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

I am a parent getting my 10 year old twin boys ready for the fiendishly difficult 11+ this year . I bought this  11+ English Comprehension by RSL: Volume 1 - Practice Papers with Detailed Answers & Explanations for 11 Plus / KS2 English  purely by chance having read the excellent reviews and completely agree with them .I have CGP , Bond , Scholastic Skills as well as Schofield and Sims comprehension books. Having seen a few specimen papers from Independent Schools across the country , I feel that this is perhaps better geared to the kind of texts set by such schools compared to other books on the market.The very detailed analysis of the marking scheme is a boon and I would argue that none of the other books available have anything close to this. I like the fact that the texts chosen ( there are 8 in all ) are all from classics , with their archaic language , which more likely than not , most children have not been exposed to .I would recommend that one starts with something relatively simple like Scholastic / CGP first then move onto Schofield and Sims and save up RSL Comprehension for the last 3 months preceding the exam.Well done Mr Lomax - I have and will continue recommending this to other parents.

As the worried mum of a girl preparing for 11+ exam, I have frantically searched for any available resources, especially when it comes to comprehension, ranging from the local learning centres to private tutors charging 50 pounds per hour. However, nothing can compete with this English comprehension book by RSL. Not only does it provide detailed solutions, it also tells you why! There are a variety of passages to work on including excerpts from classic children books and newspapers, all have helped my daughter enormously in improving her English comprehension. With this book, my daughter was able to work on her own pace and refer back whenever she needs to (not like some private tutors!). I have to say this is by far the most effective book that my daughter has used. I’ve also checked RSL’s 11 Plus Lifeline and found another great learning resource for my daughter. I rarely write reviews but I am writing this one as I am so happy that my daughter got into a top secondary school and feel I am quite indebted to this English comprehension book!

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.

Great product. The best on the market. It gives 8 papers with model answers and extensive explanations of these. I've bought and successfully used this pack and volume 2 with my son who finds comprehensions tricky. I shall be buying his GCSE and A-level packs, I can guarantee. Real attention to detail and work has gone into this and Robert's other packs.

This is probably the best book I've come across that is targeted to helping parents teach their kids. Its so good, so comprehensive, many children of 10+ years would probably be able to use it without any help. The passages, questions are good - and many such books are good in this respect - but where it excels is in the explanation of the answers. Its as if the author is talking to you directly, sympathising with you and at the same time, giving the answer...and then explains why that is an appropriate answer, as well as the variations and limitations around the answer. This book is beyond what I could come up with if I were to dream up a study support book.

This set of papers is incredibly useful both for the student and for the parent who is attempting to guide their child through the maze of entrance exams. It is useful for both 11 plus and common entrance and scholarships and the great thing is that the papers range in difficulty and length so that the child is eased into the groove and taught methodically how to go about answering the questions. So many independent schools publish their English papers without answers and the unique thing about these papers is that each paper is accompanied by a very detailed explanation and sample answer which provides an insight into a good answer and how to maximise marks. It is almost as if the tutor is in the room and is something that is simply not available elsewhere. Additionally, my children have rreally enjoyed the texts selected. A solid thumbs up from our house!