Lessons learnt from the UCS 4+ Assessment (2026 entry)

With only 32 places available, it really does surprise me how relaxed and laid-back parents are when it comes to UCS.

UCS is a very popular boys’ school located in Hampstead. Registration for the UCS 4+ assessment is open from birth. That should be a clear indication of just how popular this school is — and how challenging it can be to pass this 4+ assessment.

You have until 30th September 2026 to register your son for the UCS 4+ assessment for 2027 entry.

The registration fee is fairly steep at £180. You will definitely want to ensure that your son has been thoroughly prepared before sending him in for this 4+ assessment.

UCS invites every single candidate for assessment. Again, this should indicate the sheer number of boys who will be assessed.

UCS writes that “no preparation is needed for this playdate assessment.”

Listen carefully — preparation is 100% needed. It is 100% not a playdate.

Parents may get cross, angry and frustrated at me for saying this. “Why would the school say this then?”

I truly don’t have the time — or even the interest — in answering that question. You can choose to send your child prepared, or you can choose to send your child unprepared. That is, of course, entirely up to you.

With two rounds to prepare for, you need to understand that you are not sending your child in for a playdate. Reserve real playdates for people you know. Perhaps you spend £180 on playdates — I certainly do not.

Do you really think UCS simply wants to see your child playing? No, they do not. They may want to observe how your child plays — but there is far more to this 4+ assessment than that.

At nearly £30,000 per year for pre-prep fees, this is one of the more expensive private schools. I will never understand why parents choose not to invest a small fraction of that in preparing their sons to go in and demonstrate what the school is truly looking for in its prospective students.

UCS achieves excellent results for its leavers each year. This is why it is such a popular choice amongst our clients. The fact that it is also an all-through school makes it even more appealing.

Preparing for the 4+ at UCS for 2027 entry?

Book your Sample Lesson and Sample Week today.

No one talks about the negative 4+ results.

And this is one of the main reasons why 4+ assessment preparation can be so confusing for most parents.

Because most people talk about the positive results (i.e., their children getting into their target schools), many of you assume that it will be “easy” to pass a 4+ assessment. Many of you tend to believe that minimal preparation will be required. After all, “so-and-so’s son or daughter got into X elite school with minimal or no preparation!”

Be careful what you believe.

Nobody — let me repeat — nobody passes a 4+ assessment at a top elite school like Westminster, NLCS, South Hampstead, or Haberdashers (boys’ and girls’) without thorough preparation.

And if people tell you otherwise, just smile at them.

Let me tell you something. I’ve spoken to at least 50 parents in the last three months who have called me to tell me about their ‘negative’ results — as in, their children have not passed their 4+ assessments at their target schools.

Are they telling their friends and families about this? I doubt it.

We seem to hide negative results from others. And I get it. These are our precious children. A rejection for them feels like a rejection that we take extremely personally.

But you shouldn’t — not in this assessment process. A negative result is simply data. It is simply information, just like a positive result is simply data. If a child has not passed a 4+ assessment, it is not a reflection on them as a human being. It simply means that they were unable to go in and show the assessors what they were looking for. That is all.

So let’s talk more about the negative results to help new parents going through this process understand it better — to give them the knowledge they need to know that this 4+ assessment process is far from simple, far from straightforward.

It requires courage, trust, dedication, perseverance, and grit from our clients.

It requires the same from our students.

Negative results are all part of the game of 4+ assessment preparation. Embrace the negative and embrace the positive. But above all — prepare your children to go in and have the highest possible chance of passing.

Book your sample lesson today.

Do you even understand the Merchant Taylors' 4+ assessment?

It’s rather surprising the number of parents I speak to who tell me that they desperately want their sons to go to MTP at 4+. But when I ask them a simple question like this…

Do you know how many places are available at 4+?

Most of them do not.

Last year, I went to the MTP open day. It was absolutely full of parents. I would say that there were about 200 of us there that morning — and that was just one open day. They held several.

MTP typically has six places available at 4+. That’s because most of the places available go to boys who are already studying at MTP (in the nursery).

This year, three of our boys were offered a place at MTP — all of them after initially being placed on the waiting list. Only one of our boys accepted the place. The other two chose other schools that they had also been offered.

