End of Key Stage SATs

In England, SATs are compulsory for all seven and 11 year olds therefore children sit end of Key Stage tests in Year 2 and Year 6.

SATs help teachers- and you- learn more about your child's strengths and weaknesses. Teachers can compare how well each child is doing with their peers, both in their school and across the country. They can also measure how much each child improves from one Key Stage to another, and across year groups. The results are also often used to predict the likelihood of children achieving specific results in secondary schools.

In addition to this, local authorities and the Department for Education use the results to help identify good practice in schools and, if a school is doing really well, it can share what it's doing right with other schools. Your child will take a selection of tests which cover reading, grammar, and maths. There is currently no test for writing- this will be assessed within the school.

Teachers will use past papers as practice papers so children can practise the kind of questions they may need to answer in a test environment. This will help your child feel more comfortable with exams. They will also do lots of practice of the skills they need to do well in the test, such as spelling and times tables as well as revising skills from other Year groups.

A SATs workshop will be held for parents to attend, so that the dynamics of the tests can be explained and the Year Six teacher will hold after-school 'SATs Club' where children can revise in a relaxed, supportive environment.

For more information about KS1 and KS2 SATs, see the government guidance

Phonics Screening

The phonics screening check is taken individually by all children in Year 1 in England, and is usually taken in June. It is designed to give teachers and parents information on how your child is progressing in phonics. It will help to identify whether your child needs additional support at this stage so that they do not fall behind in this vital early reading skill.

There are two sections in this 40-word check and it assesses phonics skills and knowledge learned through Reception and Year 1. Your child will read up to four words per page for their teacher and they will probably do the check in one sitting of about 5-10 minutes.

For more information about the phonics screening, here are some useful websites-

• Learning to Read Through Phonics- DfE guidance
• Oxford Owl

For information about the schools performance in EYFS, KS1, KS2 and phonics tests please refer to our performance page.