Junior School Assessments Years

Entry at Year 3 and Year 4

3 - 4

The admissions process is split into two sessions to ensure our youngest candidates do not feel overwhelmed and have the opportunity to enjoy their time with us. Your daughter will be invited into Bedford Girls’ School twice; once to complete online cognitive ability assessments and once to attend a fun activities-based session.

The Assessment Morning

The online assessment for Years 3 and 4 will take place over two mornings on Monday 22nd and Tuesday 23rd January 2024. Your daughter will be invited into school to attend a session on one of these dates. The assessment session will last approximately an hour and 45 minutes and comprise:

• A series of short cognitive ability tests which in total take approximately one hour to complete. These will consist of a number of problem-solving, language comprehension and puzzle type questions which will provide us with information relating to your daughter’s underlying ability across a range of indicators. Your daughter does not need to prepare for these assessments.

• Your daughter will complete the assessments on a laptop and she will be guided through the assessments with instructions given through headphones. The tests are timed and candidates have the opportunity to go back over their work to check their answers within the given timeframe.

• The assessments will take place in a classroom setting with the Head of Year and Mrs Howe, the Head of the Junior School, supporting the candidates throughout the process.

Activities Morning

The Activities Morning will be held on Saturday 13th January 2024 and will involve all candidates for Years 3 and 4 working with their year groups. The morning is divided into two parts:

• Creative Writing

Your daughter will be asked to complete a short writing task in a classroom group. The group will take part in a teacher-led discussion, listening and talking to each other about the content of a piece of writing on a particular topic. Having discussed what might be included in her piece, she will be asked to complete a creative writing task independently, developing her creative ideas throughout her writing.

• Group Activities

After a snack and a play in the Junior School Gardens, candidates will take part in group activities, where they will have the opportunity to meet some of our teachers and enjoy taking part in a range of creative tasks, so they can experience first-hand our approach to learning.