Three out of six were boys prepared by us.

We know how to prepare for this school at 4+ (and at 3+ and 7+!).

We understand the MTP 4+ assessment. Do you?

We know what the school expects from its boys. Do you?

We know that children won’t just go in and “play with other children.” Do you?

MTP says that they are looking for teachability and sociability — and they absolutely are. But what about the countless other things they are looking for?

If you don’t have full clarity on what these are, how can you ever expect to be successful in preparing your son to be offered a place at MTP?

MTP says that they are not looking to “find out what children know.” I have no clue what they mean by this. And it’s not my job to speculate — nor is it my business to. My job is to prepare my boys to go in and have the highest possible chance of being offered a place at MTP.

MTP says they are looking for boys with the potential to flourish in their learning environment. Yes, they are. But if you don’t truly understand what this means, how will you prepare your son to go in and demonstrate it?

We know the exact profile of the boy they are looking for at 4+. We know which boys will have a strong chance of passing the 4+ assessment. We support them every step of the way so that they go in and truly shine. We ensure they understand what assessors will be looking for — and how to demonstrate it confidently.

Our clients also receive our full support every single step of the way — which is not something many agencies out there offer.

If you are thinking about MTP for 4+ (2027 entry), now is the time to get started.

Book your Sample Lesson today.

Know exactly HOW to prepare your daughter to PASS the Habs' Girls' 4+ assessment.

Last year we prepared a total of 8 girls for their 4+ assessment at Habs’ Girls’ School. 5 passed.

All 5 girls had between 3-12 months of 4+ assessment preparation.

5/40 of the girls who will be starting at Habs this year in Reception were prepared by us!

Pretty exceptional - if I do say so myself!

Key dates for 2027 entry have yet to be updated on the Habs’ Girls’ Website but typically round 1 happens in mid December and round 2 happens mid January. So you have about 8-10 months to prepare your daughter for this assessment (factor in sickness and holidays).

The school ‘strongly recommends against’ tutoring! What’s wrong with tutoring? Oh dear…

I ‘strongly recommend’ you use your own brains and make your own decisions when it comes to your children and their assessment preparations. I certainly would NEVER send my 3 year old into an assessment without being thoroughly prepared.

My results show that 8 of our girls were tutored for this 4+ assessment and 5 of them were offered a place. You think what you would like about that then!

Having a sibling means very little and your daughter still needs to be at the level expected from the school. In fact, each year siblings at Habs (boys and girls) are not offered a place.

CMT have supported so many girls who are currently studying at Habs. Would they have passed without our support? Again, I’ll let you answer that for yourselves.

Preparing for 2027 entry and beyond?

Book your Sample lesson today or to secure your space, join our Waiting List. Once joined, I will personally be in touch to choose your preferred day/time for weekly lessons.

From Baby Cub to Cub to Lone Wolf - Part 3

Read Part 1 and 2 to learn about the Baby Cub and the Cub.

I believe we become lone wolves around the time we choose the A-levels we wish to study.

Again, without the correct guidance and support, it will be very difficult to choose the “best” A-levels.

I had no guidance, and I had no support.

My school held one meeting with each girl when we were choosing our A-levels. This meeting was 10 minutes long and with a teacher who knew nothing about us. As in — we didn’t even know who this teacher was. She asked us three generic questions and then, based on those questions, would tell us the A-levels that we “should study”!

How ridiculous!

What you study at university is so important in so many different ways.

But as a lone wolf, that’s exactly what I was — alone!

My mother simply wanted me to get a “job” and be “secure”! What a joke! She meant well, of course. She loves me more than anyone does in this whole world. But a “job” definitely does not mean security!

I went to university to study Italian. I loved languages, but truthfully I chose this degree because I thought it would be “easy.” Well, it wasn’t!

As a lone wolf, I went to UCS, Reading, and finally ended up at Goldsmiths studying for my PGCE.

I did enjoy university. It was my time of “freedom.” It was my time to test the boundaries, and I made some beautiful friends — who to this day are still my best friends.

I went on to become a teacher, and I worked in schools across the country for 15 years.

I was exceptional at my job, but I really struggled with my childhood traumas in schools.

