If your child is six weeks away from the NSW Selective Test, take a breath. You have not left it too late. Six weeks is genuinely enough time to make real progress — but only if you use that time strategically.

The families who improve most in a short window are not the ones doing the most hours. They are the ones who identify weak spots early, practise under realistic conditions, and protect their child's confidence along the way.

This plan covers all four sections — Reading, Mathematical Reasoning, Thinking Skills, and Writing — with weekly goals, daily templates, and practical parent advice.

Can You Really Prepare in 6 Weeks?

Yes. But strategy matters more than volume.

A focused 6-week block beats months of scattered worksheets. Research on test preparation consistently shows that targeted practice with review outperforms high-volume drilling without reflection.

Here is what works at this stage:

• Diagnostic first — find out where your child actually stands before planning anything
• High-yield focus — spend more time on weak areas, not comfortable ones
• Realistic conditions — practise on a computer, with a timer, in a quiet space
• Review over repetition — the improvement happens when you analyse mistakes, not when you do another paper

The 6-Week Intensive Study Plan

Week 1 — Diagnostic and Baseline

Goal: Work out where your child is now.

• Sit one baseline set across all four sections (not necessarily all in one day)
• Identify the strongest and weakest sections
• Start an error log — a simple notebook where you record mistakes and patterns
• Establish a steady daily routine

What to practise:

• Reading: One untimed passage set, then one timed passage set
• Maths: Identify recurring weak areas (fractions? word problems? number patterns?)
• Thinking Skills: Try pattern and logic questions slowly — accuracy before speed
• Writing: Complete one full prompt in 30 minutes on a computer

Parent job: Do not overreact to baseline scores. The first result is not a verdict — it is a map. Use it to plan, not to panic.

💡 Tip: SelectiveReady's instant diagnostic can help you quickly identify your child's strengths and gaps across all four modules, so you know exactly where to focus from Day 1.

Weeks 2–3 — Targeting Weaknesses

Goal: Improve accuracy before chasing speed.

In Week 2, review the careless errors from your baseline. Teach or revise core methods in weak areas. Keep sessions short and focused.

In Week 3, start introducing time pressure gradually. Begin with half-sections and mini-tests. Practise the skill of moving on from sticky questions.

What to practise:

Section	Week 2 Focus	Week 3 Focus
Reading	Inference and vocabulary-in-context	One full timed section
Maths	Multi-step word problems, number patterns	15–20 question timed blocks
Thinking Skills	Analogies, classifications, deductive reasoning	15–20 question timed blocks
Writing	Quick planning before writing	30-minute response with strict planning time

Parent job: Notice whether mistakes are from knowledge gaps, timing errors, attention slips, or emotional rushing. Each type needs a different solution.

Weeks 4–5 — Timed Practice and Exam Technique

Goal: Build stamina and simulate real test conditions.

Week 4 is about switching between different demands. Do mixed-section sessions (Reading + Thinking Skills, Maths + Writing). Increase sitting time gradually.

Week 5 is full simulation. Complete at least one realistic mock sequence — ideally on a computer with strict timing and no interruptions.

What to practise:

• Mixed practice sessions that mirror exam-day switching
• At least one near-full mock across several sittings
• Writing under exact 30-minute timing
• Targeted review of the weakest question types only

Parent job: Use mock results to answer three questions:

1. What is improving?
2. What still needs work?
3. What should we leave alone now?

Do not turn mock results into a family referendum.

Week 6 — Tapering and Confidence Building

Goal: Arrive confident, rested, and organised.

This is not the week for massive new content pushes. Shorter, sharper sessions. Familiar question types. Logistics locked in.

What to practise:

• Quick review sets in weak areas (20–30 minutes)
• One final writing piece early in the week
• Light reading practice
• Thinking Skills refreshers on familiar patterns

What NOT to do:

• No late-night cramming
• No three-hour "catch-up" sessions
• No brand-new workbooks or courses
• No post-mortem after every small mistake

Parent job: Protect calm. This week is about sleep, rhythm, confidence, and staying emotionally steady. Your child already knows the test matters — they do not need daily reminders.

Sample Weekly Schedule

Here is a template families can adapt. Aim for 5–7 hours per week — more is not automatically better.

Day	Session	Duration
Monday	Reading practice + error review	45–60 min
Tuesday	Maths drill + mental maths warm-up	45–60 min
Wednesday	Thinking Skills timed set + strategy notes	45–60 min
Thursday	Writing practice + sentence improvement	45–60 min
Friday	Light review — revisit hard questions from the week	30–45 min
Saturday	Longer timed section or mixed mock + detailed corrections	90–120 min
Sunday	Rest or light reading only	—

What to Prioritise When Time is Short

If you cannot do everything, prioritise in this order:

1. Review mistakes — improvement lives in the correction, not the paper
2. Writing practice — it is the section parents find hardest to mark objectively, and 25% of the total score
3. Timed conditions — practising without a timer builds false confidence
4. Computer-based practice — the test is fully digital; paper practice is now a disadvantage
5. Thinking Skills frameworks — these cannot be memorised, but the patterns can be learned

Skip what your child already knows well. Six weeks is not the time for perfection — it is the time for the biggest gains in the weakest areas.

Managing Stress and Burnout

The psychological dimension matters as much as the academic one. A child who arrives at the test exhausted and anxious will underperform regardless of how many papers they have done.

Signs to watch for:

• Resistance to starting study sessions
• Tears or anger during practice
• Declining performance on familiar question types
• Sleep disruption or appetite changes

What helps:

• Keep sessions short and predictable
• Praise process (better pacing, smarter checking) rather than just marks
• Maintain normal activities — sport, friends, downtime
• Protect school attendance and sleep
• Use short post-session questions: "What tripped you up today?" instead of "How many did you get right?"

The Night Before and Morning Of

Night before:

• Finish study early in the day
• Pack everything — Test Admission Ticket, clear water bottle, approved items
• Set out clothes
• Plan the journey and allow buffer time
• Keep conversation light
• Prioritise sleep above all else

Morning of:

• Familiar breakfast (not the time to experiment)
• Arrive with time to spare
• Avoid last-minute teaching in the car
• One reminder only: take it one question at a time

Your Next Step

Short on time? The most important thing you can do right now is find out exactly where your child stands. A clear diagnostic beats weeks of guessing.

SelectiveReady's free practice modules give you instant feedback across all four sections — so your 6-week plan starts with clarity, not guesswork.