Students are admitted to the Swot Shop OC exam preparation program having successfully completed an entry test that assesses their readiness to tackle the demanding nature of the Swot Shop OC course.
Lessons are held once a week for two hours and start in Term 4 finishing in Term 1 in time for the external OC exam at the beginning of May.
The Swot Shop has a maximum of 16 students in each class and students are graded based on their performance in the test. Students may change class after a regrading test which takes place in lesson 10 of the program.
Classes are taught by experienced qualified teachers who offer problem-solving strategies and deep knowledge of the content and test format.
Computer-based practice and testing will be incorporated into The Swot Shop program.
Students will experience the following during the lessons:
- Reading/comprehension – all aspects of the OC test will be taught to the children. This includes poems, main idea paragraphs, cloze passages, meaning of words and drawing conclusions.
- Math reasoning – all maths questions will require problem solving and will have several stages. Teachers break down various aspects of the problem solving and establish numerical relationships.
- Thinking skills – this is possibly the most difficult area for students. Teachers break down and teach the various types of questions in smaller sections. Aspects taught will be verbal reasoning, non-verbal reasoning, sequences, cardinal points, debates and arguments.
- Testing – Most weeks students will experience a test. The test papers are marked each week, and scores collated and ranked. Students receive their mark, and are advised of the highest mark, the lowest mark and their rank within their Swot Shop cohort.
Students will experience exercises in speed and accuracy, time management and concentration during the program.
There will also be a trial exam at the end of Term 1 where students will experience a similar test experience as the final exam.
The Swot Shop also offers a holiday review program after Term 1. This is for students enrolled in the program and is not compulsory. An additional fee is charged to participate.
Practical ways parents can help their children prepare:
- Follow your child’s work in the booklets and the short tests given to them.
- Ensure students have committed their tables and sums to memory.
- Ensure they understand the foundational ‘curriculum skills’ such as time, mass, capacity, fractions, graphs, money etc.
- Encourage children to read for pleasure as this is critical to developing their vocabulary and comprehension.
- There is no writing in the OC test, however, the Selective exam which children may wish to sit at a later stage does have a writing component and there is a mark for spelling so practising spelling is important also for this reason.
- Learn to read timetables and navigate maps.
- Understand estimation such as height and mass.
