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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Lifestyle
Meredith Clark

Kate Middleton reveals Prince George’s relatable opinion on school tests

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With the new school year fully in swing, Kate Middleton has revealed how Prince George really feels about being tested on school exams.

The Princess of Wales, 41, recently shared her eldest son’s honest opinion about taking school tests while visiting Fitzalan High School in Cardiff, Wales, on 3 October. In a video shared to TikTok by The Sun’s Matt Wilkinson, Kate Middleton could be seen standing at a table of young students as she spoke about her 10-year-old son.

“George is just at the beginning of being tested,” she told the group of students. “He says: ‘Mummy, I keep getting tested all the time.’ But when it gets to A-levels you feel like you’re on it.”

During the Prince and Princess of Wales’ trip to Cardiff, the parents of three chatted with a group of elementary school students. Gracie, an 11-year-old Howardian Primary School student, revealed that Kate asked her what school subjects she enjoyed the most. “I said I like maths and like our teachers teaching us. And she said I could teach [Prince] George some maths!” she told People.

The royal couple’s recent visit comes just days after it was revealed that Kate will not be joining her husband in Singapore for this year’s Earthshot Prize Awards on 7 November. Buckingham Palace confirmed that Kate will not be in attendance because she plans to stay back at their home in Windsor to help George prepare for an upcoming school test.

The current school year is an important one for the Prince and Princess of Wales’ eldest child, who will be taking entry exams to decide which senior school he will attend when he is 13. According to Hello! magazine, the first test George will take is an ISEB test, a multiple-choice test that focuses on verbal reasoning, non-verbal reasoning, math, and English. The exam usually lasts two and a half hours and is typically tested in October or November.

Following William and Kate’s move from Kensington Palace to Windsor last year, George and his younger siblings - Princess Charlotte, eight, and Prince Louis, five - all began attending the same school together for the first time. The Lambrook School in Berkshire is a co-educational independent day and boarding school for three to 13-year-olds near Ascot, just a 10-minute drive from their new home at Adelaide Cottage in Windsor’s Home Park.

Before relocating their family to the countryside, both George and Charlotte began their education at Thomas’s Battersea - a private day school in south London - with George starting in 2017 and Charlotte in 2019. As a toddler, their eldest son went to Westacre Montessori School, while a young Charlotte went to Willcocks Nursery School near Kensington Palace in 2018, followed by Louis in 2021.

Following the passing of the late Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022, the mother of three gave an update on how her children were adjusting to their new school. According to People, George, Charlotte, and Louis were reportedly “excited” to all be going to the same school for the first time.

Kate has previously been open about wanting “normality” for her and William’s three children, despite the many obligations that come with being members of the royal family. Speaking to People in 2019, a source close to Kate said: “She wants to emulate her upbringing, living in the countryside with a close-knit family.”

“She desperately wants that normality for her own kids,” they added.

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