Western Australia · Gifted and Talented · ASET

WA GATE ASET maths practice

In Western Australia, academic entry to the Gifted and Talented Secondary Selective Entrance programs begins in Year 5, with testing in Year 6 and placement from Year 7. Academic applicants sit one test: the Academic Selective Entrance Test, or ASET. Its number-based part, Quantitative Reasoning, is 35 multiple-choice questions in 35 minutes. This page explains it from the department's ASET Handbook, quotes the department's view on coaching, and practises a kind of reasoning that suits it well: growing matchstick patterns, where the job is to find the rule. There is no program-choice or admissions advice here, and no promise of a result.

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Facts from the WA Department of Education · Puzzles written by us · No admissions advice

In short

The ASET is the Academic Selective Entrance Test for WA Gifted and Talented programs, sat in Year 6 for Year 7 entry. It has four tests: Reading Comprehension, Communicating Ideas in Writing, Quantitative Reasoning and Abstract Reasoning. Quantitative Reasoning has 35 multiple-choice questions in 35 minutes. For the 2028 intake, Year 6 students sit it on Saturday 6 March 2027 in Perth, Bunbury and Albany.

Reasoning that lasts

Three courses for able Years 5 and 6 students

Maths and logic that are worth learning whichever school comes next.

Problem Solving and Computational Thinking for Kids course thumbnail

WGA / 01

Problem solving and patterns

Rules, sequences and logical steps, talked through.

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Algebra Foundations course thumbnail

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Algebra foundations

Growing patterns become the first algebraic rules.

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Maths Olympiad & Competition Course course thumbnail

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Competition maths

Unfamiliar problems for students who love a challenge.

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The ASET, from the department

Four tests, about two hours of tasks, one booklet

Order and timings are quoted from the department's ASET Handbook, read on 7 October 2026.

ASET tests in the order sat (ASET Handbook)
TestTimeFormat
Reading Comprehension35 minutesMultiple choice
Communicating Ideas in Writing25 minutesWritten test
Break10 minutesStudents leave the room
Quantitative Reasoning35 minutesMultiple choice, 35 questions
Abstract Reasoning20 minutesMultiple choice, 35 questions

The department explains that academic applicants complete the ASET only, while arts and language applicants may also have auditions, workshops or interviews. The programs run at 24 select public secondary schools, which the department says include a selective academic school, a selective arts college, two regional schools and an online academic program for country students.

The handbook says there is "no particular order of difficulty and all questions are worth a single point", and that points are not deducted for wrong answers, so guessing is acceptable when a student is unsure.

For the 2028 intake, applications open on Tuesday 13 October 2026 and close at 6 pm on Friday 5 February 2027. The Year 6 ASET in Perth metro, Bunbury and Albany is on Saturday 6 March 2027, with regional and interstate arrangements listed separately.

The department publishes a Practice ASET aimed at the Year 7 intake and notes that practice test results do not show how an applicant will score and are not considered when making offers.

Sources: WA Department of Education, Gifted and Talented testing; Key dates and application guidelines; Gifted and Talented overview; ASET Handbook (PDF linked from the testing page). Checked on 7 October 2026. We are independent of the department.

Quantitative Reasoning

Not a school maths test, by design

The handbook is explicit about what this test is and is not.

From the ASET Handbook

"This test assesses quantitative reasoning ability, which is very different to a test of school achievement in mathematics or science." It checks how well a student can use mathematical and scientific reasoning to solve problems, with content drawn from many sources and "very different to what is taught in school".

The handbook asks students to look at information carefully, find patterns and relationships, solve problems, and spot similarities and differences. Rough working is allowed in the question booklet and on the back of the answer booklet, but only shaded answers are marked.

On its testing page the department also states: "We do not endorse or recommend any form of private professional coaching or tutoring". It suggests reading the handbook and trying the Practice ASET so students know what to expect.

We take that seriously. A test designed to identify potential rather than acquired knowledge is not something to drill. What does help is a child who enjoys spotting patterns, explains rules in words, and checks a rule against every case.

Our classes build those habits through ordinary, interesting mathematics. They are not ASET coaching, and the free trial is where we say honestly whether a child needs anything beyond the official practice test.

Sources: ASET Handbook, Quantitative Reasoning test overview; Gifted and Talented testing. Checked on 7 October 2026.

Puzzles we wrote

Matchstick growing patterns

Shapes made of matchsticks grow one step at a time. The challenge is to find how many sticks each step adds, write a rule, and use the rule for steps far too large to draw.

Count the first few

Draw steps 1, 2 and 3 and count the sticks. Write the counts in a row.

Find what is added

The difference between counts tells you how many sticks each new piece needs, after the first piece is built.

Write the rule, then test it

A rule such as 3 times the step, plus 1, must work for every step you drew, not just one.

Original matchstick patterns with rules
PatternFirst countsRule for step nQuestion and answer
Squares joined in a row4, 7, 103n + 1Step 10 needs 31 sticks
Triangles joined in a row, alternately up and down3, 5, 72n + 1Step 20 needs 41 sticks
Squares in a row: which step uses exactly 100 sticks?4, 7, 103n + 1 = 100Step 33
Hexagons joined in a row6, 11, 165n + 1Step 8 needs 41 sticks
A pattern starting 5, 9, 135, 9, 134n + 1Step 15 needs 61 sticks
Square grids: 1 by 1, 2 by 2, 3 by 34, 12, 242n(n + 1)A 3 by 3 grid needs 24 sticks

The first pattern explains why so many rules end in plus 1. The first square needs 4 sticks, but every square after it shares a side with the one before, so it adds only 3. Four sticks is really 1 plus 3, which is where 3n + 1 comes from. A student who can explain the plus 1 has understood the pattern, not just matched numbers.

