Anita Oberoi Headway Tuition

✨ Year 4 Parents — Limited Spaces Available
If your child is preparing for the 11+, Year 4 is an ideal time to build strong foundations before moving into Year 5.

Our Year 4 groups focus on developing the skills children need to feel confident and secure, including:
🔹 Core Skills lessons covering step-by-step Verbal & Non-Verbal Reasoning, Maths & Comprehension.
🔹 Times tables and rapid number recall to support confident maths
🔹 Grammar, vocabulary, and spelling that really stick

Current availability:
📘 Monday (Higher Ability) — 5:30–7:00pm — 1 space remaining
📗 Wednesday (Middle Ability) — 5:30–7:00pm — 1 space remaining

A steady, well-structured start now can make all the difference later.
💬 Book a Discovery Call to find out more:
https://headwaytuition.co.uk/book-a-discovery-call

I recently went along to a free board games afternoon at Sutton Girls Grammar School, run by the fantastic Table Top Games Café, such a great example of how learning can happen through play.

We played Qwirkle and Offboard, both brilliant for children preparing for the 11+, but in a way that feels fun rather than like extra work.

🎲 These types of games help children develop:
• Logical thinking and problem-solving
• Pattern recognition (helpful for maths & non-verbal reasoning)
• Strategic thinking and planning ahead
• Focus, patience, and confidence

All of this happens through relaxed, social play in a pressure-free environment.
The Table Top Games Café hosts free sessions at Sutton Girls from 2–5pm, with plenty of games to try, refreshments, and a friendly, welcoming atmosphere.
If you’re looking for screen-free ways to support your child’s learning, this is a lovely option to look out for.

11+ Preparation: Supporting Your Child Without the Overwhelm

The 11+ journey isn’t just about learning, it’s also about managing the anxiety that comes with supporting your child.

Over the years, I’ve seen well-intentioned approaches that don’t work:
• Ignoring tutor guidance and then cramming over the summer
• Using multiple tutors in a short period
• Rigid holiday timetables with long daily study hours

🛑 Cramming is not a strategy ❌

11+ skills take time to develop.

Children need space to make mistakes, reflect, and improve.

Cramming removes this learning window and replaces it with stress, fatigue, and burnout, often leading to poorer performance on the day.

So what does balance actually look like?
✅ Balanced 11+ Support Looks Like:

1️⃣ A revision timetable targeting specific weaknesses, based on tutor feedback
2️⃣ Relearning that starts early (March/April of Year 5)
3️⃣ A child-informed timetable where fun is prioritised over study

When children see more time allocated to enjoyable activities than revision, motivation increases and resistance decreases. 👉 If this resonates, feel free to get in touch. I’m always happy to share guidance.

✨ Year 4 Mini Maths Challenge – Try 11+ Style Maths at Home✨

We’ve just launched our 3-part Year 4 Mini Maths Challenge, a fun way for children to get a taste of 11+ maths before committing to a full course.

The challenge focuses on:
➗ Division – building speed and accuracy
✖️ Multiplication – mastering tricky tables
🔢 Roman Numerals – decoding the numbers that often appear in puzzles and exam questions

Parents who sign up will receive:
🎥 Step-by-step videos teaching each skill clearly
📝 A parent tracker sheet so you can see progress before and after
📚 A student workbook with answers for home practice
It’s a perfect way for Year 4 learners to explore 11+ style questions in a low-pressure, supportive way, and for parents to see strengths and gaps clearly.

Plus, it’s designed to be engaging and fun. Let's unleash your child's Maths superpowers! 💪🦸‍♂️

📩 Sign up today and start the challenge → https://preview.mailerlite.io/forms/602003/174042795111090169/share

📚 Thinking ahead to 11+ preparation? Year 4 is an important foundation year.

As part of my Headway Tuition Year 4 Core Skills Course, students will sit formal mock exam papers in May 2026 included at no additional cost.

These papers are carefully designed to introduce children to the style and structure of the 11+, using the Year 4 skills we have already covered.

❓ Why parents value this opportunity:
• Children experience exam-style papers in a calm, supportive setting
• Confidence develops gradually, without unnecessary pressure
• Pupils become more comfortable applying their skills independently.

❓ Why I include Year 4 mock exams in my programme:
• I gain a clear understanding of each child’s current attainment
• Students can be placed into the most suitable small, ability-based groups for Year 5
• Teaching can be more focused and personalised from the very start of 11+ preparation
• Parents receive helpful insight into progress and next steps
It’s all about making the transition into Year 5 feel structured, positive, and manageable for both children and parents.

