Year 1 Phonics Check
What is the year 1 Phonics Screening Check?
The Phonics Screening Check is meant to show how well your child can use the phonics skills they’ve learned up to the end of Year 1, and to identify students who need extra phonics help. The Department for Education defines the checks as “short, light-touch assessments” that take about four to nine minutes to complete.
How do children complete the phonics screening check?
The checks consist of 40 words and non-words that your child will be asked to read one-on-one with a teacher. Non-words (or nonsense words, or pseudo words) are a collection of letters that will follow phonicThe 40 words and non-words are divided into two sections – one with simple word structures of three or four letters, and one with more complex word structures of five or six letters. The teacher administering the check with your child will give them a few practice words to read first – including some non-words – so they understand more about what they have to do. Each of the non-words is presented with a picture of a monster / alien, as if the word were their name (and so your child doesn't think the word is a mistake because it doesn't make sense!).s rules your child has been taught, but don’t mean anything – your child will need to read these with the correct sounds to show that they understand the phonics rules behind them.
When is the Phonics Screening Check?
Schools will administer the Year 1 Phonics Screening Check the week beginning Monday 12 June 2023.
What does my child's score mean?
Your child will be assessed against a national standard and the main result will be whether or not they fall below, within or above this standard.
In previous years, the "pass threshold" was 32, which means children had to read at least 32 words out of 40 correctly. The threshold mark is communicated to schools at the end of June, after the test has been taken, so that teachers can mark the Check.
You will be told how your child did, but schools’ results will not be published. If your child’s score falls below the standard, they will be given extra phonics help and can re-take the Phonics Screening Check in Year 2.
Key Stage 1 SATS
All Year 2 children in England take KS1 SATs in May. Here's what parents need to know about the English and maths assessments in Y2.
At the end of Year 2, children take SATs in:
- Reading
- English grammar, punctuation and spelling, or GPS (optional paper, schools can decide whether to use it)
- Maths
KS1 SATs were overhauled to reflect changes to the national curriculum in 2016.
The government previously announced plans to scrap KS1 SATs but have since decided that the tests will take place in May 2023. It will become optional from September 2023.
Key Stage 1 Reading
The reading test for Year 2 pupils is made up of two separate papers:
- Paper 1 consists of a selection of texts totalling 400 to 700 words, with questions interspersed
- Paper 2 comprises a reading booklet of a selection of passages totalling 800 to 1100 words. Children will write their answers in a separate booklet
Each paper is worth 50 per cent of the marks, and should take around 30 minutes, but children are not strictly timed, as the tests are not intended to assess children’s ability to work at speed. The texts in the reading papers cover a range of fiction, non-fiction and poetry, and get progressively more difficult towards the end of the test.
Teachers have the option to stop the test at any point that they feel is appropriate for a particular child.
Key Stage 1 Spelling, Grammar and Punctuation
Children taking Key Stage 1 SATs may also sit two separate papers in grammar, spelling and punctuation:
- Paper 1: a 20-word spelling test taking approximately 15 minutes and worth 20 marks.
- Paper 2: a grammar, punctuation and vocabulary test, in two sections of around 10 minutes each (with a break between, if necessary), worth 20 marks. This will involve a mixture of selecting the right answers e.g. through multiple choice, and writing short answers.
In May 2016, following the KS1 SATs spelling paper accidentally being made available on the Department for Education website before the test, Schools Minister Nick Gibb decided the test would be optional in 2016. In 2017 the KS1 GPS test remained optional, so schools could choose whether to adminster it to their pupils. This was also the case in 2018 and 2019.
There are a variety of question types:
- Multiple choice
- Ranking / ordering, e.g. ‘Number the events below to show in which order they happened in the story’
- Matching, e.g. ‘Match the character to the job that they do in the story’
- Labelling, e.g. ‘Label the text to show the title’
- Find and copy, e.g. ‘Find and copy one word that shows what the weather was like in the story’
- Short answer, e.g. ‘What does the bear eat?’
- Open-ended answer, e.g. ‘Why did Lucy write the letter to her grandmother? Give two reasons’
Key Stage 1 Maths
The Key Stage 1 maths test is made up of two papers:
- Paper 1: arithmetic, worth 25 marks and taking around 15 minutes.
- Paper 2: mathematical fluency, problem-solving and reasoning, worth 35 marks and taking 35 minutes, with a break if necessary. There are a variety of question types: multiple choice, matching, true / false, constrained (e.g. completing a chart or table; drawing a shape) and less constrained (e.g. where children have to show or explain their method).
Children are not allowed to use any tools such as calculators or number lines.
The KS1 SATs are due to be administered in May 2023.
