Eleven Plus Problems

Please - ask your child to go through all the work done so far this year at school, at home and in lessons.

Make a list of any problems.

Go over the problems.

Build confidence.

There is little time left now to waste until the examinations.

I spent a lot of my childhood on my Grandparents farm. My Grandmother did not like food being wasted. She would often say: “To waste food is a sin.”

A lot of the food we ate came from the farm itself. The meat often came from our cattle – because my grandfather delivered meat on a regular basis to the local butchers. Ducks, chickens and turkeys were all bred for slaughter on the farm. The fruit came from in season fruit in the large orchard. Vegetables were grown for resale.

Milk, cream and butter came from the dairy herd.

One thing we never ate on the farm was rabbits. My grandmother would not allow them near the house.

So when you have fed what you eat you tend not to waste. When you have grown what you eat you savour. When you are a good cook the whole meal is delight.

So chat with your child. Encourage him or her to go over what has been done during the last year. Remind your child of happy sessions working together. Talk about all the work that has been done in preparation. Discuss how the whole family overcame problems. Explain that wonderful food is not always achieved by following a recipe slavishly. The challenge comes in doing well with what is in front of you. If you have a spare duck you eat it. If you chickens lay a few extra eggs eat them or share them out.

Above all try to make your child feel adventurous about solving problems in the examination. And please – a gentle reminder not to waste time on questions that are too hard.

"To waste time is a sin!"