“It made learning fun again” – How Lauren and Amelia used Atom Home to prepare for the 11+

When Lauren applied for her daughter Amelia to sit the West Midlands Grammar Schools Entrance Test, she started using Atom Home.

Amelia had previously tried face-to-face tutoring, but it was Atom that really made the difference, helping her feel confident, supported and even excited about learning.

Why Lauren chose Atom

“Amelia did go to tutoring for a very brief amount of time, but I found that she wasn’t really being taught things there, and then she was coming home and I was having to teach her. She really did prefer Atom, just because of it being online.”

Lauren liked how the platform broke learning down into manageable chunks and gave her insight into Amelia's progress. “We liked how it was kind of broken down into the different subject areas, and I also liked the fact that I could see her progression on there as well.”

A helpful structure for everyday life

Fitting 11 plus prep into daily life can be tricky, but Lauren found Atom made it easier to manage.

“We kind of tried to fit it in on a daily basis — early evening time, maybe if I was in the kitchen getting dinner ready, I’d be like, ‘Why don’t you just do a quick practice?’ At the weekend, she’d do more. Maybe a couple of hours in the mornings before we did stuff for the rest of the day. It fit in really well. It didn’t consume all of our time, which was really good.”

Atom’s design and layout also stood out. “I think the design of the site is really helpful. The way it’s laid out, it’s very interactive, with different colours for different subjects. I went on there a few times with her, and the layout is definitely very, very helpful.”

Like having a tutor at home

Lauren was impressed by how well Atom explained the content, especially when Amelia got questions wrong. “With the practice questions, if she got it wrong, it then gave her an explanation as to why. It was basically a one-to-one tutor, pretty much. That’s how I saw it.”

Amelia also loved how the learning felt more like a challenge than a chore. “She did some face-to-face tutoring which was kind of a group setting, and she didn’t really enjoy it. When we started using Atom, she actually enjoyed learning. She liked the islands; it was like a challenge for her, completing tasks. She really enjoyed it.”

Feeling confident on test day

Like many families, Lauren's biggest challenge wasn’t the learning itself – it was the unknowns of test day.

“The biggest challenge was just not knowing how. I have ADHD and autism, so for me the biggest challenge was the uncertainty; not really knowing how the actual day was going to be. But Amelia felt really prepared going into it, to be honest, and that is down to Atom.”

She also appreciated how Atom helped them understand the test format ahead of time. “It really explained how the test would be formatted and what to expect in the actual test situation. That was really good.”

Would Lauren recommend Atom to other families?

“Honestly, use Atom. It definitely made it more enjoyable for Amelia. Atom is fantastic at helping your child prepare for the 11 plus.”