2017 key stage 1 standardisation collections
Pupil 1 – working at the expected standard
The collection includes the following pieces: A) The Great Storm Cat - a re-telling of a story; B) Mowzer - a character
description; C) A letter to Tom - a letter; D) How to Make Tom’s hot Choclate - a set of instructions; E) Jeremiah's
Adventure – a story.
With the exception of some of the handwriting statements, all of the statements for ‘working at the expected
standard’ are met, as well as all of the statements for ‘working towards the expected standard’.
Supporting commentary
The pupil can write a narrative about their own and others' experiences (real and fictional), after discussion with the teacher:
 demarcating most sentences with capital letters and full stops and with some use of question marks and exclamation
marks
Across the collection, almost all sentences are demarcated with capital letters and full stops, with only
occasional errors. Question marks and exclamation marks are used mostly correctly, eg
o Why didn’t she like having her right ear tickled? [B]
o Did you see them? [C]
o Have you stolen my aunities jam tarts? [E]
o How delecious they would be! [A]
o What a brave man you are! [C]
o Then stir it so there are no lumps! [D]
 using sentences with different forms in their writing (statements, questions, exclamations and commands)
o
In The Great Storm Cat [A], the sentences are predominantly statements, in keeping with the features
of a narrative (The next morning Mowzwer and Old Tom slowly and quitely strolled down to the
harbour and jumped into the boat.). Commands and a question are appropriately integrated into the
dialogue to portray Old Tom’s growing desperation, captured in the abrupt command (“Sing Mowzer”),
and his subsequent question (“Can you sing?”). Once the storm has subsided, the softer command
(“Now let’s go fishing Mowzer,”) suggests a feeling of relief as normality is restored, whilst the
exclamation (How delecious they would be!) expresses Mowzer's earlier anticipation of a fishy meal.
o
In Mowzer [B], with the exception of the final, somewhat teasing, question (Why didn’t she like having
her right ear tickled?), statements are used throughout as is appropriate for the descriptive purpose of
the piece (Mowzer is a kind, Calm black and White Cat who Lives with Old Tom in cornwall.).
o
In A letter to Tom [C], which is written by one of the villagers, statements are used to express heartfelt
thanks for all that the fisherman has done to save the villagers from starvation (First of all I want to
thank you for bravely going out in your small boat when the storm cat was in the sea.). An exclamation
is used appropriately and effectively to express their strength of feeling about the actions of this
selfless character (What a brave man you are!).
o
The set of instructions How to Make Tom’s hot Choclate [D] comprises a sequence of appropriately
structured commands (After add coca powder into the warm milk; Then stir it so there are no lumps!),
each prefaced by an adverb to clarify the order of events (After, Then, Next) and concludes with a
statement which offers the reader a suggestion of how to serve the drink (Finally if you want you can
add cream…).
o
Jeremiah’s Adventure [E], a third person narrative, consists predominantly of statements (Jeremiah put
on his flat cap and…boots. The prince started to cry. Quickly Jeremiah and the prince ran back
to…Gingerbread cottage.). A series of commands is deployed to convey the wishes of Jeremiah’s
grandmother (Jeremiah come quick…Look for the grumpy ugly no-good rober…Go…Look for him),
whilst patterned dialogue incorporates the repetitive question (Have you stolen my aunities jam
tarts?).
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using some expanded noun phrases to describe and specify

o In The Great Storm Cat [A], expanded noun phrases describe the sea (the calming sea); the storm (a
terrible storm); and the Great Storm Cat (eyes like green traffic Litghts; the powerful storm cat).
o In the character description, Mowzer [B], expanded noun phrases provide descriptive detail of both
Mowzer’s temperament and physical appearance (a kind, Calm black and White Cat; a beautiful, bright
pink nose) and the place where she lives (a quiet, calm seaside town).
o In A letter to Tom [C], expanded noun phrases describe what the villagers saw (that terrible storm; your
small boat) and specify the time and venue of the planned celebration (a tea party at the village hall
tomorrow).
o
In the set of instructions, How to Make Tom’s hot Choclate [D], expanded noun phrases specify the
temperature of the milk at different stages of the process (freshcold milk…the warm milk).
o In Jeremiah's Adventure [E], expanded noun phrases support the description, characters and setting,
albeit with some repetitive patterning (his colourful, tiny train-set…Lovely tiny Grandma in a massive
tasty gingerbread cottage in the darkest forest… the grumpy ugly no-good rober…the evil
stepmother…the tall, towering trees).
using present and past tense mostly correctly and consistently

