Free 11+ skills checks: a guide for parents

A skills check is a free, untimed set of multiple-choice questions on one subject. Your child answers, and you get a short report showing which areas look secure and where to practise. There is no sign-up, no card, and we do not ask for your child's name. It is a starting point, not a test result.

Choose a subject

We are adding the other subjects one at a time. They will work the same way as the one on this page.

How each check works

• It is untimed and multiple choice. A child can stop and carry on later, on the same device and browser.
• Longer checks are split into parts, so a younger child is not asked to sit through topics school has not reached. You do not have to do every part. Each part gives its own report, and if you do more than one you can see them together.
• Choose a quiet time when your child is not tired.
• Sit beside them but let them work it out. Please do not help with the answers, or the report will show your knowledge rather than theirs.
• Rough paper and a pencil are fine. No calculator for Maths.
• A tablet or computer is easier for a child than a phone.

“I haven't learned this yet”

Under every question there is a button, I haven't learned this yet. Please tell your child to use it whenever school has not taught the topic, instead of guessing. It is not a wrong answer and it does not lower their result. The report lists those topics separately, so you know what is new rather than what is weak.

If most of a part is marked this way, the report will say there was not enough to go on. That is fine; try again once school has covered more.

The report

• Each subject is split into areas (for maths: number, geometry, measures, data and algebra). Each area is shown as looks secure, developing, practise first, or not learned yet.
• Up to three things to look at, such as stopping one step early or mixing up perimeter and area. These are possibilities from a short check, not conclusions, and are only shown when the same kind of mistake is made several times.
• The topics your child said were new to them, and free lessons and syllabus pages to practise the weaker areas.

You can get the report in whichever way suits you. Taking only one part is fine; you will get a report for that part.

• On screen. The report appears straight after the last question. You can print it or save it as a PDF.

To see which questions were missed, with an explanation of each, you will need a free Onze+ account. The report is an early indicator only. It is not an official test, it does not predict an 11+ score or a school place, and Onze+ is not affiliated with GL Assessment.

The questions never change

Every child gets the same questions, in the same order within each part, every time. That keeps the check fair and the reports comparable between children, but it means a retake will not give a true picture. Your child will remember some questions and answers, so a second score would show memory, not progress. Please treat the first attempt as the result.

To see progress over time, use fresh practice and mock papers in the Onze+ app. These use new questions each time, so a later score can be compared with this one. Because the questions never change, please do not share the answers with other children; it spoils the check for them.

Saving answers anonymously

When a check is finished we add its answers to anonymous totals, so we can see which questions are too easy, too hard or confusing, and then improve or replace them. This is how we keep the questions fair and the reports useful.

• We only keep counts for each question: how many children answered it, how many got it right, how many said they had not learned it, and how often each wrong option was chosen. We do not keep one child's set of answers, so nobody's answers can be put back together.
• There is no name, email address, account or login, and nothing about your device or where you are. The counts are only grouped by week.
• You can opt out. Before you see the report there is a box to tick, and if you tick it your child's answers are not counted.

Your child's answers are also saved in your own browser so they can carry on later. You can clear them at the end of the report. Read our privacy policy, and how we make and check our questions.

Not ready for a check? Try a free lesson first.