How is this paper marked?

Every right answer is worth 1 mark, so the paper is out of 56. Nothing is taken off for a wrong answer. The real test turns marks into a standardised age score; we only give the number right.

How is it different from the real paper?

It has the same parts, in the same order, with the same number of questions and time. On the real paper, comprehension questions 23 to 28 need a written answer; here they are multiple choice.

Are these real SEAG papers?

No. We write our own questions in the test's published shape. SEAG's practice papers are copyright, and we are not connected with SEAG or GL Assessment.

SEAG Transfer Test Practice Paper 1 with Answers (Free)

Scholar Tests · Sample paper

SEAG-style transfer test, practice paper 1

56 questions · 56 marks · 60 minutes · no negative marking

Name ______________________ Date ____________

Punctuation

Questions 1 to 5, 1 mark each. Circle the letter of the best answer.

1.
The children’s coats | were hanging neatly | on the pegs | by the door
Find the part with a punctuation mistake (including capital letters). If there is none, choose No mistake.
1. AThe children’s coats
2. Bwere hanging neatly
3. Con the pegs
4. Dby the door
5. ENo mistake
2.
Where are my | football boots?’ | asked Tom from | the hallway.
Find the part with a punctuation mistake (including capital letters). If there is none, choose No mistake.
1. AWhere are my
2. Bfootball boots?’
3. Casked Tom from
4. Dthe hallway.
5. ENo mistake
3.
We packed sandwiches, | crisps, apples and | juice for | the long journey.
Find the part with a punctuation mistake (including capital letters). If there is none, choose No mistake.
1. AWe packed sandwiches,
2. Bcrisps, apples and
3. Cjuice for
4. Dthe long journey.
5. ENo mistake
4.
on Saturday morning, | Priya’s brother cycled | all the | way to Leeds.
Find the part with a punctuation mistake (including capital letters). If there is none, choose No mistake.
1. Aon Saturday morning,
2. BPriya’s brother cycled
3. Call the
4. Dway to Leeds.
5. ENo mistake
5.
‘Where are my | football boots.’ | asked Tom from | the hallway.
Find the part with a punctuation mistake (including capital letters). If there is none, choose No mistake.
1. A‘Where are my
2. Bfootball boots.’
3. Casked Tom from
4. Dthe hallway.
5. ENo mistake

Grammar

Questions 6 to 10, 1 mark each. Circle the letter of the best answer.

6.
Some visitors whispered nervously inside the dark cave.
Which word in this sentence is a verb?
1. Avisitors
2. Bnervously
3. Cwhispered
4. Dinside
5. ESome
7.
My cousin painted a colourful mural in the hall.
Which word in this sentence is a preposition?
1. AMy
2. Bmural
3. Cpainted
4. Dcolourful
5. Ein
8.
Which sentence is written in the simple past?
1. AThe team has won the cup.
2. BThe team won the cup.
3. CThe team had won the cup.
4. DThe team was winning the cup.
5. EThe team is winning the cup.
9.
Which sentence is written in the past perfect?
1. AThe children are building a den.
2. BThe children built a den.
3. CThe children have built a den.
4. DThe children had built a den.
5. EThe children were building a den.
10.
Which sentence is written in the passive voice?
1. AThe parcel was opened by Maya.
2. BOur class planted three trees.
3. CThe storm damaged the roof.
4. DThe wind scattered the leaves.
5. EThe dog chased the cat.

Spelling

Questions 11 to 15, 1 mark each. Circle the letter of the best answer.

