Is your third- or fourth-grader apprehensive about doing poorly on the Elementary Level SSAT’s Quantitative section because math isn’t their best subject? This guide will show you how to help him or her feel confident on test day by presenting information about how the Elementary Level SSAT’s Quantitative section is structured and the content that it tests, which you can share with your student to ease their worries. Some great free online resources you can use to help your student familiarize him- or herself with SSAT Quantitative problems will also be introduced. By making the most of this information and the available resources, you can help your student feel completely prepared to take the Elementary Level SSAT’s Quantitative section and do the best they possibly can on it!

The SSAT is a standardized test whose scores are used in applications to independent schools. The Elementary Level test is given to students in third or fourth grade, and is composed of scored Reading, Quantitative (Math), and Verbal sections, as well as a Writing Sample. The Quantitative section is the first section given on the Elementary Level SSAT. It consists of thirty multiple-choice questions, and students are given a half hour to answer these questions. Topics tested on the third-grade Elementary Level SSAT include basic operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division), place value, numbers’ order (“greater than” and “less than”), fractions, basic geometric concepts about shapes and their qualities, basic measurement concepts, and graph interpretation. In addition to these concepts, the fourth-grade SSAT additionally tests the concepts of factors, multiples, patterns, and basic angle measurement concepts. These concepts are selected to reflect mathematical content that students in each grade level should have been introduced to at the time of taking the appropriate level of SSAT; it should not be necessary for students to study material beyond that appropriate for their grade level.

One way to help your student be less apprehensive about taking the Elementary Level SSAT’s Quantitative section is to encourage them to work through practice problems to practice working on concepts that they do not understand very well. Varsity Tutors offers free Elementary Level SSAT Quantitative Practice Tests, each consisting of about twelve problems drawn from the various topics covered on the Elementary Level SSAT’s Quantitative section and formatted in the same way as on the actual Elementary Level SSAT. Problems are also organized by concept, so if your student has particular trouble with fractions, for example, you can help them work through problems that each ask about fractions to help them improve their knowledge. After answering all the problems in a Practice Test, you receive a detailed analysis of how your student did in relation to other test-takers, as well as how long he or she took to answer each question. Detailed explanations are also provided for each question, whether it was answered correctly or incorrectly, so if your student missed a question, you can help him or her understand where they went wrong.

Some students may find it helpful to begin preparing for the exam by taking a Full-Length Elementary Level SSAT Quantitative Practice Test. The extended format of these tests helps you to establish an idea of your student's current test-taking pace and proficiency. When they finish the test, the results page will provide a variety of helpful resources, including detailed explanations for each of the answers and a wealth of information on each question’s main concepts. These online practice tests can also help you refine your child's SSAT study plan by alerting you to the concepts they most need to study. You can incorporate any of the other free Learning Tools to enhance your child's study regimen, and you can track their progress by having them take another Full-Length Elementary Level SSAT Quantitative Practice Test.

By making use of Varsity Tutors’ free Elementary Level SSAT resources and arming your student with knowledge about the SSAT, you can help him or her do his or her personal best when taking the actual Elementary Level SSAT!