St Gabriel’s Junior School, Newbury, 8 Plus (8+) Entrance Exam Information – Key Details
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Table of Contents
Introduction
Basic information: St Gabriel’s School is an independent day school located at Sandleford Priory in Sandleford, two miles south of Newbury. Founded in 1929, it occupies a Grade I listed building and 54 acres of parkland, landscaped by Capability Brown. [1]
Curriculum: In the Junior School, the teaching provision is delivered in an engaging manner, complementing the broad and balanced curriculum on offer. Subject areas, ranging from English mathematics and science to French, art and DT, are coupled with E-learning, a program which helps incorporate the latest technology in the school’s educational practices. [2]
Co-curricular: An array of enrichment opportunities are available to pupils, composing a broad activities programme which aims to meet a plethora of interests. Everything from chess, debating and robotics to Greek, photography and judo is on offer, maximising the range of children’s abilities and instilling in them a growth mindset.
ISI Inspection report: According to ISI, St Gabriel’s features an inclusive ethos which helps children develop a considerable amount of confidence and excel across all areas of the curriculum. Behaviour throughout the school is exemplary, as is the quality of pastoral care, resulting in excellent standards of achievement and high levels of social awareness. [3]
The school’s philosophy is rooted in staff’s efforts to develop children’s unique strengths, providing them with a vibrant and exciting learning environment where they can thrive. Embracing challenges both in the classroom and beyond, pupils utilise their capacity for articulate expression and leave school as excellent communicators who use their qualifications to make good life choices.
St Gabriel’s Junior School 8 Plus (8+) Exam Information
Address: Sandleford Priory, Newbury RG20 9BD
County: Berkshire
Admissions info: admissions@stgabriels.co.uk or 01635 555680
School type: Independent, co-ed day school
Open events: March, May, September, October
8+ Exam date: In the Spring Term of Year 3
Open Events for St Gabriel’s Junior School 8 Plus (8+) Entry
Open Mornings allow prospective families to ask questions about the admissions process and hear a short address from the Head of the school. You and your child will also have the opportunity to take a guided tour and explore the campus and its facilities. The events typically conclude with refreshments, during which you can informally discuss the school’s provision with members of the staff. More details are available here.
St Gabriel’s Junior School 8 Plus (8+) Admissions
In order for your child to be considered for a place in Year 4, you will be asked to register them with the school. The registration fee of £100 is non-refundable.
As part of the admissions process, your child will attend assessments. The school will also take into consideration the quality of their school reports.
Results are communicated within a week of the Junior Assessment and Taster Day. To accept a place, you will be asked to pay a £500 deposit.
St Gabriel’s Junior School 8 Plus (8+) Scholarships and Bursaries
Scholarships and bursaries are only available to Senior School applicants.
St Gabriel’s Junior School 8 Plus (8+) Exam Format
The St Gabriel’s Junior School 8 Plus (8+) exam consists of the following assessments:
- English
- Mathematics
The English exam examines comprehension and writing skills, including inference, punctuation and spelling. Marks will be awarded for good use of imagination, creativity, form, purpose, organisation, cohesion and sentence structure.
The Maths exam assesses problem-solving abilities and arithmetic skills, including your child’s knowledge of times tables.
Please see below for further details and recommendations on how to prepare for the St Gabriel’s Junior School 8 Plus entrance examination.
How to Prepare for the St Gabriel’s Junior School 8 Plus (8+) Entrance Assessment
To prepare your child successfully for the St Gabriel’s 8+ entrance exam, we suggest that you make use of our targeted resources. Our practice tests enable familiarisation with the types of questions and the format of the actual exam, which will help your child gain confidence in the lead up to the big day.
With the use of our practice tests, you will be able to precisely identify your child’s strengths and weaknesses, which will guide you in devising a carefully thought-out revision plan that focuses on studying ‘little and often’.
Moreover, our practice tests will help your child get used to answering questions quickly and under time pressure.
The majority of our 8+ resources are accompanied by detailed step-by-step video tutorials for every question. These are available for free with all purchases. It’s like having a world-class tutor explain each question to your child at no extra cost!
Our practice tests are used successfully every year by tens of thousands of students targeting schools with a competitive entrance exam. They are age-appropriate, reflecting the demands of the actual exam.
Our recommendations to help your child prepare for the St Gabriel’s Junior School 8 Plus entrance exam can be found below.
St Gabriel’s Junior School 8 Plus (8+) Exam Practice Papers
Recommendations for each section of the St Gabriel’s Junior School 8 Plus exam can be found below:
English
We highly recommend the following packs to prepare successfully for the St Gabriel’s Junior School 8 Plus English assessment. They will help improve your child’s comprehension and writing skills:
Full Practice Tests
Comprehension Skills
8+ English: Comprehension Pack 1
8+ English: Vocabulary and Grammar
The Complete Guide to 8+ Comprehension
Writing Skills
The Complete Guide to 8+ Writing
If you’d like to have your child’s writing assessed and marked, you may be interested in our Writing Marking Service. Please click here to learn more.
Mathematics
We highly recommend the use of the following packs to help develop your child’s arithmetic and problem-solving skills within the examination context of the St Gabriel’s Junior School 8 Plus maths test:
Full Practice Tests
Targeted Skill Development
8+ Mathematics: Mental Arithmetic
8+ Mathematics: Problem Solving
Listening
The following pack is ideal for developing listening skills ahead of the St Gabriel’s Junior School 8 Plus entrance exam:
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Our practice tests aim to show what sort of questions were included in St Gabriel’s Junior School 8+ past papers. The information provided about St Gabriel’s Junior School was believed to be correct at the time of publishing. However, please be aware of future changes. We advise you to contact the school directly if you are unsure of anything. School contact details are provided within the post.
Other entry points for St Gabriel’s Junior School:
Click here to learn about Year 3 entry via the 7 Plus (7+) Exam
Click here to learn about Year 7 entry via the 11 Plus (11+) Exam
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