🇦🇺 🎓 Australia · Year 3
Free Year 3 OC and selective practice test
Find out in 12 minutes. Free.
This free Year 3 OC and selective practice check takes about 12 minutes. Your child answers 20 multiple-choice questions in thinking skills and mathematical reasoning that get easier or harder as they go, and you get a report of their strengths and what to build next. It is not an official placement test.
- Free and no sign-up to start
- Matched to your curriculum
- Made by teachers at 70+ Success Tutoring centres in Australia, New Zealand, the US, Canada and India
What Year 3 children learn in maths
In Year 3, children applying for an Opportunity Class next year start building the reasoning skills the test rewards: spotting patterns, following clues step by step, and solving problems with more than one step.
What the Year 3 check looks at
Number patterns
Spotting the rule in a sequence and using it to find the next number.
- Number sequences with a constant or growing step
- Doubling, alternating and square-number patterns
Try at home: Make up number patterns for each other in the car and challenge your child to explain the rule, not just the answer.
Word relationships
Analogies, synonyms, opposites and spotting the odd one out.
- Analogies
- Odd one out, synonyms and opposites
Try at home: Read widely together and play “which word doesn’t belong?” with everyday groups of words.
Codes
Cracking letter and number codes by finding the rule.
- Letter-shift codes
- Number codes
Try at home: Write each other secret messages with a letter-shift code, then swap the rule.
Logic
Putting clues in order and reasoning about days and time.
- Ordering from clues
- Days and time reasoning
Try at home: Ask your child to draw a quick diagram for each clue. Selective tests reward neat, step-by-step reasoning.
Problem solving
Multi-step word problems, working backwards and rates.
- Working backwards
- Money and rates
Try at home: For each word problem, ask your child to say what they know, what they need, and the steps in between before calculating.
Visual reasoning
Spotting how shapes turn and grow, without words or numbers.
- Rotation sequences
- Growing patterns
Try at home: Do tangrams, jigsaws and spot-the-pattern puzzles together, and ask your child to say the rule out loud.
Try some Year 3 questions
These are the kind of questions in the check. Every check has fresh numbers, so your child will not have seen them before.
Number patterns
What number comes next?
8, 13, 18, 23, ?
- 28
- 27
- 29
- 33
Show the answer
28. The pattern goes up by 5 each time, so the next number is 28.
Word relationships
Kitten is to cat as foal is to …
- cow
- horse
- goat
- sheep
Show the answer
horse. A kitten grows into a cat; a foal grows into a horse.
Codes
In a code, DESK is written as CDRJ. How is SHIP written in the same code?
- QFGN
- SHIP
- TIJQ
- RGHO
Show the answer
RGHO. Each letter moves 1 place back in the alphabet, so SHIP becomes RGHO.
How it works
- Your child answers 20 multiple-choice questions on number patterns, word relationships, codes, logic, problem solving and visual reasoning. Questions get easier or harder as they go.
- See how they’re going. On track, a little behind, or needs support, for their year level.
- Get the full report. Strengths and gaps in 6 areas, emailed to you, plus a free assessment at your nearest Success Tutoring centre if you’d like one.
Questions parents ask
What is in the OC and selective tests?
In New South Wales, the Opportunity Class placement test (taken in Year 4) covers reading, mathematical reasoning and thinking skills. The Selective High School placement test (taken in Year 6) covers the same three plus writing. Other states run their own selective entry tests.
What does this practice check cover?
Thinking skills and mathematical reasoning: number patterns, word relationships, codes, logic and multi-step problems. For reading, try our free Reading Check.
Is this an official placement test?
No. It is a free practice check written by Success Tutoring, with original questions. The NSW Department of Education, which runs the placement tests, is not involved.
When should my child start preparing?
Reasoning skills grow over years, not weeks. A year or more before the test, regular puzzles, reading and problem solving matter more than practice papers; practice papers help most in the final months.
Is it free?
Yes. The check and the full report are free, and there is no sign-up to start.