KS2 SATs Reading Paper Tips

KS2 SATs Reading Paper Tips

Since the first ‘new’ SATs paper arrived in 2016, there has been a range of recommended tips and strategies to help children answer the questions to texts that are longer and trickier than ever before. Reading fluency is vital for children to do well, alongside applying the variety of skills we know that they will also need to unlock questions by finding evidence and making inferences.

If you’re new to Year 6, hopefully these SATs reading paper tips will help you find new techniques that you can use to help your class to develop skills, but also, and more importantly, confidence. If you’re an old hand, I still hope there are some hints or tips for the SATs reading paper that you might not have thought of, or that you can reframe something that you already do in a new or fresh way.

KS2 SATs Reading Paper Tip 1: Skimming and scanning

With the length of the texts, this can be a key time-saver that children need to feel confident with when approaching their test. One key tool I’ve used is Where’s Wally? Not only can you search for Wally and his friends (timed races!), but you can ask questions that ask for more literal answers (what does the sign on the red building say?), or even ones that show more understanding (what pun is mentioned on the page?). By using a quick activity that involves pictures rather than text, we can teach an important reading skill in a really accessible way for children.

KS2 SATs Reading Paper Tip 2: Consistent exposure to test-style questions

One thing I’ve learned is not to be worried about showing children SATs style questions through the year. Normalise these by giving them access throughout the year – the more they become familiar with the questions, and apply the skills you teach them, the better. This isn’t teaching to the test, but more giving children a confidence that allows them to innately access the skills they need rather than feel that they are grasping for a memory in a high-pressured situation.

To help your Year 6 pupils become more familiar with the style of questions and the extent of reading needed for SATs, there are three groups of online SATs Reading Practice resources available from Learning by Questions (LbQ). Click the link for the pupil experience.

These resources will help Year 6 pupils build up their confidence with reading and answering a range of questions from the various content domains. They will also provide really useful insights for teachers prior to SATs without the need for hours of practice paper marking and analysis.

KS2 SATs Reading Paper Tip 3: Vocabulary is vital

Often, it is understanding of vocabulary that can really hinder children’s understanding of the test. I say test, because it is not just the text they can find tricky to access without an understanding of words; the language of the questions is important to consider, too. What does it mean to ‘find and copy’ an answer? How do we ‘identify’ or ‘explain’? By allowing children to develop a clear understanding of what they are being asked to do, we are halving the brain power needed to answer the question!

KS2 SATs Reading Paper Tip 4: Build reading for pleasure

I’ve no doubt that this is something that every teacher aspires to achieve within their classroom, but it cannot be understated how important it is for children not to see reading as a chore. Alongside access to test questions, give children time to explore a range of texts and books within their own time. Give them access to newspapers, fiction, non-fiction, poetry – anything and everything! The more they see and enjoy reading a range of texts, the less daunting it will be when they come across unseen extracts within the SATs.

In the end, children need to feel happy and confident in order to succeed in the SATs. I don’t want to teach you to suck eggs – but everything I have listed is what underpins my approach in my classroom. If children love to read, they’ll enjoy (okay, maybe a bit of a stretch!) and feel assured that they are capable of completing the test to their best ability.

Emily wrote this exclusively for the LbQ SATs Springboard.