With the SATs tests coming up in May, you may be wondering how best to support your child at home. While maths and grammar often get lots of attention, one of the most important (and sometimes overlooked) skills is reading comprehension. Strong comprehension skills not only help children succeed in the reading papers but also improve their performance across all subjects.

Here are some practical tips to help your child develop their reading comprehension skills and feel confident for SATs:

1. Read Little and Often

Encourage your child to read for 10–15 minutes daily. Short, regular sessions are often more effective than long, occasional bursts. Reading a wide range of texts—stories, non-fiction, poems, and even newspapers—helps them build stamina and confidence.

2. Ask Questions While Reading

Don’t just focus on reading the words—help your child to think about what they’ve read. Ask questions such as:

Why do you think the character did that?
How do you think the story will end?
What do you think this word means in the sentence?

This helps them practise retrieval, inference, and vocabulary skills—the exact skills tested in the SATs.

3. Talk About Vocabulary

SATs papers often include tricky words. When your child comes across new vocabulary, take time to explore it. Try:

Looking for clues in the text.
Thinking of synonyms or antonyms.
Using the new word in their own sentence.

This helps your child feel more confident when faced with unfamiliar words in the test.

4. Build Reading Stamina

One of the biggest challenges in the SATs reading paper is the length of the extracts. Many students struggle to finish the test in time, which means they lose marks unnecessarily. To help your child build stamina:

Gradually increase their daily reading time.
Encourage them to stick with slightly longer or more challenging texts.
Once a month, try a timed reading activity to help them get used to working under pressure.

5. Read a Range of Genres

Children often find non-fiction and poetry more difficult than stories, and these are areas where marks are often lost in the SATs papers. Make sure your child reads a variety of genres: stories, factual texts, poems, and even plays. This will prepare them for the types of questions they’ll encounter in May.

6. Practise Skimming and Scanning

Children need to answer questions efficiently in timed conditions. Show them how to skim a passage for the main idea and scan for key words or phrases to find answers quickly. You can turn this into a fun game by setting a timer and challenging them to find specific information.

7. Discuss What You’ve Read Together

After finishing a book, article, or story, have a chat about it. Encourage your child to explain their thoughts, share opinions about characters, or make connections with their own experiences. This builds deeper comprehension and critical thinking skills.

8. Use Past Papers and Practice Texts

Closer to May, it’s helpful for children to get familiar with SATs-style questions. Working through past papers or practice texts can reduce anxiety, build exam technique, and highlight areas where they may need more support.

Final Tip

The most important thing is to keep reading enjoyable. Children are more likely to engage when they feel confident, supported and interested in what they’re reading. By making small, consistent steps now, you’ll be helping them build strong reading skills that last well beyond SATs.

At Sarah Bridge Tutoring, we offer small, confidence-boosting SATs group classes for Year 5 and 6 students. These sessions are taught online and focus on reading comprehension, SPAG and maths. Places fill quickly so get in touch if you’d like to secure a spot for your child or click here to book a trial session.