Oaklands Primary Academy

Year 6 is a very demanding year but incredibly rewarding and enjoyable. As the oldest year group within the academy, we undertake many activities in addition to those on offer elsewhere. We have a school residential visit for where we take part in lots of activities such as kayaking, abseiling, raft-building and climbing. Throughout the year, we are visited by Transport for London for talks on road safety, take part in Bikeability and welcome representatives from different secondary schools who come to talk to the children about what to expect in Y7. At the end of the year, we celebrate our wonderful time at Oaklands with a leavers’ performance that will leave you laughing, smiling and probably dabbing away a few happy tears. Our pupils leave Oaklands full of happy memories and smiling faces, ready to face the next step in their journeys in their secondary schools.

Our Year 6 are role models for all!

Every member of Y6 is expected to set the example in terms of behaviour for the rest of the school. They are often asked to help with parent information days and other visitors. Our children are encouraged to become more independent when working on homework and other activities in preparation for secondary school. Our Year 6 pupils also run our very popular school Tuck Shop, where they carry out all aspects of the business including stock control and ordering; managing a budget; serving customers and merchandising of the healthy snacks on offer. The skills acquired through the enterprise of Tuck Shop are then applied across our whole curriculum. The children are also given extra responsibility whereby they are given prefect and house captain roles.

At the end of Y6, in the month of May, all Y6 children across England sit national tests in Reading, Maths and Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar (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.

KS2 Reading test:

The reading test is a single paper with questions based on three passages of text. Your child will have an hour, including reading time, to complete the test. There will be a selection of question types, including: - ranking/ordering, for example, ‘Number the events below to show the order in which they happen in the story’ - Find and copy, e.g. ‘Find and copy a word that suggests what the weather is like in the story’ - Short constructed response, for example: ‘What does the bear eat?’ They will also have longer answers that they need to construct; these require the children to provide multiples points to achieve the marks.

KS2 Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling test:

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 grammar and punctuation test includes two sub-types of questions:

Selected response, e.g. ‘Identify the adjectives’
Constructed response, e.g. ‘Correct/complete/rewrite the sentence below,’ or, ‘The sentence below has an apostrophe missing. Explain why it needs an apostrophe.

The spelling test will be based upon the spelling rules that they have learnt not just in Y6, but all through the school.

KS2 Maths tests:

The children sit three papers in maths: Paper 1 (arithmetic, 30 minutes), Papers 2 and 3 (reasoning, 40 minutes each). Paper 1 consists of fixed response questions (children have to give correct answers to calculations). Papers 2 and 3 involve question types including multiple choice. A thorough knowledge and instant recall of their times tables will help them in these papers.

KS2 Science tests:

Not all children in Y6 will take science SATs. However, in selected years a number of schools (around 1900) take part in science sampling, a test administered to a sample of children representative of the population as a whole. The three papers (Biology, Chemistry and Physics) are each 25 minutes long.

Do all children have to take SATs?

In England, the tests are compulsory for all seven year olds (KS1 SATs in Y2) and 11 year olds (KS2 SATs in Y6).

How are the SATS marked?

The tests are collected and marked externally. Schools receive the tests results through electronically in July, and at Oaklands, we will report the results to parents inside the school report. Children are given scaled scores and details of whether they’ve reached the expected standard. The scaled scores for the KS2 test range between 80 (the lowest possible scaled score) and 120 (the highest possible scaled score). The expected standard for each test is a scaled score of 100 or more.

How do I help my child prepare for the SATS?

We work supportively and encouragingly with the children so that they are not worried about sitting the tests. In fact, many of our past pupils have said how much they loved SATs Week – daily, yummy breakfasts with their friends and tasty snacks on tap may have influenced their thoughts, but it’s great to know that we make the week as relaxing as possible.

Whilst we will ensure that the children are prepared and supported in school, there are many ways that you can help at home. There are past SATs papers available online so that your child can familiarise themselves with the length and layout of the papers. It’s also imperative that your child practices their spellings and times tables regularly, reads frequently, gets a good night sleep every night and comes to school punctually with a good breakfast inside them, ready to face each day with a smile on their face.

For access to past SATS papers, please click on the link below.

https://www.sats-papers.co.uk/

Y6 Curriculum Framework

Base timetable KS2

Year 6 Foundation Subjects Overview

Year 6 Core Subjects Overview

Y5 and Y6 spelling lists