Unlike KS2 SATs, KS1 SATs don't have to be administered according to a nationally-set timetable in a specific week. Schools are free to manage the timetable and will aim to administer the tests in the classroom in a low-stress, low-key way; some children won't even be aware they've taken them!
The Year 4 Multiplication Check
The DfE says that the check is part of a new focus on mastering numeracy, giving children the skills and knowledge they need for secondary school and beyond. The purpose of the MTC is to determine whether Y4 pupils can recall their multiplication tables fluently (being able to answer times tables questions accurately and quickly, without having to work out the answers).
The Multiplication Tables Check will be administered in the three-week period starting on Monday 5 June 2023.
Children will be tested using an on-screen check (on a computer or a tablet), where they will have to answer multiplication questions against the clock.
Calculators and wall displays that could provide children with answers will be removed from the room the MTC is taking place in.
The test will last no longer than 5 minutes and is similar to other tests already used by primary schools. Their answers will be marked instantly.
Children will have 6 seconds to answer each question in a series of 25. Each question will be worth one mark and be presented to the child in this format:
n1 x n2 = ____
Questions will be selected from the 121 number facts that make up the multiplication tables from 2 to 12, with a particular focus on the 6, 7, 8, 9 and 12 times tables as they are considered to be the most challenging. Each question will only appear once in any 25-question series, and children won't be asked to answer reversals of a question as part of the check (so if they've already answered 3 x 4 they won't be asked about 4 x 3).
Once the child has inputted their answer on the computer / device they are using, there will be a three-second pause before the next question appears. Children will be given the opportunity to practise answering questions in this format before the official check begins.
The six-second time limit per question has been decided on by the DfE because it should allow children enough time to demonstrate their recall of times tables without giving them the time to work out the answers to each question.
Pupils' individual results will be made available to schools. It's unlikely that children will be told their individual score, but schools will be required to report the results to parents or carers.
School-level results won't be made publicly available or be used in league / performance tables.
Parent's Multiplication Check information leaflet
Key Stage 2 SATS
At the end of Year 6, children in England sit tests in:
- Reading
- Maths
- Grammar, punctuation and spelling (GPS)
These tests are both set and marked externally, and the results are used to measure the school’s performance (for example, through reporting to Ofsted and published league tables). Your child’s marks will be used in conjunction with teacher assessment to give a broader picture of their attainment.
The KS2 SATs for English and maths taken since 2016 reflect the amended national curriculum, and are more rigorous than previous years' tests. There is also a new SATs marking scheme and grading systemwhich has replaced national curriculum levels.
In 2020 and 2021 KS2 SATs did not take place due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Primary school SATs results will not be published in national league tables until 2023 to reflect the disruption to children's learning.
Key Stage 2 Reading
he reading test is a single paper with questions based on three passages of text. Your child will have one hour, including reading time, to complete the test.
There will be a selection of question types, including:
- Ranking/ordering, e.g. ‘Number the events below to show the order in which they happen in the story’
- Labelling, e.g. ‘Label the text to show the title of the story’
- Find and copy, e.g. ‘Find and copy one word that suggests what the weather is like in the story’
- Short constructed response, e.g. ‘What does the bear eat?’
- Open-ended response, e.g. ‘Look at the sentence that begins Once upon a time. How does the writer increase the tension throughout this paragraph? Explain fully, referring to the text in your answer.’
Since 2018 the reading content of the KS2 SATs has been closely linked to the curriculum to ensure children are drawing on their knowledge when answering reading comprehension questions.
Key Stage 2 Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling
Usually, the GPS test consists of two parts: a grammar and punctuation paper requiring short answers, lasting 45 minutes, and an aural spelling test of 20 words, lasting around 15 minutes.
The GPS test includes two sub-types of questions:
Key Stage 2 Mathematics
- Paper 1: arithmetic, 30 minutes
- Papers 2 and 3: reasoning, 40 minutes per paper
Paper 1 will consist of fixed response questions, where children have to give the correct answer to calculations, including long multiplication and division. Papers 2 and 3 will involve a number of question types, including:
- Multiple choice
- True or false
- Constrained questions, e.g. giving the answer to a calculation, drawing a shape or completing a table or chart
- Less constrained questions, where children will have to explain their approach for solving a problem
Key Stage 2 (Year 6) SATs Timetable 2023
Please note, only children assessed as working within key stage 2 (year 3 or above) will sit their SATS.
Tuesday 9th May
English grammar, punctuation and spelling (GPS) papers 1 (questions) and 2 (spelling)
Wednesday 10th May
English reading paper
Thursday 11th May
mathematics papers 1 (arithmetic) and 2 (reasoning)
Friday 12th May
mathematics paper 3 (reasoning)