Bolton School 8 Plus (8+) Entrance Exam Information – Key Details
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Table of Contents
Introduction
Basic information: Bolton School is an independent day school in Bolton, Greater Manchester. Its Junior Departments cater for boys and girls separately, as do the Senior Schools. Founded in 1877, the girls’ school is noted as one of the earliest public day schools for girls in the UK. The boys’ school dates back to the 16th century. [1]
Curriculum: Across both departments, the curriculum extensively supports pupils throughout their active pursuit of academic and non-academic excellence. The staff ensures that in-class teaching is vigorous and engaging, covering a broad range of disciplines such as science, DT, humanities, mathematics and languages.
Co-curricular: After-class activities are considered vital to children’s all-round growth. Ranging from athletics and swimming to cookery and chess, the pursuits on offer enable pupils to bond and engage in learning while having a lot of fun. Extracurricular trips and excursions further enrich the educational journey, ensuring that its broad character exceeds all expectations. [2] [3]
ISI Inspection report: The most recent ISI reports for the single-sex Junior Schools characterised their offering, standard and achievements as ‘excellent’. Self-assured and mutually supportive, pupils progress through the school with a positive attitude to learning, manifesting exemplary conduct and behaviour. [4]
Centred on the ‘whole child’, the Bolton ethos inspires respect for others, whether they be staff or peers, and thus complements the balanced atmosphere that thrives on campus. Traditional values are successfully blended with forward-looking teaching methods, allowing children to extensively prepare for the demands and challenges of further education.
Bolton School 8 Plus (8+) Exam Information
Address: Chorley New Road, Bolton BL1 4PA
County: Greater Manchester
Admissions info (boys): juniorboys@boltonschool.org or 01204 434735
Admissions info (girls): juniorgirls@boltonschool.org or 01204 434761
School type: Independent day school
Open days: In the Summer and Autumn terms
8+ Exam date: January of Year 3
Open Events for Bolton Junior School 8 Plus (8+) Entry
The Whole School Open Morning is held in October, offering families the chance to experience the atmosphere on campus and meet key members of the staff, including the Head. Junior Schools’ Open Evening is held in April/May, consisting of guided tours of facilities and meetings with teaching staff members. Pre-booking is not required.
Bolton Junior School 8 Plus (8+) Admissions
The girls’ and boys’ application forms should be submitted together with a £40 registration fee. As part of the admissions process, reports from your child’s current school will be requested.
Assessments for 8+ entry to the boys’ department are taken online, in addition to a creative writing paper. The exam for entry to the girls’ school is paper-based. If your child performs well, they may receive an offer or be placed on the waiting list, depending on availability.
Bolton Junior School 8 Plus (8+) Scholarships and Bursaries
Scholarships are not available. Bursaries are normally offered to Senior School applicants only, but there can be exceptions. Please reach out to the school to learn more.
Bolton Junior School 8 Plus (8+) Exam Format
The Bolton Junior School 8 Plus (8+) exam for entry into the boys’ school consists of the following assessments:
- English: Creative writing paper
- Cognitive Abilities Test (CAT4)
The English exam measures writing skills, including punctuation and spelling. Marks will be awarded for good use of imagination, creativity, form, purpose, organisation, cohesion and sentence structure.
The CAT4 test aims to assess developed abilities via modules testing Verbal, Non-Verbal, Spatial and Quantitative Reasoning.
The Bolton Junior School 8 Plus (8+) exam for entry into the girls’ school consists of the following papers:
- English
- Mathematics
- Reasoning (Verbal & Non-Verbal)
The English paper examines comprehension and writing skills, including spelling, punctuation and grammar, as well as the fluency of your child’s reading and oral skills.
The Maths exam assesses problem-solving abilities and arithmetic skills, including your child’s knowledge of times tables.
The Verbal Reasoning section of the exam is designed to test and assess logical thinking, use of English language and vocabulary.
The Non-Verbal Reasoning exam measures the ability to understand, interpret and problem-solve, testing logic and intelligence rather than knowledge.
Please see below for further details and recommendations on how to prepare for the Bolton Junior School 8 Plus entrance examination.
How to Prepare for the Bolton Junior School 8 Plus (8+) Entrance Assessment
One of the best ways to prepare for a competitive entrance exam is to use our practice tests. Getting to know the types of questions and the format of the actual exam will help boost your child’s confidence.
Aside from becoming familiarised with the exam format, our practice tests will ensure that your child responds to the questions in an efficient and effective manner.
