A teacher tells you your Year 5 child is "writing like Reception". You can see it too — but what do you actually do on Monday morning? StudYear's Skills Coach answers that. Take or attach a photo of a page of real work and it reads that work closely, works out what is holding the child back, and hands you a clear, ongoing plan — with the most important items loaded straight into daily practice so progress comes quickly.
The USP: from a photo to a plan, not just a mark
Most tools give a score. The Skills Coach gives a strategy. It looks at the actual page — letter formation, spelling patterns, sentence structure, what is remembered and what is not — and reasons about the specific gap in front of it. Then it writes a step-by-step plan you can start today, and seeds the key words and facts into StudYear's spaced‑repetition practice so they are revisited on exactly the days they are about to be forgotten.
What it helps with
- Handwriting & letter formation — spots the habits behind messy or slow writing and drills the fix.
- Spelling level — finds the patterns being missed (not just the wrong words) and turns them into practice.
- Writing level — sentence structure, punctuation and building a paragraph, pitched to where the child actually is.
- Memory & retention — when nothing sticks no matter how much is repeated, it builds a remember‑it plan around how memory really works.
Re-check and see the progress
Two weeks later, photograph a fresh piece of work and the Coach compares it to last time — what has improved, what to work on next, and an updated plan. You are never guessing whether it is working; you can see it.
Does this replace a teacher or a tutor?
No, and it does not pretend to. It is a practical second pair of eyes for the parent or teacher between lessons — reading the work, explaining the gap in plain English, and turning it into daily action. A professional stays in charge of the child's learning.
How quickly will we see a difference?
That depends on the child and on sticking with the short daily practice the plan sets. Because the key items go into spaced repetition, the things most at risk of being forgotten are the things practised first — which is the fastest route to visible change.
Start with one photo. Open the Skills Coach in StudYear and see the first plan in minutes.