CAT4 levels by year group, from Pre-A to G

Ages are written as years:months, so 9:06 means nine years and six months. The ranges overlap on purpose, which lets a school fit the level to the class. Level B's age range was not in the GL text we could read, so we leave it out rather than guess.

International schools use the same letters but match them to their own grades; GL's international guide gives that table.

None of this changes how your child is scored. Standard Age Scores compare them with children of the same age whichever level they sit.

The format is gentler, with fewer and shorter tests, and the teacher explains each one with practice examples before it starts. GL's range of Standard Age Scores for X and Y is 69 to 131, narrower than the 59 to 141 of Levels A to G.

Our practice test follows the Level A to G format, so it is for children of about eight and over. For a six- or seven-year-old, the kindest preparation is none at all: GL's teachers explain each question, and a relaxed child is what matters.

A Level A verbal question might use everyday words such as "puppy" and "kitten"; a Level F question might use less common words and subtler links. Number rules move from "add the same each time" to two-step rules, and shape questions add more features to track at once.

Because the format is the same at every level from A, a child who has seen the eight tests once at nine will recognise them at eleven or fourteen. Our practice questions run from gentle to hard within each test, so they suit children from about Year 4 to Year 10 or so; older students will find the early questions quick.

This is the test most parents hear about, because the results often feed into how pupils are grouped in their new school. It usually arrives with little warning, in a new building, with new teachers, which is exactly when an unfamiliar format can throw a child.

A gentle look at the formats over the summer holidays, once or twice, is usually plenty. The free CAT4 practice test has all eight tests, and each battery guide, such as CAT4 spatial reasoning, has a free drill.

GL Assessment says plainly that it advises against any kind of practice before CAT4 and does not endorse any practice materials, ours included, because CAT4 is not a test of learnt knowledge and coaching could make a score less accurate. We take that seriously. Our questions are for meeting the formats once or twice so nothing on the day is a shock, not for drilling a child towards a number.

Most schools are glad to explain. The CAT4 test guide covers how the day runs, and CAT4 scores explains what the report shows.