The last pattern is different, and that is the point. The counts 4, 12, 24 do not go up by the same amount each time, so no rule of the form "times something, plus 1" fits. Counting horizontal and vertical sticks separately in a 3 by 3 grid gives 4 rows of 3 and 4 columns of 3, which is 12 plus 12. Checking a rule on every step catches the moment a pattern stops being simple.

The other reasoning test

Abstract Reasoning: 35 questions in 20 minutes

The fourth ASET test is faster still, and the handbook describes it in terms that link closely to pattern work.

What the handbook says

Abstract Reasoning assesses the ability to think about ideas and patterns that are not always obvious, to recognise connections, make reasoned choices and decide whether they make sense. It has 35 multiple-choice questions to complete in 20 minutes.

The handbook names a question type called Next in Sequence, in which a student identifies the rule for a sequence and chooses the option that most logically and simply comes next.

Why pattern habits transfer

Finding what changes from one step to the next, writing it as a rule and testing that rule on every step is the same habit whether the steps are matchstick shapes or abstract figures.

Twenty minutes for 35 questions is a little over half a minute each, so a student who has practised looking for one change at a time, rather than everything at once, will feel far calmer.

Try the hexagon pattern from the table with this in mind. One hexagon needs 6 sticks. Each new hexagon shares one side with its neighbour, so it adds 5. Step 8 therefore needs 6 plus 7 lots of 5, which is 41, and the rule 5n + 1 says the same thing in a single line. Whether a sequence is made of numbers, sticks or shapes, the question is always: what is added or changed each time, and what was there at the start?

Source: ASET Handbook, Abstract Reasoning test overview, linked from Gifted and Talented testing. Checked on 7 October 2026.

A paper test

Pencil, ovals and careful alignment

The ASET is answered on paper, and the handbook spends real care on the answer booklet.

What the handbook describes

Students receive one answer booklet for all four tests. Each multiple-choice question has four small ovals labelled A, B, C and D, coloured in with a pencil because scanners read pencil marks only.

Students may answer in any order, but the handbook recommends working through questions in order, because that reduces the risk of misaligning answers.

Habits worth building

Check the question number against the row before colouring an oval, every time.

Use the question booklet for working; markers only see the shaded answers.

If stuck, choose the most sensible option and move on, since wrong answers cost nothing.

Pattern reasoning

Four stages for young pattern spotters

These develop through puzzles, discussion and good teaching over years.

From counting to rules
StageThe student canSecure when
1. ContinueExtend a pattern by drawingDraws step 4 of the square pattern correctly
2. DifferenceSee what each step addsExplains why each square adds 3 sticks
3. RuleWrite a rule for step nFinds step 20 of the triangle pattern without drawing
4. Reverse and testWork backwards and check rulesFinds which step uses 100 sticks and tests the grid pattern

Wellbeing

The department does not recommend private coaching for the ASET, and heavy preparation for a test of potential rarely helps.

Matchsticks, toothpicks or drawn lines at the kitchen table make pattern puzzles a game rather than a chore.

Other states

South Australia's Ignite assessment is covered on SA Ignite maths practice.

For NAPLAN in Year 5, see NAPLAN Year 5 numeracy.

Courses for Years 5 and 6

Courses for pattern-loving students

Sorted into three groups; tap a card for the syllabus.

I

Patterns and logic

Reasoning skills

WGA / P / 01

Problem solving and computational thinking

Sequences, rules and logical steps.

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II

Curriculum maths

Strong foundations

WGA / C / 03

Statistics and probability

Reading graphs and judging likelihood.

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III

Ahead

Toward secondary maths

WGA / A / 02

Middle years maths

A head start on secondary topics.

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Draw, count, rule

Students build patterns before writing rules.

Explain the plus one

Every rule must be explained, not just found.

Fifteen to twenty per group

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Not ASET coaching

We teach maths and reasoning, consistent with the department's advice.

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Questions about the ASET

Western Australian families ask

What is the ASET?

The Academic Selective Entrance Test used by the WA Department of Education for Gifted and Talented Secondary Selective Entrance programs. Academic applicants sit the ASET only.

When do students sit the ASET?

The department says selection starts in Year 5, with testing in Year 6 and placement from Year 7. For the 2028 intake, the Year 6 ASET in Perth metro, Bunbury and Albany is on Saturday 6 March 2027.

How long is the Quantitative Reasoning test?

35 minutes for 35 multiple-choice questions, according to the ASET Handbook.

Is Quantitative Reasoning a maths test?

The handbook says it is very different to a test of school achievement in mathematics or science; it assesses mathematical and scientific reasoning with content unlike what is taught in school.

Are marks taken off for wrong answers?

No. The handbook says each question is worth one point and no points are deducted for incorrect answers.

What is a matchstick growing pattern?

A sequence of shapes made from matchsticks, where each step adds pieces. Students find how many sticks each step adds and write a rule, such as 3n + 1, for any step.

Should my child have coaching?

The department says it does not endorse or recommend private professional coaching or tutoring, and suggests the ASET Handbook and the Practice ASET instead.

When do applications open?

For the 2028 intake, applications open on Tuesday 13 October 2026 and close at 6 pm on Friday 5 February 2027.

Can you advise which program to choose?

No. We give no admissions or program-choice advice.

What time would lessons be in Perth?

One weekly slot is set once the free class is done. Western Australia keeps the same clock all year, so Perth stays two and a half hours ahead of India.

Related pages

More for WA families

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SA Ignite maths

South Australia's gifted program assessment.

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Puzzles for home.

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