Ks2 articles

We explain what a Carroll diagram is and how primary-school children are taught to use a Carroll diagram to sort data, such as a group of objects or numbers, methodically.

We explain what a line graph is and how children are taught to construct line graphs and answer questions on a line graph.

We explain what coordinates are and how children are taught to read and plot coordinates on a grid.

Children afflicted by glue ear can have a miserable time at school, but the nature of the condition means many parents and teachers may not even guess that a child is suffering. Moira Holden looks at the causes of glue ear and how it can be treated.

Your child will be having so much fun playing these games they won't even realise they're practising their times tables, improving their vocabulary, boosting mental maths skills and revising geography facts. Hands-on fun is guaranteed with every learning activity, from writing in hieroglyphics to dissecting a body and observing the night sky.

We explain what the term 'rounding numbers' means and how children are taught to go from rounding two-digit numbers in Year 2 to rounding decimals in Years 5 and 6.

We explain what the bus stop method for division or short division is and why this is a quick and efficient method for working out division with larger numbers.

Learning a foreign language has been compulsory for Key Stage 2 children since 2014, and Mandarin is an option in forward-thinking schools. Lucy Dimbylow explains what you need to know about Chinese in primary schools.

Parents faced with their child being excluded from school are often very upset and confused. Moira Holden looks at the regulations that surround the exclusion process.

Learning how to study, complete homework projects and revise is essential as your child moves towards the end of primary school. We asked the experts for their advice on getting into good work habits. By Lucy Dimbylow

Not everything your child needs to get on in life can be learned in the classroom. From typing and DIY skills to cooking and lifesaving, here are seven vital skills that will stand them in good stead in the primary-school years and beyond. By Lucy Dimbylow

We explain what the four operations are and how children learn about addition, subtraction, multiplication and division over KS1 and KS2, working towards solving problems involving all four operations.

We explain what the properties of 2D and 3D shapes are, what faces, edges and vertices are and how children will describe 2D and 3D shapes in KS1 and KS2.

We explain what expanded notation means, how it is taught in primary school and how it can help children with addition and multiplication calculations.

We explain what analogue and digital are and how and when children are taught to read clock faces and convert between analogue and digital times in primary school.

We explain how primary-school children are taught to use the 12-hour and 24-hour clock to tell the time on analogue and digital clocks, and how you can support their learning at home.

We explain how children might be taught to use a calculator for primary school maths (though the 2014 curriculum suggests their use should be minimal in the classroom).

We explain what the term 'shared between' means and give examples of typical division problems your child might be set in KS1 and KS2.

We explain what two-step and multi-step problems are and give examples of typical problems a child might be asked to solve in primary school (and how the answer can be worked out!).