News, Reviews & Events

29th March

Testimonials

We wanted to share this great review for Sam, our Saturday School English tutor!

"Amazing in communication and delivering effective and individualised teaching.

My daughter loves her lessons and has showed a very good interest in the subject after it has been very challenging for her."

 

21st March

Testimonials

This week we wanted to share a wonderful review from a parent for our Physics tutor James.

"James is a very experienced teacher and this is clearly reflected in his teaching methods. He keeps me informed with the content covered and puts my daughter through various tasks ensuring he builds her foundation and keeps her challenged. He follows up with notes covered during the class.

He has been making the class enjoyable with experiments and the use of various teaching tools.

Excellent teacher!"

 

Saturday School New Dates

We are adding further dates for our 11+ Saturday School classes for Year 5's at Belleville School 10am - 1pm. . They will continue after the holidays from the 22nd April - 27th May and the 10th June - 15th July and cover Maths, English, NVR and VR. 

Please get in contact to book your place. 

 

14th March 

Testimonials

This week we wanted to share this lovely review for Nicola, our online Science tutor.

"A genuinely committed teacher! My daughter loves her chemistry classes with Nicola. Nicola's teaching techniques allows my daughter to grasp concepts and retain them.

Nicola has definitely provided a significant source of motivation and inspiration.

Thank you, Nicola."

7th March 

This week, we wanted to celebrate our 11+ students and tutors.

We are happy to share the news that our students have been offered places at Dulwich College, Epsom College, Francis Holland School, King's College Wimbledon, Kingston Grammar School, Latymer Upper School, Reed's School, St Paul's School and Westminster School.

Fantastic results and huge congratulations to all!! 
 

1st March 

Testimonials

We have just received this amazing review from a very happy parent for Era. Their child got offers for all the schools that he applied to and accepted a place at Westminster.

"Era has been wonderful support; she always came prepared, positive, with a clear idea of what needed to be worked on. She kept me updated on my son’s progress with meticulous detail. Her approach is collaborative and consultative, so when I felt we needed to spend some time preparing for a particular school, with their specific requirements and tests, she easily pivoted and focused on the immediate task and goal.

It’s been an absolute pleasure working with Era. We have used other tutors and we know first hand that it’s not easy to make the student work hard while building a positive relationship and having fun. Era was fantastic at that. She was engaging, positive, motivating and laser-focused on areas ear-marked for improvement.

I cannot recommend Era highly enough."

 

21st February 

Testimonials

We have just received this fantastic review for Sophia, our 11+ English tutor! 

" We have been so happy to have Sophia as a key part of our daughter's learning journey this last year.

They have really clicked.  Sophia is enthusiastic, encouraging and interested.  They have great conversations and, with Sophia’s guidance, our daughter's confidence, vocabulary and structure have really improved.  She loves the subject, but particularly the time that she spends with Sophia and comes bouncing out of her sessions.

She’s an excellent teacher who really conveys a passion for her subject, sets appropriate levels of work and gives extremely clear, prompt and full feedback on the lessons. 

Thank you for sending her our way.  She is a joy."

 

Year 5 11+ Saturday School Courses 2023

We will be running these from the 25th February to the 1st April at Belleville Primary School to help Year 5 students prepare for the 11+.

These courses are delivered in person and follow the Exceptional Academics 11+ curriculum in English, Verbal Reasoning, Mathematics and Non-Verbal Reasoning.  The three-hour, daily sessions are split between Maths/NVR and English/VR with a short comfort break in the middle.  Homework, self-marking schemes and personalised teacher feedback is provided together with a progress report at the end of the week. Each course curriculum is created by Dara and Matthew, the Directors of EA, and offers breadth and depth of teaching and learning in each topic, and are tailor-made to meet the requirements of the schools to which attendees are applying.

Our course facilitators are experienced 11+ tutors with unblemished records of academic success.  To keep children stimulated, content and activities are varied and include games to make learning fun and memorable.   By covering diverse topics, questions and activities on each course, EA pupils can feel really confident and calm entering each examination, prepared for anything that may come up.  

Please do get in contact to secure a place. 

 

15th February

Testimonials

We are delighted to share this lovely message to our online Primary tutor Amina from one of her 10+ students.

