This week in Belted Galloway class

Perhaps the biggest focus of the first few weeks is the national tests that the Year 6 children will be sitting from the week beginning May 13th. As a result, we will be spending the next few weeks making sure that your children are prepared for and relaxed about the tests. Can I underline the fact that we want the children to be calm and relaxed about them? By understanding the process and preparing themselves for the tests properly, it will take away much of the nerves and fear of the unknown. I would also like to stress that preparing for the tests is not about teaching to a test, but about revising the key primary school skills that the children will not only need a firm grasp of for the tests, but also in order to be ‘secondary school ready’. We aim to do this in an interactive and enjoyable way that puts the onus on the children to take control of their learning, but also in a way that offers rigour and focus.

Children in Year 5 will not be left out: it is a positive bi-product of mixed-age classes that the younger children benefit from this revision process. Indeed, all children will have the opportunity to flag up areas where they need support or challenge, to tighten their numeracy and literacy skills and to approach assessments with determination and positivity. Year 5 children will also be sitting school based assessment activities during the term, while all Belted Galloway children will complete their writing assessments over the course of the term. SATs week itself will assess mathematics (in three tests), reading comprehension (in one test) and Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar (in two tests).