11 plus maths

Tested by

Every 11+ test, though GL and Quest areas choose whether to include it (almost all do)

Content

Key Stage 2 maths, mostly up to the end of Year 5, with some Year 6 topics in harder questions

Calculator

Not allowed

Answers

Multiple choice in most tests; written answers in the CSSE and some SEAG questions

What 11+ maths looks like

The topics are the ones taught at primary school. What is different is how they are combined. A typical 11+ question might ask for the cost of 3.5 kg of apples at £1.20 for 500 g: that needs units, multiplication and decimals in one go. School tests more often check one skill at a time.

Expect three kinds of question:

• Quick calculation: arithmetic, place value, rounding, simple fractions and percentages. These should take seconds, leaving time for the rest.
• Word problems: money, time, measures, ages and shopping, often with two or three steps.
• Reasoning: number patterns, missing numbers, shape puzzles and reading charts, where you have to see what the question is really asking.

The topics that come up most

• Number and place value: large numbers, negative numbers, rounding, Roman numerals.
• Calculation: the four operations, written methods, order of operations, multiples, factors, primes, square and cube numbers.
• Fractions, decimals and percentages: equivalence, ordering, fractions of amounts, percentages of amounts, converting between the three.
• Ratio and proportion: scaling recipes, sharing in a ratio, best value.
• Algebra: number sequences, missing numbers, simple formulae, and two unknowns such as “a + b = 10 and a − b = 4”.
• Measures: converting units, time and timetables, money, perimeter, area and volume.
• Geometry: properties of 2D and 3D shapes, angles, coordinates, reflection and translation.
• Statistics: tables, bar charts, line graphs, pie charts and the mean.

Key Stage 2 maths, year by year

This is a summary of the national curriculum for England. Years 3 to 5 are what most 11+ maths is built on. Year 6 is taught after the test, but its topics turn up in harder questions, so it is worth looking ahead at those marked below.

Year 3

• Number: numbers to 1,000, place value in three-digit numbers, counting in 4s, 8s, 50s and 100s.
• Calculation: adding and subtracting three-digit numbers in columns; the 3, 4 and 8 times tables; two-digit by one-digit multiplication.
• Fractions: tenths, unit and non-unit fractions of amounts, equivalent fractions with small denominators, adding and subtracting fractions with the same denominator.
• Measures: length, mass and capacity; perimeter; money; telling the time on 12-hour and 24-hour clocks and with Roman numerals I to XII.
• Geometry and statistics: right angles, horizontal, vertical, parallel and perpendicular lines; bar charts, pictograms and tables.

Year 4

• Number: numbers beyond 1,000, negative numbers, rounding to the nearest 10, 100 or 1,000, Roman numerals to 100.
• Calculation: all times tables to 12 × 12, checked nationally in June; four-digit column addition and subtraction; short multiplication of two- and three-digit numbers.
• Fractions and decimals: hundredths, decimal equivalents of tenths, hundredths, ¼, ½ and ¾; dividing by 10 and 100; rounding decimals to whole numbers.
• Measures: converting units, area by counting squares, perimeter of rectilinear shapes, converting between 12-hour and 24-hour time.
• Geometry and statistics: types of triangle and quadrilateral, acute and obtuse angles, lines of symmetry, coordinates and translations; time graphs.

Year 5

• Number: numbers to 1,000,000, negative numbers in context, Roman numerals to M (1,000).
• Calculation: multiples, factors, prime numbers, square and cube numbers; long multiplication (up to four digits by two); short division with remainders; multiplying and dividing by 10, 100 and 1,000.
• Fractions, decimals and percentages: mixed numbers and improper fractions; adding and subtracting fractions whose denominators are multiples of the same number; multiplying fractions by whole numbers; thousandths; the % sign and simple fraction–decimal–percentage equivalents.
• Measures: metric and common imperial units, perimeter of composite shapes, area of rectangles, estimating volume.
• Geometry and statistics: measuring and drawing angles in degrees; angles on a straight line (180°) and around a point (360°); regular and irregular polygons; reflection and translation; line graphs and timetables.

Year 6 (usually taught after the test)

• Number and calculation: numbers to 10,000,000; long division; order of operations; common factors and multiples.
• Fractions: simplifying; adding and subtracting any fractions and mixed numbers; multiplying fractions; dividing fractions by whole numbers; decimals to three places.
• Ratio and proportion: scale factors, percentages of amounts, sharing in a ratio. Often in harder 11+ questions.
• Algebra: formulae, linear sequences, missing-number equations, two unknowns. Often in harder 11+ questions.
• Measures: converting miles and kilometres, area of triangles and parallelograms, volume of cuboids.
• Geometry and statistics: angles in triangles, quadrilaterals and polygons; parts of a circle; coordinates in all four quadrants; pie charts and the mean.

How each test sets its maths

• GL Assessment and Quest: mostly multiple choice, often on a separate answer sheet. A mix of quick questions and word problems.
• CSSE: about an hour of written answers, so every answer must be worked out and there is nothing to guess from. Often the most demanding maths paper.
• SEAG: 28 maths questions in each of the two papers, alongside English, mostly multiple choice with some written answers.
• FSCE: multiple choice and short written answers, on Year 5 content only; maths can also appear inside questions on other subjects. The format changes every year.
• ISEB Pre-Test: on screen and adaptive, so questions get harder as your child gets them right.
• CEM: numerical reasoning in short timed sections, with more problem solving than straight calculation.

How to prepare for 11+ maths

• Make times tables and number bonds instant. Everything else gets faster when they are.
• Find gaps in Year 3 to 5 topics first, then look ahead at Year 6 ratio, algebra and fractions.
• For word problems, underline what the question asks for and the units before calculating.
• Estimate first. A rough answer catches slips and, in multiple choice, often rules out two options.
• Practise without a calculator, and with written answers if your test uses them.

The other 11+ subjects

• MathsKey Stage 2 maths, in harder, multi-step problems.
• EnglishComprehension, vocabulary, spelling, punctuation, grammar and sometimes writing.
• Verbal reasoningWord, letter and number puzzles. Not taught in school.
• Non-verbal reasoningShape and pattern puzzles. Not taught in school.

Which subjects each test includes