This is a letter that will be  sent home tonight  to all our Year 6 children today. We are very proud of them all.

To our amazing Year Sixes,

Over the past few weeks (okay, possibly months), you have put a lot of effort into preparation for your SATs. You will nail them! We know you will. 

At the moment, you’ve been doing lots of English and Maths, but we all know that you’ve all got lots of other skills. Not every skill is taught and tested in school. You might be a great footballer, an amazing artist or possess green fingers…you might be a people-person, a problem solver or a poet. SATs are never going to show off these amazing skills. They don’t test if you are a creative person, can create code or have a rapport with animals. They don’t test whether you can mend things or be a positive part of your community. They don’t measure whether you are arty or sporty, musical or scientific. 

Although subjects like English and Maths are important, never forget you’ve been blessed with talents in plenty of other areas too. Please try your best to think of these tests as ‘something I’ve got to do, but not the most important thing in the world.’

When you were born nobody ever said “What I want most for my child is to get expected level in Year Six.” (That would have been slightly strange.) The big things, the most important things are your personality, what you believe and think, your ideas and that spark inside you that makes you you! Over the past year, you have shown us how thoughtful, considerate, friendly and quite simply awesome you all are; your parents know it too and, as a school, we are privileged to work with you all. 

Please don’t think you have to reach a certain level or expectation in these tests to make your parents or us proud: all we want you to do is try your best. That is enough for us. So before you get all stressed or anxious this weekend, mulling over what Monday may bring, take time to relax and chill (or whatever you call it) so that you are refreshed and ready to take on the world come Monday morning. 

Have a relaxing weekend.

From all of the Gillibrand staff