Course Overview

We have a proven, structured syllabus that addresses the requirements of the various local school entrance exams and gradually introduces different techniques and concepts before bringing in timed papers of increasing difficulty towards the end of year 5. Please note that children are welcome to join at any stage, but catch up work may be necessary in some cases.

Small Group Tutoring

We believe that Elevate Eleven is somewhat unusual in offering a personalised and individual 11+ programme within a group situation. We strongly believe in the value of small group tutoring, as it is more cost effective for parents and less intimidating for the children. We are able to create an element of fun and healthy competition in each session and the children learn to support and build up each other’s confidence as they recognise they are ‘in it together’.

Personalised

Our curriculum is taught to all pupils regardless of ability, and we do not pre-select in order to make our success rate look good. However, the less able may need extra support in the form of different materials and guidance for parents. Our most able pupils are given extension work to stretch them further. In the spring term of year 5, pupils will begin working on papers specifically suited to their ability, and in the final term pupils will have their own bespoke learning programme according to their school choices and abilities.

Challenging

We always aim to challenge all pupils to reach the best of their ability, so for those high flyers who are naturally able and wanting more, we run extra scholarship workshops which present them with year 7 level work, tricky algebra and Junior Maths Olympiad questions to challenge them further. Please note that children who are ‘below average’ and struggling with their school curriculum may find Elevate Eleven too challenging in Year 5. Our Elevate Horizons programme would be more suitable for children who find learning difficult. We have lots of strategies to support those with dyslexia and ADHD. We recommend starting with our Year 4 foundation course which starts in line with the school curriculum before accelerating to Year 5 work in the Summer Term.

Fun

Whilst children wouldn’t generally consider tutoring to be how they like to spend their evenings after school, we genuinely believe that the majority of our pupils enjoy being in our sessions, spending time with their friends and challenging themselves to learn. We play educational games, ensure the lesson is interactive and let the children thrive in the group environment so they can learn from each other as well as us. Where we are based at a school, the children have a play and a snack before the session begins so they enjoy this time with their friends before the tutoring starts. The group dynamic certainly makes the whole experience feel more fun for children than traditional 1-1 tutoring.

Homework

We try to provide a relaxed environment for as long as possible and will mostly give ‘finishing off’ homework. However, during the final two terms where they are actively preparing for their specific exams, homework will include a timed paper and a topic (e.g. a maths topic or a creative writing activity) so this may take them around 2 hours a week at this stage. Whilst we are aware there are some children preparing for the 11+ who will be doing multiple hours a day in the final stages of preparation, we don’t recommend it as we believe happy and well rested children work more effectively and are able to retain information better.