Non-verbal Reasoning · Shape Composition
Shape Welder
Drag the pieces onto the dashed outline. Fill it completely, with no piece hanging over the edge.
Free to use and free to share. There is no sign-up, no score, and nothing a child does here is recorded or sent anywhere. What you may do with it, in full.
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Why this works
Composing shapes is bookkeeping with squares: the outline holds 10 squares, so the pieces you use have to add up to exactly 10 and cover every square once. Corners and single-square notches are the giveaway - only one piece can reach into them. Any piece that cannot sit inside the outline anywhere at all is a decoy and never belongs in the answer.
Helping a child through Shape Welder
Hints, least revealing first
- Start in a corner of the outline - corners only accept one shape, so they tell you the most.
- Count the squares in the outline, then count the squares on each piece. Pieces that add up to the wrong total cannot be part of the answer.
- A piece that will not sit anywhere without spilling over is a decoy. Leave it in the tray.
When they finish it: “Welded!”
11+ skill this exercise practises
It has its own page, with a worked example on it.
All non-verbal reasoning 11+ skillsYou can reuse this. Here is exactly how far that goes
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Embed this exercise
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Shape Welder practises one skill. Non-verbal Reasoning has 22 of them
A free diagnostic covers every non-verbal reasoning skill and the other three subjects, and comes back with a shortlist rather than a list.