About SSAT Grade 3
Live online SSAT Grade 3 prep for Grade 3. The curriculum has 6 units, from Foundational Vocabulary & Synonyms to The Creative Writing Prompt.
A standardized admission test used by independent and private college-preparatory schools to evaluate applicants and award merit scholarships.
SSAT Grade 3 Exam Format & Focus
Quantitative (Math), Verbal (Synonyms & Analogies), Reading Comprehension, and an unscored Writing Sample.
How Skillzy Young Scholars Prepares Students for SSAT Grade 3
Skillzy Young Scholars teaches SSAT Grade 3 in live online classes with vetted mentors who have completed 100 hours of training. The curriculum is organised into 6 units, with worksheets, quizzes, timed practice and mock exams. Progress is tracked in the LMS and shared with parents in a monthly report.
What SSAT Grade 3 Covers
- Three levels: Elementary (grades 3-4), Middle (5-7) and Upper (8-11)
- Quantitative (math) sections and a Verbal section with synonyms and analogies
- Reading comprehension passages
- An unscored writing sample sent to schools
- At Middle and Upper level, wrong answers lose a quarter point, so guessing strategy matters
SSAT Grade 3 Curriculum
Classes follow these units. Every student starts with a level check, and the order and pace adapt to your child. Units that go beyond the exam's core topics are stretch material.
- Target Audience
- Current Grade 3 students (applying for Grade 4 admission).
- Total Time
- 1 hour and 33 minutes of testing time (plus a 15-minute break).
- Scoring System
- Scaled score ranging from 900 to 1800 (with percentile ranks comparing students to other 3rd graders). There is a 1/4 point penalty for incorrect answers.
- Format Details
- The exam is paper-based or computer-based (at-home/prometric) and consists of four sections and a 15-minute break:
- 1. Quantitative (Math): 30 questions; 30 minutes.
- 2. Verbal (Synonyms & Analogies): 30 questions; 20 minutes.
- 3. Break: 15 minutes.
- 4. Reading Comprehension: 28 questions; 28 minutes.
- 5. Writing Sample: 1 prompt; 15 minutes (unscored, but sent directly to admission teams).
What the program focuses on
- Verbal Reasoning (basic vocabulary, simple synonym recognition, and everyday analogies)
- Reading Comprehension (main idea, literal details, and short passages)
- Quantitative Reasoning (foundational arithmetic, patterns, and simple word problems)
- The Unscored Writing Sample (structuring clear, creative responses to prompts)
- Interactive, hands-on learning with continuous progress monitoring
Units
1 Foundational Vocabulary & Synonyms
Students will learn to:
- Expand Core Vocabulary: Learn high-frequency, age-appropriate words that commonly appear on the Elementary SSAT.
- Identify Synonyms: Recognize words with the same or nearly the same meaning.
- Use Process of Elimination: Cross out obviously incorrect words to narrow down multiple-choice options.
SSAT Alignment - Verbal Section. The first half of the Verbal section is entirely synonym recognition. Since wrong answers carry a 1/4 point penalty, students must learn when to guess and when to leave a question blank.
Learning activities:
- Interactive synonym matching and flashcard games
- Root word and prefix introduction tasks
- "Trash the Distractor" process of elimination drills
What this means for your child. Your child will significantly expand their everyday vocabulary and learn strategic multiple-choice guessing techniques to avoid the wrong-answer penalty.
2 Everyday Analogies
Students will learn to:
- Understand Analogies: Learn how to build "bridge sentences" to connect two related words (e.g., "A puppy is a young dog").
- Identify Relationship Types: Recognize everyday relationships such as part-to-whole, item-to-category, and action-to-object.
- Solve the Puzzle: Apply the identified relationship to a new pair of words to find the missing answer.
SSAT Alignment - Verbal Section. Analogies make up the second half of the Verbal section. These questions test logical reasoning rather than pure vocabulary memorization.
Learning activities:
- "Bridge sentence" building workshops
- Analogy puzzle and relationship-matching games
- Part-to-whole and category sorting drills
What this means for your child. Your child will develop foundational logical reasoning skills, learning how to connect ideas and find patterns in language.
3 Basic Reading Comprehension
Students will learn to:
- Execute Active Reading: Read short, grade-appropriate passages (narrative, informational, and poetry) with focus and intent.
- Extract the Main Idea: Identify the primary message or theme of a passage.
- Locate Specific Details: Go back into the text to find explicit facts and answers to "who, what, where, when, and why" questions.
- Determine Vocabulary in Context: Guess the meaning of an unknown word based on the sentence around it.
SSAT Alignment - Reading Section. The Grade 3 Reading section gives students 28 minutes for 28 questions. Students must learn to quickly skim passages and locate answers without getting bogged down.
Learning activities:
- Highlighter hunts (finding evidence directly in the text)
- Main idea vs. supporting detail sorting tasks
- Context-clue detective games for unknown words
What this means for your child. Your child will build reading stamina and comprehension, learning how to read for information and prove their answers using evidence from the text.
4 Foundational Arithmetic
Students will learn to:
- Master Addition & Subtraction: Execute multi-digit addition and subtraction accurately, including borrowing and carrying.
- Understand Multiplication & Division: Master basic multiplication facts and simple division concepts.
- Analyze Fractions: Identify basic fractions, compare fraction sizes, and understand parts of a whole.
- Evaluate Data: Read and interpret simple bar graphs, pictographs, and charts.
SSAT Alignment - Quantitative Section. The math section does not allow calculators. Absolute fluency in basic arithmetic is required to solve problems within the 1-minute-per-question time limit.
Learning activities:
- Mental math speed drills and flashcard relays
- Fraction shading and visual modeling tasks
- Graph and chart data-extraction puzzles
What this means for your child. Your child will solidify their core math calculation skills, ensuring they can perform basic arithmetic rapidly and accurately without a calculator.
5 Patterns & Simple Word Problems
Students will learn to:
- Solve Word Problems: Translate simple real-world stories into math equations (deciding whether to add, subtract, multiply, or divide).
- Identify Number Patterns: Look at a sequence of numbers and determine the rule (e.g., add 3, subtract 1) to find the next number.
- Understand Basic Geometry: Identify 2D shapes, basic symmetry, and simple perimeter concepts.
SSAT Alignment - Quantitative Section. Word problems and pattern recognition test a 3rd grader's quantitative logic, pushing them beyond simple memorized math facts.
Learning activities:
- Word-problem keyword highlighting (e.g., "total" = add, "difference" = subtract)
- Number sequence logic puzzles
- Shape sorting and basic perimeter calculation games
What this means for your child. Your child will learn to think mathematically, turning confusing word problems into solvable equations and recognizing logical patterns.
6 The Creative Writing Prompt
Students will learn to:
- Understand the Prompt: Look at a provided picture prompt (unique to the Elementary Level) and brainstorm a story.
- Structure a Story: Organize writing with a clear beginning, middle, and end.
- Write with Detail: Use descriptive words, complete sentences, and basic punctuation to bring a story to life within 15 minutes.
SSAT Alignment - Writing Section. While unscored, this writing sample is sent directly to admission directors. It is used to gauge a 3rd grader's raw, unedited writing ability and creativity.
Always check the official exam organizer for the current format, dates and eligibility. We do not guarantee scores or rankings.
Every student begins with a level check so we can see where the gaps are. Private 1:1 students also get a full diagnostic assessment and a personalized roadmap. We teach the concepts behind each question type, practice under timed conditions, and review every wrong answer. We cannot guarantee specific scores, but progress is tracked in monthly reports.