Reading Comprehension

11+ English exams contain a variety of questions that check how well children understand what they have read.

These questions often focus on:

• Finding specific information from the text (like names, places, events)
• Understanding the main idea or overall meaning
• Determining whether statements are true or false
• Finding the meaning of a word (see the ‘Definitions’ page for more information)
• Identifying word classes (see the ‘Word Classes’ page for more information)
• Identifying language features and explaining how they are used (see the ‘Language Features’ page for more information)

How to Find the Correct Answer

1. Read the question carefully – make sure you understand what it asks.
2. Find key words in the question – look for names, places or important words to help find the answer in the text.
3. Scan the text quickly to spot anything related to the key words and jump to the right sentence.
4. Read carefully around the key words to understand the full answer.
5. Write your answer clearly. Often, information needs to be copied out exactly. However, some questions may ask children to write the answer in their own words to show that they have grasped the key meaning.
6. Always check your answer by going back to the text to be sure it’s correct.

For further help with understanding questions and knowing how to complete this process quickly and accurately, take a look at our ‘Understanding the Questions’ page.

Understanding Texts

Your child might be asked to…

• Understand the main point a writer is trying to make in a specific section of the text
• Summarise details about characters, such as their feelings or relationships
• Identify the reasons behind characters’ decisions and actions
• Explain why the writer chooses to emphasise certain ideas
• Explain why the writer has structured the narrative in a certain way

These types of questions test whether your child can step back from individual sentences and see how the parts fit together. To get these questions right, children should be encouraged to understand stories and information on a deeper level.

Tip: After your child reads a text, encourage them to summarise it in their own words. This will test their ability to filter out the main points and show whether they have understood it.

How to Summarise a Text

Summarising means putting the main points into your own words, using just a few sentences. This shows you’ve understood the text and can explain it clearly.

To practise summarising:

1. Read the passage or paragraph carefully.
2. Ask yourself: What is the most important thing the writer wants me to know here?
3. Write one or two sentences that capture the key idea, leaving out small details.
4. Use your own words but check to see that your summary matches up with the original meaning.

Let’s take a look at an example text and answer a few questions:

Immersed in the Game

The moment Sam put on the headset, the real world vanished into a place of wonder. His bedroom was replaced by the wide space of an ancient kingdom, lit by the strange glow of a crimson sky. Huge castles stood tall and proud, their old stone walls shining in the last light of day, while dragons soared in smooth, silent curves across the horizon.

Sam held the controller with steady determination as he walked along a narrow stone bridge hanging over a wild, rushing river. Each step felt heavy and full of purpose. He could almost hear villagers nearby whispering warnings about the dark forest waiting ahead.

As the sun went down and evening arrived, fireflies appeared and sparkled like scattered stars. Their light mixed with the cool breeze that brushed Sam’s face. The tension grew with every breath. One wrong step could wake the trolls concealed in the shadowy thickets. They slept soundly now, but Sam knew that they would be ready at any moment to block his path with snarling menace.

Still, the excitement of the journey pushed him forward. Every puzzle he solved and every foe he vanquished pulled him deeper into this world. In this place, Sam was not just a player. He was a hero living an adventure that felt almost real.

Q2- What two phrases does the writer use to show that Sam feels as if his bedroom has disappeared?

• The key words here are ‘two phrases’ (we’re looking for two short groups of words, and we’ll need to directly quote the text) and ‘bedroom has disappeared’ (we need to look for any mention of the bedroom).
• Since Sam feels this happen as he enters the game, we should look near the beginning of the text.
• Let’s read the first couple of sentences: ‘The moment Sam put on the headset, the real world vanished into a place of wonder. His bedroom was replaced by the wide space of an ancient kingdom, lit by the strange glow of a crimson sky’
• Now, find any words or phrases that suggest the bedroom is disappearing…

Correct answer: 

1. ‘the real world vanished’
2. ‘His bedroom was replaced’

‘Vanished’ and ‘replaced’ both give the impression that Sam’s reality (being in his bedroom) has disappeared.

Q4- The writer says ‘dragons soared in smooth, silent curves across the horizon’. In your own words, what are the dragons doing in this sentence?

Q5- The writer describes several creatures in the game. They compare one of the creatures to something else.

Identify the phrase where the writer does this.

• The key words here are ‘creatures’ (the question is about animals or mythical beasts), ‘compare’ (we need to find where the writer says that a creature is like something), and ‘phrase’ (we need to write out a short quote from the text).

Q6- True or false?

1. Sam is afraid when he enters the game
2. Sam crosses a lake in the game
3. Sam is a bit worried about the trolls
4. In the game, the trolls hide in the bushes
5. Sam defeats enemies in the game
6. The game is set in the middle of the day
7. Sam is playing a farming game

1- Sam is afraid when he enters the game – False

When he first enters the game, Sam feels a sense of ‘wonder’. There’s nothing to suggest that he’s afraid when he first starts to play the game.

2- Sam crosses a lake in the game – False

The text says that Sam ‘walked along a narrow stone bridge hanging over a wild, rushing river’. He doesn’t cross a lake – he crosses a river.

3- Sam is a bit worried about the trolls – True

The text says that ‘The tension grew with every breath. One wrong step could wake the trolls concealed in the shadowy thickets. They slept soundly now, but Sam knew that they would be ready at any moment to block his path with snarling menace’. Sam’s concern is shown through the ‘tension’ as he worries about a potential ‘wrong step’ and the ‘snarling menace’ of the trolls.

4- In the game, the trolls hide in the bushes – True

The text tells us that the trolls are ‘concealed in the shadowy thickets’. ‘Concealed’ means hidden, and ‘thickets’ means bushes, so the statement is true.

5- Sam defeats enemies in the game – True

Look at the final paragraph of the text. The phrase ‘every foe he vanquished’ tells us that Sam is vanquishing (defeating) foes (enemies) in the game.

6- The game is set in the middle of the day – False

Although the game starts in the daytime, this changes in the third paragraph – ‘As the sun went down and evening arrived, fireflies appeared and sparkled like scattered stars.’ This shows us that the sun is going down and evening is beginning, so the game is not only set in the middle of the day.

7- Sam is playing a farming game – False

To get this one right, you need to understand the whole text. In this text, there are dragons, trolls and castles – it’s not a farming game; it’s a fantasy game.

Q8- What clues in the text tell us that the game involves dangerous situations? Give three examples. (3 marks)

For this question, you need to look at the whole text, keeping an eye out for any signs of danger…

• The ‘dragons’ mentioned in the first paragraph could be dangerous.
• The ‘narrow stone bridge hanging over a wild, rushing river’ could be tricky to cross – there’s a danger of falling in.
• Sam thinks he can hear the villagers ‘whispering warnings’ about the ‘dark forest’, which seems very creepy and full of potential danger.
• ‘The tension grew with every breath’ shows that Sam is getting worried or scared about something.
• The ‘trolls’ are dangerous, as they are ready to ‘block his path with snarling menace’, which makes them seem like they might attack.
• Sam faces ‘foes’ in the game, which means there are dangers to be confronted.

Any three of these examples would get the three marks!