Your Essential

Guide to the
11+ Exam

3
The 11+ exam: an introduction

The 11+ is a selective entrance Where is the 11+ taken?

examination for secondary school, used Correct at time of printing:

in those areas of the UK which still have CEM regions: Berkshire, Bexley, Birmingham,
Buckinghamshire, Devon, Gloucestershire, Shropshire,
grammar schools, and also by selective Walsall, Warwickshire, Wirral, Wolverhampton
independent schools across the country. GL regions: Dorset, Kent, Lancashire & Cumbria,
Lincolnshire, Medway, Northern Ireland, Wiltshire
It is taken towards the end of Year 5 or the
GL and CEM regions: Devon, Essex, Hertfordshire,
beginning of Year 6 at primary school and Trafford, Yorkshire
is used to identify the most academically-
able children. Which subjects are covered?
GL: English, maths, verbal reasoning and non-verbal
The content of the 11+ exam varies between different areas of
reasoning/spatial awareness (schools can choose any
the country, but generally it will focus on a combination of the
combination of these to best suit their selection policy)
following four subjects:
CEM: verbal reasoning, non-verbal reasoning and
English
numerical reasoning (‘verbal reasoning’ encompasses
Maths many of the skills tested in the GL English exam, including
Verbal reasoning comprehension. ‘Numerical reasoning’ includes the core
Non-verbal reasoning/spatial awareness maths skills needed for the GL exam.)

There are two main exam boards for the 11+ exam:
GL Assessment – previously known as NFER,
Which skills will be tested?
GL Assessment develop and administer 11+ exams in In both GL and CEM 11+ tests, there is a strong emphasis
the majority of grammar schools in the UK. on English and maths core skills. For English, this will include
grammar, punctuation and spelling, but particularly reading
CEM – developed by the Centre for Evaluation &
comprehension and vocabulary. For maths, strong arithmetic
Monitoring at Durham University.
skills and the ability to apply mathematical learning to
problem solving and data manipulation. For tests that include
Although they cover broadly the same topics there are
non-verbal reasoning/spatial awareness, logical skills will be
differences to the way the GL and CEM 11+ exams work.
sought, perhaps testing the ability to crack codes, visualise
To help you prepare your child for the 11+, we’ve summarised 3D shapes, etc.
the key differences between GL and CEM.

Top tip Applying to a grammar school: a brief timeline

Year 4: Ideally, you’ll decide in this school year if you Year 6: September/October:
want your child to attend a grammar school. This will Most 11+ exams are taken.
give you plenty of time to research schools and to start Year 6: October: 11+ exam results are issued before
developing your child’s core skills in English and maths. you will need to complete your Common Application
Beginning of Year 5: Visit potential schools Form – the application form used to apply for state
with your child and get a feel for if they’re the secondary schools. If your child has passed the 11+
right environment. exam for your chosen grammar schools, you can
Year 5: September: Create a 12-month preparation now list them in order of preference on your
plan to get your child ready for the 11+ exam Common Application Form.
(see p.4 of this guide).

2 Your Essential Guide to the 11+ Exam

Preparing for the 11+ exam

The format of your child’s 11+ exam The best way to do this is to contact your favoured grammar
schools directly and ask them about their admissions process.
depends very much on where you live and
what schools you are applying to, so the Once you know more about the exams your child will be
sitting, you can start creating a preparation plan for your child.
first thing you must do when preparing
your child for the 11+ is find out exactly Here is a suggested 12-month preparation plan based on one
created by 11+ tutor, Michellejoy Hughes:
what exams your child will be taking.

Decide which schools you’re applying to and research what the 11+ exam for
those schools consists of.
Speak to your child’s teacher and find out their results in any CATs/PIEs/PIMs or other
tests that they may have taken. Ask whether they think passing the 11+ is achieveable for
your child.
Use the Bond Placement Test to assess your child’s strengths and weaknesses.
Months (You can download a free copy of the Bond Placement test from the Bond 11+ website:
1-3: www.bond11plus.co.uk/free-resources). Make notes of any problematic areas
and create a learning plan weighted towards these areas.
Start working through the Bond Assessment Papers for your child’s age group.
Use the Bond ‘How to Do’ series to support any unknown topics or areas your child is
struggling with.
Work with your child to create a system of rewards and incentives to keep
them motivated throughout the year.

Your Essential Guide to the 11+ Exam 3

 Continue to work through the Bond Assessment Papers for your child’s age group.
Months
Strengthen problem areas with spelling lists, reading, Bond puzzle books, etc.
4-6:
Based on how your child is progressing, revise your learning plan.

