Alleyn’s School in Dulwich is a top choice for many families, known for its academic excellence and co-educational environment. The 11+ entrance exam is highly competitive, and the creative writing task is a crucial opportunity for your child to showcase their unique voice and imagination. While the format is simpler than some other schools, that doesn’t make it any easier to stand out.

At 11 Plus Essay, we’ve helped hundreds of students secure places at their dream schools, including Alleyn’s. This guide will walk you through the Alleyn’s writing exam and give you the tools you need to support your child.

The Alleyn’s Writing Exam Format: Simple and Direct

Good news! The Alleyn’s writing exam is one of the most straightforward in the 11+ circuit. There is no reading passage or picture stimulus. Instead, students are given a choice between two creative writing prompts.

These prompts typically fall into two categories:

1. A Place or Experience Prompt: This asks students to describe a place or an event. For example, “Describe a cold place” or “Write about an exciting journey.”
2. A Person or Relationship Prompt: This asks students to write about a person or a relationship. For example, “Describe a person who is important to you.”

Students usually have minutes for this task, and it’s a pure test of their creative writing ability from imagination.

Expert Tip: The simplicity of the format means that creativity, structure, and technical accuracy are even more important. There’s nowhere to hide!

1. The Memory Bank Technique

Since the prompts are based on personal experience and imagination, the best way to prepare is to build a “Memory Bank” of ideas. Sit down with your child and brainstorm:

• Powerful Memories: Holidays, birthdays, achievements, challenges.
• Interesting People: Family members, friends, teachers, a stranger they saw once.
• Vivid Places: A grandparent’s house, a bustling market, a quiet forest, a favourite room.
• Strong Emotions: Times they felt excited, scared, proud, or sad.

For each memory, get them to jot down a few sensory details (sights, sounds, smells). This will give them a rich well of ideas to draw from on exam day, no matter what the prompt is.

2. Master Both Prompt Types

For the Place or Experience Prompt:

• Focus on “Show, Don’t Tell”: Instead of saying “the market was busy”, describe the “shouting vendors, the smell of spices, and the crush of the crowd.”
• Use a clear structure: A good descriptive piece often moves from a wide view to a close-up, like a camera.

For the Person or Relationship Prompt:

• Go beyond physical appearance: What are their habits? How do they speak? What do they do that shows their personality?
• Focus on the emotional connection: How does this person make the writer feel? Show this through actions and dialogue, not just by saying “I love them.”