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NSW SelectiveYear 7 entry

Data reasoning in Selective Thinking Skills

Independent. Not affiliated with the NSW Department of Education.

Data reasoning means telling apart what a table or chart shows from what it proves. In Selective Thinking Skills, your child chooses the claim the numbers support and rejects claims that go further than the data.

Watch the full lesson Play the preview

The full lesson is in the SelectiveReady app. A free account opens How and Why Authors Write; this lesson needs a paid plan.

Updated 16 October 2026 · Facts checked 12 October 2026

What Does the Data Tell Us? (lesson preview)
A short preview from the SelectiveReady lesson “What Does the Data Tell Us?”, on data reasoning for the NSW Selective test.
Published: 15 October 2026

What Does the Data Tell Us? is a full lesson in the SelectiveReady app.

A free account opens one lesson, How and Why Authors Write; the other lessons need a paid plan^{1SelectiveReady · 13 October 2026 · Published}. Captions on the preview are in English and Chinese.

2

What will your child learn in this lesson?

Your child learns to read a chart like a detective reads a witness statement: carefully, and without believing more than it says. They'll be able to tell what data shows from what it proves, and spot a claim that goes too far.

The clip tests a bold claim about study hours and test scores, and finds it too strong. The full lesson adds the golden rule, three conclusions to judge and the most wanted list of traps.

3

How do data questions show up in Selective Thinking Skills?

Your child reads a small table or chart, then decides which statement is definitely true, could be true or cannot be true. The numbers are usually small, but the wording of each option matters.

The Thinking Skills test	What it means for data
40^{2NSW Education · 12 October 2026 · Published} questions in 40^{2NSW Education · 12 October 2026 · Published} minutes	Read the title and labels before the numbers
No calculator^{2NSW Education · 12 October 2026 · Published}	Any halving or adding is done by hand, on working paper
4^{2NSW Education · 12 October 2026 · Published} options per question	Sort each option: shown, a leap, or against the data
The practice papers say there are no marks lost for incorrect answers^{3NSW Education · 13 October 2026 · Published}	A careful choice always beats a blank

4

What is data reasoning?

Data reasoning is deciding what a set of numbers really tells you. For a Year 6 child, that means reading tables and graphs, and judging which claims about them are fair.

The lesson's golden rule is the difference between a link and a cause. When two things rise together, that's a link, or correlation.

When one makes the other happen, that's a cause. A chart can show a link, but it rarely proves a cause.

Here is how the lesson judges three claims about one chart of study hours and test scores.

Claim	Verdict	Why
Students who study more tend to score higher.	Fair	Tend to describes the trend the chart shows
Studying more causes better scores.	Too strong	Sleep or earlier skill could explain it too
Everyone who studies a lot will score highly.	Not supported	A trend isn't a promise; some students won't fit it

5

What is the method for data questions?

Read what was measured, read what the question asks, then sort each option by how far it goes. Choose the claim that stays inside the data.

Shows or proves? A rising bar chart. Tends to: supported. Causes: too strong. Always: not supported.

Read the labels
What was counted, in whom, and when? Notice what the table doesn't include.
Read the question's words
Definitely true, best supported and cannot be true each ask for something different.
Sort the options
Is it shown in the data, a leap beyond it, or against it?
Watch the strong words
All, every, always, will and causes need more proof than a table gives. Tend to and most are safer.

6

What does a worked data question look like?

We made up this table and question to show the method.

Day	Weather	Drinks sold at the canteen
Monday	Hot	60
Tuesday	Mild	35
Wednesday	Hot	55
Thursday	Cool	20

Question: Which statement is best supported by the table?

Option	Statement
A	Hot weather makes every student buy a drink.
B	More drinks tended to be sold on warmer days that week.
C	The canteen will sell more drinks than this every hot day.
D	Most students at the school bought a drink on Monday.

