Letter and number series
Example: which letter comes next? C, F, I, L, ? Each letter moves three places along the alphabet, so the answer is O.
Method: write the alphabet across the top of the scrap paper and number it. Count the gaps, not the letters. For letter pairs, treat the first letters and the second letters as two separate series.
Letter codes
Example: if the code for LAMP is MBNQ, what is the code for FROG? Each letter moves one place forward, so FROG becomes GSPH.
Method: compare the example letter by letter and write the movement under each letter. When decoding, reverse the movement. Remember that after Z the alphabet starts again at A.
Synonyms, opposites and odd one out
These questions test vocabulary. Try each option in a sentence: the right answer keeps the meaning of the sentence; the others change it.
Wide reading is the best long-term preparation. A notebook of new words, with a sentence for each, helps them stick.
Hidden words and missing letters
Example: find the three-letter word hidden across two neighbouring words in 'Good friends help each other'. Reading 'help each' without the space gives 'pea'.
Method: run a finger along the sentence and look across every gap between words. For missing-letter questions, the same letter must work for both pairs, so test each candidate in all four words.
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