I wanted to give all of my students the attention and support that I wasn’t given, and I quickly saw all of the limitations. It was simply not possible to give 22–33+ children all of the attention that I wanted to give them.

I fell pregnant at the age of 36, and the moment I found out I was pregnant, I handed in my notice.

That’s a different story for another time!

Now, as most of you know, I teach on a 1:1 basis, and I support hundreds of students each year to have the attention they deserve and to achieve the dreams they would like to achieve. I work closely with my clients to support them in helping their children feel nurtured and supported — and to not become a lone wolf so early on in life. There’s plenty of time to be a lone wolf later on!

From Baby Cub to Cub to Lone Wolf - Part 2

After completing my journey as a baby cub, I graduated to cub. I was no longer a baby. I was now 10 years old and moving on to secondary school.

The baby cub moves from a small pond into the big, bad woods. That was my experience anyway.

My mother chose the school that would take me — as in, the one that had spaces available. It wasn’t even super close to our home, to be honest, but that was the one she chose. I remember that I wanted to try to apply for Henrietta Barnett, but I was told that I wasn’t “smart enough”! I definitely was smart enough, but as a cub, I didn’t have that support, and it was easier to choose the path that was easier for my parents.

I went to a convent school — a school which was a seven-form entry, with 30 girls in each class. I remember the Year 7 classes being in the basement. We would spend our form times in that basement and then move to our other lessons (which, thankfully, were not in the basement!). I remember that bell so well. The bell would ring. We would get up almost immediately (control!) and move to our next lesson. I hated that bell. Moving around from class to class meant that you couldn’t really build a relationship with the teachers. They would see hundreds of different girls each day, and I was merely one of hundreds.

Again, the behaviour was awful in my school.

Teachers struggled with “controlling” a lot of the behaviour, and there was severe bullying going on too. This was just brushed under the carpet.

I was never asked — truly asked — how I felt about this secondary school. And when I was asked the ridiculous question, “How was your day?”, most of the time my mother was busy with the million things she had on her mind (survival).

As a cub, I didn’t have the guidance that I needed in order to even have a 1% chance of knowing what I wanted to do at 16.

I chose the “easiest” A-levels for me (I was, and still am, very talented with languages), so I chose those, and I chose English Literature. My GCSEs were good, but I know that they could have been exceptional. I know that I am an A* student — I just wasn’t given the tools to get there.

At home, my mother had her own things to deal with. My father died in a car accident when I was 11, and I now understand how hard it was for her. I didn’t then. I know she did the best that she could, given her situation and her circumstances.

But cubs need to be guided. A school alone cannot do that. And never, ever assume that a school alone can. That guidance comes from the home, regardless of which elite, top school you send your child to. Regardless of the hundreds of thousands of pounds that you choose to invest in your child’s education.

Read Part 3 to learn about the Lone Wolf.

From Baby Cub to Cub to Lone Wolf- Part 1

That’s how I think about my own learning journey as a child. And this is how I reflect upon my 3-year-old’s learning journey.

I’m fully aware that everyone has their own experiences when it comes to their learning journey (what I mean by this is from the age of 4 to the age of 18), but these are my views. Feel free to share yours in a respectful manner. Please note that as I talk, I am not placing judgment on anyone. I am merely expressing my thoughts and discussing my experiences.

The Baby Cub

As babies, we are fully reliant on others to take good care of us. Some of us have a father and a mother who care for us. Some of us do not. As babies, we are fully vulnerable and in need of love, nourishment, and support. That’s how I picture myself as a 5-year-old entering Year 1 (that is when I started my learning journey in the UK). Born in London but raised in Sicily for five years, that is when my parents decided to put me into a state primary school. It was the school convenient for them — nothing more, nothing less. I would say it was an okay school — definitely not the best and definitely not great. It was a school where I went to be looked after whilst my parents had to work.

