"And, as I keep saying, that the SATs practice is just doing maths and english- not some alien subject called "SATs"! "
That is the crux of my whole issue with the way it has been handled in DS's otherwise excellent primary. It HAS been effectively greated as an extra subject called Sats.
In our first teacher-parent evening in Yr 5 I was told that one of DS's 3 'educational targets' was to recognise that if a question is worth 2 marks there need to be two parts to the answer. That, to my mnd is not an educational target, it is a useful, effective tip in how to do well in a test. Doing maths to consolidate or extend their maths understanding and skills is extending their education. Doing endless practice papers covering the same ground but focusing in SATS passing technique (FOR A WHOLE HALF TERM) is about their ability to pass the test, not their maths ability.
I want DS to be concerned and conscientious about working towards his maths ability. I want him to be able to take a test which asesses and confirms that ability in an objective way. I want his relationship to his own ability and hard work (or not) to be intrinsic, not extrinsic. The pressure he has been put under has not, IMO, been in the interests of a challenging education, but in the interests of the league tables.
And he is a resilient child. he is not my precious ickle pfb (well he is...) - he is a child who has calmly and philosphically co-operated with years of medical procedures that would make any parent's blood run cold.
Some schools seem to handle this better than others. People's experiences of this come from different contexts.