CEM and GL Examinations

Around the time your child will be completing last minute revision the Notting Hill Carnival will be taking place. Many books and articles on `How to Study’ suggest that  cramming up to the last minute does not really work. There must be the occasional break for a little self- indulgence.

Seeing a troop of armed and excited soldiers advancing is always an exciting. The word `troop’ was often used for a group of cavalry soldiers . Your child may drop his or her Eleven Plus book in anticipation if this troop was on horseback!

The CEM and GL examinations are different – but elements are remarkably similar. After all a percentage is a percentage and an `Odd One Out’ is an `Odd One Out. Some children will be writing both styles of paper. We wish them well. 

And if your child should feel tired then offer the immortal words: “You brave little trooper!”

11+ and Dyslexia

On a recent 11+ course we had the privilege of working with a child who had been diagnosed with dyslexia. The report from the Educational Psychologist pointed to difficulty with spelling and writing. The spatial side, however, was very strong.

We should imagine that some dyslexic children will do well in later life in careers in the fields of geology, biology, engineering, pharmacy and zoology. (Having re-read that last sentence it looks as if studying subjects with an `ology’ at the end of the word should suit at least some dyslexic students!)

If there is any credence in these observations then it may seem that a number of dyslexic children should have a strong spatial side. The word `Minecraft’ does not have an `ology’ but does require exceptional spatial skills. In Minecraft children can build constructions within a 3D world. The game is incredibly popular and has the ability to hold the attention of children.

When children start talking about hosting a Minecraft server and acquiring a variety of skins then parents will be aware of the grip the game has on their children. There are some who would argue that Minecraft does much to stimulate the spatial areas of the brain – and thus ready children for the demands of the complexity of subjects like chemistry.

When your child next plays Minecraft, ask him or her, once the game is finished, if it is possible to interpret, and attempt to explain, this  chemistry diagram?