Eleven Plus Realism

There were a number of school fetes today – in our area – and more than likely round the country. The essential ingredients of a fete are:

• A small, but dedicated, group of parents who are willing to talk, and plan.

• A date set far in advance – but about to be overcome by a larger event somewhere else in town.

• A willingness of other parents to attend, participate and spend money!

• Good weather.

• Many stalls manned, and `womaned’, by enthusiastic parents who want to share in the excitement of the day.

• Lots of children who `need’ a myriad of discards from other families.

• A caretaker who wants everything to go well.

• A warm and caring Head Teacher and Staff who look forward to the event.

In terms of extra tuition it means that some teachers are happily willing to sacrifice their Saturday jobs to go to the fete. (This I how I landed up testing today.)

A mother and child came in. He was the first child we had seen who had passed through the Making Good Progress pilot scheme. The mother was highly complementary about the benefits to her son. He had had help with tables and division. He had really enjoyed the one to one contact with a different teacher from his school.

So this is a `good feeling’ account. Good weather, great children and a wonderful and realistic mother. Being a teacher is incredibly rewarding at times.