SATs for parents
SATs help teachers, and you, identify your child’s strengths and weaknesses. Teachers can make comparisons with your child and other children in the school and around the country. SATs can also be used to measure the improvement made from one Key Stage to another and provide a prediction for GCSEs.
The school’s results can be shared through the Department of Education, with headteachers and local authorities. This can be used to help identify schools that are struggling and if a school is performing well.
Currently in England, SATs are compulsory for all seven and eleven year olds.
Children are assessed on what they have been learning at school. SATs are used in conjunction with teacher assessment. Teachers will use past papers as practice papers so children can practise the kind of questions they may see in a SATs question paper. Children will need to practice of skills such as spelling and times tables.
It is true that some children do become stressed over the tests. But it is worth reminding them that SATs do not involve a pass or a fail, they only reflect how well the child has understood what they have learnt at school. It is important to be relaxed at home surrounding the topic of SATs. The more calm at home, the better the likelihood your child will be able to tackle to test.
In the KS2 SATs, children are expected to reach a particular standard. The Department for Education expect children to reach this national standard. The national standard score for KS2 SATs is 100 and the government expect 85% of children to reach this score. If your child receives a score 99 or below, then they are below the national standard. Likewise, if your child receives a score above 100, then they are performing above the national standard.
I have now included some SATS Homework Revision Papers for you or your child to download and print. They can be found here.
