What your child learns in Year 1 maths, English and science

After going through all the ‘firsts’ in Reception, both you and your child will know the ropes when starting Year 1. But there are still plenty of new experiences to be had as the work gets more complicated, and your child begins the path to Key Stage 1 SATs at the end of Year 2 (Year 1 and Year 2 make up Key Stage 1).

Year 1 maths

In Year 1, children will need to count forwards and backwards up to 100. They will need to know their addition and subtraction facts to 20. They will start to learn about times tables through the use of simple multiplication and division problems, for which they will be given objects to help them work out what is being asked.

Children will need to find half and a quarter of a shape or quantity. They will start to measure using standard units and will learn to tell the time to the hour and half-hour. They will learn to name some common 2D and 3D shapes. 

Read a more detailed guide to the Y1 maths curriculum in our parents' guide.

Find brilliant, free Year 1 maths worksheets to help your child at home!

Year 1 English

In Year 1 English, children will consolidate their learning of phonics and should become confident in being able to match each group of letters (eg: igh, ea, th) with the sound it makes. They will be encouraged to read a wide range of stories and listen to poems which they will start to recite by heart. 

Children will learn to spell a range of words containing the sounds already taught (eg: light, read, think etc). They will learn to form all the letters of the alphabet in lower case and capitals, plus the digits 0 to 9. They will sequence sentences to form short stories. They will punctuate sentences with a capital and full stop, and will begin to learn about question marks and exclamation marks.

Download our free Year 1 English worksheets to help with spelling, grammar, writing, reading and more.

Year 1 science

Year 1 children will learn about:

Plants, identifying and naming plants and looking at their basic structure.

Animals including humans, identifying and naming a range of animals and understanding how and why they are grouped.

Everyday materials, looking at their properties.

Seasonal changes, observing changes across the four seasons and looking at different types of weather.

You can help your child practise these concepts with our fun and helpful Year 1 science worksheets, or read more about the Year 1 science curriculum in our guide for parents.

Want to get a head-start on SATs preparation? Find out what your child will learn in Year 2, then move on to Key Stage 2 with guides for Year 3, Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6. Review what your child has already learned in our explanation of Reception curriculum targets.