Find what one part is worth first, and every share follows from it.
Practice test 1 is free. No card needed.
Ratio questions are solved by finding what one part is worth, then building each share from it. Children in Year 7 now sit the exam in Year 8 , expected in June 2027.
Checked by the SelectiveReady team on 12 October 2026 · Updated 27 October 2026 · How we check facts
Independent. Not affiliated with the Victorian Department of Education or ACER.
A ratio question gives a split, such as 4 : 3, and asks for one share, the gap or a real distance. It sits in the Mathematics part, which shares a 60-minute sitting with Quantitative Reasoning.
ACER says that part tests year-level maths knowledge and reasoning, and using maths in real-world contexts, and sharing money or reading a map fits that well.
These three are our own, from easier to harder: a bird survey, money shared in a ratio, and a map scale. Each one shows the answer and the working, so read them with your child.
For each wrong option, find the step below where its working goes off track. That step is the one to talk through.
A wildlife survey counted 168 birds at a wetland, all either ducks or herons. The ratio of ducks to herons was 4 : 3. How many ducks were counted?
Answer: D
Answer: D
Add the parts: 4 + 3 = 7 parts make 168 birds, so one part is 168 ÷ 7 = 24. Ducks are 4 parts, which is 96 birds. 72 is the number of herons (3 parts), and 84 splits the birds in half, ignoring the ratio.
Priya, Tom and Zara share $480 in the ratio 3 : 4 : 5. How much more does Zara receive than Priya?
Answer: A
Answer: A
There are 3 + 4 + 5 = 12 parts, so one part is $480 ÷ 12 = $40. Zara has 2 more parts than Priya, which is $80. $200 is Zara's whole share and $120 is Priya's share; both answer a different question from the one asked.
On a map with a scale of 1 : 10 000, a park is a rectangle 6 cm long and 4 cm wide. On a second map, the same park is a rectangle with an area of 1.5 cm². What is the scale of the second map?
Answer: C
Answer: C
Compare the map areas: 6 × 4 = 24 cm² on the first map and 1.5 cm² on the second, one sixteenth of the size. Areas shrink by the square of the length change, and 4 × 4 = 16, so lengths are a quarter as long and the scale is 1 : 40 000. 1 : 160 000 treats the area change of 16 as the length change.
Teach your child to find the value of one part before anything else, because every answer in a ratio question is built from it. The steps are ours, not ACER's, and they follow the working in the questions above.
A ratio of 4 : 3 means 7 parts in all. Write the total number of parts first.
Divide the total by the number of parts. Every other answer is built from this one value.
The question may want one share, two shares, or the gap between them. Underline the last line before working.
A map scale compares lengths. When an area shrinks, the lengths shrink by less, because area grows with the square of length.
The shares should add up to the total. If they don't, one step is wrong.
Ask your child to say the five steps out loud on the next few ratio questions, until they no longer need to.
Each wrong option here is a real number from the working, just not the one asked for. Ask your child what each of those numbers stands for. That names the slip, and rereading the last line of the question fixes it.
Use real sharing at home: ratio is everywhere in a kitchen or on a map.
Three questions show the method; a full test shows whether your child can use it fast, mixed with other Maths. Practice test 1 in our selective entry practice tests is free, with results by skill afterwards.
For more worked questions, see maths sample questions; for the whole part, VIC selective entry mathematics.
Practice test 1 marks every answer and shows results by skill: what your child already does well and the three skills to work on next.
Practise for the real test
Practice test 1 is free. Then packs from A$109 for 12 months, or A$9 a week, per exam.