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Proven techniques, timelines, and strategies to maximize your child's Edutest performance for NSW selective school entry (Years 8-11)
Strategic roadmap tailored to your child's starting level. Consistent 4-6 hours weekly practice yields best results.
Baseline: Consistently top 10% at school
Timeframe: 6-9 months
Weekly: 4-5 hours
Focus: Refining skills, exam techniques, maintaining excellence across all 5 components
Baseline: Consistently top 20-30% at school
Timeframe: 12 months
Weekly: 5-6 hours
Focus: Building vocabulary, mastering reasoning patterns, developing writing sophistication
Baseline: Middle 40% at school, aiming for selective entry
Timeframe: 18-24 months
Weekly: 6-8 hours
Focus: Foundational skill-building, extensive practice, gradual difficulty progression
Months 1-3
Identify strengths, weaknesses, and establish baseline skills across all components.
Months 4-8
Deepen skills, increase speed and accuracy, develop sophisticated test-taking strategies.
Months 9-12
Refine techniques, simulate real test conditions, peak performance preparation.
Month 12 (Final 4 weeks)
Peak performance, final refinement, test-day readiness.
Difficulty: Most challenging for students
Learn 15-20 words weekly IN CONTEXT (not just definitions). Read sentences, write your own examples, use in conversations.
For analogies, identify the relationship TYPE before looking at answers (synonym? antonym? part-whole? category? degree?). Make a clear sentence: "A is to B because [relationship]".
Remove obviously wrong answers first. Look for wrong relationship types or incorrect word meanings.
Learn roots, prefixes, suffixes (e.g., "bene" = good, so benevolent, beneficial, benefactor all relate to goodness). Helps decode unfamiliar words.
Daily: 20 new vocab words (Mon-Fri), 30-min analogy practice, weekend review
Difficulty: Moderately challenging
Find differences between consecutive numbers FIRST. If differences form a pattern, you've found the rule. Example: 2, 5, 10, 17... (differences: +3, +5, +7 = adding odd numbers).
Try different operations: addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, squares, cubes. Look for alternating patterns (every other number follows different rule).
Learn calculation tricks: multiply by 9 (×10 then subtract original), multiply by 11 (split and add middle), quick squares (25² = 625).
For grid/matrix questions, check rows, columns, AND diagonals for patterns. Numbers often relate across multiple dimensions.
Daily: 10-min mental math drills, 30-min sequence practice (M/W/F), weekend timed tests
Difficulty: Moderate (depends on reading level)
Read questions BEFORE the passage to know what to focus on. Underline key information related to questions while reading.
Never rely on memory alone. Return to passage to verify answers. Quote or paraphrase specific evidence.
For "What does the author imply?" questions, eliminate extreme answers ("always", "never", "only") that aren't supported by text.
Recognize text type (narrative, informational, persuasive, poetry) and adjust reading approach. Poetry requires slower, analytical reading.
Daily: 20-30 min reading above grade level, 2-3 passages with questions (T/Th/Sat)
Difficulty: Moderate to challenging (no calculator)
For geometry and word problems, ALWAYS draw a diagram. Visual representation clarifies relationships and prevents errors.
For complex problems, plug answer choices into the problem. Often faster than solving algebraically.
After solving, ask: "Does this answer make sense?" Is it too big/small? Are units correct? Did I answer what was asked (area vs perimeter)?
Always follow order of operations: Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication/Division (left to right), Addition/Subtraction (left to right).
Daily: 10-min mental math, 30-40 min problem-solving (all strands), weekend timed sections
Difficulty: Very challenging (time pressure + quality)
5 min PLANNING (brainstorm plot/arguments, outline structure), 5 min INTRODUCTION (hook reader, establish context), 15 min BODY (develop story/argument with details), 5 min CONCLUSION + EDITING (wrap up, proofread, upgrade vocabulary).
Use sensory details, actions, and dialogue instead of stating facts. BAD: "She was scared." GOOD: "Her hands trembled as footsteps echoed behind her."
Start with dialogue, a question, vivid description, or action. Never start with "My name is..." or "Once upon a time..."
Mix short punchy sentences with longer complex ones. Use different sentence starters. Avoid repetitive patterns.
Weekly: 1-2 timed writes (30 min), feedback from tutor/teacher, vocabulary building, reading quality examples
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