Phonics Screening
The phonics screening check is a quick and easy check of your child’s phonics knowledge. It helps your school confirm whether your child has made the expected progress.
How does the check work?
- Your child will sit with a teacher he or she knows and be asked to read 40 words aloud.
- Your child may have read some of the words before, while others will be completely new.
- The check normally takes just a few minutes to complete and there is no time limit. If your child is struggling, the teacher will stop the check. The check is carefully designed not to be stressful for your child.
What are ‘non-words’ (alien words)?
The check will contain a mix of real words and ‘non-words’ (or ‘nonsense words’). Your child will be told before the check that there will be non-words that he or she will not have seen before. Many children will be familiar with this because many schools already use ‘non-words’ when they teach phonics. Non-words are important to include because words such as ‘vap’ or ‘jound’ are new to all children. Children cannot read the non-words by using their memory or vocabulary; they have to use their decoding skills. This is a fair way to assess their ability to decode.
At the end of Year 1, we will report via our annual written report how your child performed in the phonics screening check.
Multiplication Tables Check (MTC) – Year 4
The MTC is an on-screen check consisting of 25 times table questions. The purpose of the check is to determine whether your child can fluently recall their times tables up to 12, which is essential for future success in mathematics. It will also help your child’s school to identify if your child may need additional support. Your child will be able to answer 3 practice questions before taking the actual check. They will then have 6 seconds to answer each question. On average, the check should take no longer than 5 minutes to complete. The MTC normally takes place in June of the Summer Term. How your child performed in the MTC will be shared with you in your child’s end of year annual written report.
Key Stage 2 SATS – Year 6
To find out more information about the National SATs tests children will take in Y6 please watch the videos below. We will provide more information nearer the time and class teachers will be happy to answer any questions you may have.