"Thank you for being a brilliant teacher and helping me so much with my Maths and English. I am really excited that I have got a place at Whitgift. Thank you for helping me with the practice for the tests."

 

8th February 

Testimonials

Another 5-star review for our online 11+ tutor Abigail.

"Abigail is firm but approachable and has made online tutoring with our daughter very enjoyable. The sessions are well run, the homework is thoughtful and reviewed and there is a sense of a joint effort to achieve the collective goal. Very happy and would most defiantly recommend."

 

31st January

Testimonials

We wanted to share this 5-star review for our tutor Era, 11+ English, VR and NVR. 

"We want to highlight how outstanding Era has been: she quickly established an excellent rapport, focused on identifying the gaps, developed an action plan and then methodically worked to tackle the weaker areas. We appreciated her positive attitude, flexible approach and a great balance of keeping our daughter focused on working hard and motivated to give it her best all the way! A big thank you to Era!” 

 

24th January 

It was great to receive the following feedback from a parent. Ben, our English tutor, had been working with their daughter for her IGCSE English Language exam retake. 

"I'm pleased to say that she had her results this week and achieved a grade 9 (the top grade)."

 

18th January

Testimonials 

We wanted a share this fantastic 5-star review for Peter, 11+ English tutor. 

"Peter is always very professional. He is always on time. His work is structured, he sets clear expectations and his work is 100% tailored to our son's needs. After each session there is also homework which is great and supports learning.

Peter is very enthusiastic with his work and keeps our 9-year-old son engaged. There is a good balance between teaching but also encouraging our son to be better and try a more difficult task. Our son feels listened to in Peter's sessions and knows that he can ask him any questions, which Peter will always answer.

After 3 months of sessions we have already seen improvement in our son's English and that he is more confident in English.

For me, teaching English is such a difficult subject, but Peter teaches so effortless.

After each session Peter keeps us updated on our son's progress and advises on next steps for learning.

Overall we are very happy and planning to continue with Peter for a long time."

 

10th January

Testimonials

A lovely "thank you" for our in-house Education Consultant and Mock Interviewer Vania from a Year 6 parent

"A huge ‘thank you’ from my son and I for today. I found the feedback really insightful. He really enjoyed the experience, so it’s left him feeling confident and positive."
 

4th January 

Testimonials

For our first review of the New Year we wanted to share this fantastic feedback for Daniel, tutoring online 11+ English. 

"Very strong technically, personable and has created a good rapport with our daughter.

Very engaged, supportive and the right level of demanding."

 

20th December 

Testimonials

For our last review of the year we wanted to share these lovely words for Era who tutors 11+ Maths and English. 

‘Our son was a bit tearful yesterday, he was very sad he wasn't going to see much of you any more. Thank you for being so kind to him. You have made a huge impact on his life in a really positive way.’

 

13th December

Testimonials

Another 5-star review. This time for Jessica, she is tutoring Year 3 and Year 6 siblings in English and verbal reasoning. 

"We are so happy with Jessica. Our kids love her, and they are really making progress thanks to her. I can’t recommend her enough."

 

6th December 

Testimonials 

We have received two five-star reviews for our Maths tutor Nick! So great to receive this feedback! 

"Nick is the best maths tutor we can think of. He combines the rare skills of knowing how to teach maths to children with a kind personality. He is motivated, diligent and organised."

"We couldn't be happier with Nick. He's wonderful. Clear, methodical and very friendly. Wonderful teaching style that suits my daughter very, very well."

 

29th November 

Testimonials 

A glowing review for Ben received from one of our parents, fantastic feedback! 

"Ben started tutoring our daughter in Year 10 for English GCSE. Although very bright, she has never been comfortable doing English - she is naturally more comfortable with maths. However, she has flourished under Ben's tutelage having just received a predictive GCSE grade in English of 9. Ben's method is highly tailored to each student - with our daughter it was largely based on practice questions - reviewing them together, drawing out our daughter's instinctive ideas and then Ben gives her the tools and structure to elevate her responses. Her writing and confidence has improved considerably all because of Ben! Cannot recommend highly enough!"

 

22nd November 

Testimonials

We have received another fantastic review, this time from an A-level student. This is what they said about Ranjit, our GCSE and A-level Economics tutor. 