11.
The twins | were hugging their | grandmother at | the airport.
Find the part with a spelling mistake. If there is none, choose No mistake.
1. AThe twins
2. Bwere hugging their
3. Cgrandmother at
4. Dthe airport.
5. ENo mistake
12.
The que | outside the canteen | stretched around | the corner.
Find the part with a spelling mistake. If there is none, choose No mistake.
1. AThe que
2. Boutside the canteen
3. Cstretched around
4. Dthe corner.
5. ENo mistake
13.
He jumped straight | into the | deepest pudle on | the footpath.
Find the part with a spelling mistake. If there is none, choose No mistake.
1. AHe jumped straight
2. Binto the
3. Cdeepest pudle on
4. Dthe footpath.
5. ENo mistake
14.
It is neccessary | to bring a | hat and | a water bottle.
Find the part with a spelling mistake. If there is none, choose No mistake.
1. AIt is neccessary
2. Bto bring a
3. Chat and
4. Da water bottle.
5. ENo mistake
15.
The volunteers received | an acknowledgement in | the newsletter for | their hard work.
Find the part with a spelling mistake. If there is none, choose No mistake.
1. AThe volunteers received
2. Ban acknowledgement in
3. Cthe newsletter for
4. Dtheir hard work.
5. ENo mistake

Comprehension

The Columns of the Giant's Causeway

On the north coast of County Antrim, where the land meets the Atlantic Ocean, there is a stretch of shore that looks as if it has been built by hand. Thousands of stone columns stand packed tightly together, and their flat tops form stepping stones that lead down into the sea. Many of them have six neat sides, like the cells of a honeycomb. This is the Giant's Causeway, one of the most famous natural wonders in the British Isles.

There are roughly 40,000 columns at the Causeway. Some are short stumps that barely rise above the rocks around them, while others stand taller than a house. Most have six sides, but visitors who look carefully can also find columns with four, five, seven or even eight sides.

The columns are made of basalt, a hard, dark rock that forms when lava cools. Around 50 to 60 million years ago, long before there were any people, this part of the world was a very different place. The ground split open, and huge amounts of molten rock poured out across the land, spreading into thick layers of lava.

When lava cools, it shrinks. As the thick layer slowly cooled and hardened, the rock pulled in on itself and began to crack. The cracks spread through the rock in a regular pattern, dividing it into long columns. You can see something similar on a much smaller scale when a muddy puddle dries out in the sun. The mud shrinks as it dries, and it cracks into shapes with straight edges. At the Causeway, the lava cooled slowly and evenly, so the cracks formed a remarkably regular pattern.

Over millions of years, the sea and the weather wore away the rock around the columns, and their tops were uncovered. The waves are still at work today, crashing against the coast and gradually reshaping it.

Long before scientists explained how the Causeway formed, people told a very different story. According to an old legend, the Irish giant Finn McCool built the Causeway as a road across the sea, so that he could reach a Scottish giant called Benandonner and fight him. In one version of the tale, Finn discovers that his rival is far bigger than he is. His quick-thinking wife, Oonagh, dresses Finn as a baby and tucks him into a cradle. When Benandonner sees the size of the "baby", he decides that its father must be truly enormous, and he flees home to Scotland, tearing up the road behind him.

Curiously, columns very like these can be found across the sea, at Fingal's Cave on the Scottish island of Staffa. The legend explains this neatly: they are the far end of the giant's road. Scientists explain it in a different way. Both sets of columns were formed by the same ancient outpourings of lava.

In 1986, the Giant's Causeway was named a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. This means that it is recognised as a place of great importance to the whole world, not just to Northern Ireland. Today it is cared for by the National Trust, and it welcomes visitors from all over the globe. Like every precious place, it needs those visitors to treat it with care. The columns took millions of years to form, and once they are damaged, they can never be replaced.

Questions 16 to 28, 1 mark each. Circle the letter of the best answer.

