Screening Assessments

SCREENING ASSESSMENTS

St. Mary’s Muhaisnah High School is not an academically selective school; we welcome students of all abilities and academic background. The entrance screening assessments are designed to provide information about an applicant’s readiness to join the school; the assessments identify academic strengths and areas that may require support. The screening assessments provide one piece of information when making offers of places in what tends to be an oversubscribed application process.

Year 1 Screening Assessment Overview

ENGLISH

1. Reading

• simple three letter and four letter CVC / CVCC words
• simple sentences

2. Writing

• use a pencil properly to write recognisable letters
• knowledge of the alphabet – capital letters and small letters
• matching pictures and words, matching rhyming words, sequencing pictures
• ability to write own name
• ability to write labels (labelling pictures)
• simple three letter and four letter CVC / CVCC words
• ability to write recognisable letters, simple words, phrases and numbers that a reader can understand
• ability to use full stops at the end of a sentence

MATHS

1. Numbers 1 – 30

• Counting (Oral/Written)

2. Shapes

• Visualizing and Naming

3. Picture Addition
4. Time
5. Days of the Week
6. Capacity

• Big and Small Quantity

Year 2 Screening Assessment Overview

ENGLISH

1. Reading

• words with consonant blends
• simple sentences

2. Writing

• Ability to write simple sentences
• Ability to write recognisable letters, simple words, phrases and numbers that a reader can understand
• Ability to write simple composition and to use full stops at the end of a sentence

MATHS

1. Numbers 1 – 100

• Counting (Oral/Written)

2. Number Patterns
3. Picture Addition / Subtraction
4. Simple Word Problem

Year 3-9 Screening Assessment Overview

ENGLISH (Year 3 – 9)

The English screening assessment consists of two sections: Comprehension and Essay.

The candidates are asked to answer shorter questions on a poem or a prose passage for the comprehension and are given a choice of questions for the essay. The paper is not designed to test any prior knowledge of specific terms and should be accessible to all applicants. The comprehension questions test vocabulary, inference, empathy and the ability to select appropriate information. Essay titles encourage imaginative, detailed answers and the candidates are encouraged to structure a response paying close attention to spelling, punctuation and grammar

MATHS

Year 3

1. Addition and Subtraction Skills
2. Simple Multiplication
3. Odd and Even Numbers
4. Number Patterns
5. Time
6. Simple Word Problem

Year 4

1. Addition/Subtraction/Multiplication Skills
2. Simple Division Problem
3. Number Patterns/Sequence
4. Time
5. Interpreting Graphs
6. Word Problem involving Addition, Subtraction and Multiplication

Year 5 & 6

1. Addition, subtraction, multiplication and division of whole numbers, fractions and decimals.
2. Conversions between fractions and decimals.
3. The concepts of factors, multiples and prime numbers.
4. Negative numbers will only be in context.
5. Extending number sequences.
6. Fractional or simple percentage parts.
7. The construction of simple formulae involving one or two operations.
8. Simple problems involving ratio and direct proportion.
9. Problems involving the 24-hour clock.

Year 7, 8 & 9

1. Addition, subtraction, multiplication and division of whole numbers, fractions        and decimals including long multiplication and division.
2. Conversions between fractions, decimals and simple percentages.
3. The concepts of factors, multiples and prime numbers.
4. Negative numbers will only be in context.
5. Extending number sequences.
6. Fractional or simple percentage parts.
7. The construction of simple formulae involving one or two operations.
8. Simple problems involving ratio and direct proportion.
9. Simple language associated with angles will be assumed and the angle sum     of a triangle and that of angles at a point .
10. The symmetries of 2D shapes.
11. Converting from one metric unit to another.
12. Constructing reflections in horizontal or vertical lines
13. Formulas for the perimeter and areas of rectangles and triangles.
14. Problems involving the 24-hour clock.
15. The mean, median, mode and range of discrete data and very simple examples of probability.  (YEAR 8 & 9 ONLY)

Calculators are not allowed. The Maths screening assessment is designed so that only the most outstanding candidates will finish, with the last few questions being designed to make them think in increasingly original situations. A typically able candidate will complete about 85% of the paper. Candidates are advised not to rush, but to take their time and work steadily; they should show what they can do rather than worry about what they cannot do.