"Oh wow! I have had my predicted grade upgraded to A* from B. Thanks so much for the interactive lessons and purposeful resources."

 

16th November 

Testimonials

Another 5-star review received from a parent. Era has been tutoring the student in both English and Maths. 

"Our son has really enjoyed working with Era. She is engaging, responsible and well-organised. It has been a pleasure working with her."

 

Year 5 11+ Saturday School Courses 2023

We will be running these from the 25th February to the 1st April at Belleville Primary School to help Year 5 students prepare for the 11+.

These courses are delivered in person and follow the Exceptional Academics 11+ curriculum in English, Verbal Reasoning, Mathematics and Non-Verbal Reasoning.  The three-hour, daily sessions are split between Maths/NVR and English/VR with a short comfort break in the middle.  Homework, self-marking schemes and personalised teacher feedback is provided together with a progress report at the end of the week. Each course curriculum is created by Dara and Matthew, the Directors of EA, and offers breadth and depth of teaching and learning in each topic, and are tailor-made to meet the requirements of the schools to which attendees are applying.

Our course facilitators are experienced 11+ tutors with unblemished records of academic success.  To keep children stimulated, content and activities are varied and include games to make learning fun and memorable.   By covering diverse topics, questions and activities on each course, EA pupils can feel really confident and calm entering each examination, prepared for anything that may come up.  

Please do get in contact to secure a place. 

 

9th November

Testimonials

We have just received this 5-star review for one of our amazing English tutors Sophie.

"Great fun, loads of enthusiasm, detailed and clear feedback. Our daughter works really hard for her and looks forward to her lessons."

 

1st November

Testimonials

We had a wonderful review for our Primary Tutor, Amina, which we wanted to share.

"I would highly recommend Amina to others. She has high expectations and firmly but kindly gets the best out of pupils both in written work and in conversation during lessons, encouraging them to conduct themselves in an articulate and mature way. Lessons are pitched at exactly the right level to challenge but not overwhelm. Amina is proactive about identifying any gaps in learning and filling them. Thank you very much!!"

 

25th October 

Testimonials

We love receiving testimonials from our clients and Richard, one of Maths team, was given this brilliant feedback from the parent of one of his students recently. 

“Richard has been a blast of fresh air with our daughter (11). His sessions are fun, interactive but probing and she has thoroughly enjoyed both getting to know him, but exploring her understanding of the subject.  Initially a little reticent, he has created an environment where her natural aptitude has flourished and she is now far more confident both in her abilities, but also in her engagement in class and at school.  She really has blossomed.”

 

21st October 2022

We wanted to share an article written by our SEN team for the Nappy Valley Net Schools Guide 2022/23 highlighting the signs of Dyslexia.

If you suspect your child may have dyslexia:

Ask teachers to send key vocabulary for the week so your child can practise reading and spelling.

When reading aloud to them, ask them to jot down any word they do not understand or know how to spell onto colourful sticky notes. You can write down the correct spelling later. (A dyslexic child may not be able to find the word easily in the dictionary).

Younger children may find deconstructed words, written out onto jigsaw shapes, really useful. They can practise putting the words back together and reading the spelling aloud. Then they can practise writing the words, tracing over them using tracing paper.

 

 

30th September 2022

Testimonials

We love receiving testimonials from our clients and Alan, one of Maths team, was given this brilliant feedback from the parents of two of his students recently. 

“Dear Alan, many thanks again for your promptness, always answering my daughters so quickly and making the sessions fun and relaxed! I am very impressed as well that after each lesson you take the time to email a detailed summary of the session and areas to work on further, all very well-organised and in control!”

“Alan wow!! End of an era! We were just saying what an amazing support you have been throughout the A Level years. The confidence boost she received in maths will last a long time...beyond the A Level grade. Thank you!”

 

8th September 2022

Science revision top tips written by Era 

Era’s science exam golden nuggets: past questions, videos and mnemonics. 
1. Past paper questions are your best friend! Once you have studied a chapter, always consolidate your learning with past paper questions solely on that chapter. If you do this consistently throughout the year, exam season will be a breeze! (Remember to do the questions based on your exam board.) 
2. Videos are an excellent way of learning scientific processes. When you’re struggling to understand a topic, a YouTube search normally helps provide some clarity, since it stimulates us to learn in both a visual and auditory way. 
3. It is always better to understand rather than memorise when it comes to science since memorisation is only useful in the short term. However, for some topics like learning the flame colours for metal ions for chemistry, the classification of organisms for biology or the electromagnetic spectrum for physics, mnemonic devices are a great way of assisting our memory — and can even make revising fun!

