And just like that the SEAG transfer test is all over…well for the Primary 7 students! If your child is in Primary 6, they are next to face the SEAG transfer test. I bet you are probably starting to freak out right now! Now I know it is still a long way away, but trust me when I say, the time does fly in! Whether you’ve had experience with the transfer test before or this is your first time experiencing the transfer test, I am going to guide you through the process from start to finish. Let’s get your child’s transfer test journey started together!
Do you want to kick start your child’s transfer test journey and get started the right way? Then I have just the thing for you! Why don’t you get ahead of the game by grabbing a copy of my SEAG preparation book? ‘A Complete Guide on How to Prepare and Empower your Child for the SEAG Transfer Test,’ is an essential tool for your child’s educational journey. It takes you from the beginning stages of applying to sit the tests, right through to preparing for Year 8! Order your copy now and transform your child’s transfer test preparation from chaos to calm.
What is the SEAG transfer test Northern Ireland?
Before we get started on how you should start your child’s transfer test journey, let me just go through what the transfer test is. Just in case this is your first time going through this test with a child. The transfer test is the test papers that your child will sit in Primary 7 that determine if they will get a place in a grammar school. There are two test papers which consist of 28 English questions and 28 Maths questions each. Some of the questions are multiple choice and some are open-response where your child must write their own answer, without having options. If your child is currently in Primary 6, they will be sitting the tests in November 2025.
How should you start your child’s transfer test journey?
This time of year is usually when I start with my new intake of transfer test students. A question that I get asked a lot by parents is, ‘What should we be doing to start transfer test preparation?’ So I decided to write this blog post to guide you on some ways that you can help start your child’s transfer test journey on the right foot. Ideally, you want your child’s transfer test journey to be smooth and carefree the whole way. But…I have to be real with you, there are going to be a few bumps along the way. However, if you start off this journey by building a solid foundation, then we can help your child become a happy, confident learner throughout the transfer test process. So let’s get started with my 7 easy ways to start your child’s SEAG transfer test preparation the right way!
Take note of topics your child struggles with during homework
Usually from the get-go, the level of homework from Primary 5 to Primary 6 shoots up. And if it hasn’t yet, don’t worry the workload will be increasing any day now! There is a lot of homework that comes with Primary 6. There are so many topics to learn as well as reading, times tables and spellings! My first tip for starting your child’s SEAG transfer test journey is to take note of any of those homework topics that your child struggles with or finds tricky.
This means you will be able to keep track as you go along rather than shuffling through your child’s past homework sheets in a few months, wondering if they know how to convert fractions into percentages! Even if you aren’t sure if your child is going to sit the transfer test, they do need to learn all of this stuff for Year 8 so it is worthwhile to keep track of their learning. If you would like more information on how to track your child’s learning, check out my blog post, 4 benefits of tracking learning for your child’s confidence and development.
How to track your child’s learning
Grab a notebook, and some markers (preferably red, orange and green) and simply put a coloured dot beside the topic name and the date. For example, say next week’s homework is finding fractions of amounts. Your child finds it difficult and needs some extra practice. Write down fractions of amounts, put a red dot and the day’s date. Your child is continuing to practice fractions of amounts in school and for the next homework, they say, ‘Hmm that wasn’t too bad but I’m still a bit unsure,’ put the day’s date and an orange dot. By this time your child’s teacher has probably moved onto another maths topic, so you can continue to work on fractions of amounts at home until your child moves to a green dot!
Fast forward to Summer 2025, you want to do a bit of transfer test revision but you don’t know where to start! Grab that notebook, go to any topics that were originally red and start checking them off your child’s revision list, making sure those dots are still green. If they go from green to orange or red, don’t worry about it! That’s the point of doing this, to identify areas that your child needs some practice and confidence with. If you have purchased my SEAG transfer test preparation book, you will have received a free workbook which includes revision lists and learning trackers!
Start practising activities where your child needs to find spelling, punctuation and grammar mistakes
A key part of the English section of the SEAG tests is to find spelling and punctuation errors and make sentences grammatically correct. With my students last year, I waited until they started completing practice papers to work on these types of activities. However, with this year’s students, I have decided to start developing these skills from the get-go. From our very first tutoring session, I introduced a small spelling and punctuation activity where they had to find errors.
Up until this point, your child has been trying extremely hard not to make spelling and punctuation mistakes and now they have to try and spot deliberate mistakes that have been made. I hope that by introducing these spelling, punctuation and grammar activities early when it comes to completing practice papers in school, they are well used to finding and identifying these errors. That’s why tip number 2 is to complete activities that mirror the SEAG transfer test questions.
How to practice these skills with your child
You can grab some pieces of paper or a whiteboard and create some sentences for your child with either one spelling or punctuation mistake or no mistake. The ‘no mistake’ is part of the transfer test, so your child needs to be confident that no errors have been made. For the grammar part, write a sentence down and have a word missing that would make the sentence grammatically correct. Give your child four or five options of words that could go in the space. The aim is to choose the word that makes the most sense. You can also grab the sheets that I use during my tutoring sessions to practice these skills. Each worksheet includes spelling, punctuation and grammar activities as well as practising other English topics. Click here to get yours now!
