A Parents Guide to Key Stage Two SATs A Parents Guide to Key Stage Two SATs

Aims: Understand what our children will be tested on and the format of the tests The role of Teacher assessment What the levels mean? How parents can help and support their children?

What are SATs? Standardised Assessment Tests

When are the tests administered? Tests must be administered during the week: 11 th May – 14 th May 2015.

What are the children tested on? The children are tested on all of the work they have covered in Key Stage Two in English and Numeracy. No Science sample testing this year.

Can my child fail a SATs test? It is important that Children understand they are not going to 'pass' or 'fail' the test – it will just show what they have learned and what they can do.

Levelling and Reporting to Parents Children’s tests are sent away to be moderated. All tests at all levels will be marked on screen Hard copies of the tests will not be sent home. Results are returned to school by 7th July. Pupils reports will be sent home and will contain information on pupil’s individual results (teacher assessment and test results).

What do the levels mean? It is expected that the majority of 11 year old children will achieve Level 4 by the end of Year 6. However, for some children achieving Level 3 is a real success. A child achieving Level 5 is working at a high level.

What does teacher assessment involve and is it different from testing? Teacher assessment draws together everything the teacher or teachers know about a child, including observations, marked work and school assessments. Teacher assessment is not a ‘snapshot’ like tests and is therefore more reliable. There can be a difference between teacher assessment results and test levels. Teacher assessment only, is used for children who work below level 3. Children’s writing levels are based on teacher assessment and focus on the work that the children are producing in school during their final year.

Reading Comprehension The level 3-5 English reading test consists of: a reading booklet containing around three or four texts based on different themes and genres. a reading answer booklet comprising approximately 35 questions (totalling 50 marks) Children are given 15 minutes to read the reading booklet and 45 minutes to answer the questions in the answer booklet. They can refer back to the texts in the reading booklet throughout the test.  They then have 45 minutes to answer questions about the texts. Some are tick-boxes and for others they need to write a few phrases to answer (it doesn't have to be in sentences).  The questions range from the literal (who does what, when) to the deductive (where, for example, they have to work out how someone is feeling from what they say).  Your child will be encouraged to say which parts of the text told them the answer.  Pupils often need to back up their ideas with evidence from the text, to fully support their answer.

English Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling. A statutory test of English grammar, punctuation and spelling, which was introduced in 2013 will be administered. It consists of 2 papers: Paper 1: Short answer questions Paper 2: Spelling Task (with teacher script)

The level 3-5 test will assess children’s abilities in the following technical aspects of English: grammar; punctuation; spelling; vocabulary; and handwriting (subject to final decisions following the results of the technical pre-test).

Examples Circle all the adverbs in the sentence below. Open the drawers carefully and quietly when using the filing cabinet. Add a suffix to this word to make an adjective. dread ______________

Underline the subordinate clause in each sentence below. One has been done for you. Although his Mum thought they were very smart, Peter disliked his new trousers. Before he could go swimming, Ali packed his towel.

The level 3-5 mathematics test consists of: Test A –lasting 45 minutes Test B –lasting 45 minutes (no calculators are used in both of these tests) Mental mathematics test – lasting 20 minutes Children’s marks from all three tests are aggregated to calculate their overall mathematics level. Teachers may read questions in both written papers to pupils if asked. Mathematics

Level 6 Paper Any child achieving 90+ on their practice SATs papers will be considered for the level 6 paper in Literacy and Numeracy. A decision will be made in March. No more than 5% achieved L6 in English and Numeracy across the country.

KS2 Statutory Tests Tests must be taken on timetabled day. Schools decide the start times. All pupils must take the test at the same time.

Preparing for SATs in school… English and Maths Revision lessons. Regular Homework Practice Papers – to familiarise themselves Go over papers with the children Booster Classes – intervention groups

Test Timetable3 Test 2015 SATs Timetable 11 th May12 th May13 th May14 th May15 th May Levels 3-5 English Reading Test 45 minutes (plus 15 minutes reading time) Level 3-5 English grammar, punctuation and spelling test Maths Test A 45 Minutes Mental Maths Test 20 minutes Maths Test B 45 minutes Level 6 Reading Test Level 6 English grammar, punctuation and spelling test. No Level 6 timetabled for this day. Level 6 Paper 1 Paper2

How can parents help? Encourage children to be confident about their ability to do well. Ensuring that they are completing their homework, reading for 20 minutes every night, know their times tables and learn their weekly spelling. Playing is important - children should not be stopped from living their lives as normal during test week. Support your child in working through the revision guides. Also check out some on-line learning resources such as the BBC revise wise site to help your child revise. Not putting children under too much pressure Ensuring children arrive for tests: -in good time -having had breakfast -having gone to bed at a reasonable time