Option 1: take it easy and do nothing
Option 2: do a few practice papers
Again, this is a perfectly valid option, that works for many children. If your child is already excelling at school, completing a few practice papers (the sort that you can buy from places like Amazon) in the run up to the test might well be enough to get them through.
Before opting for this strategy, we believe that it makes sense to get your child to take at last one practice paper in each of the subjects their chosen school will test them in (if you're not sure what tests those are, check out the school's website). Try to do this at least six months before they're due to take the real test, so you'll have time to change tack if you feel you need to, and make sure they complete the tests under timed conditions. If they score 75% or more in all the tests they take, six months ahead of the real thing, we believe that you can feel pretty confident that this approach will work for you, though it makes sense to check through their results to see if there are any areas worth concentrating on (even if they got 80% of the answers right, they still got 20% wrong, so there's plenty of room for improvement!) and plan to get them to do a few more practice papers before the real test, to keep their head in the game.
Option 3: one-to-one tuition
A good tutor can be invaluable, providing targeted support where it’s needed most, but there are a couple of downsides:
Firstly, it's pricey - with 11 Plus tutoring ranging from £30 to over £60 per hour, the cost of weekly lessons can really add up!
And secondly, we hate to say it, but one hour a week often simply won't be enough on its own! Learning new academic skills is like learning a musical instrument - your child won’t become the next Elton John just by having a weekly piano lesson, just like Ed Sheeran didn’t become a global star by strumming his guitar once a week! Regular practice is key.
11 Plus tuition works best when combined with regular homework to practice the skills your child is learning, and to ensure the learning is fully embedded before it has been forgotten!
Option 4: daily practice
We don't like blowing our own trumpet (and we don't practise it daily, so we won't be getting any better at it!), but this is where Club 11 Plus really shines. Our online school offers all the lessons and quizzes your child needs to cover the entire GL-based 11 Plus curriculum. There are some obvious advantages here:
Firstly, it's affordable. At just £19.99 per month, this option is a tiny fraction of the cost of one-to-one tuition.
Secondly, just like learning to play the piano or the guitar, daily practice is by far the most effective way of making sure that your child's skills will improve, day by day, becoming firmly embedded in their muscle memories.
Your child might need encouragement to stay on track, but the rewards - both academically and in confidence - are well worth it!
Option 5: a balanced mix of tuition, daily homework and practice papers
The gold standard of 11 Plus preparation combines daily practice with weekly tuition and past paper practice. This method offers the very best chance of 11 Plus test success, but comes with considerations:
Cost: as we've already said, one-to-one tuition can be very expensive.
Stress levels: overloading your child can be counterproductive.
As parents, our goal is to try to balance our ambition with our children's well-being. Hard work is important, but success isn’t just about passing - it’s about learning valuable skills that will benefit your child well beyond the 11 Plus test.
The Club 11 Plus gold standard approach
At Club 11 Plus, we offer a limited number of one-to-one 11 Plus tuition slots with one of our most experienced online tutors. Our one-to-one tutoring is ideal for children who want to prepare for GL-based 11 Plus tests, and is structured around the lessons and quizzes in the Club 11 Plus online school.
And because we know how important that daily practice is, our one-to-one tuition course come with daily homework, set and monitored by your child's online tutor, plus unlimited access to the hundreds of lessons and quizzes in the Club 11 Plus online school, providing your child with the opportunity to have oodles of practice, 24/7.
At Club 11 Plus, we believe that hard work should never be stressful. Whether your child passes the 11 Plus test or not, the effort they put in will help them develop vital academic skills, resilience, and confidence in their own abilities. With the right balance of preparation, they’ll have the best chance to reach their full potential, without being overwhelmed by pressure or panic.
If you’d like to explore how Club 11 Plus can support your child with our one-to-one online tuition option, you can learn more here, or find out more about our huge array of online 11 Plus lessons and quizzes here.
As a school specialising in online 11 Plus tuition, you might well assume that we would totally dismiss this approach, but actually, for some lucky families, it really is a totally valid option!
Many parents wonder if it’s best to avoid extra preparation and let their child approach the test naturally. If they're clever enough to pass, they'll pass anyway, right?
Possibly - but many 11 Plus questions are unlike anything your child has seen before, and the test requires not just subject knowledge but also speed and strategy. Without preparation, even an unusually bright child might struggle to complete the papers in time, or stumble on verbal and non-verbal reasoning questions requiring skills that aren’t typically taught in schools, but that can improve significantly with practice.
Sadly, in today’s competitive environment, doing nothing could mean your child simply doesn't do justice to their own abilities in the test, and could miss out on a place at a school in which they could have thrived.
