Y6 SATs Teacher Pacing Guide — Autumn to May
How to pace SATs prep across the academic year without burning the children (or yourself) out. Term-by-term breakdown of what to focus on, when to start past papers, when to slow down, and how to avoid the January-panic that derails so many Y6 teachers.
You might also like
Selected based on subject, grade, and type — with a free option always included.
Y6 SATs Reading — Strategies for the Three Texts
The Reading paper is 1 hour, 3 texts of increasing difficulty, around 50 marks. This pack covers the question-type taxonomy (retrieval / inference / vocabulary / structure), pacing strategy across the three texts, and the 'how to use the text' approach that beats reading-from-memory.
Whole-School Reading Progression — Pre-K to Grade 6
How reading skills develop across primary — phase 1 phonics through KS2 inference, summarisation, and critical reading. Includes year-by-year skill expectations, common misconceptions, and the assessment markers that show whether children are on track. The reference document an English Lead returns to most often.
Whole-School Writing Progression — Pre-K to Grade 6
How writing skills develop across primary — emergent mark-making through KS2 sustained writing. Year-by-year skill expectations covering composition, transcription, vocabulary, sentence structure, and editing. Pairs with the reading progression as the English Lead's two foundational reference docs.
Reading for Pleasure — Whole-School Strategy
How English Leads build a school-wide reading culture. Covers the Open University's 4-strand model, library setup, daily read-aloud rituals, reluctant-reader strategies, parent engagement, and how to measure reading-for-pleasure (it's harder than measuring fluency). The most important single thing an English Lead does.
SATs Week Survival Guide
Practical guide for teachers and parents on supporting Y6 children through SATs week — sleep, food, anxiety, post-paper recovery, and the things that don't help.
SATs Grammar & Punctuation Paper Prep
Comprehensive prep for the KS2 SATs Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling (GPS) paper. Coverage of every concept tested, plus practice questions and answer keys.