They also provide an excellent opportunity for your child to practise working under time pressure. Whilst doing the tests under timed conditions, children can get used to answering questions quickly, with a close attention to detail.
The majority of our 8+ resources are accompanied by detailed step-by-step video tutorials for every question. These are available for free with all purchases. It’s like having a world-class tutor explain each question to your child at no extra cost!
Our practice tests are used successfully every year by tens of thousands of students targeting schools with a competitive entrance exam. They are age-appropriate, reflecting the demands of the actual exam.
Our recommendations to help your child prepare for the Bolton Junior School 8 Plus entrance exam can be found below.
Bolton Junior School 8 Plus (8+) Exam Practice Papers
Recommendations for each section of the Bolton Junior School 8 Plus exam can be found below:
Boys’ Division
English: Creative writing
We highly recommend the following packs to prepare successfully for the Bolton Junior School 8 Plus English assessment. They will help improve your child’s writing skills:
The Complete Guide to 8+ Writing
If you’d like to have your child’s writing assessed and marked, you may be interested in our Writing Marking Service. Please click here to learn more.
Get 10% off orders over £70 and 20% off orders over £250. Use the code eppdiscount at checkout.
Cognitive Abilities Test (CAT4)
The following Cognitive Abilities Test (CAT) online practice tests and courses are highly recommended for successful preparation for the Bolton Junior School 8+ CAT test. They are specifically designed for CAT4 Level Y, which is taken for 8+ entry.
CAT4 – Level Y – Practice Test 1
CAT4 – Level Y – Practice Test 2
CAT4 – Level Y – Practice Test 3
CAT4 – Level Y – Practice Test 4
CAT4 – Level Y – Practice Test 5
✅ Save 25% by purchasing our CAT4 Level Y Practice Tests Bundle, including all five tests. Click the button below to learn more:
CAT4 Level Y Practice Tests Bundle - Save 25%
Skill Practice Tests
To boost your child’s Verbal Reasoning (Words) abilities in the lead-up to the 8+ CAT4 Level Y exam, we recommend that you use the following topic exercises:
For effective Quantitative Reasoning (Numbers) practice in the lead-up to the 8+ CAT4 Level Y exam, we recommend that you use the following skill exercises:
To enhance your child’s Non-Verbal Reasoning (Figures) abilities ahead of the 8+ CAT4 Level Y exam, we specifically recommend the following skill exercises:
To improve your child’s understanding of Spatial Reasoning (Shapes) in preparation for the 8+ CAT4 Level Y exam, we advise the use of the following topic exercises:
✅ Save 15% by purchasing our CAT4 Level Y Skill Practice Tests Bundle, including all four tests. Click the button below to learn more:
CAT4 Level Y Skill Practice Bundle - Save 15%
Don’t forget to use the code ppdiscount at checkout to get 10% off orders over £80 and 20% off orders over £200 if you don’t buy a bundle.
Girls’ Division
English
We highly recommend the following packs to prepare successfully for the Bolton Junior School 8 Plus English assessment. They will help improve your child’s comprehension and writing skills:
Full Practice Tests
Comprehension Skills
8+ English: Comprehension Pack 1
8+ English: Vocabulary and Grammar
The Complete Guide to 8+ Comprehension
Writing Skills
The Complete Guide to 8+ Writing
If you’d like to have your child’s writing assessed and marked, you may be interested in our Writing Marking Service. Please click here to learn more.
Mathematics
We highly recommend the use of the following packs to help develop your child’s arithmetic and problem-solving skills within the examination context of the Bolton Junior School 8 Plus maths test:
Full Practice Tests
Targeted Skill Development
8+ Mathematics: Mental Arithmetic
8+ Mathematics: Problem Solving
Reasoning
The following packs will significantly boost your child’s Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning abilities ahead of the Bolton Junior School 8 Plus Reasoning paper:
Listening
The following pack is ideal for developing listening skills ahead of the Bolton Junior School 8 Plus entrance exam, helping your child learn how to follow instructions carefully:
Get 10% off orders over £70 and 20% off orders over £250. Use the code eppdiscount at checkout.
Our practice tests aim to show what sort of questions were included in Bolton Junior School 8+ past papers. The information provided about Bolton Junior School was believed to be correct at the time of publishing. However, please be aware of future changes. We advise you to contact the school directly if you are unsure of anything. School contact details are provided within the post.
Other entry points for Bolton Junior School:
Click here to learn about Year 3 entry via the 7 Plus (7+) Exam
Click here to learn about Year 7 entry via the 11 Plus (11+) Exam
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