Skip to the content
Cub Climb
← Tests in the United Kingdom

The 11+, explained for parents

The 11+ is the test for a place at a grammar school in the parts of England that still have them. Children sit it at the start of Year 6, around age 10, for a place in Year 7.

At a glance

Full name
The eleven-plus, for grammar school entry
Published by
GL Assessment, in most areas
Who sits it
Grammar schools in parts of England, for entry to Year 7. Children sit it at the start of Year 6, around age 10.
What it is made of
It varies by area. Most include a verbal reasoning paper and many a non-verbal reasoning paper, alongside English and maths, mostly multiple choice.

What is on it

  • It depends on the area: each grammar school or consortium chooses its own papers, timings and dates.
  • GL Assessment, which writes most areas’ papers, says most include a verbal reasoning test and many a non-verbal reasoning test.
  • Many areas add English and maths papers.

Preparing, the official way

  • GL Assessment publishes free familiarisation materials — about ten hours of them — so children know what the papers look like before the day.
  • Registration closes months before the test. Your area’s grammar school admissions page has the dates.

Grades and Years

  • The puzzles on this site and in the app count in North American grades. England’s Year 5 is grade 4, and Year 6 is grade 5.

How much of the 11+ the puzzles here cover

Partly covered. Its reasoning questions — analogies, odd one out, series, shape patterns, folding — have matches here. Its letter codes, hidden words, English and maths papers do not.

  • Verbal Analogies
  • Verbal Classification
  • Number Series
  • Figure Matrices
  • Figure Classification
  • Paper Folding

Every puzzle is original: none is a copy or an imitation of a real test question. See one of each kind.

Build the reasoning, not the test

Short, original puzzles with words, numbers and shapes. Your child answers, then names the rule.

Play free in your browser
Download Cub Climb: Gifted Test Prep on the App StoreAndroid: coming soon

Or print free reasoning worksheets, grades 3 to 8.

Sources

Last checked 11 October 2026. This page is general information, not advice: your school, district, board or area has the final word on its own tests and dates. Test names are trademarks of their publishers. Cub Climb is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to any of them, or to any school or education department.