I had one great teacher — Miss Brown. I remember her well. She is the only one I remember. She was sweet, always smiling, and she gave me tonnes of attention. The rest of my memories are filled with badly behaved children, and the teachers’ attention needed to be given to them. I was always a very quiet and shy little girl. But as I reflect now, as a 40-year-old woman, I realise I had to be that way. There was no other way. The other children were louder than me and chose not to behave well. They chose not to listen to the teachers or be kind and caring to either teachers or other children. I had to be quiet because I had no one at school who really paid that much attention to me. I did learn because I wanted to learn. I listened and I learned. The teaching was okay — not exceptional.

When I think about my son (who will be four in September), I know that I want my baby cub to have a far better experience (age 4–11). I want him to have a learning experience where he is fully nurtured and feels deeply cared for. As a teacher who has worked in schools across the country for 15 years, I know that this will be difficult for me to achieve. There is nothing wrong with schools at all — it’s far more complex than that. If you’ve been in the system, you will know what I mean. If you haven’t, then you won’t.

Read Part 2 to learn more about The Cub.

The Angry Habs' Boys' School phone call

I received an enquiry last week for 7+ assessment preparation.

This client contacted me with the intention of discussing 7+ assessment preparation.

This is not how the call went down.

The client began by asking a few questions about the 7+. Usual questions like when to start etc.

I answered her questions and then she told me about her son who had not passed the 4+ at Habs Boys’ School.

She told me that she had not prepared him.

When I asked her why, she got all sorts of shades of defensive with me.

Perhaps she heard my question as a judgement or perhaps she genuinely felt bad for sending her son into the Habs’ Boys’ School 4+ Assessment unprepared. I have no clue. The reason for me asking that question is because you 100% need to prepare for Habs boys - very carefully and well.

She got angry with me.

She told me that the school had told her not to prepare her boy and she listened. She asked me this…

‘Why would I not listen to the school, are you saying that they are not being truthful?’

That is absolutely NOT what I had said!

I had merely asked her WHY SHE HAD NOT PREPARED HER SON FOR THE HABS ASSESSMENT.

Listen up, you can listen to whatever you want in your 4+ Assessment preparation process - it really doesn’t bother me. But do not call me and get angry with me.

We prepared all 9 of our boys to go in and PASS the Habs’ Boys’ 4+ Assessment. 9/40 of the boys who passed were prepared by US. Hear me carefully. All 9 were very well prepared to a very high standard. They went in with the capacity and the capability to answer all of the questions that were asked and to do all of the activities that they were asked to do.

I get it - we are discussing our children here. And our choices are very important when it comes to our children. If things don’t go the way we planned, there really is no one to blame. It’s just a circumstance. Make changes so that your 7+ assessment preparation and chances for success go differently.

That is all.

Why over-helping isn't helpful to your child.

When I was little, I was way too ‘over helped’. What this means is that the teachers in my life helped me too much. Far too often they would just tell me the answer.

This is not good.

At all.

This is poor teaching masqueraded as good teaching. It is not good teaching at all.

If you over help a child aka do all the work for them then who are you really helping?

No one. Definitely not the child.

When I worked in primary schools across London, I would observe this sort of behaviour daily. I would work with teachers who would over help and I also worked with teachers who did not do this.

Interestingly, the teachers who over helped were the ones who were seen to be exceptional teachers. They would have the neatest books and the best displays. But when I would look at the books, I would see learning that was pretty much identical. Learning that was so carefully modelled by the teacher that there would be no way that the child would have done it by themselves.

How is this helpful?

Tell me!

I see it with a few of our students when they initially start working with us. They just want us to tell them the answer. Or they will simply say, ‘I don’t know’ and expect us to tell them the answer. We don’t do this. And it is often so confusing to them.

We will say things like:

‘You tell us!’

‘Have a go!’

‘It doesn’t matter if you get it wrong.’

‘Try!’

If your child is about to sit an assessment, the same thing applies. You telling them the answer or over helping them will not help them to be successful in the assessments. You will not be there! Will you?

It’s about finding the methods of helping and supporting your child but in a way that allows THEM to tell you the answers. That allows THEM to get things wrong and for that not to be a problem. That allows THEM to get things right and to know that they got things right by themselves. This is where true learning happens. Not when an adult simply gives the child an answer.

That is not their answer. That is YOUR answer. And no body cares about your answer. Do they?

