OLSAT Nonverbal Test Section Online Preparation, Sample Questions and Tips – 2025

What Is the OLSAT Nonverbal Test Section?

The Nonverbal Section is one out of two sections that students are required to complete on the OLSAT exam. Students taking any level on the OLSAT exam will be completing the same number of nonverbal questions as verbal questions, excluding preschoolers taking the OLSAT Level A, in which fewer verbal questions will be asked. Children taking the OLSAT Level A-C exams will not have a reading requirement, which means the instructions will be read aloud by a designated test proctor. However, children taking the OLSAT Level D or higher will be expected to be able to read, which means that they will not have a designated test proctor reading the questions to them. The Nonverbal Section will mostly include pictures and numbers, and is used to assess a child’s ability for discerning relationships between pictures, figures, and numbers. The Nonverbal Section’s scores will be combined with the Verbal Section’s scores, and those scores determine which children are suitable for a gifted and talented program.

What Are the OLSAT Nonverbal Test Sections?

The OLSAT Nonverbal Section will be split into three subcategories, including Pictorial Reasoning, Figural Reasoning, and Quantitative Reasoning subcategories. Within each of the subcategories there will be individual subsections that will conduct in-depth testing on that specific section. Students will be required to complete each of these subcategories as quickly as possible.

Pictorial Reasoning

• Picture Classification: This subsection requires the students to search through five pictures in order to identify one picture that does not match with the rest.
• Picture Analogies: This subsection requires students to look through five pictures and identify one picture that most closely matches with the first picture presented.
• Picture Series: This subsection presents a progression of pictures, and students will need to predict which picture would come next in the picture series.

Figural Reasoning

• Figural Classification: This subsection requires the students to search through five figures in order to identify one figure that does not match with the rest.
• Figural Analogies: This subsection requires students to look through five figures and identify one figure that most closely matches with the first figure presented.
• Pattern Matrix: This subsection includes a 3×3 matrix split into nine individual boxes. Eight of the nine boxes will be filled with figures distributed vertically and horizontally, and the figures will follow a certain pattern. Students will complete the matrix by choosing a figure that matches the matrix pattern.
• Figural Series: This subsection presents a progression of figures, and students will need to predict which figure would come next in the figure series.

Quantitative Reasoning

• Number Series: This subsection presents a progression of numbers, and students will need to predict which number would come next in the number series.
• Number Inference: This subsection tests each student’s ability to identify relationships between number groupings.
• Number Matrix: This subsection includes a 3×3 matrix split into nine individual boxes. Eight of the nine boxes will be filled with numbers distributed vertically and horizontally, and the numbers will follow a certain pattern. Students will complete the matrix by choosing a number that matches the matrix pattern.

How to Read OLSAT Nonverbal Test Section Score Report?

The results from all three subcategories in the Nonverbal Section will be added together to create the raw score. After the raw score has been calculated, it will be normalized and compared with students of the same age. This score will be shown as the School Ability Index (SAI), and can range from 0 to 150. Finally, the SAI score will be converted into the Percentile Rank, which is shown as a percentage. This percentage represents the amount of students that your child scored better than on the entire OLSAT exam. The Percentile Rank is often the score that is used to identify children that are considered to be gifted and talented.

OLSAT Nonverbal Test Section Tips

1. Teach your child to not spend too much time on a single question. As the students grow older, they will have less time to answer more questions. This means that it is absolutely essential that students don’t become easily overwhelmed with time limits. Make sure that you sit down with your child and prepare with practice exams that include time limits. This will teach your child how to answer questions quickly.
2. Start preparing as soon as possible. The quicker you start studying, the more time your child will have to feel prepared. If you wait until a few days before the test to start studying, your child will not have enough time to soak up all of the new information they learned. Your child needs at least two weeks in advance to start preparing with online practice exams.

How to Prepare for the OLSAT Nonverbal Test Section?

The OLSAT’s Nonverbal Section allows the test to be fair for student’s who have less developed verbal skills. The Nonverbal Section includes a variety of topics that cover several different nonverbal skills. It is important that parents help their children learn how to study and prepare for this type of exam. The easiest preparation method is to utilize online study guides and practice exams. Practice exams include example questions that mirror real questions found on the OLSAT exam. Additionally, practice exams include explanations that provide useful information on how to answer difficult questions. As your child continues to become more familiar with the material, they will feel more confident on test day. Preparing and studying is essential for your child to score well on the OLSAT Nonverbal Test Section.
 

Free OLSAT Practice Questions

Based on your grade level select the relevant free practice materials: