This article provides information about 7+ exams and how your child can use Atom to support their preparation.
When will my child sit their 7+ exam?
- 7+ exams are taken by children applying for a place in Year 3 at an independent prep school.
- The exam is normally taken midway through Year 2 (around January time), when children are aged 6 or 7, for entry the following September.
What will be child be tested on?
The 7+ exam tests maths and English, but some schools also include a reasoning paper containing Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning. The tests are usually in written form. But, there can be verbal sections testing mental arithmetic, spelling, memory and dictation. There may also be manual and creative tasks to complete.
For specific details about a particular 7+ exam, it’s always best to check your target school’s website. Or you can speak to their Admissions Team.
The content of the 7+ exam follows the National Curriculum, including Key Stage 1 content and some content from very early Key Stage 2.
English
- Reading comprehension: Your child should be able to read fluently and be able to deduce and infer information. Your child's reading level should be above the national average.
- Creative writing: Your child should be able to write a piece of original writing, using full sentences, with a clear beginning, middle and end. The focus at 7+ is on story writing. Marks are awarded for interesting and creative use of vocabulary, good use of structure, spelling, handwriting and logical sequence.
- Spelling, punctuation and grammar: Your child should know their spelling list for Years 2 and 3. They should be able to use accurate punctuation, clauses and paragraphs.
Maths
Maths questions will be based on the full Year 2 syllabus. This will include questions on:
- The four operations
- Place value
- Estimating and rounding
- Fractions
- Money
- Shapes and space
- Problem solving.
- A strong knowledge of times tables is an important part of 7+. Your child will be expected to know at least their 2, 3, 4, 5 and 10 times tables and apply them in real-world scenarios.
Reasoning
If a 7+ exam does incorporate reasoning, your child might see both verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning questions:
- Verbal reasoning: Reasoning and solving problems with written information. This could include letters, words, symbols, and numbers.
- Non-verbal reasoning: Solving problems using visual information. This includes shapes, diagrams, and pictures.
What happens after the 7+ exam?
Prep schools usually take lots of factors into consideration when offering places, so there might be other tasks or activities to complete. This could include:
- An interview: usually a one-on-one informal chat with a member of staff. Your child might be asked questions about their interests and hobbies, both inside and outside of school.
- A group task: The school might set a group activity – usually classroom-based – to see how well your child works with others.
Most schools also request a copy of a child’s latest school report, and/or a reference from their current headteacher.
How can my child use Atom Home to prepare for the 7+?
Top Tips
- If this is the first time your child has prepared for an exam, it’s important to not overwhelm them and ensure you incorporate rest into their learning routine.
- Your child might not have seen reasoning question styles before, or if they have, this will still be very new. This should be a priority when practising the curriculum ahead of exam day. Things like crosswords, word searches, sudokus, riddles etc can be a fun way for them to practise these skills.
- Similarly, your child might not have sat a timed assessment before, and if they have, again, this will still be a very new skill. Building up resilience to working under timed conditions should be a focus. This can be practised on Atom by, first, setting short, timed extra practice activities before moving on to mock tests.
- When preparing for the 7+ it is likely your child will see question styles and content that they haven’t explored in school, yet. The help resources on Atom are there to support your child to build on their existing knowledge and become confident with new question styles. Encourage your child to use these if they're stuck or have answered a question incorrectly. On Atom Home, your child will find:
- Detailed answer explanations for every question
- Topic videos
- Helpsheets
Recommended Weekly Routine
- Use the subject courses in your child's learning plan 3-4 times per week, for 10-15 minute sessions. This is where your child will consolidate their understanding of the curriculum that’s tested. Atom's adaptive algorithm will support them in building confidence with each question style.
- Encourage your child to use the Learn tool for each learning island to build on their understanding.
- Review your child’s progress weekly and use the Track page to identify any skills that require further practice. Get into the habit of tackling areas of difficulty early on and set 2-3 extra practices per week. These should focus on one skill each and incorporate around 15 questions.
- Complete a 7+ mock test twice a month. On Atom, there is a 7+ mock test for English, maths, VR and NVR. Increase this to 1 or 2 per week in the final 6-8 weeks ahead of exam day. The video below shows you how to set these:
- Mock test transcripts are so valuable to further highlight areas of improvement, whether that is skill-based or exam technique. For more guidance on interpreting a mock test transcript, please click here.
- For the story writing section, ask your child to practise writing 5 or 10 lines a day about topics that interest them. They can then use that as a way to build up their vocabulary by including more adjectives/adverbs/similes etc.
- Your child needs to read a range of genres including fiction and non-fiction texts. Click here to explore Atom’s Recommended Reading Lists to help your child choose an appropriate book.
If you have any questions on how to support your child with their 7+ preparation, please email us at support@atomlearning.co.uk.