CogAT study guide
CogAT · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
CogAT (Cognitive Abilities Test) is a K–12 cognitive abilities assessment published by Riverside Insights. It is used by schools to measure students' abilities, identify academic potential, and inform placement and instruction. According to the publisher, CogAT is the only assessment that measures verbal, quantitative, and nonverbal reasoning together, giving a complete picture of student potential. The test is most often associated with gifted and talented identification, but the publisher also positions it for fairer placement decisions, understanding multilingual learners' academic potential, and planning differentiated, strengths-based instruction. Topics on this exam: Verbal reasoning, Quantitative reasoning, and Nonverbal reasoning. The CogAT study guide has 3 sections and about 1,258 words.
01Verbal Reasoning: Analogies, Sentence Completion, and Classification
The Verbal Reasoning battery measures how well you think with words, not how many words you happen to know. On CogAT Form 7/8 it contains three subtests: Picture or Verbal Analogies, Sentence Completion, and Picture or Verbal Classification. Levels K–2 use pictures and read-aloud directions; from grade 3 the items are text-based. The battery asks you to detect relationships, categories, and logical fit - the same operations you use in reading comprehension and in learning new vocabulary from context.
450 words, about 2 min02Quantitative Reasoning: Analogies, Series, and Puzzles
The Quantitative Reasoning battery tests how you reason with number and quantity. Calculation speed is not the point: the arithmetic is kept easy so that the pattern, not the computation, is what separates answers. Form 7/8 uses Number Analogies, Number Series, and Number Puzzles; K–2 versions present the same reasoning with picture-supported items. Results are reported as a Standard Age Score with a mean of 100 and a standard deviation of 16, plus a stanine from 1 to 9.
414 words, about 2 min03Nonverbal Reasoning: Matrices, Paper Folding, and Classification
The Nonverbal Reasoning battery measures reasoning with shapes and figures, with no reading and almost no numbers. It is often the strongest single indicator of spatial ability and is the least affected by a student's language background or by direct classroom instruction. Form 7/8 uses Figure Matrices, Paper Folding, and Figure Classification. A 2×2 or 3×3 grid with one cell empty.
394 words, about 2 min