Many parents wonder if it’s best to avoid extra preparation and let their child approach the test naturally. If they're clever enough to pass, they'll pass anyway, right?
Possibly - but many 11 Plus questions are unlike anything your child has seen before, and the test requires not just subject knowledge but also speed and strategy. Without preparation, even an unusually bright child might struggle to complete the papers in time, or stumble on verbal and non-verbal reasoning questions requiring skills that aren’t typically taught in schools, but that can improve significantly with practice.
Sadly, in today’s competitive environment, doing nothing could mean your child simply doesn't do justice to their own abilities in the test, and could miss out on a place at a school in which they could have thrived.
Option 2: do a few practice papers
Again, this is a perfectly valid option, that works for many children. If your child is already excelling at school, completing a few practice papers (the sort that you can buy from places like Amazon) in the run up to the test might well be enough to get them through.
Before opting for this strategy, we believe that it makes sense to get your child to take at last one practice paper in each of the subjects their chosen school will test them in (if you're not sure what tests those are, check out the school's website). Try to do this at least six months before they're due to take the real test, so you'll have time to change tack if you feel you need to, and make sure they complete the tests under timed conditions. If they score 75% or more in all the tests they take, six months ahead of the real thing, we believe that you can feel pretty confident that this approach will work for you, though it makes sense to check through their results to see if there are any areas worth concentrating on (even if they got 80% of the answers right, they still got 20% wrong, so there's plenty of room for improvement!) and plan to get them to do a few more practice papers before the real test, to keep their head in the game.
Option 3: one-to-one tuition
A good tutor can be invaluable, providing targeted support where it’s needed most, but there are a couple of downsides:
Firstly, it's pricey - with 11 Plus tutoring ranging from £30 to over £60 per hour, the cost of weekly lessons can really add up!
And secondly, we hate to say it, but one hour a week often simply won't be enough on its own! Learning new academic skills is like learning a musical instrument - your child won’t become the next Elton John just by having a weekly piano lesson, just like Ed Sheeran didn’t become a global star by strumming his guitar once a week! Regular practice is key.
11 Plus tuition works best when combined with regular homework to practice the skills your child is learning, and to ensure the learning is fully embedded before it has been forgotten!
Option 4: daily practice
We don't like blowing our own trumpet (and we don't practise it daily, so we won't be getting any better at it!), but this is where Club 11 Plus really shines. Our online school offers all the lessons and quizzes your child needs to cover the entire GL-based 11 Plus curriculum. There are some obvious advantages here:
Firstly, it's affordable. At just £19.99 per month, this option is a tiny fraction of the cost of one-to-one tuition.
Secondly, just like learning to play the piano or the guitar, daily practice is by far the most effective way of making sure that your child's skills will improve, day by day, becoming firmly embedded in their muscle memories.
Your child might need encouragement to stay on track, but the rewards - both academically and in confidence - are well worth it!
Option 5: a balanced mix of tuition, daily homework and practice papers
The gold standard of 11 Plus preparation combines daily practice with weekly tuition and past paper practice. This method offers the very best chance of 11 Plus test success, but comes with considerations:
Cost: as we've already said, one-to-one tuition can be very expensive.
Stress levels: overloading your child can be counterproductive.
As parents, our goal is to try to balance our ambition with our children's well-being. Hard work is important, but success isn’t just about passing - it’s about learning valuable skills that will benefit your child well beyond the 11 Plus test.
The Club 11 Plus gold standard approach
At Club 11 Plus, we offer a limited number of one-to-one 11 Plus tuition slots with one of our most experienced online tutors. Our one-to-one tutoring is ideal for children who want to prepare for GL-based 11 Plus tests, and is structured around the lessons and quizzes in the Club 11 Plus online school.
And because we know how important that daily practice is, our one-to-one tuition course come with daily homework, set and monitored by your child's online tutor, plus unlimited access to the hundreds of lessons and quizzes in the Club 11 Plus online school, providing your child with the opportunity to have oodles of practice, 24/7.
Final thoughts: a supportive approach to success
At Club 11 Plus, we believe that hard work should never be stressful. Whether your child passes the 11 Plus test or not, the effort they put in will help them develop vital academic skills, resilience, and confidence in their own abilities. With the right balance of preparation, they’ll have the best chance to reach their full potential, without being overwhelmed by pressure or panic.
If you’d like to explore how Club 11 Plus can support your child with our one-to-one online tuition option, you can learn more here, or find out more about our huge array of online 11 Plus lessons and quizzes here.