Continue to work through the Bond Assessment Papers.

Months
Gradually introduce strict exam timings.
7-9:
Based on how your child is progressing, revise your learning plan.

Revise work in ‘bite-sized’ chunks for daily revision, or use the Bond
10 Minute Test series to achieve this.
Months Tighten exam timings to allow additional time for checking work.
10-12: Start using Bond 11+ test papers to prepare for the actual exam and the exam format.
Do a series of mock exams at home to get your child used to working in
exam conditions.

Bond Assessment Papers for GL and CEM exam boards

Bond Assessment Bond Assessment

Papers 10-11+ years Papers for CEM
10 – 11 years
(Subjects available:
English, Maths, Verbal Reasoning (Subjects available:
and Non-verbal Reasoning) English & Verbal Reasoning and
Maths & Non-verbal Reasoning)
Price: £7.99
Price: £7.99

4 Your Essential Guide to the 11+ Exam

Developing exam skills

For many children, the 11+ exam is their Exam habits

first experience of a formal exam under Completing practice tests and mock exams at home not
only improves subject knowledge and time management
timed conditions, so it’s really important skills, it also gives your child the opportunity to develop good
that you spend time developing your child’s exam habits, which will help them cope with the actual test
environment.
exam skills before the actual exam.
1. Exam routine – encourage your child to establish a routine
so that they develop good habits ahead of the real exam.
Timing Get them used to gathering together a sharp pencil and
Time management plays a big part when it comes to eraser, having a drink of water and going to the toilet
succeeding at the 11+. If a child works too slowly during before they do a mock exam at home.
the exam, they may end up running out of time and not
completing the test. Likewise, if a child rushes they could end 2. Dealing with distractions – some children struggle when
up making careless mistakes that will lose them vital marks. they go into an 11+ exam room because it’s a different
environment than they’re used to. Although the exam room
Here are some top tips to improve your will be quiet, for children who are used to practising in total
child’s time management: silence, noises such as coughs and sneezes or squeaking
chairs can be really off-putting.
1. Beat the buzzer – first and foremost, if your child
is still struggling to complete practice papers in the A good way of combatting this at home is to vary the
recommended time (45 minutes for most Bond test papers) places where your child does their practice tests, so that
start using a kitchen timer and encourage them to ‘beat they don’t start to feel that things need to be ‘just so’ before
the buzzer’ and complete the test before the buzzer goes completing a test. A bit of background noise or walking past
off. Perhaps start on shorter, ten minute tests to build their whilst they’re practising will also help them get used to any
confidence, then progress up to longer tests. small distractions that may occur in the actual exam.

2. Read ahead – particularly if your child is doing the CEM

11+ exam (where there are typically more questions to
answer than can be easily completed in allocated time),
it’s a good idea to get your child into the habit of spending
a few minutes at the start of the test going through the
paper and highlighting the questions that they think they
will struggle with. They should then go back to the start
of the test paper, work through all the questions they’re
confident with, then move on to the highlighted questions.
This means they won’t spend too long on questions they’re
struggling with, and miss answering the questions
they can do.
3. It’s ok to skip – many children struggle to complete tests Bond 11+ Test Papers
in the allocated time because they spend too long trying
to answer questions they’re stuck on. Your child should
for GL and CEM exam boards
understand that it’s ok to skip a question they have difficulty
with, they can always come back to it at the end if they
Bond 11+
have time.
Test Papers
4. Time to check – when you’re doing practice tests at home, Price: £9.99
try to find time for your child to get into the habit of finishing
with 5 minutes to spare in order to check their answers.
Bond 11+
5. Find the clock – get your child into the routine of finding CEM Test Papers
the clock when practicing at home so that they do this as Price: £9.99
soon as they enter the exam room.

Your Essential Guide to the 11+ Exam 5

Exam day

The night before Immediately afterwards

Get everything ready – together, pack up everything your Do ask how it went – whilst you don’t want to spend
child will need for the exam (pencils, eraser, water bottle, ages doing this, it’s a good idea to hear from your child
inhaler, etc.) and pop it by the front door. what went well and what questions they found difficult –
particularly if you have other entrance exams still to come.
Do something active – try and get your child to do
You’ll also want to know if anything disruptive happened in
something physically active the night before to help diffuse
the exam room, e.g. the fire bell went off, or another child
any nerves and make sure they’re ready for a good
was ill, just in case it becomes pertinent in the case
night’s sleep.
of an appeal.
Resist the temptation to cram – earlier in the day, you
Have something fun planned (for both of you!) – it might
might have gone over a final few facts, but now you should
not be for the same day – exams do tend to take it out
find something relaxing to do so that your child
of children – but it’s good to have something fun to look
gets plenty of rest.
forward to after all the hard work you’ve both put in.

