Parents' guide: head-start learning tips for new Key Stage 2 pupils

Is your little learner moving into Key Stage 2? Explore ideas and resources to give them a head start at home.

Across most of the UK, the school summer holidays end in early September.

While kids might grumble, it's an exciting time. Millions of youngsters are joining a new school year – and for many, that means a fresh curriculum, too.

In the UK, Key Stage 1 caters to the five-to-seven age range (Years 1 and 2) and focuses on core reading, writing and numeracy skills. Key Stage 2 starts in Year 3, and represents a big leap forward. Gone are simple sums and learning to read – instead, it's all about times tables and "reading to learn".

That's a mighty step up. What can you, as a parent, do to help your child settle in and get to grips with these new, unfamiliar subjects?

We're here to help. At Stump Cross Caverns, we're passionate about supporting children's learning both inside and outside of the classroom. That's why we built our own Key Stage 2 activities hub.

In this guide, we recommend resources to keep your little learner engaged in Key Stage 2 subjects at home.



It's not about recreating the classroom in your living room. It's about practising useful skills, building confidence and – hopefully – having fun at the same time.

Maths

Maths gets more complicated in Key Stage 2. As they move into Year 3, pupils start learning about:

• Counting in multiples of four, eight, 50 and 100
• Ordering and comparing numbers up to 1,000
• Reading and writing numbers up to 1,000
• How to solve sums and practical problems using these ideas
  
  

For some pupils, this complexity can come as a bit of a shock. But a few home-based activities (not "homework" – this should be fun) can help the ideas sink in.

Like any learning, it's all about practice.

Ideas for home maths activities

• 🧑‍🍳 Use cooking to practise measuring: ask your child to weigh ingredients, halve or double a recipe or work out how much of each ingredient is needed.
• 🎲 Play number-based games: card games, dice games and board games can all help children practise counting, adding and problem-solving.
• 🕵 Go on a times table hunt: pick a number and challenge your child to find things that come in groups of that number.
  
  

Recommended resource

• NRICH Maths at Home: a bumper collection of maths learning resources, including online games, pencil-and-paper activities and printable worksheets.
  
  

English

As pupils move into Key Stage 2, the core shift in literacy is from "learning to read" to "reading to learn". That means:

• Reading age-appropriate books accurately and at a speed that lets them focus on understanding the whole text, not just individual words
• Writing down ideas with accuracy and good punctuation
• Spelling common words correctly
• Catch-up programmes for pupils who are still learning core reading skills
  
  

You can help your child get ahead by fostering an interest in reading and writing. In the age of online video, being book-smart can be a real advantage!

Ideas for home English activities

• 📚 Create a home book club: read together and talk about it. Ask your child "What might happen next?" or why a character behaved in a certain way.
• 🦸 Dream up a story together: show them how to structure a story with a beginning, middle and end. Or take turns adding one sentence at a time and see where the story ends up.
• 📔 Write a holiday diary: encourage them to write a few sentences about a day out, something funny that happened or somewhere they visited.
  
  

Recommended resource

• Oxford Owl for Home: a resource hub with plenty of age-appropriate literacy resources for parents and kids.
  
  

Science