Reading before bed
This tip is not just for transfer test preparation. It is one that I always go on about and will continue to go about until the end of time! And that’s reading before bed. If you have read any of my other blog posts or had a chance to read my transfer test preparation book, you will have heard me say this time and time again. There are so many benefits of doing some extra reading at home. But I always recommend reading before bed. This goes for the adults in the house too! Get all cosy in your jammies and snuggled up in bed. A nice soft light and a book that your child has chosen themselves. It doesn’t have to be for long, even just reading for 5 minutes helps to relax and unwind the body and mind so you can have a rested night’s sleep.
Having a good night’s sleep is essential for the brain to be able to focus and learn. Your child will be covering a lot of topics in school especially in the lead-up to the transfer test and they must be able to focus. As well as being a relaxing activity, extra reading will also help develop your child’s understanding of the written language and expose them to different words and vocabulary.
Keep times tables and number facts fresh
For the last few years, your child has probably been learning the different times tables and number facts. These are something that are essential in maths for your child’s complete schooling. Even when they go to big school! To help start your child’s transfer test journey, I recommend making sure that your child has a solid understanding of the times tables and can rhyme them off quickly when needed. Especially during SEAG transfer test practice papers! If your child struggles with the times tables, don’t panic! There is plenty of time to sharpen up those skills. Continue to keep them fresh in your child’s mind by going over tables occasionally. Now I don’t mean a sit-down times tables test every night of the week. But go over a couple when you’re sitting in traffic or playing catch in the garden.
Other number facts that are useful to learn at this time are square, cube, triangular and prime numbers. These are the number facts that your child will touch on in school but are easy to forget if they don’t use them all of the time.
Create revision cards or posters along the way
Another great tip that I have for the beginning of your child’s transfer test journey is to make revision cards or posters along the way. There is nothing worse than scrambling to create revision cards of ALL the topics that your child has covered in Primary 6 when it comes to transfer test revision. Instead of panicking and clearing the shelves in Home Bargains of coloured cards, felt tips and glitter glue, create some cards or posters as you go along. If your child is learning about the different types of angles in school this week, spend a bit of time in the evening or weekend creating revision cards of what these are and what they look like. Store them in a box or folder and when revision time comes…voila! They are already there for you and you have your stash of SEAG transfer resources!
Introduce a short practice paper
Practice papers are two short words that will probably fill your child (and yourself!) with fear and anxiety! There are such mixed opinions on practice papers but if I’m honest they are one of the best ways to prepare for the transfer test. Every school will approach practice papers differently. Some go crazy from the get-go and some ease students in gently. What you can do to help prepare your child, is to introduce a couple of short practice papers BEFORE they start doing them in school. The reason I recommend doing this is because you are taking away the unknown. Your child will still be a bit nervous sitting their first practice paper in school, but if they have completed a few at home, they will know what to expect. And they will know how to fill in the SEAG answer sheet!
How to complete a practice paper for the first time
With your child’s first practice paper, don’t set a timer and leave them to it. Sit down together, read the instructions aloud, read the comprehension and questions aloud and work through them together. Talk about what steps they need to take to complete each question and note down any topics that your child has not learned yet or wants to practice. Another big thing to note is that when your child starts sitting SEAG transfer test papers, chances are that they have not learned all of the topics yet. This is something that has been demotivating to my students over the years. It is important to let them know that there are some questions that they might just not be able to answer right now and that’s ok! You can decide whether you want to talk your child through the question or skip over it completely.
You can grab my FREE 30-minute paper here to help get your child started. There is a teaching guide for you to follow along with and help teach your child any of those tricky topics. Click here to get your SEAG transfer test papers free sent straight to your inbox!
Visit some open days/nights
I wasn’t sure whether to put this tip in this blog post because it won’t work for everyone. This is something that you can decide on yourself. And that’s going to some post-primary school open days or nights. With some students, visiting post-primary schools in Primary 6 helps motivate them and encourages them during transfer test preparation. And with some, well it just fills them with dread and anxiety being in such a big school. Some parents also don’t want to get their child’s hopes up too soon. You know your child best after all and you can decide what will work out best for them. Keep an eye on The Transfer Test Tutor Facebook page as they post all of the upcoming open days and night timings and dates.
More Information on transfer test preparation
How to prepare properly for the SEAG Transfer Tests.
What is the best way to prepare your child for an exam when they are still only primary school age?
When should my child start preparing for the Transfer Test?
Is the Transfer Test NI the Best Path for Your Child’s Education?
Starting transfer test preparation can be scary at first but hopefully using these tips it won’t be as bad as you’ve feared! Make sure to follow me on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok for lots of transfer test goodness! I will be here with you every step of the way! Take it slow, and steady and remember consistency is key! Putting some extra work in now will be worth it in the long run.
Let’s get started and create happy, confident learners together parents! Transform your child’s SEAG transfer test preparation from chaos to calm.