16.
Where is the Giant's Causeway?
1. AOn the north coast of County Antrim
2. BOn the Scottish island of Staffa
3. COn the south coast of County Down
4. DOn the west coast of County Fermanagh
5. EBeside the shore of Lough Neagh
17.
Why does the writer say the shore "looks as if it has been built by hand"?
1. AThe stones were carried there from Scotland.
2. BVisitors have piled the stones up over the years.
3. CThe columns were carved by giants long ago.
4. DThe columns are so neat that they seem made by people.
5. EWorkers once built the stone steps for visitors to use.
18.
Which sentence best sums up the first paragraph?
1. AIt explains how lava cooled and cracked into columns.
2. BIt describes how bees build the cells of a honeycomb.
3. CIt introduces a famous stretch of coast made of stone columns.
4. DIt tells the legend of Finn McCool and Benandonner.
5. EIt explains why UNESCO named the Causeway a World Heritage Site.
19.
"There are roughly 40,000 columns." What does "roughly" mean here?
1. Aat least
2. Bfewer than
3. Cexactly
4. Dabout
5. Emore than
20.
What kind of rock are the columns made of?
1. ABasalt
2. BSandstone
3. CChalk
4. DLimestone
5. EGranite
21.
The columns formed "long before there were any people". What can you tell from this?
1. APeople first arrived when the lava poured out.
2. BPeople helped the lava to cool more quickly.
3. CThe columns were formed only a few hundred years ago.
4. DEarly people lived on top of the cooling lava.
5. ENobody could have watched the columns being formed.
22.
"Huge amounts of molten rock poured out." What does "molten" mean?
1. Amelted by great heat
2. Bbroken into pieces
3. Cworn smooth by water
4. Dvery dark in colour
5. Efrozen solid by cold
23.
Why does the writer mention a muddy puddle drying in the sun?
1. ATo prove that lava and mud cool at the same speed
2. BTo show that the Causeway is made of dried mud
3. CTo explain the cracking with a familiar example
4. DTo explain why the columns are dark in colour
5. ETo warn visitors that the paths can be muddy
24.
"The waves are still at work today." What does this suggest about the Causeway?
1. AIts coastline is still slowly changing.
2. BIts columns have stopped changing at all.
3. CNew columns are still forming from lava.
4. DThe sea is about to cover all the columns.
5. EWorkers are still repairing the columns.
25.
In the legend, who dresses Finn McCool as a baby?
1. AHis friend, Benandonner
2. BHis wife, Oonagh
3. CHis son, Fingal
4. DA Scottish giant
5. EHis mother, Oonagh
26.
Why is the word "baby" in inverted commas in the legend?
1. ABecause Oonagh was the only one who ever said the word
2. BBecause the baby was very small for a giant
3. CBecause it was really Finn in disguise, not a baby
4. DBecause Benandonner was speaking to the baby
5. EBecause it was the name of the giant's cradle
27.
How do the legend and the scientists explain the columns at Fingal's Cave differently?
1. AThe legend says Oonagh built them; scientists say the sea carved them.
2. BThe legend says the road ends there; science says the same lava formed both.
3. CThe legend says Benandonner made them; scientists say ice shaped them.
4. DThe legend says they are newer; scientists say they are much older.
5. EThe legend says they sank; scientists say they were lifted up out of the sea.
28.
Who cares for the Giant's Causeway today?
1. AThe Scottish government
2. BUNESCO
3. CA team of scientists
4. DThe local council
5. EThe National Trust

Maths

Questions 29 to 50, 1 mark each. Circle the letter of the best answer.

