RSL 11 Plus Books: 11+ Comprehension - Practice English Papers & Detailed Answers: Practice Papers with Detailed Answers & Explanations for 11 Plus / KS2 English (Volume 1)

This is the first book I've bought that focuses more on explanation of how to answer rather than just list the right answers. It's really helpful for understanding why and how to answer the questions properly. The articles chosen have a certain depth.

Brilliant. I can't recommend this particular book (and indeed the vast range of RSL 11+ examination practice papers) enough. If, like me, you were aghast when looking at past or example grammar school comprehension tests for the 11+ exam, then the RSL practice papers could seriously soothe your stress and save your sanity. My daughter's primary school is excellent and she also has a tutor for the upcoming exam, but I wholeheartedly believe that the only person who has taught her how to really answer a comprehension question is the author of the RSL series, Robert Lomax. Answering difficult comprehension questions is an acquired set of skills. The book clearly describes how to craft an answer, shows children how to understand an author's inference within the comprehension text and gives expert tips and advice. The RSL 11+ Comprehension book gives exceptionally thorough answers - this has really helped my daughter to understand what the examiners are really looking for and I can see the improvement in her writing. I spent a great deal of money on other 11+ preparation books before finding this series and just wish I had found these first! I've also been wildly impressed by the other free resources on the RSL educational website. So impressed in fact, that I've shelled out more money to subscribe to the RSL 11+ lifeline (practice papers and advice by email) and would not be without it.I rarely write reviews for items but need to give credit where it is due!

I had three weeks to prepare our son for an independent school 11+ entrance exam including teaching comprehension from scratch. This book was invaluable as it walks both pupil and parent through the different types of questions that can appear in a comprehension paper and gives targeted advice on how to tackle them. The author, Robert Lomax, was eminently helpful when approached via e-mail about the difficulty level of the different papers in this volume as they related to a particular school's entrance exam. I went on to buy Volume 2 in this series from Amazon, as well as individual papers from the author to give our son maximum practice at the optimal level for the exam he would take. Working steadily through these papers, from being almost completely clueless at comprehension our son made good progress over the three weeks and did well enough in the actual exam to be offered a place.

We bought this book to help our daughter prepare for 11+ entrance into a highly-selective independent school. We weren't employing a tutor, so this was to be our primary resource in getting her exam-ready.The comprehension exercises were well-selected and varied. There were good sample answers that showed clearly how to mark your child's work.Where this product really excelled, though, was in the teaching notes supplied with the answers. It didn't just say 'the answer to a) is... 'but a good answer to a) would be... because...' It talked the parent (and the child, obviously) through each part of the paper showing how to get the very *best* answer possible. It suggested good ways to do particular types of question and gave excellent guidance on planning your answers. By explaining clearly what an examiner is likely to be looking for, and pointing out common pitfalls, it showed the child how to improve and the parent good ways of helping their child do better. It has become a much-prized resource in this household.Our daughter hasn't yet sat the entrance exam, but we are so much more confident because of this book. Thank you RSL!

As a tutor with over twenty years of experience, I’ve collected a vast range of materials. The RSL comprehension papers are by far the most relevant, useful, user-friendly comprehensions of all. I do have firm favourites but since purchasing those of RSL, they’ve been relegated to the comprehension cupboard - not seeing the light of day! I’ve now subscribed to RSL’s Lifeline, meaning that I have additional papers (both maths and English) emailed to me on a regular basis. I’ll not be running out of papers for some time to come - reassuring as this has previously happened with other resources.rsleducation.co.uk is where you need to subscribe to that service. Well worth doing!One of the most helpful aspects to the papers is the clear and detailed marking scheme. Example answers (with variations) and discussion points are set out clearly making the papers perfect for a parent to go through with their child. My own son is preparing for his 11+ exams and has learned so much more from these papers as a result of the questions related to inference, characterisation and the clearly set out answers.The maths papers are equally exceptional: questions of a high standard and wonderfully helpful answers. Quite unusually, the method(s) of calculation is set out in addition to the answer. I imagine that this would be a life-saver to parents unfamiliar with / rusty on certain topics.Both sets of papers are challenging enough to provide excellent practice at the level needed to get into the more academic 11+ schools.