Three Guildford High 4+ Errors

We have prepared hundreds of girls to be extremely successful in their 4+ Assessments at Guildford High. It is a very misunderstood school when it comes to the 4+.

Error #1

Believing that you do not need to prepare your daughter for this assessment.

I speak to many parents who truly believe that they do not need to prepare for GH at 4+ and I have no idea why they believe this. Where have the got this ridiculous notion from?

Of course you have to prepare your daughter for the 4+ at GH.

They tell me that GH themselves tell them not to prepare their children for this assessment. They tell me that GH do not want ‘tutored children’. They tell me that their assessments will be ‘relaxed’ and ‘low key’. So what?

Understand very clearly. If you are preparing your daughter for her 4+ assessment at GH, you must prepare her. It really doesn’t matter how you prepare her but you must prepare her. Sending her in completely unprepared and expecting her to pass is beyond ludicrous.

Error #2

Starting preparations far too late.

GH is the assessment that seems to creep up on us! One of the earliest 4+ assessments (usually mid October), you must start preparing your daughter at least from October of the year before.

GH has not one but two assessments (45 minutes each!). Your daughter will not just go in and have a play. It’s actually very clear on their website what they will be asking your daughter to do.

So have a look!

Your daughter will be expected to read and write!

Error #3

Believing that every single girl who applies will be offered a place.

I don’t have anything more to say about that apart from that is totally inaccurate information.

Is your daughter ready for her Readiness Assessment at Guildford High?

Book your Sample Lesson today and we will tell you!

Take 4+ assessment preparation seriously if you want to have serious results.

Manor Lodge is the school parents least prepare their children for at 4+.

The Manor Lodge 4+ Assessment is typically in mid October the year before your child’s year of entry into Reception.

So if you are preparing for the Manor Lodge Assessment (2027 entry), you have only 8 months left until the 4+ Assessment at this school.

8 months are not really 8 months! You need to take into account sickness and holidays. You will get sick, your child will get sick and your teacher will get sick (we are not robots!). You will take holidays and your teacher will take holidays. You will inevitably take some time off - as will your teacher! So those 8 months really turn into 6 months if you reflect carefully about it.

Let me get something crystal clear. 6 months is not enough time to prepare for Manor Lodge.

At ‘only’ £17,310 per year (not including additional charges) , ML is one of the more ‘affordable’ schools that my clients prepare for. It is so over subscribed at 4+.

If you actually truly want your child to be offered a place at ML, prepare them thoroughly for it.

I do think you are starting too late if you are starting now. But starting late is better than not starting at all!

Book your Sample Lesson today.

The 50/50 thoughts about 'Tutoring'.

50% of you love tutoring.

50% of you don’t understand tutoring.

I don’t want to use the word hate because I don’t think it is the correct word. You cannot hate something that you 100% do not understand.

Life is 50/50 so I fully understand this.

I also fully understand that we are all entitled to think whatever we want and this blog is not here to convince you to love tutoring. Rather, I am taking the time to write this to simply explain a few things.

I can’t speak for all tutoring out there in the world. But I can speak for CMT - My business.

And since my son told me yesterday that he wants to ‘take over’ my business and ‘teach students online’ like his mama, I owe it to him to try to at least explain things very carefully to you all.

I have clients who are obsessed with the work that we do here at CMT. They value it so much. I know that they would pay at least double what I currently charge them for the services that they receive from us. They rave about us to their friends and family. They see the relationships that their children create with their private teachers and they see the insane amount of progress that their children make.

I have other clients (not many to be fair) but I know there are 50% of you like this out there for whom tutoring is your little hidden secret. Something you hide from your friends and family. You seem to be ashamed of it. You seem to think that there is something wrong with your child for needing it. You seem to be so negative about it. You don’t mind paying for the service but you’re not really delighted about it. Obviously, I want all of my clients to feel delighted about tutoring. I want them to feel excited to invest their money and time into working with us.

I can’t control how people think and feel!

If your child is being tutored, it’s not because they are behind and struggling. To the contrary actually, most of our students are being taught at mastery level for their age groups.

Think what you want about tutoring but don’t talk about something you don’t understand. If you want to take the time to fully understand it - then you can open your mouths.

