The night before is not the time for cramming. It's the time for sleep, calm and a sense of control. By the final evening, the preparation is already done — the months of worksheets, the timed mocks and the steady practice have banked everything your child needs. The job now is simply to protect that work: keep your child rested, unrushed and quietly confident. This is a gentle, hour-by-hour plan for the last eighteen hours that keeps everyone — your child included — out of last-minute panic mode.
Why cramming the night before backfires
It is tempting to squeeze in one more paper "just to be safe". Resist it. Late, anxious revision does three unhelpful things: it convinces a tired child there are gaps they cannot fix in time, it pushes bedtime later, and it turns a calm evening into a stressful one. Under exam conditions, a well-rested brain that recalls smoothly beats an exhausted one crammed with fresh facts. The 11+ rewards clear thinking and steady timing far more than a last-minute top-up, so the single most valuable thing you can do the night before is help your child switch off.
There is one small exception. A very short, low-stakes warm-up on the morning of the exam — five to ten minutes on a couple of familiar question types — can help some children "wake up" their reasoning brain, in the same way a footballer stretches before kick-off. The key word is familiar. This is not the moment to attempt anything new or hard.
The evening: a calm wind-down
Aim for an ordinary, relaxed evening with the exam kept firmly in the background. A predictable routine signals safety to an anxious child.
- Pack everything into the bag before dinner, together, so it's done and off your child's mind: sharpened pencils, a spare, an eraser, a clear water bottle, a small snack, and any letter, ID or entry documents the centre asked for.
- Lay out clothes for the morning — comfortable layers, since exam halls can be warm or cold — plus shoes and coat by the door.
- Have a relaxed dinner with no exam talk. Chat about anything else: the weekend, a favourite show, something funny that happened at school.
- Offer 15 minutes of light reading for pleasure if it helps them settle — but no maths, no reasoning drills, nothing that reopens the "am I ready?" question.
- Keep screens off for the last hour before bed. Screen light and fast-paced games make it harder to fall asleep.
- Go to bed at the normal time — not earlier. An unusually early bedtime often causes lying-awake insomnia, which is worse than a normal night's sleep.
A last-evening checklist
Print this or run through it in your head. Ticking each item gives a nervous child a comforting sense that everything is under control.
| Ready? | Item |
|---|---|
| ☐ | Bag packed: pencils, spare pencil, eraser, sharpener |
| ☐ | Water bottle (clear, label-free where required) and a light snack |
| ☐ | Any ID, entry letter or documents the centre requested |
| ☐ | Clothes and shoes laid out — comfortable, in layers |
| ☐ | Route and arrival time checked; alarm set for an unhurried start |
| ☐ | No cramming; light reading only; normal bedtime |
The morning: fuel and calm
Wake with enough time that nobody is rushing — a frantic scramble transfers straight into exam-hall nerves. Give a normal, balanced breakfast and avoid sugary cereals or fizzy drinks, which spike energy and then crash mid-paper. Reach instead for slow-release fuel and a little protein: eggs, wholegrain toast, porridge, a banana, some yoghurt. Encourage a drink of water; a mildly dehydrated brain concentrates less well.
If your child likes routine, a brief warm-up on a couple of familiar revision question types can settle the nerves — think of it as gently switching the engine on, not revving it. Then stop. Anything more risks planting doubt just before they walk in.
Exam technique: a quick reminder, not a lecture
You don't need a big pep talk, but one or two simple reminders can genuinely help in the hall. Most 11+ papers — including the widely used GL Assessment format — are tightly timed at roughly a minute a question, so pace matters.
- Don't get stuck. If a question is taking too long, mark it, move on, and come back at the end. One hard question is not worth three easy ones.
- Check the answer sheet lines up. On multiple-choice OMR sheets, make sure the number you're answering matches the number you're marking.
- Have a sensible guess. Where there's no negative marking, never leave a blank — an educated guess can only help.
- Breathe and reset. If panic rises, three slow breaths before the next section costs ten seconds and buys back focus.
The drop-off: keep it short and ordinary
Children read our faces. If you look worried, they carry that worry into the room. So keep your own expression calm and your goodbye light and brief: "Have a good one — see you afterwards" works far better than an intense last-minute pep talk. Then step back. Whatever happens next, your child has done the practice, and one exam is never the whole measure of who they are. If you'd like to understand what comes after the paper, our 11+ process guide and key dates page walk through results, offers and next steps.
Frequently asked questions
Should my child do any revision the night before?
No structured revision. At most, 15 minutes of light reading for pleasure. The evening's real job is a calm wind-down and a good night's sleep, both of which do more for performance than any last-minute practice.
What should they eat on exam morning?
A normal, balanced breakfast with slow-release carbohydrates and a little protein — eggs, toast, porridge, banana, yoghurt. Avoid sugary cereals and fizzy drinks, which cause an energy spike and a mid-paper crash, and offer a glass of water.
My child is really nervous — how do I calm them?
Keep your own manner relaxed, since anxiety is contagious. Stick to the normal routine, avoid exam talk over dinner, and remind them gently that they are prepared. A slow breathing exercise together before bed and again in the car can settle a racing mind.