29.
How many whole thousands are there in 2997498?
1. A29974
2. B2998
3. C299
4. D7
5. E2997
30.
Grace started with a jar of marbles. Grace gave away 50% to a friend and 15% to a cousin, each share worked out from the number Grace started with. 350 marbles were left. How many marbles were there at the start?
1. A35
2. B1000
3. C123
4. D700
5. E538
31.
A pack holds 5 starred cards and 2 plain cards. Two cards are taken out one after the other, and the first is not put back. What is the chance that both are starred?
1. A29/21
2. B10/21
3. C5/7
4. D2/3
5. E25/49
32.
At 5:15 pm two trams leave the terminus together. After that, the first leaves every 6 minutes and the second every 10 minutes. At what time will they next leave together?
1. A5:46 pm
2. B5:31 pm
3. C5:25 pm
4. D5:17 pm
5. E5:45 pm
33.
A swimming carnival starts at 1:38 pm and finishes at 3:18 pm. How long does it last?
1. A1 hour 40 minutes
2. B1 hour
3. C40 minutes
4. D2 hours 40 minutes
5. E1 hour 20 minutes
34.
Two numbers add to 44, and one is 8 more than the other. What is the smaller number?
1. A18
2. B4
3. C26
4. D36
5. E22
35.
In the number 694877, what is the value of the digit that sits five places from the right?
1. A90000
2. B10000
3. C900000
4. D9000
5. E9
36.
Ruby is standing in square P. Lucas is standing in square Q. Which one of these squares is the same distance, in a straight line, from both of them?
1. AB3
2. BH8
3. CG4
4. DH1
5. EE2
37.
In one week a single street sorted 780 bins of recycling. The pie chart below shows how they were sorted. How many of them held timber?
1. A390
2. B78
3. C156
4. D702
5. E10
38.
For any two numbers, a ✶ b means (a + b) × a. What is 5 ✶ 2?
1. A39
2. B14
3. C7
4. D35
5. E10
39.
When it is 12:00 pm in Perth, it is 3:00 am in Mumbai. When it is 12:00 pm in Perth, it is 5:00 am in Brisbane. What is the time in Brisbane when it is 8:00 pm in Mumbai?
1. A8:00 pm
2. B10:00 pm
3. C1:00 pm
4. D4:00 am
5. E6:00 pm
40.
In the triangle below, what is the size of the angle marked x?
1. A140°
2. B40°
3. C100°
4. D80°
5. E50°
41.
For any two numbers, a ✶ b means (a × a) + b. What is 4 ✶ 5?
1. A29
2. B21
3. C9
4. D31
5. E20
42.
A bus travels at an average speed of 36 km/h for 15 minutes. How far does it go?
1. A11 km
2. B144 km
3. C25 km
4. D540 km
5. E9 km
43.
Each letter of the alphabet stands for a number: A = 1, B = 2, C = 3, and so on to Z = 26. What is the value of A + L × F − E?
1. A78
2. B71
3. C73
4. D51
5. E68
44.
Priya spends three fifths of the money in a wallet and has £64.00 left. How much was in the wallet at the start?
1. A£25.60
2. B£106.67
3. C£160.00
4. D£96.00
5. E£320.00
45.
A box measures 10 cm long, 2 cm wide and 11 cm high. What is the total area of all six of its faces?
1. A220 cm²
2. B152 cm²
3. C23 cm²
4. D92 cm²
5. E304 cm²
46.
The dashed line is a mirror. The square marked P is reflected in the mirror. Which square does its reflection land in?
1. AG2
2. BA7
3. CH2
4. DH3
5. EH4
47.
Jonah spins the arrow on this spinner once. Which word best describes the chance that it lands on a part marked R?
1. Aan even chance
2. Bimpossible
3. Cunlikely
4. Dlikely
5. Ecertain
48.
In the diagram below, what is the size of the angle marked x?
1. A40°
2. B20°
3. C30°
4. D65°
5. E35°
49.
Each step Aaron takes is 60 cm long. How many steps does it take to walk 12 metres?
1. A20 steps
2. B200 steps
3. C720 steps
4. D500 steps
5. E21 steps
50.
Which of these fractions is not equal to 17/20?
1. A102/120
2. B85/100
3. C34/20
4. D170/200
5. E68/80

Maths, written answers

Questions 51 to 56, 1 mark each. Write your answer on the line.

51.
What number should replace the question mark? 7 × ? − 7 = 35
Answer: ______________
52.
In a number code, each shape stands for the same number every time it is used, and a row of shapes means those numbers added together. ■■ = 84, ■▲▲★ = 178 and ■■★★ = 144. What number does ■■■★ stand for?
Answer: ______________
53.
The same rule turns every number in the top row into the number directly below it. What number belongs in the cell marked with a question mark?
Answer: ______________
54.
Two whole numbers multiply together to make 63, and one of them is 7 times the other. What is the smaller number?
Answer: ______________
55.
Hugo stacks three ordinary dice one on top of another on a table. On any die, the dots on opposite faces add to 7. The face on the very top of the stack shows 3. How many dots are on the faces that cannot be seen — the face resting on the table, and the pairs of faces where one die meets the next?
Answer: ______________
56.
A sequence begins 13, 25, 37, 49, … and carries on in the same way. What is the 14th term?
Answer: ______________

Answers and working

Punctuation

1.D (by the door). It should read "door.", not "door".
2.A (Where are my). It should read "‘Where", not "Where".
3.E (No mistake). The punctuation is all correct, so the answer is No mistake.
4.A (on Saturday morning,). It should read "On Saturday morning,", not "on Saturday morning,".
5.B (football boots.’). It should read "boots?’", not "boots.’".

