By Khizar SEO 
The AEIS test feels enormous when you first stare at it. Every year, thousands of international students sit for it, hoping to secure a place in Singapore’s government schools. One paper in English, one in Mathematics, and suddenly your child’s future hangs on Primary 2/3, 4/5, or Secondary 1/2/3 standards. The wait between attempts is six months or longer. The pressure is real—but so are the solutions. With the right plan, most students improve dramatically in just 8–12 weeks. I’ve watched it happen with my own students, year after year. Here’s the exact roadmap that works.
First, Know Exactly What You’re Facing
The English paper tests comprehension, cloze passages, vocabulary, and composition. The Mathematics paper is almost entirely problem-solving with almost no multiple-choice questions. Speed matters, but accuracy matters more—one careless mistake can cost marks you’ll never get back. Once families realise the test rewards clear thinking over endless drilling, the entire preparation changes for the better.
The Game-Changer: Daily Reading in English
Ask most new students what they read for pleasure and the honest answer is “nothing” or “only social media”. No wonder comprehension and cloze passages feel impossible.Fix it with one simple rule: 20–30 minutes of real reading every single day. Comics, Roald Dahl, Harry Potter, The Straits Times—anything goes. Within three to four weeks, sentences start making sense and new words stop looking scary.
While we’re on English improvement, here’s something that saves months of struggle: a solid preparatory course. Thousands of parents search for AEIS and feel lost among the options. The best programmes focus on exam techniques instead of endless grammar rules. If you want a shortcut that actually works, take a look at this highly trusted AEIS preparatory programme many families swear by. Whatever path you choose, insist on weekly marking of real past-year papers—nothing builds confidence faster.
Mathematics: Stop Collecting Books, Start Mastering Topics
Two or three good assessment books are plenty. What matters is the cycle:
- Learn the topic
- Attempt ten questions
- Mark them immediately
- Understand every single mistake
- Try another ten slightly harder questions
Most students skip step 4 and repeat the same errors forever. Keep an error log—date, question number, what went wrong, how to fix it. After four weeks the log gets shorter and the scores climb higher.
Master Time Management Before Test Day
Secondary papers give you roughly 1.8 minutes per mark in Maths. Tight, but absolutely doable once you train for it. Use a kitchen timer for every single practice paper. The first few attempts will feel disastrous—that’s normal. By the sixth or seventh paper, most students finish with ten minutes left and pick up 8–12 extra marks just from checking.
Vocabulary: Use the “Three-Times Rule”
Memorising word lists is forgotten the next day. Instead, every new word must appear in three different pieces of your own writing within a week—composition, journal, even messages to friends. When you actively use a word three times, it sticks forever. My students usually gain 80–120 high-level words this way—enough to push a borderline paper safely over the line.
Composition: Master Just Three Story Types
Primary and Secondary pictures almost always fit one of these:
- A memorable incident
- A frightening experience
- A time you helped someone
Prepare one strong example for each, packed with feelings and dialogue. Practise swapping details to match any topic. In the last five years I have never seen a question that couldn’t fit one of these skeletons. Spend 80 % of your time planning and only 20 % writing—marks soar when the story flows logically.
Parents: Your Real Job is Keeping Everyone Calm
No shouting about low marks two weeks before the test—it backfires every single time. Celebrate small wins instead: a better comprehension score, finishing a paper early, using a new phrase correctly. Confidence on test day is worth more than ten extra hours of last-minute drilling.
One Practical Tip Most Families Miss
Book the test date early. MOE opens registration months in advance, and popular levels (especially Primary 5 and Secondary 1) fill up fast. Missing your slot because “we still need more time” usually means waiting another full year.
Put It All Together and the Mountain Shrinks
Daily reading + focused Maths cycles + timed papers + active vocabulary + three golden story types + error logs + early registration = a clear checklist instead of a gamble.
I’ve seen nervous kids who barely scraped through school mocks walk out of the actual AEIS hall smiling because every question felt familiar. That’s the goal. Familiarity creates speed. Speed creates marks. Marks open the school gate you want. You don’t need to be a genius. You just need to be consistent and a little clever about how you practise. Start today, follow the plan, and September or October will take care of itself.