Step	What your child does
Read the labels	Four days, the weather and drinks sold. Nothing on how many students there are.
Read the question	Best supported: the claim the table backs most safely.
Sort the options	A says every and makes: too strong. C predicts every future day. D needs a number the table doesn't give.
Choose	B. Tended to matches the pattern across four days.

7

What mistake do children make with data?

The common mistake is picking a claim that sounds right instead of one the data supports. A trend becomes always, or a link becomes a cause.

Trap	What it looks like	The fix
Going beyond the data	A claim about people or days the table never covered	Point to the row or bar that proves it
Tends to read as always	A pattern turned into a rule for everyone	Keep the word tend to unless every case fits
Forgetting outliers	Assuming nobody breaks the pattern	Remember one student can study a lot and still score lower
Missing information	Using numbers the table doesn't give, like class size	Ask: is this column actually here?

8

Can my child try one on their own?

Here is a table question from our free Thinking Skills set. It asks which statement is definitely true.

Practice question · SEL-TS-TST-22

The table shows how many library books each of the four Year 6 classes at a school borrowed in Term 3.

Class	Books borrowed
6A	42
6B	35
6C	50
6D	28

Based on the table, which statement is definitely true?

A
Class 6D borrowed exactly half as many books as Class 6C.
B
Class 6C borrowed more books than any other Year 6 class.
C
Class 6C has more students than any other Year 6 class.
D
Every student in Class 6B borrowed at least one book.

Show answer and explanation

Answer: B

Answer: B (Class 6C borrowed more books than any other Year 6 class.)

50 is the largest number in the table, so 6C borrowed more books than 6A, 6B or 6D.
The table gives only the number of books for each class. It says nothing about how many students are in each class or who borrowed them.

Why the other options are wrong

A: Half of 50 is 25, and 6D borrowed 28, so this is false.
C: A class could borrow the most books without having the most students; the table does not give class sizes.
D: The table shows the class total only; some students in 6B might have borrowed several books and others none.

Read the labels
Each row is one class's total. There's nothing on class size or on individual students.
Test B
6C has the biggest number in the table, so it borrowed the most. The table shows it directly.
Test C and D
Class size and who did the borrowing aren't in the table, so neither is definite.
Test A, then answer
Halve 6C's total and compare it with 6D's: they don't match. The answer is B.

9

How can my child practise data reasoning at home?

Charts are everywhere, from weather maps to sports results. Short chats about them build the habit.

Shows or proves?

Pick a chart from the news or a sports page. Ask what it shows, then what it can't prove.

Run a family survey

Count something at home for a week, such as cups of tea or minutes outside. Then make fair and unfair claims about it.

Hunt the strong words

Find always, every and causes in adverts. Ask what proof each one would need.

10

Questions parents ask about data reasoning

What is correlation versus causation, in plain words?

Correlation means two things move together. Causation means one makes the other happen. Data often shows the first and rarely proves the second.

Does my child need to do sums?

Sometimes, but they're small. There's no calculator in any section, so your child works on paper. ^{2NSW Education · 12 October 2026 · Published}

Which charts should my child practise reading?

Tables, bar charts, line graphs and pie charts are all worth practising, because each shows numbers in a different way.

Is the full lesson free?

A free account opens one lesson, How and Why Authors Write; the other lessons need a paid plan^{1SelectiveReady · 13 October 2026 · Published}.

Next questions

Sources and checks

SelectiveReady
SelectiveReady · Checked 13 October 2026
Selective high school practice tests
NSW Department of Education · Checked 12 October 2026 · Practice materials: personal or non-commercial use only; CC BY 4.0 does not apply (page notice). Page text: CC BY 4.0.
Selective High School Placement Test, Thinking Skills Question Paper, Practice Test 1 (2026 entry practice tests, PDF)
NSW Department of Education · Checked 13 October 2026 · Practice materials: personal or non-commercial use only; CC BY 4.0 does not apply (page notice). Quoted briefly with credit. Saved text: the cover-page instructions only; the question pages are not stored (W§3.22).

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