Ks2 sats week 2015

[Catbat77]

I have a very nervous dd this morning, wanted to hear other parents thoughts or experiences this week!

DD loved L6 Maths papers. She thought the calculator allowed was 'more time consuming' than usual, but the calculator not allowed was easy.
First confident of a L6 in this exhausting week!

elmwoo,

In the past it has been the combined score that counts.

Another L6 anecdote here saying paper one easy, paper two very hard.

Is this the last ever year for SATS?

tippytappywriter,

At our secondary school, if a child is not at L4 on entry, they get more support/attention. If a child is borderline L3/4, then it may not be a bad thing if they find themselves on the L3 side of that border after the SATS.

Hmmm now I'm worried as my 2 said level 6 was average. Dtwin1 said he had time to check paper 1 twice which doesn't sound good.

Hey ho- at least he's happy.

I saw it and thought there were a fair few questions that were fine. That said I didn't have time to work out the trickier ones in my head.

Dd2's had a better week than she might have. She went in with a Migraine on Tuesday which sent her home at lunch time. She fainted Wednesday afternoon, and she went in today with a migraine...
That's what anxiety does to her, and so better than it could have been.

She said she went fuzzy on question 2 of the Level 6B paper, and couldn't think until she only had 10 minutes left, but she managed the others except question 4 which she guessed as she ran out of time. Not sure what that says about how well she did.

proudmama blimey you get all that from a casual remark! DS won't get Level 6 in maths, he knows it and I know it - he's only taking the paper because he was given the opportunity and he wanted the challenge - it was his choice.

Pretty bad form to bring up something someone said on one thread on another thread, but do feel free to search on my username (and if you PM me I'll tell you some previous usernames so you can do the job thoroughly) and you'll find plenty of threads consistent with my "don't obsess about levels" feeling - relating to DS and a subject he's below expected levels in .

DS thought that being allowed a calculator "felt a bit like cheating" so he tried to do as much as he could in his head, and when he did use the calculator he closed one eye "to make it fairer".

WTF. I'm speechless.

redskybynight

I am so sorry I didn't mean to offend. Just don't you should take too much stock in it if he doesn't pass the level 6 because he must be very bright just and hardworking to even take it.. No, No - I would not search on your username.

Red sky my ds is pretty sure he won't get level 6 but has enjoyed trying, so we'll done to all year 6's everywhere x my ds2 has been doing his sats this week aswell so I think it's definitely treat time this weekend!

Outing myself now, but ds has just agreed that paper 1 was ok, paper 2 was really hard. And the poor child has come home with a bright red, sore eye. Took him to the chemist who said it's infected. Been bothering him all day.

well done not we'll done

@vindscreenviper that is so sweet, I really hope DS does well now, he certainly earned a L6 for taken such an inventive "fair" approach!

Thanks lola we've just been having a laugh about it, no point doing anything else now. If he doesn't pass it will be a lesson for him about using all available tools to do a job properly I suppose.

Your poor DD Dee What a stressful experience this is for children and parents all to get a piece of paper that will be put away and never referred to again.
The thought that a 10/11 year olds path in education is almost set in stone at such a young age is terrifing. It seems to me that if you do not attain high enough SATs to be in one of the top sets entering secondary school, you are almost on a path where only a certain level of achievement is expected at GCSE. There is no consideration given to maturity, personal circumstances, ability or ambitions.
I am so glad that DDs school do not set in year 7 preferring to do their own assessments to set in year 8.

@ vindscreenviper's DS

In a good way!

sunndayinmay

What rotten luck on a test day. What a trooper he is.

shebird - is that what the secondary your children go to/ will be going to is like? That's awful.

Movement between sets at secondary should be fluid.

For my part, I think the SATS have been useful. DS2 has been motivated to apply himself all year and he's come from a level 4 this time last year (with the teacher saying that we can't be good at everything etc) to passing level 6 in everything on the SATS past papers.

It doesn't mean that he'll get a level 6 this week, and I don't really care whether he does or not - they aren't the GCSEs after all - but in DS2's case the SATS have given him something to aim for.

DS1 is the type of child who is a perfectionist (in the bad, stressed-out way). He's in year 8 and has now sat 3 sets of big exams - the SATS were the first. I am glad of the SATS and the other exams because he works himself up so much before each set of exams that I can see he needs to do them often so that he learns how to deal with the stress. Each year, i can see him handle it better and I am very glad that we are working through this now whilst he has plenty of time than in his GCSE year.

The only thing I don't find the SATS particularly useful for is the original intention i.e. measuring the performance f the school. Teachers change jobs/ year groups so much and classes vary so much from year to year, its impossible to learn anything useful. Anyone joining DS2's school in reception in Sept 2017 and trying to deduce how well the school will educate their child will learn absolutely nothing from looking at the SATS results from this week.

vindscreenviper - that's priceless! bless him.

No var123 thankfully, they do not set at all in year 7, preferring to allow the children mature and settle in before making their own judgement on levels in year 8 & 9. However coming from a counrty where there are no levels, sets of SATS at primary level, I have been horrified at the emphasis placed on labelling children as top, middle, bottom at such a young age. I am aware there's supposed to be movement between levels by year 5, my experience is that the focus shifts to the possible L6s and those at those at the bottom and there is little movement from then on.

Apologies...pressed enter before checking or finishing. SATs fatigue

DD has sat 3 L6 papers and is confident she has acheived one. Hopefully this is correct and we will be happy with that outcome.
The proggyMat household hopes the same, if not more, is true for all the DC that have sat all 3 L6 papers.
On reflection, I wish I had withdrawn permission for her to sit L6 papers as it has been exhausting, to say the least, and despite 'working her socks off' the outcome may not be as DD expects.
That said, it's all over and power to PJ's and a naughty glass of red!

vindscreenviper that's so sweet, obviously a well developed, if slightly misguided on this occasion, sense of justice!

Dd remembered to use the calculator which is good as she forgot on the first practice paper they did! She said she found the level 6 papers easier than those she's practised, which sounds positive.

Sounds like a few run down kids with the stress from SATs, hope they (and you) all have a lovely fun and relaxing weekend!