Independent Schools Birmingham
Independent Schools Entrance Examinations Preparation
Independent schools are schools which charge fees instead of being funded by the state. There are a number of independents in and around the Midlands and many offer bursaries or assisted places but competition for these places is fierce.
Local Independent Schools
Although they must be registered with the government, they do not necessarily have to follow the National Curriculum. There are around 2000 Independent Schools in the UK currently catering for about 9% of children being educated at GCSE level and 13% at A-level.
Most independent schools now offer bursaries or assisted places, to encourage talented children of less well-off families to join their school. Assisted places can be worth up to 100% of school fees, though most are much less than this. The value of the bursary is determined by means-testing a family’s financial circumstances, including income and assets.
Independent Schools Scholarships
Most Independent Schools also offer Scholarships to attract the most talented pupils to their school. These Scholarships can be focused on academic, sporting, musical or artistic achievement; or a combination of these. Scholarships are highly competitive and only awarded to a very select few.
Smaller Class Sizes
Independent Schools traditionally offer smaller class sizes than state funded schools, a high teacher to pupil ratio, excellent academic results and a disciplined environment. They also typically provide a wide cross-curricular programme of sport, music, drama, and art. Most independent schools are highly selective academically, requiring children to have an excellent grasp of mathematical concepts and English comprehension and writing.
At Sutton Tutorials, we cover a carefully-prepared curriculum for students preparing for places at independent schools.
When should children do the course and how long is it?
If children are preparing for an Independent School Exam then they normally start the creative writing course in the summer of Year 5. This gives enough time to complete the work before exams in October/ November.
The course is probably too advanced for children in year 4 unless they are very bright.
The course is twenty lessons covered over the course of twenty weeks and starts after Easter. It is often the case that children will be working on other exam elements as well as creative writing so we have taken this into account when developing the course.
Children who use this course fully will see a significant improvement in their creative writing ability.
What our creative writing course delivers
Our creative course covers all aspects of creative writing and helps children to develop the skills necessary to attain the highest marks. The course helps children understand:
- What elements of their work attracts the most marks.
- What exercises to do to develop their core skills so that they don’t drop marks needlessly.
- That simple stories with excellent descriptions, vocabulary and literary techniques are where their focus should be – we show them how to do this, step by step.
- We show them how to develop a descriptions bank so the bulk of their creativity is done before they enter the exam room.
- We help them plan stories and then write them.
- We encourage them to improve their stories through self-criticism and re-drafting.
The course covers the ground better than any book could hope to and has proven to be very effective in helping children improve. Many children find their stories have gone through a very major step-change for the better having completed the course.
Creative writing advice
Please click here for more advice on the creative writing task for the 11-plus entrance examinations for independent schools.
Independent schools mock exams
Sutton Tutorials also offers mock exams for Independent school entrance examinations. They are as realistic as we possibly can, following the same format as KES for the boys and KEHS for the girls.
Independent School Mock Exams
Sutton Tutorials hold a series of GL mock exams for children throughout the Midlands area, regardless of whether they attend tuition classes with ourselves or not, in the months leading up to the 11 Plus exam.
We cater for children across the whole of the Midlands with our 11 plus exams.
Book your child on our 11 plus mock exams today.
Reputation Founded on Personal Recommendation
Our reputation is founded on personal recommendation and years of excellent working relationships with parents and students from local schools. The majority of our students continue to come through personal recommendation. This emphasis on the student has been the guiding principle in the development and remarkable success of Sutton Tutorials.
We help a significant number of students in preparation for specific examinations – selective entry grammar schools and Independent Schools, GCSE or A level. We also provide regular support through the academic year to students looking to raise their confidence and achievement generally within school.
Do enjoy your visit to our website and we look forward to hearing from you soon!