📞 Ready to explore Year 4 tuition? Book a discovery call and take the first step with Headway Tuition → https://headwaytuition.co.uk/book-a-discovery-call

🎲 Learning through games? Always a yes from me!
I love games, and Mijnlieff, a clever little strategy game invented by my friend Andy Hopwood, is no exception.
My students love it. They regularly ask to play… partly because they enjoy beating me (rude but fair 😄), and partly because it makes them think, plan, and outsmart all without feeling like “work”.
What I really like about Mijnlieff is how naturally it supports Non-Verbal Reasoning (NVR) skills.
While playing, children are:
• Visualising patterns and space
• Planning several moves ahead
• Anticipating outcomes before committing
• Adjusting strategy when things don’t go to plan
These are exactly the skills needed for 11+ NVR, but here they’re practised in a low-pressure, high-engagement way.
It’s quick to learn, easy to play, and quietly demanding in all the right ways — the kind of game where lots of thinking is happening, even though it just feels like fun.
A newly designed version is available here if you’re curious:

👇🏽🎉👇🏽🧠👇🏽
https://www.hopwoodgames.com/shop-1/mijnlieff

❓ “Which Grammar School are you aiming for?”
On discovery calls, this question often meets silence.
Not because parents don’t care, but because many aren’t aware that grammar schools differ significantly in how places are allocated.
🎯Some are catchment-based.
🎯Others use different Priority Scores.
And the school closest to you may not be the most accessible option.
I recently spoke to a parent living near Camp Hill for Boys who believed she was comfortably within catchment. In reality, for 2025 entry, Category 4 applicants needed a Priority Score of 224+ and to live within a very specific distance, which unfortunately ruled it out.
Because we had that conversation early, we could explore realistic alternative options.
If you’re a parent of a Year 4 or Year 5 child, ask yourself:
👉🏽Do you know the difference between a Qualifying Score and a Priority Score?
👉🏽Do you know the lowest score your local grammar school accepted last year?
Aiming for a grammar school without a clearly defined target can lead to a very unwelcome surprise later on.
Want to ask any 11+ related questions, but don't know where to turn?
Let's chat.
Book a free 30 minute Discovery Call to give you clarity and next steps:

📣 FREE 11+ MOCK EXAMS PARENTS’ MEETINGS

On Thursday 22nd and Friday 23rd January, I’m holding free parents’ meetings to support families navigating the 11+ Mock Exam process.

We’ll be covering:
✅ The key pitfalls children face during 11+ Mock Exams
✅ Three simple, effective ways you can help improve your child’s exam performance without stress or overwhelm
✅ A new online platform launching after February half term for Year 5 students on Headway Tuition courses.

These meetings are currently FULL, but due to high demand I’ll be running additional sessions in early February.

📩 If you’d like to attend a future meeting, please comment below to register your interest.

Supporting your child through the 11+ doesn’t have to feel overwhelming.

With the right guidance, it can feel manageable and positive.

🍐 Learning Through Play: Snatching Pears in Action! 🎲

At Headway Tuition, we believe the best learning happens when children are engaged, challenged, and having fun. That’s why we’ve started using Snatching Pears [a fast-paced memory game] in our 11+ sessions!

Why kids love it:
⚡ High-speed and competitive
🧠 Boosts observation skills and memory retention
🎯 Builds working memory and focus
🏆 Challenging, yet fun and rewarding

Through games like this, students are developing essential 11+ skills without even realising it. Fast reflexes, memory, and sharp observation are all key to tackling exam-style questions, but learning can be playful too!

💡 At Headway Tuition, play is serious learning.

Learning with joy = skills that stick.

🎲 Got 10 minutes? Try These 11+ Practice Games With Your Child!

Learning doesn’t always have to feel like a worksheet and sometimes the best revision happens when it feels like play!

That’s why I created our Headway Tuition 11+ Games Hub for Years 3–5.

🧠 What you’ll find:
Year 3 Maths Fun - Snakes and Ladders focused on x4 tables
Year 4 Challenges - Daily 10 Mental Maths and fun online quizzes
Year 5 Vocabulary Boosters - Word searches and family-friendly vocab games.

These games support core skills like mental maths, memory, vocabulary and reasoning, all really useful for 11+ preparation, and without the pressure of a test.

👉 Explore the games here:
https://headwaytuition.co.uk/headway-tuition-11-games