Year 6 SATS made easy

STOP! There is a newer version of this article available: click here

Exciting changes are afoot at MagiKats as we prepare for take-off with new tuition materials for May’s UK National Curriculum tests. We’ve researched the new, tougher standards for Year 6 SATS students and designed a tailor-made programme.

For those of you with us for some time, the MagiKats education programme continually evolves to incorporate cutting-edge innovations in education standards. MagiKats tuition subjects with new changes include Stages 1-3 mathematics; arithmetic and reasoning, and Stages 1-3 English; grammar, reading for meaning, punctuation, spelling, and writing.

The new Year 6 National Curriculum Tests include:

  • Mathematics: three test papers, (30, 40 and 40 minutes, respectively).
  • English: two testing areas. KS2 Reading test requiring students to interpret three passages of text (1 hour paper). KS2 Grammar and Punctuation test (45 minutes) with an aural spelling test of 20 words (15 minutes).
Year 6 pupils in classroom
Year 6 pupils in classroom

Our SATS revision programmes provide:

  1. Engaging Tuition Materials - Both Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 students are tackling fun and engaging tuition materials in our workshops. We’re preparing and encouraging them to understand the newer, tougher curriculum standards. Group Mentors are positive about the details, understanding when students need extra help, and encouraging when learning needs correction. Factoring in the Education Department’s aim to make tests, across the board, more rigorous, the aspects of new test papers students find difficult are included in all of our study materials.
  1. Challenge, Support and Consistency - working with your child as an individual, mentors ensure students prepare for Year 6 tests  by understanding the range of question types they might receive. The old saying “practice makes perfect” is a philosophy we believe in, and we require each student to not only complete their tasks with accuracy, but learn to become fluent and confident in the ways questions are phrased under test conditions.

For example, to deal with the new rigour required for structured answers in KS2 Reading Tests, we work to advance students’ ability to create short constructed responses, or open-ended responses for English. Most of us would understand this as the beginnings of critical analysis. A question type might be phrased like this: “How does the writer increase the tension throughout this paragraph?” Explain fully, referring to the text in your answer.

  1. Building Skills and Confidence – Schools approach teaching to a higher standard in different ways, ranging from a ‘build ‘em up by knockin’ ‘em down’ approach, to hours of silent test papers and setting lots revision tasks. Teachers don’t have much time to mentor each individual, and it is here where MagiKats can most help your child. Our mentors encourage everyone to work to their very best and are able to give immediate help and guidance. Time and time again, we see students ask us important questions which have gone unanswered at school.
MagiKats mentor with students
MagiKats mentor with students

In MagiKats Maths teaching sessions, students benefit from a boost in all topics present in SATS and Common Entrance tests, and practise of all mathematical arithmetic skills.

It’s a source of inspiration to all of us when we see ‘lightbulb’ moments occur between mentors and students in our workshops. Everyone is individually assessed and progressed through MagiKats Stages, where attention is given to achieving the skills to tackle a multitude of different question types and presentations. Mentors are tremendously encouraging with students about their capacity to learn and improve, and we look for opportunities to grow and stretch each individual.

Mentors provide guidance and subject knowledge and encourage challenge within the small subject groups. We receive consistent feedback from parents, local schools, our tutors and our students as to how to improve each child’s school performance in KS2 tests. We see progress in each and every case.

Improving the enjoyment and understanding of English and Mathematics is neatly matched with the skills required for the National Curriculum tests at every MagiKats Stage. Would you like to find out more about MagiKats for your child, or perhaps you would like to open your own MagiKats Tuition Centre? Contact us here:

[contact-form to='sarahmarsh@magikats.com' subject='Enquiry from MagiKats UK blog'][contact-field label='Name' type='name' required='1'/][contact-field label='Email' type='email' required='1'/][contact-field label='Comment' type='textarea' required='1'/][/contact-form]

By MagiKats HQ

Previous
Previous

First Sitting 2017 New GCSE Maths and English Tuition at MagiKats

Next
Next

The challenges facing the parents of a 'reluctant writer'