Preparing for an assessment for 2027 entry and beyond, now is your chance to join. Myself and my senior teachers are all very close to capacity so join the Waiting list today and send me your preferred days/times to get started with weekly assessment preparation support for your child.

My 3 year old will be DISQUALIFIED if the school 'finds out' that they have been tutored.

Do you know how many times a day I am told this?

Many.

Do you know how much this doesn’t make any sense at all.

Do you know the only reason that your child will be DISQUALIFIED or whatever you make that word mean? (What I make it mean is that your child will not pass their 4+ assessment at your target schools.)

The only reason is this.

The only reason they will not pass is… drumroll please…

If they’ve not been prepared properly for it.

Why would a school DISQUALIFY a child who can do everything that they ask them to do?

A child who achieves the highest percentage in the 4+ Assessments is the one who will pass. Did you not know that?

A child who is tutored AKA taught is the one who will pass their 4+ assessments.

People will try to scare you into thinking illogical things. Perhaps their own child didn’t pass their 4+ assessments and they don’t want you to succeed? Don’t be surprised by this.

Then people will say. ‘It’s unfair’ and ‘They won’t be able to keep up!’. Makes no sense to me? Why wouldn’t they be able to ‘keep up?’

Nonsense.

Drown out the noise. Prepare your child and prepare them well if you want any minimal chance of success at passing the 4+ assessments at your dream schools.

How to prioritise assessment preparation (part 2)

If supporting your child to have the best education possible for them is one of your most important priorities right now, say no to everything else.

Say no to people telling you that what you are doing is wrong.

Say no to the noise.

You’re not doing anything wrong. You are supporting your child to have the best possible education. It is quite frankly one of the most important decisions that you will ever make as a parent.

I don’t take this lightly. I take it very seriously actually.

Many of you want to have ‘balance’. And sure, you can have balance of course. Of course your child needs to continue doing the things that they love to do.

If you give everything in your life equal attention however, guess what? It will most likely be mediocre at best. If you want to have amazing success in your child’s assessment, you need to make it a priority. It is very simple.

You will always have people who will tell you that they did absolutely nothing to support their children to be wildly successful at top schools like Westminster, St Pauls etc. They are liars. And also why would you boast about that? ‘I did nothing to support my child!’ Ok then.

If you want to gain momentum in the area of assessment preparation, you need to focus your attention on it for a specified period of time.

4+ = One year of focused attention

7+ - Two years of focused attention

11+ - Four years of focused attention

Give your full attention towards preparing your child to go into any assessment and have the highest possible chances for success.

If you want results, put in the work.

If you don’t want results, don’t. But then don’t complain about it. Please.

If it is your top priority to be very successful in any assessment, we would be delighted to speak with you. If not, carry on.

How to prioritise assessment preparation (part 1)

Is supporting your child to have the best education possible the most important thing to you right now?

If it is, I would be delighted to speak with you.

If it isn’t, I have no interest in speaking with you.

You see, I am passionate about ensuring that all children receive the highest possible quality of education because I know how important it will be for their futures. I know that what we do here at CMT is completely and drastically life changing. I know that if I had had a far better education than the one I was presented with that I could have had a much smoother experience of life to the one I have currently experienced. I am of course making the changes that I want to make but let’s be completely crystal clear here.

What we do here at CMT is not just prepare children for schools.

We support and prepare our children to have the highest quality lives possible in the future.

Is preparing your child to pass their assessment the most important thing to you right now?

Prioritise it.

The meaning of the word priority is what is most important in your life - this should therefore be your number one thing. The thing you dedicate the majority of your time to.

It is a top priority to you. But often, many of you are simply not giving this illusive priority much time and dedication at all.

So often many of you tell me what a priority it is to support your child to get into this school or the other yet you’ve not given it much time or any time at all.

Get your priorities straight.

Make sure that you’re dedicating the right amount of time on the things you want to be spending the majority of your time on.

Look at your top 5 priorities in life right now and then prioritise each one further.

You will have different priorities in different stages of your life. Having clear priorities will make your decision making so much easier. If your current life priority is to support your child to have the best possible education, make that one of your top priorities.

Work with the best teachers out there. Book your Sample Lesson today and see how incredibly effective 30 minutes of your child’s time will be. See how effective our sample weeks are and see how much progress your child will make.

