Below are the grammatical terms primary teachers have to teach their pupils. The curriculum states, ‘Explicit knowledge of grammar is very important, as it gives us more conscious control and choice in our language. Building this knowledge is best achieved through a focus on grammar within the teaching of reading, writing and speaking. Once pupils are familiar with a grammatical concept [for example ‘modal verb’], they should be encouraged to apply and explore this concept in the grammar of their own speech and writing and to note where it is used by others.’
Pupils are required to sit a grammar test as part of their SATs, where they must demonstrate their understanding of the grammatical terminology they have been taught.
Do they really need to know all of the terminology though at this age? Do Secondary students learn or revise these terms? Do GCSE students need to be able to explain the terms?
Is the primary grammar curriculum appropriate?
Grammar Curriculum
Key Stage One: 5-7 years old
Letter
Capital letter
Word
Singular
Plural
Sentence
Punctuation
Full stop
Question mark
Exclamation mark
Plural noun suffixes
Clauses
Verbs
Adjectives
Personal pronoun
Subordination
Co-ordination
Adverbs
Expanded noun phrases
Statement
Question
Command
Present tense
Past tense
Progressive verb tense
Commas
Apostrophe
Singular possession
Compound
Lower Key Stage Two: 7-9 years old
Consonant
Vowel
Conjunctions
Prepositions
Adverbs
Paragraphs
Pronoun
Possessive pronoun
Adverbial
Cohesion
Headings
Subheadings
Present perfect verbs
Simple past
Inverted commas
Direct speech
Word family
Prefix
Clause
Subordinate clause
Plural possession
Possessive
Plural
Adjectives
Verb inflections
Noun phrases
Fronted adverbials
Determiner
Upper Key Stage Two: 9-11 years old
Relative clauses
Model verbs
Verb prefixes
Brackets
Dashes
Parenthesis
Relative pronoun
Ambiguity
Informal speech
Formal speech
Synonyms
Antonyms
Passive
Cohesive devices
Subjunctive forms
Ellipsis
Columns
Bullet points
Semicolon
Colon
Independent clause
Subject
Active
GCSE Grammar? Or perfect for primary pupils?
Fake Headteacher 
I have always thought that making things like accurate use of ; and : part of the expected standard for 10 and 11-year olds is ridiculous. These are skills most adults woukd struggle to do successfully. It is much more important that primary children focus on making sense in their writing and have accurate basic punctuation. Yes, they should be taught when to use was or were, done or did, but burying this skill deep in the national curriculum language about verb tense agreement, is not helpful to anyone – especially those expected to teach it. Changing the terminology of grammar, then testing children on it, is not helpful either, especially when none of it seems to tie in with the expectations and teaching secondary schools. Not surprisingly, when my daughter wrote to Nick Gibb for some simple clarification on the use of commas, he was unable to answer her question!
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I used to lecture to PGCE English students and had to explain most of the 7+ ” necessary” knowledge to them.
This kind of vocabulary and knowledge can wait until GCSE or even A-Level. It just turns young children off reading and writing.
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Yes they should be taught this at primary school. How can we expect them learn a foreign language if they have no grammatical understanding of English or their first language? As MFL teachers we are teaching them English grammar before we even start on the foreign language! Of course, simple and consistent explanations are necessary, not the wordy versions given in the KS2 curriculum. I would very much welcome comprehensive grammar teaching at primary level, but for the knowledge, not just to pass the SATS.
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During ‘home schooling’ I tried to help my then Y5 son with his SPAG – I genuinely couldn’t!
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I’ve just been told that grammar at SAT KS2 is teacher assessed. Is that a lie?
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It is clear that language, pronunciation, spelling and grammar are far too fluid for hard and fast rules. There too many exceptions to the “rules” to make them meaningful.
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