Key Stage 1 is the legal term for the two years of schooling in maintained schools in England normally known as Year 1 and Year 2, when pupils are aged between 5 and 7. This
Key Stage
A key stage is a stage of the state education system in England, Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man and the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar setting the educational knowledge expected of students at various ages. The term is also used in so ...
normally covers pupils during
infant school
An infant school is a type of school or school department for young children. Today, the term is mainly used in England and Wales. In the Republic of Ireland, the first two years of primary school are called infant classes. Infant schools were ...
, although in some cases this might form part of a
first or
primary school
A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...
. It is also the label used for the third and fourth years of primary education in
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
. In
Hong Kong
Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
, it is used to describe Primary One to Primary Three.
England and Wales
Legal definition
The term is defined in the
Education Act 2002 as "the period beginning at the same time as the school year in which he attains the age of six and ending at the same time as the school year in which the majority of pupils in his class attain the age of seven".
[Defined in section 82 of th]
Education Act 2002
/ref>
Purpose
The term is used to define the group of pupils who must follow the relevant programmes of study from the National Curriculum A national curriculum is a common programme of study in schools that is designed to ensure nationwide uniformity of content and standards in education. It is usually legislated by the national government, possibly in consultation with state or othe ...
. All pupils in this Key Stage must follow a programme of education in these areas:[
]
* English
*Mathematics
Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...
*Science
Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...
*Design and Technology
Design and Technology (D&T) is a school subject taught in the United Kingdom to pupils in primary and secondary schools. It first appeared as a titled subject in the first National Curriculum for England in 1990. It has undergone several reviews w ...
*History
History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...
*Geography
Geography (from Ancient Greek ; combining 'Earth' and 'write', literally 'Earth writing') is the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. Geography is an all-encompassing discipline that seeks an understanding o ...
*Art and Design
A design is the concept or proposal for an object, process, or system. The word ''design'' refers to something that is or has been intentionally created by a thinking agent, and is sometimes used to refer to the inherent nature of something ...
*Music
Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...
* Physical Education (PE) including swimming
*Computing
Computing is any goal-oriented activity requiring, benefiting from, or creating computer, computing machinery. It includes the study and experimentation of algorithmic processes, and the development of both computer hardware, hardware and softw ...
* Modern Foreign Languages
*Religious Education
In secular usage, religious education is the teaching of a particular religion (although in the United Kingdom the term ''religious instruction'' would refer to the teaching of a particular religion, with ''religious education'' referring to t ...
Schools must provide Religious Education, but parents can ask for their children to be taken out of the whole lesson or part of it.
Northern Ireland
Legal definition
The term is defined in The Education (Northern Ireland) Order 2006 as "the period beginning at the same time as the next school year after the end of the foundation stage and ending at the same time as the school year in which the majority of pupils in his class complete two school years in that key stage".[Defined in paragraph 3 of th]
Education (Northern Ireland) Order 2006
/ref> Notably, the foundation stage is defined as lasting for two years from the start of compulsory education
Compulsory education refers to a period of education that is required of all people and is imposed by the government. This education may take place at a registered school or at home or other places.
Compulsory school attendance or compulsory sc ...
.
Purpose
The term is used to define the group of pupils who must follow the relevant programmes of study from the National Curriculum A national curriculum is a common programme of study in schools that is designed to ensure nationwide uniformity of content and standards in education. It is usually legislated by the national government, possibly in consultation with state or othe ...
. All pupils in this Key Stage must follow a programme of education in the six areas of learning in the curriculum:[Set out on th]
Northern Ireland National Curriculum website
/ref>
*Language and Literacy
*Mathematics and Numeracy
*The Arts
*The World Around Us
*Personal Development and Mutual Understanding
*Physical Education
See also
*Key Stage
A key stage is a stage of the state education system in England, Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man and the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar setting the educational knowledge expected of students at various ages. The term is also used in so ...
*Key Stage 2
Key Stage 2 is the legal term for the four years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 3, Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6, when the pupils are aged between 7 and 11 years.
England and Wales
Legal definition
The ...
*Key Stage 3
Key Stage 3 (commonly abbreviated as KS3) is the legal term for the three years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9, when pupils are aged between 11 and 14. In Northern Ireland the ...
*Key Stage 4
Key Stage 4 (KS4) is the legal term for the two years of school education which incorporate GCSEs, and other examinations, in maintained schools in England normally known as Year 10 and Year 11, when pupils are aged between 14 and 16 by August 31 ...
* Key Stage 5
* Early Years Foundation Stage
References
External links
Official National Curriculum websitePrimary Education at The Standards Site
{{Education in England
School terminology
Primary education in the United Kingdom