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ISBN: 978 1 4718 4923 7
eISBN: 978 1 4718 4905 3

© Sue Hunter 2016

Published by Galore Park Publishing Ltd,

An Hachette UK Company

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www.galorepark.co.uk

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A catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.

How to use this book

Introduction

This book has been written to help you revise the topics you have covered in Science to help you prepare for your 11+ exam. The book is designed to remind you rather than teach you. It will help you to:

•  devise, describe and record experiments clearly

•  answer Science questions with confidence on all the topics in the 11+ syllabus

•  understand what the examiners are looking for in your answers

•  find out how to stand out from the other candidates.

Use the book in the best way to help you prepare. Work through the pages with a parent or on your own, then try the questions and talk about them afterwards. Each topic takes up two pages, which can be studied in half an hour. You are more likely to remember important information if you revise in short bursts rather than spending an afternoon when you are tired, so try setting time aside after school two or three days a week. You may be surprised how quickly you progress.

Pre-Test and the 11+ entrance exams

The Galore Park 11+ series is designed for Pre-Tests and 11+ entrance exams for admission into independent schools (there is currently no pre-test for Science). These exams are often the same as those set by local grammar schools, too. Most schools requiring you to take Science will use the ISEB (Independent Schools Examinations Board) syllabus, although it is possible that if you are applying to more than one school, you will encounter more than one type of test. Either:

•  the 11+ entrance exam set by the ISEB

•  or 11+ entrance exams created specifically for particular independent schools.

To give you the best chance of success in these assessments, Galore Park has worked with 11+ tutors, independent school teachers, test writers and specialist authors to create this Revision Guide.

The content covers the National Curriculum Programmes of Study for Key Stages 1 and 2 as well as the entire ISEB 11+ syllabus to the end of Year 6. This content includes the topics studied after the ISEB 11+ examinations (so not examined) in January.

Not included in ISEB 11+ exams

All post-January topics are flagged like this paragraph and appear in italics on the contents and progress record pages, so you should be aware of them and thus not surprised if you have not yet covered this material. The reason for their inclusion is that they will be needed when preparing for the 13+ entrance exams, and could potentially occur in bespoke 11+ tests by individual schools.

The learning ladders

You will see these learning ladders appear throughout the Galore Park series. The ladder below shows how the questions progress in Science. Your ability to problem-solve will develop as you step up the ladder, bringing together all your knowledge to solve the most challenging questions by the time you reach the top.

The percentage of each type of question in the tests within this book matches the percentage of each type of question you will come across in the 11+ exams.

Working through the book

Chapters: the book is divided into four chapters: the first chapter, ‘Working scientifically’ links to all three following chapters, looking at how scientists work in relation to designing, performing and recording experiments – something you may be asked to do or describe in your 11+ exams. Chapters 2–4 look at the topics you may be tested on in detail.

Chapter introductions: these explain about the different areas of Science. These pages also provide advice for your parents so that they can help you revise with some extra activities.

Learning pages: explain one topic across every two or four pages.

•  When answering multiple-choice questions (in these pages and in the tests that follow), make sure that you read and think about all the possible answers before underlining the correct one neatly with a ruler.

•  Because many of the questions at the end of these pages will relate to the content you have just read, cover up the learning text before answering the questions; check the content after you have written your answers and then check the answers at the back of the book.

Key words

Key words are listed in blue boxes. It is a good idea to make sure you know and understand the defi nition of each of these words.

•  End of chapter tests give you a chance to practise more questions relating to the topics in the chapter in a short test. The test time given is for an average test (some challenging tests are faster). Always time yourself to build up your speed.

    •  Complete the test in pencil, aiming for the test time given.

    •  Complete the questions you don’t finish during the time (but mark down which ones they are).

    •  Go through the test again with a friend or parent and talk about the questions you found tricky.

    •  Later on, have a second attempt to see if you can improve your time.

•  Answers to all the tests in the book can be found in the cut-out section beginning on page 117. Try not to look at the answers until you have attempted the questions yourself. Each answer has a full explanation and breakdown of marks so you can understand why you might have answered incorrectly.

Test day tips

Take time to prepare yourself the day before you go for the test: remember to take sharpened pencils, an eraser, protractor, ruler, compasses and a calculator. A watch is very important so you can time yourself. Take a bottle of water in with you, if this is allowed, as this will help to keep hydrated and improve concentration levels. …and don’t forget to have breakfast before you go!

