I ended up going into school to see what they wanted me to do. As I felt ok, and as I could infect other children, they decided to let me sit the 11+ but go home straight after. There were a few parts to the test, so I would have to go to school the next morning too. So, I tried my best, and then went home. That night, this is what I wrote in my diary:

            I can’t believe it! The only two days in the year that I have to be in school, and I catch an infectious disease. I sat the 11+ anyway, but I had to go home afterwards. I didn’t even get a chance to ask my friends how well they think they did. I’m finishing the test tomorrow, but the same thing is going to happen again. I went to the doctor and he gave me two weeks of antibiotics.

            After I had completed the whole of the 11+, I got the rest of the week off school. In this time, I mostly read, watched television and played a few games. It reminded me of when I was younger and had chicken pox; I felt fine, but had to stay at home until I was better. By next week, I could open my left eye again and went back to school. I found it hard to concentrate because all I could think about was my results.

            In February, they came. Not for the 11+, but for the first test I took. This was important because, if I got in, I would have a good school to go to if I didn’t get into a grammar school. When I walked out of school, I got more and more nervous every step I took. When I walked into my house, I saw a big, white letter on the table. When I opened the letter, I scanned it for the information I have been waiting to know for months. I was in group eight, and I was in! Now I knew I would go to this good school, or a grammar school.

            It wasn’t long before March and the 11+ results arrived. I was in an after-school club on the day I got the letter. My mum brought it with her when she came to pick me up. She didn’t tell me she had it until halfway home. I decided that I didn’t want to wait anymore, so I opened it then. I wasn’t as nervous as before because I had already got into the other school, but I was still nervous. I looked at the letter and saw that I had passed the 11+! Not only that, but I had got into the grammar school that was first on my list.

            In May, I finally had my last lot of tests- the SAT’s. These weren’t as important as the 11+, but I still had to do well because the results would be sent to my new school, so they could give me target grades for the end of Key Stage Three. These tests were much easier as everyone took them. When I started the paper, I noticed that two things were different to the 11+. Firstly, the first question was really easy. Secondly, the atmosphere in the room was much more relaxed. In the test, I managed to attempt all of the questions with time to spare.

            Finally, with all of the tests behind me, I could relax for the rest of the year.