So here we are- KS2 SATS Week...

[ampere]

Feeling more nervous than DS2!

He's 'borderline', particularly in Literacy. He'll be so happy if he gets a 4 (as will I!) so off he went just now with me offering my last minute bon mots ('Read carefully! Most of the answers are in the text! If it doesn't make sense, you've not read it properly' etc).

DD did bird spotting and famous person and Atlantis, so presumably most of it internally marked? She said the topics really suited her and she enjoyed doing the writing. Still, bring on maths!

bizzey,

The internal papers are different to the external ones. As I said though, even if they have an off day on the writing test the teacher will still be able to give their teacher assessment over the year. No added advantage either way. Even the external marked scripts will only inform TA and won't be published.

Some schools did the internal test already (any time over the last couple of months) and some won't do them until late June.

The two 2012 writing papers were
:long- a diary entry describing before and after a ballon ride that had been won in a competition.

:short- a report for a school website about an act at a talent show- suggestions were given but they could also choose their own.

Wonder how many will feature Pudsey the dog?

All the writing is internally marked so the 2012 papers are not compulsory but some schools will be chosen to be externally moderated.

Are any other DC doing science SATs on Friday? DD seems to think not all are doing them and her school was chosen to do it to decide whether to re-introduce them. She's done quite a few old science papers recently

When my son has his y6 SATs, he barely registered it. The school really play it down, I'm pleased to say. We were told not to mention their results to them too.

I hate the thought of 11 year olds feeling pressurised.

Many schools chose to have theirs marked externally as well as those randomly selected.

My ds wrote about Pudsey as did many of his classmates. Who knew that BGT was educational??

Science - about 20/25% of schools are selected at random to do the science papers each year (the last three years now). We had to do it last year. It was much easier than when everyone had to do them.

Conquered was another spelling - ds did famous person and bird thing.

HA HA Simon Cowell is now going to be saying the good SATS results for literacy this year were down to him..!!!

OMG, I don't think DS will have spelled any of those words correctly

Intelligent
Extinct
Breathe
Stories
Cultures
Associated
Scales
Bridge
Emblem
Fantasy
characters

He's trying to remember the others as I type!

DD did bird thing and had "conquered" (she couldnt spell it) and "discussed" among her spellings

Majestic - DS's teacher has an Canadian accent and he thoughts she said Mojestic.

Loving this thread. Not stressed at all in this house but dd cross about the spellings as she said they hadn't learnt any of them. seeker another one was
Dangerous

"I hate the thought of 11 year olds feeling pressurised."

I so disagree. They are ELEVEN, not six.

This is why we have a culture of state school underachievement in the UK.

They are ELEVEN. They are more than half way through their compulsory education. Had a DC in secondary? Watch those years fly! Will you baulk at the tests that sort the Double Science from the Triple? the Foundation maths from the Higher?

How on Earth would such DC cope with the 11+ and the resultant entry to Grammar School? What if their parents so underestimated them they were given no chance to try?

Personally I wish there was a tad more pressure applied to them. As I have stated elsewhere (and being oh-so-topical!)- this is precisely why 'rich, posh boys' get all the top jobs. Because their parents have no qualms about spelling it out, good and early, that Life Owes You No Favours. OK, OK, I fully appreciate that Eton and Harrow bestow plenty of 'favours' but for the other 6.99% of privately educated, mainstream DC, they know that measurable attainment is all. They do not baulk at a (often selected) DC being tested, via sit down/shut up exam then placed in a set. But, at the end of the day, most of those parents and DC know that they did the best they could, be it 3 low grade GCSEs or 15 A*s.... You then 'know'.

Whereas we are up against classfuls of children whose parents will NOT have their DC pressurised to perform. Not as 11 year old babies.

Incidentally- noticed the posters on here who say their DC are looking forward to SATS as, finally, a chance to shine? Prepped, stoked, Ready.

DS really struggles with spelling. Was pleased it was about dragons ( his speciality) but thinks he only got one or two right.

Ampere, if your DC did the Atlantis spellings, half of those already mentioned seem to be from the Dragon spelling test.

Pointythings Birdspotting and famous visitor to school letter are the externally marked papers, not internally, along with Atlantis spellings.

Getting it- so DS is doing entirely externally marked tests- which is fine (I have already spelled out my misgiving regarding 'teacher assessment' here!)

That's how I understand it, ampere. Your DS did the same papers as my school and we have chosen to have ours externally marked.

Those spelling look dodgy for DS1.

Ampere, I think you have highlighted the difference yourself. If you are in the lowest set in a private school you are probably doing your best, as is everyone else.

If you are of lower ability in a state school, you probably won't be in a set with other people who are all of lower ability. Half the class will actually have a middle or high ability but ended up in a low set because they have failed to learn much due to their behaviour.

In the private school, those children would simply be expelled.

People worry about setting partially because they don't want their child to be in a room full of chair throwers, or at least not in a room full of constant low level disruption.

DD's teacher mentioned that they would be marking internally this year - I doubt the school would have been selected for external marking as it is closing at the end of the year due to transition from 3-tier to 2-tier. I hope she was right.

I know a few KS2 teachers who remember the marking problems with English writing and now have very little faith in a sensible outcome...

seeker i don't know whether dd had the same spellings, but she had 'exclusive'. Would be apt if yours had had that one too

He says he didn't have "exclusive"!