o
Throughout The Great Storm Cat [A], the simple past tense is used correctly and consistently to relate
the events that happened during Mowzer and Old Tom’s fishing trip (Mowzer Purred Loudly; The rain
poured down and huge waves rocked the boat), while the present tense is used correctly for the
dialogue (I want to go home; “Mowzer My handsome I need to get the fish in.”).
o
In Mowzer, the character description [B], the correct use of the simple present tense (Mowzer is a
kind…cat; she has white socks.) is sustained until the final two sentences where the writing loses
consistency, slipping into the simple past tense (She loved it; Old Tom tickeld; Why didn’t she like…).
o
In A Letter to Tom [C], the writer uses different present and past tense forms appropriately: the present
progressive to explain current actions (I am writing); the simple past to refer to the events that took
place during that momentous fishing trip (no one wanted to go; I knew you were out; we saw your small
boat; we all shouted); and the simple present to issue the invitation to the celebration and express the
villagers’ feelings (I want to invitive you; Every one is excited to see…).
o
In the instructions [D], there is appropriate use of the simple present in the qualifications which
accompany the commands (When the milk is warm; so there are no lumps!).
o
In Jeremiah’s Adventure [E], although the present tense is used in the first sentence to provide some
background information (Jeremiah Jones is 7 today), the simple past is used correctly and consistently
throughout the remaining narrative (Grandma yelled...Feeling brave Jeremiah shouted...The prince
started to cry). Dialogue between Jeremiah and the characters he encounters in the forest is correctly
deployed using the present tense (I'm prowling for three Little pigs...Jam tarts make me sick.) and
appropriate use of the simple past (the one how stole).
 using co-ordination (or/and/but) and some subordination (when/if that/because)
o
In The Great Storm Cat [A], clauses are predominantly joined by co-ordinating conjunctions to extend
ideas and add further information (strolled down to the harbour and jumped into the boat; Mowzer
Purred Loudly and thought about the fish) or to provide contrasting information (Mowzer thought it
was Just Lights but they were eyes). Subordination establishes the relationship between events (When
they untied the boat…; When the storm Cat heard the singing…; as he threw out the net…).
o
In the character description [B], there is some use of co-ordination to provide additional or contrasting
information (on the Left ear but not on the right ear) and subordination to explain the way Tom’s
actions make Mowzer happy (when Old Tom tickeld…; because old Tom puts delecious fish in them all).
o
In the letter [C], a range of subordinating conjunctions is used to introduce clauses which consider
alternative outcomes (If you didn’t go…because no one wanted to go…when the storm cat was in the
sea…If you had not gone…) and explain the villagers’ actions that night (When I saw a light…so I told
Bob…As soon as we saw …). The co-ordinating conjunction but emphasises the contrast between Old
Tom’s brave, selfless action and the fears of the villagers (no one wanted to…but you did.).
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
o
In How to Make Tom's hot Choclate [D], co-ordination and subordination are used to specify the
precise time sequence of the instructions (Next take the saucepan and put it on the hob; When the milk
is warm...) and to introduce the concept of choice (Finally, if you want you can add...).
o
In Jeremiah’s Adventure [E], the writer uses co-ordination throughout to link information and provide
additional detail (Jeremiah rushed down-stairs and saw the hot colourful Jam tarts; Jeremiah tried to
eat it but then the evil stepmother appedrd) with some limited use of subordination to provide
explanation and establish the relationship between events (Jeremiah’s auntie can’t go because she is
poorly; When the tart cooled down Jeremiah went up…; The prince ate the tarts because…).
segmenting spoken words into phonemes and representing these by graphemes, spelling many correctly
o
In Jeremiah’s Adventure [E], there are a few examples of the incorrect choice of grapheme to
represent the phoneme (gon-gone; shadoes-shadows; sore-saw; rezised-resist), and across the
collection as a whole there are some examples of misspellings where the pupil has chosen the
correct grapheme, but made an error in the order of the letters, eg
o
o
o
o
clam-calm; therw-threw [A]
tickeld-tickled [B]
staverd-starved [C]
how-who [E]
In many cases, both the correct and incorrect versions appear in the same piece. However, across the
collection, there is sufficient evidence of correct spelling to meet this statement.
 spelling many common exception words
Across the collection, almost all the year 1 common exception words that are used are spelt correctly, eg
they, are, was, were, said, full, where, love, your, friend, there, house, some.
Although the set of instructions [D] has only two year 2 common exception words (cold, After), across the
collection as a whole there is sufficient evidence to meet this statement, eg
o
o
o
old, could, would, Great, eyes, half, again [A]
kind, who, Old, beautiful, because [B]
every, would, because, told, great, water [C]
o because, after, gold, behind [E]
 spelling some words with contracted forms
Most words with contracted forms are spelt correctly, eg
o

let’s [A]; didn’t [B]; didn’t [C]; can’t, It’s, I’m, don’t [E]
adding suffixes to spell some words correctly in their writing, eg -ment, -ness, -ful, -less, -ly
All pieces contain many correctly spelt words with suffixes, including for inflection of verb endings, the
formation of adjectives and for comparatives/superlatives, eg
o
o
o
o
untied, strolled, trapped [A]
hanging, loved, having [B]
writing, shouted, cheered [C]
feeling, walking [E]
o
o
o
calming sea [A]
tasty [C]
tasty, sticky, hungry [E]
o
o
louder, sweeter [A]
darkest [E]
In addition there are some of the cited example suffixes, eg
o
o
o
o
slowly, calmly, loudly, gently, powerful [A]
beautiful [B]
bravely [C]
slowly, carefully, Finally [D]
3
o
poorly, colourful, lovely, bravely, quickly [E]
Handwriting



using the diagonal and horizontal strokes needed to join letters in some of their writing
writing capital letters and digits of the correct size, orientation and relationship to one another and to lower case letters
using spacing between words that reflects the size of the letters
Across the collection, there is some evidence of the pupil beginning to use the diagonal and horizontal strokes
needed to join letters, but this is not yet consistent. Capital letters are generally of the correct size, although
there are occasions when they are similar in height to lower case letters; there is also some inappropriate use
of capital letters, both at the beginning and in the middle of words. The spacing between words is appropriate
for the size of the handwriting.
Although the first two handwriting statements are not fully met, this does not preclude the pupil from being
assessed as ‘working at the expected standard’.
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