Returning to UK since new curriculum started. How much as actually changed?

[solittletime]

I'd really appreciate some insight to help me figure out what to expect for my Dds.

We have been abroad and DDs have been attending an International School with international curriculum (pyp). We'll be returning to London for the coming school year.

Here it's been very 'child-led' with lots of posters, Wonder walls, presentations etc... Which means my dds are very happy and stress free, however we've been worried for a while because we know they are going to be quite behind and completely unused to sitting tests.

Before we left I know the Year 6s in the school basically started with Sats revision and didn't do much else for the first two terms, with lots of stressed children and teachers.

Have Sats actually been scrapped or are schools still doing them? What do children actually do in Year 6 now?
Do secondary school select purely on catchment or is there more to it?

Younger one will be in Year 3. How are they being assessed?

I'm thinking of doing some extra work with them at the end of this term, and maybe even some Sats practice if necessary just to get them used to the format. I'm very worried that it's going to be a complete shock to their system but don't know how best to help them be prepared!

Any information would be useful, thank you!

Typo in the title
'Has' changed, not 'as'!!!

And a quick bump for traffic :)

SATs have not been scrapped they have in fact become more "rigorous" with raised expectations.

National Curriculum levels have been scrapped and schools have been left to devise their own assessment and tracking methods so you may find every school using a different system in Y1,3,4&5.

http://www.howard.croydon.sch.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/ParentsCompleteGuide.pdf

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/2016-national-curriculum-tests-for-key-stages-1-and-2-information-for-parents

http://www.howard.croydon.sch.uk/a-parents-guide-to-the-new-national-cirriculum/

Expectations of each year group have been raised. In year 3 for example, they learn things that they would previously have done in year 4 or even 5. There is a big focus on grammar and spelling.

don't worry about it. We have children arriving from abroad the whole time ( I'm in secondary) frequently with no English and no records, sometimes with no education at all. Its the schools job to assess them and then plan how to help them catch up. To be frank, by sixth form it is impossible to tell who had a primary education and who didn't.

I'd agree with expectations being raised. DD is in reception and in addition to the reading book you'd expect she has a spelling test every week and has to practise her joined up, cursive script on worksheets.

I'm really caught between being cross my 5 year old is doing homework and having sympathy with the head's position because the school will be judged on SATS performance.

How old are your DCs? I'm setting aside a little time each day to help DD which isn't easy with work. I know my colleague and his wife sit down for 40 minutes after dinner everyday to do homework with their 7 and 9 year old DCs.

The spelling test and the cursive handwriting are the school's choice nothing to do with the National Curriculum

SATs are a fresh level of hell, although I think they abandoned the resits.

Secondary it depends if you are looking at faith schools, but if you have a choice of where you live then you could rent near your school of choice. You need to apply by end Oct in yr6. Admission requirements are on websites usually.

No spelling test for my reception DS or cursive writing. Only HW he gets is books and odd worksheet

Will you have a budget to pay school fees? Your DD could just carry on with the international stream over here. If state is the only option, then they'll probably have a bit of a culture shock with school uniforms and the approach to education. Don't worry about SATs though as secondary schools admit based on criteria like location, sibling connections etc and attainment doesn't come into it (unless it's a grammar school). And anyway, international education is fantastic so they are likely to do very well when you move back.