Y6 dd literacy level got behind and below level 4 since year 6!

[sunsout]

My y6 dd literacy level has always been slightly ahead. In year 5 her literacy was level 4b. However since she started year 6 she went down to level 3a before xmas and then in the most recent test her literacy has gone down again. We should have the parents eve soon. But I am rather uneasy about her progression as the sat is just round the corner. Her sat nc levels can affect her secondary targets etc etc. Any comments and experiences?

No experience I'm afraid. Her levels dropped two sub-levels at Christmas - surely the school discussed what was happening at that stage? What support did they offer then? did they explain why she had gone backwards?
SATs results shouldn't have any impact on secondary choices. Most test the kids a couple of weeks after starting in order to stream etc, and don't use SATs at all IME.

Do the staff members who teach different years not communicate with one another in her school?

Thanks Seeline, I have been telling my dd not to worry about it too much as she is going her own choice of school anyway. But I myself seem to worry how this may affect her confidence.

No the school hasn't done or suggest anything but just moved her down to another table. I thought it may be just that one odd test she found a little hard. But then now her level drop again so....... do know anymore....! In year 4 she was 3a in everything so I was relaxed as I am not that completive as long as she keeps up her progression.

I think you need to talk to her teacher and find out exactly was has happened and what support they are going to give her to make sure she reaches the right levels by the time she leaves.
It seems very strange to have dropped that much - have they indicated which area of literacy is causing the problem (reading, writing, listening/speaking)?

Dd's spelling and writing are always very reasonable for her age. But she has said that she s found the reading comprehension quite hard in year 6. Is there a lot differences in marking scheme between y4/5 and year 6?

Don't know that I'm afraid sunsout. I think you need to speak to the teacher and see if she needs some extra practice, or if there is anything else you can do which might help her.
I still don't understand hte dropping of levels though - to me that shows a regression. If she was just finding the new work harder, surely she just wouldn't have gone up a level?

I agree with pp, I don't see how finding comprehension difficult means that she could drop a level, unless she was credited with being good at comprehension in the previous year when she wasn't actually good at it. (But that's what I mean earlier about the teachers not speaking to each other.) Surely if the new teacher thought the level was wrong she would go to the old teacher and ask her about it.

I think the OP might be in a situation where she needs to get clarification from the new teacher and the old teacher. (All in all it's a mess, and the year is nearly over.) The best the school might be able to come up with is a list of suggestions to work on next year in the new school. But that supposes that the teachers involved can agree on what the problem actually is.

The Y6 reading test has a new format which some children are finding difficult from a timing perspective If the school has used the practice test it could explain the dip.

OP, you need clarification from the teacher. I would hazard a guess that the level given in Y5 was teacher assessment only, while the levels being given now are test scores. Many children don't perform so well in tests.

It shouldn't generally be the case that children drop that much between Y5 and Y6. I know our Y6 teacher would be quite worried about a dip like this (so would I, being the Y5 teacher, who has handed the class up). I'm surprised that the teacher hasn't spoken to you about any possible issues and how they might be resolved.
There is some difference in the tests between Y4 and Y5, but it shouldn't vary that significantly in UKS2 as whole. Although I'm teaching Y5, I frequently talk to the Y6 teacher about assessment. We take a look at completed work together and I've adapted the tests my class are doing to support the changes in Y6. Most schools do optional papers in KS2, so the levels I am handing up are not just teacher assessment.

My concern now isn't about her sat result as there is very time left to expect big improvement of course it may still happens. It is more about her target being set the her future secondary school as low sat attainment may lead to low expectation therefore low target.

Sorry about the typos.

A halfway decent secondary school doesn't just rely on KS2 results, even if they initially use them for placing pupils in sets. They will do their own ongoing assessment of pupils and move them up or down as necessary during KS3.

I wouldn't worry to much about 'targets'. The school I worked at always set 'aspirational' targets (obviously higher ones than KS2 results predicted!) and revised these regularly over KSs 3 & 4.

It actually serves a secondary school's interests, from an accountability (Ofsted..) aspect, to have children coming in at Y7 with a lower NCT result than they 'should' have got. Secondary school teaches them so as to achieve their truepotential, progress from KS2 to end KS4 looks phenomenal, Ofsted very happy... Phew!

Thanks