Lessons learnt from the Falkner House (Boys) 4+ Assessment (2026 entry)

We prepared 3 beautiful boys for their 4+ assessment at Falkner House.

My clients spoke very highly of Falkner House (Boys). They loved the family vibe at this school and many of them commented on how it felt very warm, welcoming and nurturing.

Lovely to hear.

This is exactly what I want all of my students to experience in their school environment.

After the assessment at Falkner House, my clients spoke so highly about the teachers and the staff that they had engaged with. I didn’t hear a negative word said about this school.

The 4+ assessment was calm, well thought out and the boys seemed to have genuinely had a lovely time.

Having a lovely time doesn’t equate to passing this 4+ assessment however.

And if you think that you will just send your son into this assessment with no prep, you are so wrong.

Sending them to a great pre-prep or nursery is not 4+ assessment preparation either - by the way.

You must prepare your sons thoroughly to be able to go in and be offered a place to study at Falkner House.

They say that they are ‘looking for potential rather than attainment’. In my vast years of experience preparing many boys for this assessment, they are looking for both. I believe potential goes hand in hand with attainment, I do not see them as separate entities. So don’t fixate on this statement on their website. The boys who have historically passed this 4+ assessment have demonstrated potential and incredible attainment too.

It is important to note that FH do have a strong sibling policy but this sibling still needs to pass the 4+ assessment and meet the standards. It is not just a guaranteed place!

Here are my three lessons for you:

1. Prepare your son for this 4+ assessment at least 12 months before the assessment- and if you’ve not left enough time - just start.

2. Boys need to have exceptional communication and language skills to stand a chance at passing this 4+ assessment.

3. Boys need to demonstrate maturity to pass this 4+ assessment.

Preparing for Falkner House for 2027 entry and beyond?

Book your Sample Lesson Today.

'I only want the BEST for my child!'

I’ve been using this word a lot this week whilst having countless conversations with my amazing clients.

‘Logical’

‘It’s logical.’

But I guess that what is logical to me isn’t logical to some of you.

The meaning of the word ‘logic’ is rather complex but I define it as my way of thinking based on my good judgement. Is it the right judgement? Who is to decide if my judgement is right or wrong? Only I can decide that.

Everyone will have their own opinions and judgements.

But when it comes to our children, it is all about us. No one else. We are the ones who have to use our logic to make the ‘best’ decisions for our children.

Wow, that’s a lot of pressure we put upon ourselves isn’t it?

Because ultimately it comes down to this.

What we think is the best decision today, may be the worst decision tomorrow. Or perhaps we make what we think is the best decision today and it doesn’t turn out the way we thought or imagined it would have.

And guess what?

That’s ok.

Remove that pressure from yourselves.

Take a breath.

And stay calm.

We all want the best for our children.

Make a decision and go all in with that decision.

Decide the school you want to send your child to.

Decide how you want them to continue with their learning journey.

And please drown out the noise.

No one else will ever care as much for your child as you do.

Preparing for an assessment for 2027 entry or beyond? Book your Sample lesson today and experience the best of the best learning support for children out there with our team of exceptional teachers.

The CMT 4+ Half Term Bootcamp (for parents) has just launched!

Stop Dreaming of your child passing their 4+ assessments at your Target Schools.

The CMT 4+ Half Term Bootcamp (for parents) helps you create the results your child deserves - real systems, real support, inevitable success!

This Boot Camp is for you if you want to see accelerated progress in your child’s learning in just 5 days. This Boot Camp is not for you if you are not willing to dedicate at least 30 minutes a day learning with your child.

Preparing your child for a 4+ assessment can be overwhelming.

It can be really hard to know where to even start. Plus, you will have the whispers of many people telling you to do this and telling you to do that. When really, you just have to do ONE thing.

Focused, targeted learning with your child consistently and frequently over the course of whatever period of time you decide to dedicate to preparing your child (my recommendation is at least 12 months).

Perhaps you are not seeing your child make the progress you would like them to be making with their phonics/maths/communication and language or holding their pencil and writing. Whatever it is, the CMT 4+ Half Term Boot Camp (for parents) will support you to navigate whatever challenges you might be having and to support your child to develop their skills in whatever area of learning you would like to focus on.

