Year 1 (Grade 1 at many schools) is when reading really takes off. Children move from three-letter words to longer words, write their own short recounts and stories, and count all the way past 100. So what should a Year 1 child know by the end of the year? Here is what the curriculum expects, in everyday words, with ideas for home and a reminder that children get there at different times.
What the curriculum describes
Each year has an achievement standard that describes what most children can do by the end of the year. In Victoria, Year 1 is “Level 1” of the Victorian Curriculum F–10 Version 2.0, which government schools have used for English and Maths since 2025. Most other states use the Australian Curriculum (Version 9.0). The two say almost the same thing for Year 1, so the guide below works for most families. NSW is different, and there’s a note on it further down.
Reading by the end of Year 1
In Victoria, by the end of Level 1 children “blend, segment and manipulate words with one and 2 syllables. They read an increasing number of high-frequency words and understand boundary punctuation.” They “begin to build their understanding of literal and inferred meanings”.
| The curriculum says | In everyday words |
|---|---|
| Blend short vowels, common long vowels, consonants and digraphs | Read words with sounds like sh, ch, ee and oa, not just single letters. |
| Read one- and two-syllable words with common letter patterns | Work out longer words like rabbit or sunset by reading them in parts. |
| Read an increasing number of high-frequency words | Know more of the common words that turn up on every page. |
| Use sentence boundary punctuation to read with developing phrasing and fluency | Pause at full stops, so reading starts to sound like talking. |
| Begin to build literal and inferred meanings | Say what happened in a story, and start to guess why a character did something. |
The middle rows come from the Australian Curriculum, which spells the phonics out a little more. Both curricula mention reading decodable and authentic texts, so your child may bring home both kinds of book. Year 1 is also the year of the phonics check: Victorian government schools run the Year 1 Phonics Check in Term 3, and other states run their own (see the phonics check in each state).
Writing and spelling by the end of Year 1
By the end of Year 1, children “write words using unjoined lower-case and upper-case letters”. They “spell most one- and 2-syllable words with common letter patterns and common grammatical morphemes, and an increasing number of high-frequency words”, and they “apply boundary punctuation”. The Australian Curriculum adds “simple sentences with sentence boundary punctuation and capital letters for proper nouns”.
In everyday words: your child writes short recounts and stories of a few sentences, starts each sentence with a capital letter and ends it with a full stop, uses a capital for names like Sam and Melbourne, and spells most regular words. “Common grammatical morphemes” are word endings like -s, -ing and -ed. Writing is still unjoined; joined writing comes later. Our guide to spelling at home has Year 1 word lists in phonics order.
Speaking and listening
Children use “turn-taking skills”, “explore language to express preferences and opinions”, and give short talks “engaging with personal or learnt topics”. Show and tell, explaining a favourite book, or describing how to play a game are all part of it.
Maths by the end of Year 1
The Victorian and Australian Curriculum maths standards for Year 1 are nearly word for word the same. By the end of Year 1, children “order numbers to at least 120”, partition two-digit numbers “into tens and ones”, “skip count in twos, fives or tens”, and “solve problems involving addition and subtraction of numbers to 20”.
| Area | In everyday words |
|---|---|
| Numbers to 120 | Read, say and order numbers up to at least 120. |
| Tens and ones | See that 34 is 3 tens and 4 ones, and that it can be split in other ways too. |
| Skip counting | Count by 2s, 5s and 10s, for example to count a pile of socks or 10c coins. |
| Adding and taking away | Solve adding and subtracting problems with numbers to 20, using strategies like counting on. |
| Equal groups | Share things fairly, and put things into equal groups. |
| Patterns | Make skip-counting and repeating patterns and spot the part that repeats. |
| Measuring | Compare and order things by length, mass, capacity and time, and measure with things like paperclips or blocks. |
| Shapes and direction | Sort shapes by their features, and give and follow directions to move around a space. |
| Data | Collect answers to a question and show them in a simple display. |
Victoria’s standard also mentions using “Australian coins” to make skip-counting patterns, so 5c, 10c and 20c coins make great practice. Victoria is also introducing a Year 1 Numeracy Check; our guide explains what has been announced so far.
Science across Prep to Year 2
In Victoria, Science is planned across Prep to Year 2 as one band, with no separate Year 1 standard. Over those three years, children learn to observe and compare, group plants and animals, explore materials, notice daily and seasonal changes, and see how pushes and pulls move things.
In NSW: Stage 1 covers two years
NSW uses its own English and Mathematics K–10 syllabuses (2022). Year 1 and Year 2 together make Stage 1, and the outcomes describe the end of Year 2, so they can’t be split neatly into “Year 1” and “Year 2”. For example, by the end of Stage 1 a child “reasons about representations of whole numbers to 1000”. If your child is in Year 1 in NSW, think of those outcomes as where they’re heading over two years, and ask the teacher what Year 1 covers at your school.
How it shows up on a Victorian report
Victorian government school reports come at least twice a year, usually at the end of Terms 2 and 4. English, Maths and Science each get a level score and a five-point rating: Well above, Above, At, Below or Well below expected level. A score like 1.5 means your child has achieved Level 1 and is working towards Level 2.
At the end of Year 1, a score at Level 1, or half a level below it, is usually rated “At expected level”. That rating is measured against the curriculum for your child’s year level, not against other children.
Easy ways to help at home
- Ten minutes of reading. Your child reads a short book to you, then you read something longer to them.
- Hunt for sound teams. Spot sh, ee or oa in signs and cereal boxes.
- Count big. Count to 120 on the walk to school, or count a jar of buttons by grouping them in tens.
- Skip count with coins. Line up 10c coins and count 10, 20, 30.
- Write something real. A recount of the weekend, a note in a birthday card, a list for the shops.
- Talk about stories. “Why do you think she did that? What might happen next?” That’s inference, the start of deeper reading.
Questions parents ask
What should a Year 1 child know?
By the end of Year 1, most children read one- and two-syllable words, read an increasing number of common words, write simple sentences with capital letters and full stops, order numbers to at least 120, skip count by 2s, 5s and 10s, and add and subtract with numbers to 20.
What should a Year 1 child be able to read?
Words with common letter patterns and sound teams like sh and ee, one- and two-syllable words, an increasing number of high-frequency words, and short decodable and other books, reading with developing phrasing at full stops.
What maths should a Year 1 child know?
Numbers to at least 120, tens and ones, skip counting by 2s, 5s or 10s, adding and subtracting with numbers to 20, sharing into equal groups, measuring with informal units, sorting shapes, and following directions.
How high should a Year 1 child count?
The curriculum expects children to order numbers to at least 120 by the end of Year 1, and to skip count in twos, fives or tens to count collections to at least 120.
Should my Year 1 child be writing in cursive?
No. The standards say Year 1 children “write words using unjoined lower-case and upper-case letters”. Year 2 is still unjoined too.
What does “at expected level” mean in Year 1?
On a Victorian report, it means your child is in the range expected for Year 1 at that point in the year. At the end of Year 1, a score at Level 1, or half a level below it, is usually rated at expected level.
Sources
- Victorian Curriculum F–10 Version 2.0: English, Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA)
- Victorian Curriculum F–10 Version 2.0: Mathematics, VCAA
- Victorian Curriculum F–10 Version 2.0: Science, VCAA
- English: Year 1, Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA)
- Mathematics: Year 1, ACARA
- Mathematics K–10 (2022): outcomes, NSW Education Standards Authority
- Curriculum structure, NSW Education Standards Authority
- Reporting teacher judgements of progress using a 5-point scale, Victorian Department of Education
