lot will be expected of your child at the Highgate 4+ Assessment. For more support with preparing for Highgate (2025 Entry) book your Sample Lesson today. All of our packages include ongoing contact with your teacher. I personally currently only have 5 places remaining to work with me.

The second round is in January

Usually the second week of January. In the second round your child will need to show excellent academic aptitude, answer questions exceptionally well and show excellent behaviours for learning. It is tough! I’ll just say that much.

Highgate specify that the second round explores children’s understanding and capabilities in greater depth.

Now is the time to start tuition if you are preparing for Highgate for 2025 entry at 4+.

We are the best company to support you with your Assessment preparations. We would be delighted to work with you.

Book your Sample Lesson today.

Why the term 'Play Date Assessment' is SO misleading.

As a parent embarking on your 4+ Assessment journey for the first time, you will not know what to expect.

I speak to parents all.. the… time who tell me:

‘I wish we had started sooner.’

‘Why didn’t I know about you 9 months ago.’

‘Why did I believe what I was told.’

This is what they tell me.

They feel regret. They judge themselves for their choices. I always tell them not to. And that it is not their fault at all. If it is their first time, how on earth would they know?

Perhaps they heard from their neighbour or their best friend’s hairdresser. Sometimes these Chinese Whispers don’t help either.

My mission is to dispel these nonsensical things that parents will hear whilst on their 4+ Assessment journey and be very honest and sincere about the whole process.

What you then wish to do with the information I provide you with is of course completely up to you.

If I’ve helped even just one person to go through this process in a calm way with the knowledge that they needed in order to support their child in the best possible way then I have succeeded.

Onto the topic of this blog.

I spoke to a parent yesterday who is preparing her son for his 4+ Assessments at several North London Schools. She wants him to go to UCS at 4+ (Reception entry)

When we spoke, she was very confused.

She told me 100 different things in the space of two minutes. I told her she had to slow down.

She told me,’ UCS says that the Assessment will be a playdate so I’m not too worried. I don’t really see why I should prepare him.’

I told her that this is absolutely NOT the case and that she absolutely MUST prepare her child for his 4+ Assessment at UCS.

Having prepared hundreds of boys for this school, I know exactly what the Assessment will be like. It is not a playdate. 

The boys that I prepared last year for this school who had at least 9 months of Assessment preparation did very well at UCS at Round 1 and most passed at Round 2. 

The boys who started with me with less than 3 months of preparation were not successful. 

What does this tell you?

Well, what it tells me is that you absolutely do need to prepare for the 4+ Assessment at UCS. And you need to give yourself enough preparation time. 

9-12 months is ideal. 

I know exactly what is needed in order to be very successful at this school. And I am here to support you every step of the way.

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As a parent all you want is what's best for your child. But what is best when it comes to tuition?

I speak to so many parents each week who enquire about tuition with either myself or one of our exceptional teachers.

I hear from them and what I hear is how much they want what is best for their child.

I totally get that. I am a mother myself and I feel exactly the same.

But with so many options out there, how on earth do you know which one is the ‘best’?

Ultimately, what my clients want is for their child to be successful in their 4+ Assessments. What they want is for their child to have options. What they want is for their child to go in and show their ultimate best.

I went to the Googles and had a look for myself.

When you google ‘4+ Assessment preparation’, you are provided with 6 Tutoring Companies who prepare specifically for the 4+.

So who do you choose?

You choose the one perhaps who can come to you in person.

Please don’t base your selection solely on the fact that someone can be physically present in your home.

Do they actually have experience with the school/s that you are applying to?

Do they know why children have been unsuccessful?

Do they know why children have been successful?

Can they tell you which sorts of activities have come up at their school historically?

Please ask these questions!

The biggest objection I get from parents, is that they want someone in person (we are exclusively online and have been for nearly 4 years now).

Let me tell you, that most of these parents who have said no to me in the past have not been successful at gaining entry to their school of choice. And some of these parents come back to me for 7+ or 11+ Assessment preparation because they know my personal success rate is exceptional.

It is for 4+, 7+ and 11+ and everything in between.

You want what is best for your child.

Choose the best for them.

Book your Sample Lesson Today.

The truth about Merchant Taylors' at 4+

First of all it is very important that you know that at this school only 7-8 boys will pass the 4+ Assessment.

Here is what the school says about their 4+ Assessment process:

Candidates are invited to school in groups of 10-15 boys for a session that lasts about an hour.

• The assessments are informal and are based on the Early Learning Goals of the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum. 

• All assessments activities will be very similar to activities that children carry out in their current nursery.

• We contact nurseries to provide written reports for all candidates.

• We are looking for teachability and sociability in our 4+ assessments. We are not looking to find out what the children know but whether they have the potential to flourish in our learning environment.

MTs’ are therefore looking for a very specific type of boy who will ‘flourish’ at their school.

Most of our boys who sat Assessment at this school made it to the Waitlist. They are still there. Perhaps some boys who passed Merchant Taylors’ at 4+ will choose to attend another school such as Habs and therefore a place may become available.

If you are preparing for this school, I would highly encourage you to focus on the ‘teachability’ and ‘sociability’ aspect when preparing your son for Assessment at this school.

Book your Sample Lesson today and we will support you every step of the way to have the highest chance for success at Merchant Taylors’.