Letting them sink or swim 😬

For the last year, I’ve been helping my daughter with maths and verbal reasoning to prepare her for her 11+ exam. For those of you not in the UK, this is a test which 10 to 11 year olds sit in their last year of primary school to get into a selective secondary (high) school. Given the variance between schools, the stakes are super high and the competition is massively intense.

When we started out a year ago, my daughter hated maths and was a fairly average student. But after a lot of work, arguments and tears she’s come along massively. Maths is now her favourite subject (excluding Art which will never be toppled!). She’s near the top of her class and generally finds her school work very easy. Her confidence is through the roof and she likes the feeling of being “clever”. Without taking anything away from all the work that’s she’s put in over the last year, helping her get to this point is in no uncertain terms the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done in my life.

As I write these words, she’s literally sitting her test. My stomach has been churning all morning and I’ve never been as nervous for any test I’ve ever sat as I am right now. We are fairly controlling parents and are very aware that our kids have live fairly sheltered lives. The nervousness I have is because, for the first time in her 11 years, there’s nothing more I can do right now. I can’t sit the test for her or give her little tips and advice. She has to sink or swim on her own. I know this is the way the world works and that it’s a good thing. But the lack of control feels debilitating.

Deep down, we do know that however she does today and whichever school she gets into doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of life. What matters is that she actually put in the work and how far she’s already come in such a short period of time.

I’m unbelievably proud of her ❤️.