Skill Matrix and Recommendations to Prepare for the Otis-Lennon School Ability Test®
OLSAT-8® Level C recommended for administration in Gr 2
Skills Tested
Verbal Comprehension – Following Directions
Verbal Reasoning – Aural Reasoning, Arithmetic Reasoning
Figural Reasoning – Figural Classification, Figural Analogies, Pattern Matrix, Figural Series
Non-Verbal Reasoning – Picture Classification, Picture Analogies, Picture Series
Figural Reasoning – Figural Classification, Figural Analogies, Pattern Matrix, Figural Series
How can I prepare my child to do well in a test of these skills?
Scroll down for information on the books and software recommended in the table.
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Following Directions |
Can You Find Me?
Building Thinking Skills Level 1 book or software
Spectrum Test Prep Gr 1-2
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Aural Reasoning |
Can You Find Me?
Building Thinking Skills Level 1 book or software
Spectrum Test Prep Gr 1-2
Think Analogies
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Arithmetic Reasoning |
Can You Find Me?
Spectrum Test Prep Gr 1-2
Mathematical Reasoning D
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Picture Classification |
Can You Find Me?
Building Thinking Skills Primary (second half only)
Spectrum Test Prep Gr 1-2
Language Smarts
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Picture Analogies |
Can You Find Me?
Building Thinking Skills Primary (second half only)
Math Analogies
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Picture Series |
Can You Find Me?
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Figural Classification |
Building Thinking Skills Level 1 book or software
Visual Perceptual Skill Building Book 2
Can You Find Me?
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Figural Analogies |
Building Thinking Skills Level 1
Can You Find Me?
Math Analogies
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Pattern Matrix |
Building Thinking Skills Level 1 book or software
Visual Perceptual Skill Building Book 2
Can You Find Me?
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Figural Series |
Building Thinking Skills Level 1 book or software
Visual Perceptual Skill Building Book 2
Can You Find Me?
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Overwhelmed by the choices?
Building Thinking Skills Level 1 (your choice of book or software) is my number one recommendation. Add Can You Find Me? K-1 and you’ve got most of it covered.
The other titles pick up on specific skills. You may wonder why I’ve got recommendations in this list identified as for children well below 2nd grade. The OLSAT® Level C is a picture and figure based test. The instructions and questions are read to the children and they identify the picture or figure on the answer sheet which corresponds to their answer choice and shade the bubble underneath it. A gifted 2nd grader is probably reading and out of practice listening carefully. Lots of practice is called for including practice listening to very easy questions because the test will have quite a few of those.
· Building Thinking Skills for core verbal and non-verbal reasoning skills
· Can you Find Me? K-1 for core skills and practice with the format. This title is also good to get gifted children to see what the obvious answer is instead of being smart and looking for a more complex pattern that they could justify (that answer will be wrong)
· Visual Perceptual Skill Building Book 2 to get to really see what you’re looking at. This is another aspect of test taking that gifted children can slip up on
· Math Analogies for number and figure based analogies
· Think Analogies for the game in the back using pictures to develop analogy pairs and provide opportunities for discussion.
· Building Thinking Skills Primary for more picture based verbal questions. If your child has English as a second language or you have any concerns about how they fare with the actual format of the test this is another option for teaching core skills. The level is a little below that of the most difficult questions on the test but the format is more similar to that of the test than the format used in Building Thinking Skills Level 1.
· Language Smarts C has a few verbal comprehension and reasoning questions. It probably isn’t worth purchasing just for those but if your child will be doing a standardized language arts test in conjunction with the OLSAT® this is an excellent choice.
· Mathematical Reasoning D includes arithmetic reasoning questions. . It probably isn’t worth purchasing just for those but if your child will be doing a standardized math test in conjunction with the OLSAT® this is an excellent choice.
OLSAT® and Otis-Lennon School Ability Test® are registered trademarks of NCS Pearson (previously Harcourt Assessment Services) who own rights to and publish the OLSAT-8®. The recommendations made here are those of Think Tonight and are not endorsed by NCS Pearson.
