Are you concerned your pupils don’t have the necessary skills for the KS2 Reading SATs paper?
You’re not alone. Some common concerns we hear from schools include:
- Pupils’ reading speed – will they reach the end of the SAT paper in the allocated time?
- Comprehension levels – will they confidently answer the 2-3 mark questions?
- Vocabulary knowledge – can they understand academic vocabulary?
KS2 reading intervention will help.
Our online reading development programme, Reading Plus, accelerates pupils’ reading progress by improving their fluency, comprehension and vocabulary to the level required to complete the Reading SATs paper confidently.
Preparing for SATs
Key Stage 2 Reading Intervention: The Reading Plus Solution
Pupils sit a baseline assessment when they first start on Reading Plus, which places them at their just-right level on the programme.
This comprehensive in-built assessment allows you to:
- See if pupils are below, at, or above year-level expectations.
- Understand your pupils’ fluency, vocabulary and comprehension levels, and identify any gaps – at a glance.
- See which pupils need additional support in fluency and/or comprehension.
After completing the assessment, students begin their personalised learning path to success.
- To develop fluency and stamina, they read the text using the Guided Window.
- Once finished with a text, students answer ten comprehension questions (linked to the Key Stage 2 content domains).
Pupils’ progress is continuously and dynamically monitored using formative assessments. Reading content levels are adjusted accordingly, ensuring they progress at their just-right levels and are matched with age-appropriate, high-quality texts.
The research-based, patented Guided Window guides the reader’s eyes across a page of text at a bespoke speed, utilising a moving box.
The box’s speed matches the pupil’s current reading speed. It moves pupils toward efficient, independent reading at a year-appropriate rate.
Pupils develop their comprehension skills in Reading Plus as they are exposed to word reading skills (decoding, full word recognition, fluency) and language comprehension (inferencing, comprehension monitoring, text structure and vocabulary).
After reading a text selection, pupils practise their understanding by answering ten questions. These questions are calibrated to a pupil’s level of reading proficiency to strengthen comprehension skills.
All of the skills and sub-skills taught and tested in Reading Plus support the KS2 reading content domains necessary for success in the SATs.
Over 1,300 high-quality and age-appropriate informational, fiction and non-fiction texts are available for pupils to self-select from to develop comprehension and vocabulary knowledge.
Reading content levels are adjusted accordingly, ensuring they progress at their just-right levels.
With over 2,400 words, the Reading Plus vocabulary feature further develops pupils’ language capabilities, which teaches a research-based compilation of highly valuable, cross-curriculum, general academic vocabulary.
Arun
Lower comprehension & vocabulary - lower fluencyPupils like Arun are inefficient, slow readers who struggle to read and comprehend year-level texts. Without KS2 reading intervention, they are unlikely to finish the SATs paper and secure a pass. They need support in comprehension, stamina and fluency.
Hannah
Lower comprehension & vocabulary - higher fluencyPupils like Hannah have higher levels of fluency and efficiency, but get frustrated trying to comprehend year-level texts. This means they read too quickly and struggle with comprehension as a result.
Jacob
Higher comprehension & vocabulary - lower fluencyPupils like Jacob can read and comprehend content at or above year level, but need fluency support. They have the skills to reach greater depth, but may miss out on marks at the end of the paper due to slow reading speed. They need to improve fluency to confidently complete the SATs paper.
Aisha
Higher comprehension & vocabulary - higher fluencyPupils like Aisha are proficient and efficient readers and benefit from Reading Plus as enrichment. These pupils have high fluency and comprehension. They will likely finish the SATs paper and reach greater depth.
How does Reading Plus data identify pupils’ reading gaps?
Teachers can easily see which pupils will likely finish and pass the SATs paper and which students need additional support in fluency and comprehension. Reading Plus adapts to individuals’ needs and provides intervention resources for teachers.
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Our current Year 6s are better prepared for SATs since using Reading Plus. It specifically supports their reading speed and comprehension skills, which are fundamental for completing and passing the reading SATs.
Lyndsey Curbishley
Curriculum Lead at Whitefield Primary School -
Our children using the programme in Year 5 have now achieved 14% Greater Depth scores in our standardised end-of-year assessments. In this year group, we had only 5% working at Greater Depth in Reading when they initially started the programme.
Heather March
Assistant Headteacher at Dubmire Primary Academy -
We wanted something that would improve their fluency as often they do not reach the final text in the reading SATs tests. In 2019, our reading results for Year 6 were EXS 63% and GDS 13%. After using the programme, our recent SATs results increased to 86% EXS and 41% GDS.
Verity Lee
Year 6 Teacher and Assistant Head at Sunnyside Spencer Academy -
Very often, the SATs texts relate to experiences that children haven’t encountered. Reading more non-fiction expands their worlds and opens their minds to new knowledge and understanding.
Sarah Uden
Vice Principal at Folkestone Primary Academy
Try Reading Plus at no cost for four weeks!
Choosing a new reading programme is a big decision. That’s why you can try Reading Plus – with support from a dedicated Reading Development Consultant – at no cost for four weeks.
See for yourself how Reading Plus is different to other reading programmes.
Reading Plus schools' SATs success stories
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Liverpool Primary School prepares pupils for SATs with Reading Plus
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How Reading Plus helped this school increase its SATs pass rate from 60% to 93% in just one year
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Osbaldwick Primary talks about how it used Reading Plus to prepare for SATs and experienced increased scores
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Reading SATs EXS increases 33% in one year thanks to Reading Plus at Sunnyside Spencer Academy