You shouldn’t have to feel anxious and overwhelmed whilst preparing your child for their 4+ assessments.

This very exclusive Bootcamp is open to only 5 parents who want to take their 4+ assessment preparation to the next level.

Here’s how it will work.

We begin Monday 16th February - Friday 20th February.

Each day, you will receive a teaching video from me teaching you a specific concept.

Each day, you will receive a pack of learning resources to simply print off and complete with your child.

Each day, you will have access to our Company Director, Maria Mazarese to ask her any questions that you might have relating to your child’s learning and the schools that you are applying to.

Monday 16th February 2026 - Choosing your target schools.

Tuesday 17th February 2026 - Who were the children who passed and who were the children who did not pass the 4+ assessments at your target schools - truly understanding this will give you a huge edge over those parents who simply don’t understand or don’t even know about this!

Wednesday 18th February 2026 - The curriculum you need to cover to prepare your children for your target schools.

Thursday 19th February 2026 - 4+ Phonics Masterclass

Friday 20th February 2026 - 4+ Maths Masterclass

Join by 11am on Friday 13th February 2026.

How to solve the problem of 4+ assessment preparation.

There is a huge problem with 4+ assessment preparation.

Let’s get to the business of it.

The biggest problem with 4+ assessment preparation is that most parents simply do not even begin to understand what 4+ assessment preparation even is.

Most parents do not even scratch the surface when it comes to preparing their children for their 4+ assessments. And most parents don’t know this until after the fact.

Until after they’ve received the letters or emails telling them that their child has not been offered a place to study at their desired school. By then it is too late (obviously).

That’s why it is important (so important) to understand this problem now.

Once we understand this problem, we can focus on the solutions. Solutions will drive you forwards. This problem will keep you stuck and stagnant.

The powerful thing is this. You are the ones who decide what the problem is when it comes to preparing your child for their 4+ assessments.

Is your problem that you don’t have a clue what the benchmark standard is?

Is your problem that you’re not sure how to support your child to learn their next four sounds?

Choose the problem you want to have when it comes to 4+ assessment preparation.

Also, figure our what you really want for your child.

Most of us really struggle with this! And I get it. It’s not easy. We all want the best of the best for our children. So once you’ve decided what this ‘best of the best is’, get to work. Do not stall yourselves. Work only with the best teachers and not with those who are not experienced or do not truly know the standard expected.

Solve the problem of 4+ assessment preparation by getting to work NOW. By taking action NOW.

How do you truly feel about your 4+ assessment preparation problem?

Are you taking action?

Is your child making progress?

Do you know how your child ‘compares’ to other children preparing for the same schools as you?

We are taking MASSIVE ACTION every single day. Out students are making outrageous PROGRESS and we actually do not compare children but if we did, the comparison would be next level.

Solve your 4+ preparation problem today.

Join my exceptional Emerald Curriculum Programme today.

I expect the exact same behaviour from my son.

As a teacher working full time in schools across London I used to hear this comment all the time and I didn’t think much of it until I became a mother.

Parents would often say this to me…

‘He/she is completely different with you than she is at home!’

Then would come the long list of things their child didn’t do at home that they would do with me:

They don’t listen to me!

They shout!

They are disrespectful/rude/unkind etc

I would often simply reply something like …

‘Oh, that’s odd!’

Now when my clients or other parents tell me this, my answer is very different.

I will say something like…

‘Why do you accept that?’

And often this answer stops them in their tracks.

Why would you accept this?

I do not.

I see my son’s behaviour the minute he steps into nursery.

He becomes quieter, a little more reserved and timid and he listens to every single instruction (and follows it)!

Obviously with me and at home in general, he is more comfortable and he tests the boundaries more but my expectations of him are very clear.

He knows that I expect the exact same high level of focus, concentration and excellent behaviour that he demonstrates at nursery

Why should I expect any less?

Any why would some of you?

If your child doesn’t ‘behave’ the way you deem appropriate, that’s work for you to do.

To me it is unacceptable for my child to choose how he behaves with one human being compared to another.