How to Prepare for the 11+ GL Assessment: A Practical Study Plan for Parents
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Preparing well for the 11+ GL Assessment is less about cramming and more about building the right skills in the right order.
Families often leave GL preparation too late, or focus only on buying practice papers without first covering the underlying maths, English, verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning skills. That usually leads to slow progress, low confidence and avoidable mistakes under timed conditions.
A stronger approach is to split preparation into three stages:
- build core skills early
- increase speed and accuracy gradually
- finish with timed papers, targeted correction and exam technique
This guide sets out a practical way to do that, and links the most useful GL resources currently available in our store at each stage.
What is the 11+ GL Assessment?
GL Assessment papers are commonly used by grammar schools and selective independent schools. The exact format varies by school, but GL-style preparation usually centres on a mix of:
- maths
- English
- verbal reasoning
- non-verbal reasoning
Some schools use all four. Others combine them differently, or test them across separate papers. That means your first job is to check the admissions information for each school on your shortlist. Do not assume every school will test exactly the same combination.
Once you know the format, the preparation becomes much easier to organise.
When should children start preparing?
For most children, serious exam pressure should not start too early, but skill-building can begin well before Year 6.
Years 3 and 4: build the base
At this stage, the priority is not heavy testing. It is steady familiarity with the style of questions and the key building blocks in maths, English and reasoning.
Useful starting points include:
11 Plus Year 4 GL English Practice Book and Assessment Tests with Answers CGP
£11.99
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11 Plus Year 4 GL Maths Practice Book and Assessment Test with Answers CGP
£11.99
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11 Plus Year 4 GL Non-Verbal Practice Book and Assessment Tests with Answers CGP
£11.99
View productIn Years 3 and 4, one or two short sessions a week is usually enough. The aim is to make the question styles feel normal rather than intimidating.
Year 5: move from learning into routine practice
Year 5 is where preparation usually becomes more structured. Children should still be learning content, but now they also need to improve pace, stamina and accuracy.
Strong Year 5 resources include:
11 Plus Year 5 GL 10-Minute Tests English with Answers CGP
£11.99
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11 Plus Year 5 GL 10-Minute Tests Maths with Answers CGP
£11.99
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11 Plus Year 5 GL Maths and English Practice Papers with Answers CGP
£24.99
View productBy the end of Year 5, many children should be comfortable completing shorter timed work without panicking. That matters because speed is often what exposes weak understanding in GL-style papers.
Year 6: timed work, paper technique and precision
In Year 6, the focus should shift again. At this stage, children normally need:
- regular timed practice
- specific correction of weak topics
- experience switching between question types
- practice under realistic paper conditions
The most useful final-stage products in the store are:
11 Plus Year 6 GL Assessment 10-Minute Tests 5-Book Bundle with Answers CGP
£43.99
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11 Plus Year 6 GL Assessment Practice Papers 4 Pack Set with Answers CGP
£47.99
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11 PLUS Year 6 GL Assessment Practice Papers 2 Pack Maths and English CGP
£24.99
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11 PLUS Year 6 GL Practice Papers Verbal and Non-Verbal with Answers 2 Pack CGP
£25.99
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11 Plus Year 6 GL Assessment Verbal Reasoning Practice Book with Answers CGP
£11.99
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11 PLUS Year 6 CEM and GL Vocabulary Flashcards CGP
£20.99
View productThe best study order for GL preparation
One common mistake is tackling everything at once. A better order is:
-
Core maths and English accuracy
Children should be secure with arithmetic, word problems, comprehension, grammar and vocabulary before large amounts of timed paper practice. -
Reasoning familiarisation
Verbal and non-verbal reasoning improve when children see patterns repeatedly and learn the specific logic behind each question type. -
Short timed bursts
10-minute tests are useful because they develop speed without exhausting concentration. -
Full and half papers
Once confidence is reasonable, move into proper paper practice with answer review. -
Targeted repair work
After each paper, spend more time analysing mistakes than taking the next test immediately.
This is why the Year 6 GL Assessment 10-Minute Tests 5-Book Bundle works well before heavier paper sets, and why the Year 6 GL Assessment Practice Papers 4 Pack Set is best used once a child already has a solid base.
A realistic weekly study plan
Most children do better with consistent, shorter sessions than long weekend marathons. A practical Year 5 or Year 6 weekly plan might look like this:
- Session 1: maths skills and corrections
- Session 2: English or vocabulary
- Session 3: verbal or non-verbal reasoning
- Session 4: one short timed 10-minute test plus review
- Weekend: one longer mixed session or a practice paper section
That is usually enough if the work is focused and corrected properly.
For quick weekday work, the following are especially useful:
11 Plus Year 6 GL 10-Minute Test English 1 and Maths with Answers CGP
£19.99
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11 Plus Year 6 GL 10-Minute Test Maths and English 2 with Answers CGP
£19.99
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11 PLUS Year 6 GL 10-Minute Test Verbal Reasoning with Answers CGP
£11.99
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11 Plus Year 6 GL 10-Minute Tests Non-Verbal Reasoning with Answers CGP
£13.99
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11 Plus Year 6 GL 10-Minute Tests Maths Word Problems with Answers CGP
£11.99
View productHow to review mistakes properly
The quality of correction matters more than the number of papers completed.
After each test or paper, ask:
- Was the answer wrong because of knowledge, method or carelessness?
- Was the question misunderstood?
- Was timing the real issue?
- Is this mistake repeating across multiple sessions?
If the same problem keeps appearing, stop doing fresh papers and repair the weak area first. For example:
- if vocabulary is poor, use Year 6 CEM and GL Vocabulary Flashcards
- if verbal reasoning is weak, add more work from the Year 6 GL Assessment Verbal Reasoning Practice Book
- if maths speed is the issue, use the shorter GL maths 10-minute books before returning to full papers
Common mistakes parents make with GL preparation
- Starting full papers too early. If the child still struggles with core skills, papers mostly create frustration.
- Ignoring vocabulary. Many children lose marks in English and verbal reasoning because their word knowledge is too narrow.
- Doing too much in one sitting. Tired practice is low-quality practice.
- Measuring progress only by scores. It is better to track error types, timing and confidence as well.
- Using mixed materials with no plan. One structured sequence usually works better than ten random books at once.
The final 6 to 8 weeks before the exam
In the last stretch, preparation should become more exam-like, but still balanced.
A sensible final phase is:
- Use timed 10-minute books for weekday speed work.
- Use practice papers at weekends or every second weekend.
- Keep an error log of repeated mistakes.
- Revise vocabulary, instructions and question habits.
- Reduce volume slightly in the final week so the child stays fresh.
The best products for this stage are usually the Year 6 GL Assessment Practice Papers 4 Pack Set, the Year 6 GL Assessment 10-Minute Tests 5-Book Bundle, and one or two targeted card or vocabulary resources for quick review.
Recommended Books & Goods GL preparation path
If you want a simple route through the products, this is a strong progression:
- Early foundation: Year 3 and Year 4 GL practice books in maths, English and reasoning.
- Development stage: Year 5 GL practice books and 10-minute tests.
- Paper stage: Year 5 and early Year 6 GL practice papers.
- Final preparation: Year 6 GL 10-minute bundles, paper packs, verbal reasoning repair books, question cards and vocabulary flashcards.
Final thought
The best 11+ GL preparation is steady, specific and well corrected. Children usually improve most when they build understanding first, then speed, then full exam performance. If you match the right resource to the right stage, the process becomes much more manageable.
If you are building a GL-focused study stack now, start with the books that fit your child’s current year and weakest areas, then move forward into timed practice and papers rather than jumping straight to mock-style work.