Grammar

6.C (whispered). whispered is a verb here.
7.E (in). in is a preposition here.
8.B (The team won the cup.). "The team won the cup." is in the simple past.
9.D (The children had built a den.). "The children had built a den." is in the past perfect.
10.A (The parcel was opened by Maya.). In "The parcel was opened by Maya.", the subject (The parcel) has the action done to it, so it is passive.

Spelling

11.E (No mistake). Every word is spelled correctly, so the answer is No mistake.
12.A (The que). "que" should be spelled queue.
13.C (deepest pudle on). "pudle" should be spelled puddle.
14.A (It is neccessary). "neccessary" should be spelled necessary.
15.E (No mistake). Every word is spelled correctly, so the answer is No mistake.

Comprehension

16.A (On the north coast of County Antrim). The first sentence says it is "On the north coast of County Antrim, where the land meets the Atlantic Ocean".
17.D (The columns are so neat that they seem made by people.). The columns are "packed tightly together" with "six neat sides", so they look as tidy as something built on purpose, even though they are natural.
18.C (It introduces a famous stretch of coast made of stone columns.). The first paragraph says where the Causeway is, describes its columns and calls it "one of the most famous natural wonders". How it formed and the legend come later.
19.D (about). "Roughly" means the number is close but not exact, so it means "about".
20.A (Basalt). The text says "The columns are made of basalt, a hard, dark rock that forms when lava cools."
21.E (Nobody could have watched the columns being formed.). If there were no people at all at the time, nobody was there to see it happen. Scientists had to work out how it formed later.
22.A (melted by great heat). The rock "poured out" like a liquid and became lava, so "molten" means melted because it was so hot.
23.C (To explain the cracking with a familiar example). The writer says you can see "something similar on a much smaller scale". A drying puddle shrinks and cracks, just as the cooling lava did.
24.A (Its coastline is still slowly changing.). The waves keep "crashing against the coast and gradually reshaping it", so the Causeway is not finished changing.
25.B (His wife, Oonagh). The text says "His quick-thinking wife, Oonagh, dresses Finn as a baby and tucks him into a cradle."
26.C (Because it was really Finn in disguise, not a baby). Finn was only dressed as a baby. The inverted commas show the reader that it was not a real baby at all.
27.B (The legend says the road ends there; science says the same lava formed both.). The legend says "they are the far end of the giant's road", while scientists say "Both sets of columns were formed by the same ancient outpourings of lava."
28.E (The National Trust). The last paragraph says "Today it is cared for by the National Trust". UNESCO named it a World Heritage Site in 1986.

