Nonverbal Reasoning
What the Nonverbal battery measures
The Nonverbal battery of CogAT Form 7 measures reasoning with figures and spatial patterns, with minimal reading or arithmetic. It contains Figure Matrices, Figure Classification, and Paper Folding. The challenge is to identify the rule that connects shapes and to ignore surface details that do not matter.
Core rules and concepts
- Figure Matrices: In a 2×2 or 3×3 grid, track changes across each row and down each column. Changes may involve rotation, reflection, size, shading, number of shapes, position, or addition/subtraction of parts. A valid rule must work in both directions.
- Figure Classification: Three figures share one or more attributes. The fourth figure must share the same attribute-for example, number of sides, symmetry, open vs. closed, shading, or orientation. Find the rule that all three given figures satisfy.
- Paper Folding: Paper is folded, holes are punched, and you choose the unfolded pattern. Each fold doubles the layers; a hole on a fold line produces one hole rather than two. Use symmetry lines to reflect each punch.
Worked example
A 2×2 matrix shows a small black circle (top left), a large black circle (top right), and a small white circle (bottom left). The missing bottom-right figure must follow both patterns: size increases from left to right, and shading changes from black to white from top to bottom. The answer is a large white circle. A small white circle would ignore the size rule; a large black circle would ignore the shading rule.
Traps that cost marks
- In Figure Matrices, finding a rule that works across rows but not down columns-or vice versa-and not checking both.
- In Figure Classification, choosing a figure that matches only two of the three given figures instead of all three.
- In Paper Folding, forgetting that holes on a fold line create fewer holes, or losing track of how many layers a second fold creates.
- Treating a rotation as a change in shape identity, or missing that a figure has been reflected rather than rotated.