For parents

This book has been written to help both you and your child prepare for the 11+ entrance exams. It is designed to help you support your child with clear explanations for parents at the beginning of each chapter, which include:

•  tips on the important areas of Science that your child should have mastered

•  advice on how additional work can have an impact on success

•  activities and games to practise using the skills in enjoyable ways.

The teaching content is designed so that it can be tackled in simple steps. Setting aside time when your child can concentrate fully on one or two topics while you are there to support them can help to make the experience manageable and enjoyable.

All the answers are clearly explained in order to support you and your child in reviewing questions they may have found challenging.

There are a number of topics, as explained, which it is unlikely that your child will have encountered and may not have to cover for the 11+. However, it is worth checking with the schools they are applying to before leaving this content out.

For teachers and tutors

This book has been written for parents and tutors working with children preparing for 11+ entrance exams. All the Year 6 material is covered so that the book is also a useful tool for 13+ revision and for any bespoke tests the children may encounter.

Continue your learning journey

When you’ve completed this Revision Guide, you can carry on your learning right up until exam day with the following resources.

The Practice Papers contain six single-subject training tests for Physics, Biology and Chemistry (two for each subject) and six model 11+ papers, replicating the most challenging exams you may encounter. They also include realistic test timings and fully-explained answers for final test preparation. These papers are designed to improve your accuracy, speed and ability to deal with the most challenging questions in exam conditions.

1 Working scientifically

What is ‘Working scientifically’?

The word science means knowledge. When you are revising for exams it seems that there is a lot of material that you have to learn but science is really more about doing than knowing. Our current knowledge and understanding of science has been built up, bit by bit, by scientists observing, measuring and thinking about the world around them. To make scientific investigations useful, we need to know how to do them properly.

Working scientifically is all about how scientists, including you, do science. Scientific investigations start with a question. You need to be able to ask questions in a way that helps you to design a practical investigation and it is always a good idea to try to predict what you think the outcome will be. You need to understand about variables and how they can affect your results. You should be able to measure variables accurately, choosing the correct measuring equipment and you should be able to record your results methodically. When you have obtained your results, you need to be able to say how well they answer your initial question and maybe suggest ways in which your investigation could be improved or extended.

In the 11+ exam you may be asked to:

•  describe how a simple investigation might be carried out

•  perform calculations (so remember to take your calculator to the exam)

•  show data from an experiment in a bar chart or graph. It is important to make sure that you can do this really neatly and accurately as you may also be asked to identify a pattern in the data.

Advice to parents

Questions testing your child’s ability to work scientifically are looking for your child to show a methodical approach. The topics in this chapter cover the types of question asked in the 11+ exam and how to answer them successfully. It is always important for your child to read questions carefully to make sure that it is clear what is expected.

When plotting graphs and bar charts, it is important that your child works accurately. Errors in plotting points on a graph can make it hard to answer subsequent questions. Some exercises in this book will require your child to use a sheet of graph paper. Please make sure that this is available for use at home.

‘Working scientifically’ will not usually be tested explicitly in a separate question. Usually candidates are required to show their ability to use these skills in the context of a wider question. Some questions require a piece of more extended writing, often to describe an experimental procedure. The key to these questions is to look at the number of marks allocated. This shows how many well-focused statements are required to answer the question. Encourage your child to write the key points clearly, using the correct scientific vocabulary and then stop!

A: Variables and questions

Introduction

In science you should always be asking questions. A good question will help you to decide how to set up an investigation. You need to understand about the different types of variable and how to use them.

Variables

Variables, sometimes called factors, are things that can be changed in an investigation. There are three key types of variable:

•  The independent variable is the thing that you will change in a methodical way during the investigation.

•  The dependent variable is what will be measured to get the results. You expect it to be affected by (depend upon) what happens to the independent variable.

•  Control variables are everything else that could possibly change and affect your results. You need to keep these the same throughout the investigation if you are carrying out a fair test.

Asking questions

An investigation question must say clearly what the independent variable and dependent variable will be in your investigation.

“How can I make a parachute fall more slowly?” is fine as a starting point for a project but it is not a good investigation question because there are lots of things that might slow the parachute.

“How does the area of the parachute affect the time it takes the parachute to fall?” is a much better question. It is clear that you are going to try several different sizes (the independent variable) and measure the time taken to drop (the dependent variable).

Train

1  By each of these questions write Yes or No to show whether they are good investigation questions.

    (a)  What happens to the height a squash ball bounces if we use different surfaces? _____________

    (b)  What is the best fabric for making a tent? _____________

    (c)  How does the mass on a brick affect the force needed to make it move? _____________

(3)

2  Fill in the table to show the independent variable and the dependent variable for each investigation.

(6)