Y4 11+ Week Commencing 5th October (Block 1 - Week 5 of 6)

5 Oct

I hope you had a lovely weekend.

As we come towards the end of our first block, it has been wonderful to see the children settling into their sessions and becoming more confident in their learning.

As we move forward, we want to encourage children to develop the habit of little and often. Regular, short periods of practice are one of the best ways to strengthen understanding, build confidence and help children remember what they have learned.

Practice at Home

Homework and Kahoot quizzes give children valuable opportunities to revisit the skills covered in their sessions. The 10-minute practice tests are just as important, helping children develop accuracy, speed and confidence.

We would really encourage you to make these 10 minutes a regular part of your child's routine. Even when children are happy to work independently, sitting with them, encouraging them and celebrating their effort can make a real difference.

Ten minutes regularly is far more valuable than trying to do everything at once.

Focus Sessions

Our Focus Sessions give children the chance to spend three weeks exploring one area in greater depth. They revisit key skills, try different types of questions and develop strategies they can use independently.

At Year 4, our aim is to build strong foundations and help children become increasingly confident when tackling something they find challenging.

There is no expectation to attend every Focus Session. We will sometimes recommend particular sessions if we feel your child would benefit from some extra practice or reinforcement.

Three weeks. One focus. Stronger understanding. Greater confidence.

Find out more here: Focus Sessions

Reading at Home

Regular reading is another important part of your child's progress. It helps develop fluency, vocabulary, comprehension and reading speed, all of which support learning across the curriculum.

Please take a look at our reading information here: Reading at Home

We have also attached a short reading assessment for you to complete with your child. Once returned to Nic, Sarah or myself, we can look at their accuracy, fluency and understanding and offer some individual suggestions to support them at home.

Thank you for your continued support. When sessions, homework, quizzes, practice and reading all work together, children make the strongest progress.

Our goal is simple: to help every child build strong foundations, develop confidence and become an increasingly independent learner.

A note for our Year 4 pupils

We’d also like to reassure our Year 4 families that we are now beginning the 11+ preparation journey.

At this stage, some of the question types, techniques and skills your child encounters may feel new or challenging — and that is completely normal. There is no expectation for pupils to know everything straight away.

Our focus at this stage is on building strong foundations, developing confidence and gradually familiarising pupils with the different styles of questions they may come across as they progress through their 11+ preparation.

The priority is steady progress, confidence and helping each child develop the skills they need to become an independent and successful learner.

Understanding the 11+ Preparation

For families considering grammar school entry in the West Midlands, the 11+ test uses GL Assessment-style materials. Preparation involves developing skills across areas including English, maths, verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning.

Throughout Year 4, we introduce these areas gradually, allowing pupils plenty of time to understand the different techniques, strengthen their core knowledge and develop positive exam habits — all without placing unnecessary pressure on them.

New Vocabulary Quizzes

We have also introduced new KAHOOT vocabulary quizzes for the children. The words have been carefully selected to link with the learning they will be doing either that week or in the weeks ahead.

We would really encourage you to have a go at the vocabulary quiz with your child before their lesson. This will help them become familiar with the words in advance and give them greater confidence when they encounter them during their lesson. Details are below!

Potential Changes to 11+ Testing Dates

We also want to make you aware of a potential change to the timing of grammar school entrance testing.

There is currently increasing discussion around some 11+ tests moving from September of Year 6 to July of Year 5. Nothing has been officially announced for our area at this stage, so we do not want to create unnecessary concern. However, changes of this nature are already being introduced in some grammar school regions, and there is a possibility that testing dates could move earlier.

For this reason, we feel it is important to prepare in advance and ensure that our Year 4 pupils have a strong foundation, whatever the eventual testing arrangements may be. Our approach will remain gradual, positive and focused on building confidence rather than placing additional pressure on children.

We will continue to monitor any announcements and keep parents updated as soon as we have confirmed information.

You can find further information about the potential changes here: Potential Changes to 11+ Testing Dates

Lessons and Attendance

A quick reminder that lessons run Monday to Saturday. If your child is unable to attend their usual session, please let us know in advance. Where possible, we will always try to accommodate them in an alternative session.

As always, if you have any questions about your child’s progress, the 11+ process or anything covered in lessons, please do get in touch. We are always happy to help.

We are looking forward to a positive, productive and successful term ahead, and to supporting your children as they take these important first steps on their 11+ journey.

Missed our parent workshop? Find information here!

The video will be uploaded shortly but pertinent information is available to you (apologies for the delay as there is technical problems)

BLOCK ONE

Week 1: week commencing 7th September

Week 2: week commencing 14th September

Week 3: week commencing 21st September

Week 4: week commencing 28th September

Week 5: week commencing 5th October

Week 6: week commencing 12th October

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THINGS TO BOOK

BLOCK TWO

Is now bookable - BOOK HERE

Week 1: week commencing 19th October

OCTOBER HALF TERM 26th October - no weekly lessons

Week 2: week commencing 2nd November

Week 3: week commencing 9th November

Week 4: week commencing 16th November

Week 5: week commencing 23rd November

Week 6: week commencing 30th November

VERBAL REASONING FOCUS SESSIONSBOOK HERE

Our Verbal Reasoning Focus Sessions are a three-week deep dive into the subject.

We teach concepts explicitly, breaking down the skills and strategies children need, before giving them opportunities to practise.

We then revisit those concepts throughout the three weeks, helping children strengthen their understanding and become more confident applying the strategies to different question types. The aim isn't simply to complete more questions. It's to develop secure strategies, deeper understanding and greater independence — so children can apply what they've learned during their own study at home.

Three weeks. One subject. Explicit teaching, repeated practice and secure strategies.

Please note if you cannot make either of these sessions please let me know. If there is enough demand, I can offer the sessions out on a different day of the week!

MONDAYS 4:30PM OR SATURDAYS 2:30PM

Week 1: week commencing 19th October

OCTOBER HALF TERM 26th October - no weekly lessons

Week 2: week commencing 2nd November

Week 3: week commencing 9th November

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VOCABULARY

WORD OF THE WEEK: Candid (Find a synonym, antonym and put it into a sentence)

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This week’s KAHOOT quiz pin: (09900260 Vocabulary Quiz - Block 1 Week 5)

Remember to play through Kahoot.it using name1, name2 etc.

CONGRATULATIONS TO AMANVEER as this week’s winner! You receive 10 raffle tickets!

DOWNLOAD THE VOCABULARY LIST HERE

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THIS WEEK’S VIDEO

English Comprehension - True or False

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HOMEWORK

Unsure how to d o homework or independent study - watch this link

Finish the booklet from the lesson and return in the following week. Remember to complete the vocab in context.

Homework is in the 8-9 CGP Practice Books ORDER HERE

NVR P6-9. MATHS P6-9

REMEMBER: to mark the homework with your child and bring it to next lesson.

Complete at least 3 tests from each of the 10min test books. REMEMBER to mark this with your child daily & go through mistakes. Suggested time table is available in our 11+ guide. https://www.elevenplussuccess.com/11-useful-documents