Algebra

National Curriculum (England): Key Stage 2 SATs · Year 6 · KS2 SATs (primary)

8 ready-made resources for teaching Algebra, written for Year 6 Maths (KS2 SATs). Slides, worksheets, mark schemes, homework, an assessment and retrieval quizzes, all with SEN-friendly scaffolding built in as standard. Below is what the topic requires and where pupils usually go wrong, free to read whether or not you sign up.

Independently rechecked. These files were written to the specification from our own topic maps, then put through a separate recheck pass from the one that wrote them, which found and fixed real errors. A subject teacher has not signed them off individually, so give them your usual read before you teach from them.

Get these 8 files free

What is in this bundle

Assessment mark schemeWord, editable
End-of-topic assessmentWord, editable
HomeworkWord, editable
Retrieval-practice quizzesWord, editable
SlidesPowerPoint, editable
Starter & exit ticketWord, editable
WorksheetWord, editable
Worksheet mark schemeWord, editable

What pupils need to be able to do

Use simple formulae, expressed in words or with letters, to work out an unknown value.
Generate a linear number sequence from a given rule, and describe the rule for a sequence that's already been generated.
Express a missing-number problem algebraically (e.g. writing "x + 15 = 40" for a problem originally given in words).
Find pairs of numbers that satisfy an equation involving two unknowns (e.g. finding values of a and b so that a + b = 12).
Enumerate all the possible combinations of two variables that satisfy a given condition (e.g. listing every way two numbers could combine to meet a stated rule).

Where pupils go wrong

Treating a letter in an equation as standing for a fixed, specific object (e.g. "a" must mean "apples") rather than an unknown number.
Assuming two different letters in the same problem must stand for two different values (e.g. assuming a ≠ b in "a + b = 12"), when in fact they could be equal, and, separately, assuming the same letter could take a different value each time it appears within one problem, when it must stay consistent throughout.
Finding one valid pair of numbers that satisfies a two-unknown equation and stopping, when the question asks for all possible pairs.
Continuing a sequence by extending an incorrect or incomplete pattern spotted from too few given terms.

How it gets asked in the exam

Paper 1 (arithmetic) style: rare, algebra content is almost entirely tested through the reasoning papers.
Papers 2–3 (reasoning) style: "The cost of a taxi journey is given by the formula c = 2 + 3m, where m is the number of miles. Work out the cost of a 5-mile journey.", "Find two numbers that add up to 20 and have a difference of 4.", "List all the ways to make 30p using only 5p and 10p coins."

Key vocabulary

Formula, unknown, variable, symbol, sequence, term, equation.

Assumed prior knowledge (Year 5)

Confident work with number sequences, including recognising and continuing a sequence based on a stated rule (though not yet expressed algebraically).
Solving missing-number problems using known number facts, without yet using letter symbols.
Substituting a value into a simple formula given in words (e.g. "to find the perimeter, add up all the sides").

How Speca scaffolds this topic

Always introduce a new algebraic symbol by first solving the same problem in words or with a concrete missing-number box (☐), then showing the letter as simply a shorter way of writing the same box: never introduce the symbol as the very first step.
For "find all pairs" and enumeration questions, provide a systematic recording table (rather than free-form guessing) so pupils have a structured way to check they've found every possibility, not just some.
Use a consistent, real, everyday context (age, cost, distance) for every formula example, so the letter is always standing in for something pupils can picture, not an abstract token.

Every file, free to start

Three full bundles a month at no cost, no card needed. Speca can also write a resource for a topic we have not built yet, and mark a photo of a pupil's working against the mark scheme.

Start free