7 tips for SATs reading paper success: KS2 teacher strategies
Master the KS2 SATs reading paper with 7 proven tips: from vocabulary building to 3-mark questions. Get practical classroom strategies and download free resources.
Emily Weston is an English lead with 7 years of experience prepping year 6 for the KS2 SATs. In this blog, she shares the strategy and tips she used to conquer the reading paper and support her pupils to success.
Since the first ‘new’ SATs paper arrived in 2016, there has been a range of recommended tips and strategies to help children with the SATs Reading Paper. Texts are longer and trickier than ever before.
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.
Check out a full SATs guide including when results come out and a SATs week timetable
Key takeaways
- Start exposing children to SATs-style questions early to build familiarity, not fear
- Combine skimming, scanning, and annotation to manage longer texts
- Teach the formula for 3-mark questions: two separate answers + evidence
- Focus on question vocabulary (e.g., "find and copy", "explain") as much as text vocabulary
- Use engaging techniques like character inference from pop songs and peer teaching
- Normalise reading for pleasure with diverse texts to reduce SATs anxiety
- Implement targeted practice with resources that provide instant feedback
1. Expose to SATs-style questions
One thing I’ve learned is not to be worried about showing children SATs-style questions throughout 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 the confidence to to access the skills they need rather than feel that they are grasping for a memory in a high-pressure situation.
2. Practise skimming, scanning and annotation
To help children manage longer texts in reading tests, combine skimming and scanning with annotation techniques. These skills together build speed, focus and understanding. A fun and accessible way to introduce this is through a Where’s Wally? activity:
- Start with timed searches to find Wally and his friends, which builds scanning speed.
- Follow up with questions that require literal understanding (for example, "What does the sign on the red building say?") or deeper interpretation (for example, "What pun is mentioned on the page?").
- Although the activity is visual, it mirrors the process of finding and understanding information quickly, just like in a reading paper.
Once children grasp this visually, transfer the skill to text-based reading:
- Teach them to skim a paragraph for the gist.
- Encourage them to scan for specific information.
- Have them underline or circle key facts such as dates or names, and write a short summary for each paragraph.
Related content
KS2 SATs 2025: reading paper analysis
9 exciting ways to teach reading for pleasure
3. Practise 3-mark reading questions
To achieve all three marks in these questions, children often have to give two answers, at least one of which is supported by evidence. A common 3-mark question is, “What impression do you get of [character]?” - this could be asked using any text you’re currently reading in the classroom. Encourage children to always give two separate answers for these questions and to find a quote for each.
Planning on using past reading papers? Get links to past SATs papers and a strategy for which paper to use when.
4. Build vocabulary (text AND questions)
Often, it's the 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. We saw how important it was in the 2025 SATs that children have a secure knowledge and wide range of vocabulary.
Read Sophie Bartlett's analysis of the 2025 reading paper.
What does it mean to ‘find and copy one word’ or ‘a group of words’? 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!
5. Make revision engaging
Make revision engaging by using creative and relatable activities. For example, use character inference from pop songs, rhymes, video clips, or short snippets to make the practice more enjoyable. These activities can help bring the concepts to life in a fun way that children can relate to.
Another great method is peer teaching. Encourage pupils to create posters or presentations to explain key reading concepts. This not only reinforces their understanding but also builds confidence in their knowledge.
6. Build reading for pleasure
Alongside access to test questions, give children the opportunity to explore a range of texts and books within their own time. 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. 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.
7. Target practice with instant insights
Target interventions with precision and reduce marking time with a real-time question-level analysis. SATs Springboard from Learning by Questions provides personalised reading practice based on diagnostics. To help your year 6 pupils become more familiar with the style of questions and the extent of reading needed for SATs, there are online SATs Reading Practice resources available from Learning by Questions (LbQ).
Reading practice example
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.
Trial SATs Springboard from Learning by Questions
KS2 SATs reading paper FAQs
When should I start preparing for the SATs reading paper?
Integrate SATs-style questions throughout the year. Normalise the format early rather than cramming
Find out more about what to revise for SATs 2026
What to revise for SATs 2026
Sophie Bartlett, experienced year 6 teacher and data extraordinaire has crunched the numbers to provide a list of topics to prioritise for SATs 2026.
What's the most important skill for the SATs reading paper?
Vocabulary understanding both of the text AND the question stems. "Find and copy" vs. "Explain" require different approaches.
How can I help children with 3-mark questions?
Teach them to always give two separate points and support each with a quote from the text.
My class hates reading; how can I prepare them for the SATs reading paper?
Focus on diverse, engaging materials (newspapers, poetry, song lyrics) and peer teaching to build confidence. This Fireside chat with Steph Rhodes, experienced year 6 teacher, explores lots of different ways of engaging reluctant readers and how to elevate reading interventions.