How was it for you and your class?
While the embargo on the papers is in place, we can’t discuss the content, but what about those other moments unique to SATs week? You know – the events that no amount or preparation can foresee!
How many of these did you experience?
- Unexpected visit from some form of wildlife
- Window cleaning
- Extremely loud mower on the playing field
- Light fittings falling narrowly missing a child
- Fire alarms
- Clock stopping
- Lights failing to light
- Child vomiting all over their script
The things you told them not to do, but happen anyway?
- Inappropriate use of Maths equipment – a protractor used in a fractions question
- More inappropriate use of Maths equipment – the mirror to check out their teeth or hair
- Beautifully neat shading of the pictures of the children at the front of the Maths papers before attempting any questions
- The reading texts ignored when answering the questions
- Paper ‘completed’ in half the allotted time and the child doing nothing
- Child pulling faces across the room at their mate
- Ticking the incorrect number of boxes
- Drawing wiggly lines to match boxes
- Spelling their name incorrectly
- Failing to use capital letters for their name
- No knowledge of their middle name
- Writing more than one word when 1 word is specified
- Writing one word when a sentence is asked for
- Putting their hand up when they reach the bottom of the first page and asking what they do now
- Not turning over the last page to check there are no more questions
- Not checking their work
- Spending an agonisingly long time on one question
And, of course, there’s the things teachers never do:
- Walk round the room cringing at some of the answers on the scripts
- Glare at those who dare to stop working
- Drink hot tea or coffee
- Sharpen pencils
- Worry about the long to-do list
- Think about report-writing
- Imagine a world without SATs
- Ignore a hand in the air
- Day dream
- Nod off
The delights of SATs week, unique to Year 6!
We hope that the week went as well as you hoped – remember the outcome defines nobody. Enjoy the hurly-burly of the last few weeks and make Y6 memorable for something other than this week.
