11+ Maths often requires children to do more than perform calculations. They need to understand a problem, decide which mathematical skills to use and work accurately under time pressure.
The best preparation therefore starts with secure Maths foundations.
Make arithmetic automatic
Basic calculations shouldn't consume all of a child's thinking time.
Regularly practise addition, subtraction, multiplication and division alongside multiplication-table facts.
The aim isn't simply speed. Children should develop accurate and efficient methods they understand.
Strengthen fractions, decimals and percentages
These areas frequently require children to connect different pieces of mathematical knowledge.
Rather than memorising isolated procedures, encourage children to recognise relationships such as:
½ = 0.5 = 50%
Understanding these connections makes unfamiliar problems easier to tackle.
Practise word problems
Some children can perform calculations confidently but struggle to determine what a written problem is actually asking.
Encourage your child to identify:
What information have I been given?
What do I need to find?
Which operation might help?
This develops mathematical reasoning rather than guessing from keywords.
Don't ignore measurement and geometry
Preparation can become overly focused on arithmetic.
Children should also be comfortable applying knowledge of measures, shapes, angles, perimeter, area and other age-appropriate geometry.
Analyse mistakes
A wrong answer doesn't necessarily mean your child doesn't understand the Maths.
They may have:
misread a number
selected the wrong operation
rushed
made an arithmetic error
misunderstood the concept
Identifying the cause is much more useful than simply completing another question.
Add time pressure gradually
Start with accuracy.
Once your child can solve questions confidently, introduce timed sets so they learn to work efficiently.
The goal is to develop accuracy plus pace, rather than sacrificing accuracy in an attempt to work quickly.