Year 2 Baseline Assessment Pack
For Use with Spelling with Grammarsaurus
This Year 2 Baseline Assessment Pack has been created to help teachers identify whether children have secured the key grapheme–phoneme correspondences (GPCs) they need in order to confidently begin Spelling with Grammarsaurus.
The assessment is grounded in evidence-based phonics knowledge, focusing only on real and necessary graphemes, specifically those taught in Phase 5 and below.
📝 What’s Included

A 26-word spelling test delivered through dictation
A teacher transcript for accurate delivery
An answer sheet
A grapheme analysis sheet
A reduced grapheme chart featuring only verified, essential GPCs

👧 Age-Appropriate Assessment
Because of the age and stage of the children, it’s vital that this assessment is:

Only delivered to children who are ready to take part meaningfully
Split into multiple sittings if needed, to avoid fatigue and maintain focus
Delivered in a supportive and calm environment

Words should be dictated clearly, and compound words must be broken down (e.g. “cowboy” becomes “cow… now spell… boy”) to help children focus on grapheme knowledge rather than memory load.
🔍 Purpose and Rationale
This assessment helps teachers establish whether children have the phonics foundations needed to access spelling instruction. It has been designed in response to concerns that some phonics schemes include invented or excessive alternate graphemes, which can lead to children being measured unfairly.
Children with working memory difficulties or specific literacy needs are often expected to memorise 100+ alternate spellings—many of which are not essential to spelling success. This can result in repeated intervention and long-term disengagement.
Instead, this pack focuses only on the core GPCs that truly matter, giving children a fair chance to show what they know.
📘 How to Use the Assessment

Read the words from the Teacher Transcript, splitting compound words where appropriate.
Mark the results using the answer sheet.
Use the Grapheme Analysis Sheet to identify any insecure GPCs.
Black graphemes are common and essential. Green graphemes are less common.
These graphemes become each child’s bespoke spelling gaps, which should be plugged alongside your regular teaching of Spelling with Grammarsaurus.

🔧 Please note: This pack does not include intervention resources. Teachers should draw on in-school phonics support strategies to address any identified gaps.
There is no fixed pass mark for this assessment.

✅ Key Benefits

Focuses on GPCs from Phase 5 and below only
Developmentally appropriate for Year 2 learners
Supports gradual, low-pressure administration
Prioritises accuracy and fairness over memorisation
Provides teachers with meaningful, actionable data
Aligns directly with Spelling with Grammarsaurus...