Maths

29.E (2997). Cover the last three digits, because those are less than one thousand. What is left in front of them is 2997 whole thousands.
30.B (1000). The shares add to 65%, so the 350 left over are the other 35%. One per cent is 350 ÷ 35 = 10, so the whole is 1000.
31.B (10/21). The first draw is 5 out of 7. One starred is now gone, so the second is 4 out of 6. Both must happen, so multiply: 5/7 × 4/6 = 10/21.
32.E (5:45 pm). The smallest number that both 6 and 10 divide into is 30. So they meet again 30 minutes after 5:15 pm, which is 5:45 pm.
33.A (1 hour 40 minutes). Count on in two steps rather than subtracting the two times as though they were numbers. From 1:38 pm to 2:38 pm is 1 hour, and from there to 3:18 pm is another 40 minutes. Altogether that is 1 hour 40 minutes.
34.A (18). Take the difference off the total first: 44 − 8 = 36. That is what TWO of the smaller one come to, so the smaller is 18 and the larger is 18 + 8 = 26.
35.A (90000). Counting from the right, that digit is 9 and it sits in the 10,000 column. So it is worth 9 × 10000 = 90000.
36.D (H1). From H1 to P is 7 across and 1 up or down; to Q it is 5 across and 5 up or down. Both give the same straight-line distance, so H1 is the square.
37.B (78). The Timber slice is 10 per cent of the chart. And 10 per cent of 780 is 780 ÷ 100 × 10 = 78.
38.D (35). Put 5 where a is and 2 where b is, keeping them in that order — this rule gives a different answer the other way round. That makes it (5 + 2) × 5, which comes to 35.
39.B (10:00 pm). Mumbai is 9 hours behind Perth and Brisbane is 7 hours behind it, so Brisbane is 2 hours ahead of Mumbai. That makes it 10:00 pm.
40.E (50°). The two ticked sides are the same length, so the two angles at the ends of the third side are equal. Between them they take up 180° − 80° = 100°, so x = 100° ÷ 2 = 50°.
41.B (21). Put 4 where a is and 5 where b is, keeping them in that order — this rule gives a different answer the other way round. That makes it (4 × 4) + 5, which comes to 21.
42.E (9 km). In one hour it covers 36 km, so in one minute it covers 36 ÷ 60 km. Over 15 minutes that is 36 × 15 ÷ 60 = 9 km.
43.E (68). The letters stand for A = 1, L = 12, F = 6 and E = 5. Do the multiplying first, then the adding and subtracting, and the answer is 68.
44.C (£160.00). Spending 3 of the 5 parts leaves 2 parts, and those 2 parts are £64.00. So one part is £32.00, and all 5 parts are £160.00.
45.E (304 cm²). The six faces come in three matching pairs: 10 × 2 = 20, 10 × 11 = 110 and 2 × 11 = 22. Those three come to 152, and doubling for the opposite faces gives 304 cm².
46.C (H2). P is 3 squares from the mirror, so its reflection is the same distance on the other side. That is H2.
47.D (likely). Five of the eight equal parts are marked R, so landing on R is likely.
48.C (30°). OA and OD lie in a straight line, so the angles between them come to 180°. The ones printed on the diagram take up 115° + 35° = 150°, which leaves 180° − 150° = 30°, so x = 30°.
49.A (20 steps). 12 metres is 12 × 100 = 1200 cm. Each step covers 60 cm, so it takes 1200 ÷ 60 = 20 steps.
50.C (34/20). Multiplying the top and the bottom by the same number leaves a fraction unchanged. In 34/20 only the top has been multiplied (by 2), so it is not equal to 17/20.

Maths, written answers

51.6. Undo the operations in reverse order: 7 × ▢ − 7 = 35 gives ▢ = 6.
52.156. The three clues give ★ = 30, ■ = 42, ▲ = 53. So ■■■★ is 42 + 42 + 42 + 30 = 156.
53.111. The rule is: multiply by 9, then take away 6. It works on every column — 9 × 4 − 6 = 30 — so the missing number is 9 × 13 − 6 = 111.
54.3. Call the smaller number n. The larger is 7n, so the two multiply to 7 × n × n = 63. That makes n × n = 63 ÷ 7 = 9, so n = 3 and the larger number is 21.
55.18. Each of the two touching places hides a pair of opposite faces, which is 7 dots, so that is 14. The face on the table is opposite the 3, so it is 4. Altogether 18.
56.169. Each term is 12 more than the last, so the nth term is 13 + (n − 1) × 12. For n = 14: 13 + 13 × 12 = 169.

Written by Scholar Tests in the SEAG test's published shape. Not a SEAG paper; we are not connected with SEAG or GL Assessment.

SEAG transfer test practice paper 1

SEAG-style transfer test, practice paper 1

Punctuation

Grammar

Spelling

Comprehension

The Columns of the Giant's Causeway

Maths

Maths, written answers

Answers and working

Punctuation

Grammar

Spelling

Comprehension

Maths

Maths, written answers

Sit a new paper online

Full paper

English

Maths

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