How to Prepare for the 11 Plus in Year 4 and Year 5
Year 4 and Year 5 are the years that decide most 11+ outcomes. Not Year 6. By the time September of Year 6 arrives, the work is largely consolidation. The bulk of the building happens in the 18 months before that.
Here is what each year, and each term within those years, should look like.
Year 4: The Foundation Year
Year 4 is not about exam practice. It is about building five things in particular: reading age, vocabulary, mental maths fluency, writing structure, and a sense that learning is normal and pleasant. Get those right, and Year 5 becomes far easier.
Year 4 autumn term
Goals: secure times tables to 12 by 12, build a daily reading habit of 20 minutes minimum, introduce structured paragraph writing.
Weekly rhythm:
- 20 minutes of reading per day, ideally with one short conversation about what they read
- 5 to 10 minutes of times tables most days, varied (forwards, backwards, mixed)
- Two short English sessions per week (one comprehension passage, one piece of writing), 20 minutes each
- One short maths session per week beyond school work, 20 minutes
- No formal 11+ papers. No reasoning yet.
Year 4 spring term
Goals: introduce verbal reasoning lightly, expand vocabulary, build comfort with multi step word problems in maths.
Weekly rhythm:
- Daily reading and times tables continue, as before
- Two English sessions per week, 25 to 30 minutes each
- One maths session per week, 25 to 30 minutes
- Introduce verbal reasoning once a fortnight, very lightly. The goal is exposure, not technique drilling.
- Continue to avoid timed papers
Year 4 summer term
Goals: assess where your child is. Identify strengths and gaps. Begin to introduce non verbal reasoning if not yet started.
An end of Year 4 diagnostic, whether informal at home or through a formal assessment, is hugely useful. It tells you what to prioritise in Year 5 autumn. Most parents are surprised by what their child does and does not know.
Year 4 summer holiday
Optional: a short summer course at the end of Year 4 for children who are eager and ready. A week or two of structured small group teaching can lift confidence and bridge to Year 5 nicely. For children who are tired or not yet hooked into reading, the priority is reading, swimming, fresh air, and time with family. Year 5 will demand everything they have. Start it rested.
Year 5: The Main Preparation Year
If your child is in Year 3 or Year 4, your single best investment is in the foundations the 11+ will eventually test. These are:
- Reading. Daily, varied, slightly above their level. Talk about words. This single habit builds vocabulary, comprehension and writing fluency at the same time.
- Times tables. Fluent up to 12 by 12 by the end of Year 4. Slow tables means slow mental maths, which means lost marks under exam pressure.
- Mental maths. Quick recall of number facts, basic operations, fractions, percentages.
- Writing structure. Can your child write a paragraph independently with a beginning, middle and end? If not, address this first.
- Curiosity. A general knowledge of the world, picked up through conversation, museums, documentaries, books. Genuinely useful in the new style of exam (Reading School, the ISEB) where breadth of knowledge matters.
Step 3: Begin formal preparation in Year 5
Year 5 is when serious work begins. By the end of Year 5, your child needs to be confident across English, maths, verbal reasoning and non verbal reasoning, comfortable with timed sections, and able to write a full creative piece in 25 to 30 minutes.
Year 5 autumn term
Goals: introduce structured weekly teaching across all four 11+ pillars. Begin homework discipline. Build a clear marking and feedback rhythm.
Weekly rhythm:
- One structured lesson per week, 60 to 90 minutes, ideally in a small group with a qualified teacher
- 60 to 90 minutes of homework, broken into two or three short sessions
- Daily reading, 20 to 30 minutes
- Targeted weak spot work, 5 to 10 minutes daily on specific areas like vocabulary, mental maths, or grammar
Total directed 11+ time: around two and a half hours per week. Plus reading.
Year 5 spring term
Goals: increase pace and difficulty. Begin timed sections (not yet full papers). Take the first mock exam.
Weekly rhythm:
- Lesson and homework as autumn, but content stretches into harder material
- Introduce one timed section per week (a 20 minute comprehension, a 15 minute mental maths drill, etc.)
- First mock exam in spring term. Frame it as practice, not performance.
- Vocabulary work intensifies: a target of 5 to 10 new words per week, used in writing
Total directed time: around three to four hours per week.
Year 5 summer term
Goals: full timed papers, deeper creative writing, two to three more mocks.
Weekly rhythm:
- One full timed paper per week, properly debriefed
- Creative writing under timed conditions, building from 20 minutes to 30
- Continued vocabulary work and weak spot focus
- Mock exams every three to four weeks across the term
Total directed time: around four to five hours per week. This is the heaviest week of the entire 11+ journey for most children. Watch carefully for signs of fatigue.
Year 5 summer holiday
For grammar school families: this is the final intensive. Two to three weeks of structured daily work (around 90 minutes a day, never more than two hours). Build in proper rest weeks before and after.
For independent school families: this is consolidation. The November ISEB pre test is still months away, but the holiday is your last clear window before the school year resumes.
What to avoid: working solidly through six weeks of holiday. A child who arrives at September burnt out will not perform.
Two principles to hold throughout
Principle one: pacing matters more than total volume. A child who works steadily for 18 months will outperform a child who crams for six. The brain consolidates learning over time. Cramming does not work.
Principle two: keep them whole. Football, music, friendships, sleep, family meals, all of it matters. A child who arrives at exam day with a full life behind them performs better than a child who has been narrowed for two years. Always.
How we run Years 4 and 5 at Academic Success
Our Year 4 weekly workshops are deliberately gentle. One hour, small group, qualified teachers, age appropriate content. We build the foundations: reading, vocabulary, structure, fluency. We do not run timed papers in Year 4.
Our Year 5 weekly workshops are where the proper preparation lives. Full curriculum across English, maths, verbal and non verbal reasoning. Weekly homework. Structured marking. Termly mocks from spring onward. Half term and summer intensives for the deeper push.
Want a clear plan for your child’s year group? Book a free 15 minute call and I will tell you what term you are in, what to focus on, and what realistic weekly hours look like.
Frequently asked questions
Is it too late to start in Year 5?
No. Year 5 autumn is when most children begin formal 11+ work. If you are starting in autumn term of Year 5, you are on time. If you are starting in spring or summer of Year 5, you can still cover the ground but the work needs to be more structured and consistent from week one.
What if my child is in Year 4 and behind on reading?
Reading is the priority above everything else. Suspend any thought of formal 11+ prep and put all your energy into building reading age and stamina. A child reading at age 8 cannot meaningfully do 11+ work. Once reading age catches up, the rest follows quickly.
How do I keep my child motivated through Year 5?
Realistic goals, regular small wins, and watching your own pressure level. Children mirror parental anxiety. Celebrate progress visibly. Build rest into the rhythm. And remember they are ten.
How much should I be involved in their work?
More in Year 4 than Year 5. By Year 5 your role is to organise, mark, encourage, and watch for signs of strain. The teaching itself becomes harder for most parents in Year 5, which is when external structure tends to start paying off.
Are intensive courses in the holidays a good idea?
Yes, used well. A focused half term or summer intensive can compress two months of progress into a week. Use them at the right moment in the calendar (not the start of summer, not the end), and pair them with proper rest before and after.
