FSL 11+ Course - Week 8

Week 8 – What We Cover

This week, we work on the following:

English: Comprehension: FSL Blue book (pages 11-16)

In this session we start Comprehension and work through one together – children have different techniques for these and that’s fine, but generally we say that it’s a good idea to have a rough idea of the questions first by skimming through them, so they know what to look out for in the text. 

We also try and get the students to pause briefly at the end of every paragraph when they do read it, and self check that they they fully understand ‘what’s going on’, as well as question what the character’s feelings/emotions would be at that point of the passage. (At 11+ level, they are no longer just ‘fact finding’ in a passage – they have to look a bit deeper for underlining meaning. It can be a weak area for students, but it can easily be improved if they are quite systematic about it). 

Verbal Reasoning: Algebra (FSL Green book, pages 22-23)

This is a maths-based Verbal Reasoning type called ‘Algebra’. This is Algebra (as most would know it) at its most basic – when letters stand for numbers (please note that we’ll be covering Algebra in trickier equations later in the course). Questions are laid out as follows, and students have to find the LETTER that’s the answer. 

A = 4, B = 8, C = 2, D = 10, E = 18

A x C + D = E

A good tip is to put the numbers above the letters (so 4 over the A etc.) so they’re easier to work out/check later. This type tests the children’s speed and accuracy of their mental maths – whilst it’s easy in method, they must be careful that they’ve worked it out correctly each time. 

For a list of the homework this week, please see below:

Week 8 – Homework

• FSL Yellow Course Homework Book (pages 43-49)

• Collins NVR book – Complete Test 1 (note, no timed conditions)

• Any incomplete classwork (optional)