Competitive independent schools in London are so oversubscribed these days (up to 10 applications for every place) that the vast majority have now moved to assessment for entry at 3+ or 4+. Although such early assessments are far from conclusive and mostly assess the “teachability” of a child at that particular age, the shift, inevitably, is causing considerable angst among parents; especially those with their mind irrevocably set on a particular school. Thus, many autumn open days are spent trying to suss out exactly what will be expected of the children in the assessment. Purpose of the assessment For clarity, let’s first review the purpose of these assessments. What the schools are trying to determine is not whether your child might win the next physics Nobel Prize. Instead, they are looking for signs that your little one is ready to learn in the environment of that school and to...