Primary English Writing Moderation Pack

A full guidance pack about how to run a primary writing moderation staff meeting, including the steps that an English subject leader or a curriculum leader could take to successfully plan the meeting.

The pack includes a 14-page PDF in full colour containing all the guidance, research and information you need. A low-colour, print-friendly version of the same PDF is also included.

10 fully editable and easy-to-use templates that can be adapted for your setting are also included:

1. Moderation Meeting Preparation Checklist
2. Moderation Meeting Email Template
3. EYFS English Writing Moderation Template
4. Year 1 English Writing Moderation Template
5. Year 2 English Writing Moderation Template
6. Year 3 English Writing Moderation Template
7. Year 4 English Writing Moderation Template
8. Year 5 English Writing Moderation Template
9. Year 6 English Writing Moderation Template
10. Post-Moderation Action Plan

This will help you to organise your thoughts, including how to communicate exactly what staff need to bring and how to organise the paperwork you’ll need so there’s no last minute rushing required!

The guidance and resources are built on the KS1 and KS2 teacher assessment framework for pupils in year 2 and 6 respectively, allowing staff to work through each writing moderation checklist and moderate judgements for the teacher assessment data they’ll need to submit. We’ve included the writing exemplification material for KS1 and KS2 to support this process so you can feel confident that staff are on the right track.

For teachers in other year groups, there are moderation statements built from the programme of study in the English national curriculum so staff can moderate their assessment judgements but also look for gaps in learning within each key stage in order to support their lesson planning.

English subject leaders, curriculum leaders or those with responsibility for assessment or the quality of education will benefit from this pack to give them head space when planning out vital moderation meetings across the year. Senior leaders and headteachers will also find it useful to support new English subject leaders in running their first moderation meeting.

Moderation is a crucial part of the assessment process for writing and for staff CPD in assessment practices. This pack supports school leaders to get the most out of the moderation process so they can be sure that assessment judgements are accurate, next steps for pupils’ learning are identified and staff needs are met by planning for continued development in assessment.

Key questions answered:

• What is moderation?
• What is a moderation meeting? 
• How is the local authority involved in writing moderation?
• Why is moderation important?
• What role do subject or curriculum leaders play in moderation?
• When is the best time to do writing moderation?
• How does moderation work for different year groups in a primary setting? 
• What do I need to do when planning a moderation meeting? 
• What should I do during the moderation meeting?

Looking to make moderation more effective? We've written a helpful blog to accompany this pack:

• Blog: How Can English Leaders Make Primary Writing Moderation More Effective?

We've also got a range of supportive materials for Literacy leads and English co-ordinators:

• Curriculum and Standards: English