 

8th September 2022

Year 5 11+ Saturday School Courses

We will be running these from the 5th November to the 10th December at Belleville Primary School to help Year 5 students prepare for the 11+.

These courses are delivered in person, follow the Exceptional Academics 11+ curriculum in English, Verbal Reasoning, Mathematics and Non-Verbal Reasoning.  The three-hour, daily sessions are split between Maths/NVR and English/VR with a short comfort break in the middle.  Homework, self-marking schemes and personalised teacher feedback is provided together with a progress report at the end of the week. Each course curriculum is created by Dara and Matthew, the Directors of EA, and offers breadth and depth of teaching and learning in each topic, and are tailor-made to meet the requirements of the schools to which attendees are applying.

Our course facilitators are experienced 11+ tutors with unblemished records of academic success.  To keep children stimulated, content and activities are varied and include games to make learning fun and memorable.   By covering diverse topics, questions and activities on each course, EA pupils can feel really confident and calm entering each examination, prepared for anything that may come up.  

Please do get in contact to secure a place. 

 

2nd September 2022

GCSE Results 2022

We have had some amazing feedback regarding our tutors and wonderful results from our students. Congratulations. 

 

Subject	Grade
Maths IGCSE	9
Maths	9
English Literature	8
English Language	8
Chemistry	9
English Literature	9
English Language	9

 

24th February 2022

2022 School Offers

Results are coming in thick and fast - below you can see the number of offers our students have received so far, as well as how many academic scholarships. This is wonderful news and we congratulate all the children we have worked with. A pat on the back to our tutors for their hard work too! This performance is a testament to our teaching skills:

20th July 2021

2021 School Offers

Exceptional Academics helped 25 children prepare the 11+ exams this academic year, as well as two students for the 13+ exams. We're celebrating an astonishing number of places being offered to our students this year!

11+ Courses

The summer holidays have finally arrived, to the relief of many students across the UK. For those that will be tackling their 11+ exams in the autumn term, there's undoubtedly work to consolidate and skills to hone. 

We are running two summer holiday 11+ Booster Courses to help your aspiring academics do their best:

The first is 26th- 30th July from 10am to 1pm at Belleville Primary School.

The second from 31st August- 3rd September, 10am to 1pm at Belleville Primary School.

These courses are delivered in person, follow the Exceptional Academics 11+ curriculum in English, Verbal Reasoning, Mathematics and Non-Verbal Reasoning.  The three-hour, daily sessions are split between Maths/NVR and English/VR with a short comfort break in the middle.  Homework, self-marking schemes and personalised teacher feedback is provided together with a progress report at the end of the week. Each course curriculum is created by Dara and Matthew, the Directors of EA, and offers breadth and depth of teaching and learning in each topic, and are tailor-made to meet the requirements of the schools to which attendees are applying.

Our course facilitators are experienced 11+ tutors with unblemished records of academic success.  To keep children stimulated, content and activities are varied and include games to make learning fun and memorable.   By covering diverse topics, questions and activities on each course, EA pupils can feel really confident and calm entering each examination, prepared for anything that may come up.  

 

16th July 2021

Summer 2022 exams

With the pandemic hitting education and our children hard, online learning has only been effective to a point, and as a result those children that are due to take GCSE and A Level exams in the summer term of 2022 are likely to need a little additional help. Exceptional Academics' one to one tuition has been helping to fill the gaps for students that have taken their GCSE and A Level exams this year, but what is to come next academic year? Undoubtedly, this Year 10 & 12 cohorts' exam preparation has been effected too.

Education secretary Gavin Williamson has stated that adjustments will need to be made to exams to ensure that pupils are not placed at a disadvantage. Pushing exams further back into the academic year and the slim lining of some subject areas in the exams are options that are being looked at by the department of education and exam boards across the country. 

Please do get in contact if your child needs extra support in accomplishing their best in the next academic year. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-57579211