On the day
Have breakfast – make sure your child is up in time to have
their normal breakfast. Don’t be tempted to change what
they normally have for something that’s meant to be ‘brain
food’, the main thing is that they eat something to give them
the energy to get through the exam.
Check the traffic – just in case, and make sure you leave
with plenty of time to spare.
Exam habits - go through their exam routine with them:
remind them to go to the toilet beforehand and find where
the clock is when they first enter the exam room.
Good luck! As you wish them well, remind them of how
much practice they’ve done, that they’re ready to take the
test and that you’re confident they will perform to the
best of their abilities.

6 Your Essential Guide to the 11+ Exam

Results, applying to
secondary schools and appeals

The results of most 11+ exams are Appeals

returned before the end of October, On National Offers Day in March you will be told by letter
whether you’ve been successful in obtaining a place at your
when you must submit your Common first-choice school. If your application was unsuccessful you
Application Form with your list of should automatically receive details of the appeals procedure.
preferred secondary schools.
Things to think about before appealing:
If your child hasn’t passed the 11+ – you can now select At the heart of the appeals process is a balancing of the
your school preferences from your local, non-selective child’s needs versus the school’s. In a successful parental
secondary schools OR you can still list your preferred appeal, the panel will be convinced that it would be more
grammar schools on your Common Application Form. problematic for the child to be denied a place at their preferred
In this instance you will be required to appeal in March on school than for the school to take on an additional student.
the grounds of non-qualification and prove that your child’s
performance in the 11+ exam was not indicative of their
The appeals process can be very time-consuming and
academic ability.
emotionally draining. Before deciding to appeal, you
If your child has passed the 11+ – this still doesn’t should consider:
necessarily guarantee them a place at your first-choice
grammar school. If your first-choice grammar school is The appeals policy for the school: if a school is
oversubscribed, additional criteria will be used to allocate oversubscribed, criteria are put in place to select pupils.
places, including the distance between the school You will find this information in the school’s prospectus.
and your child’s home address. The pass mark: if your child only just made the pass
mark, or missed it, you will need to prove that your child’s
performance in the 11+ exam was not indicative of their
academic ability.
Why is this particular school right for your child? At the
appeal, you will have to prove why this school and not the
others on your Common Application Form is right
for your child.

Your Essential Guide to the 11+ Exam 7

Books and resources
for 11+ exam success
Bond 11+ Assessment Papers How To Do Guides
for CEM and GL Assessment Understand all the different topics covered by the
Realistic practice questions for the 11+, 11+ exam and learn how your child should
with practical tips to help you guide 11+ revision. answer each question type.

Bond 11+: English: Bond 11+: English:

Assessment Papers: £7.99 £9.99
How to Do
10-11+ years

Bond 11+: Maths: Bond 11+: Maths:

£9.99
Assessment Papers: £7.99 How to Do
10-11+ years

Bond 11+: Bond 11+:

Verbal Reasoning: Verbal Reasoning: £9.99
£7.99 How to Do
Assessment Papers:
10-11+ years

Bond 11+:
Bond 11+: Non-verbal Reasoning: £9.99
Non-verbal Reasoning: How to Do
£7.99
Assessment Papers:
10-11+ years

Bond 11+: CEM English/

Bond 11+ Maths and Verbal Reasoning £9.99
Non-verbal Reasoning How to Do
£7.99
Assessment Papers for the
CEM 11+ tests: 10-11+ years
Bond 11+: CEM Maths/
Bond 11+: English and Non-Verbal Reasoning’ £9.99
Verbal Reasoning: How to Do
£7.99
Assessment Papers for the
CEM 11+ tests: 10-11+ years

Bond Online
Unlimited access to thousands of 11+ practice questions,
Bond 11+ Test Papers for both GL Assessment and CEM 11+ exams. Each
for CEM and GL Assessment question is auto-marked and accompanied by instant
Realistic 11+ timed test papers, designed for feedback to promote independent learning, whilst progress
practising under test conditions. reports help you monitor your child’s progress.

Monthly: £5.99
Bond 11+: Mixed: (Subject to a minimum
£9.99 Bond Online monthly subscription
Standard Test Papers
period of 3 months)
Annual: £50.00

Bond 11+: CEM:

£9.99
Test Papers Parents’ Guide
The essential manual for all parents whose children
are about to embark on their 11+ journey.

Bond 11+:
The Parents’ Guide £12.99
to the 11+