Home Learning | Wath Central Primary

Effective homework

A good, well-managed homework programme helps children and young people to develop the skills and attitudes they will need for successful lifelong learning. Homework also supports the development of independent learning skills and provides parents with an opportunity to take part in their children's education.

Why is homework important?

Learning at home is an essential part of good education. Regular homework is important as it gives pupils the opportunity to practice at home the tasks covered in class, and helps the pupils work towards improving important skills. It also helps children and young people to become confident and independent in their learning, which will help throughout their time at school and in adult life.

HOME LEARNING

School responsibility

To set relevant and appropriate tasks which will develop thinking and learning skills
To ensure every child is challenged
To ensure consistency of homework across a year group
To explain and model methods and tasks where appropriate and to ensure homework is personalised to your children’s specific needs.
To allow support in school in order to complete tasks when needed
To value pupils’ work and efforts
To encourage pupils, provide useful feedback and praise them when they have completed homework,

Parent/Carer responsibility

To get involved . . . in specific homework tasks, in discussion regarding school and in shared family activities with your children – and have fun together!
To provide a reasonably peaceful, suitable place in which your child can do their homework, usually with an adult. Your child will need a flat surface, a good light source and the right equipment e.g pens, pencils, ruler, scissors, glue.
To agree on a time when your child will do their homework.
To make it clear to your children that you value homework, and check that it is carried out regularly,
To encourage your children and praise them when they have completed homework.
To be aware of modern teaching methods and seek guidance about policy from the school website or your child’s class, particularly regarding calculations.
To allow your child to have something nutritional to eat before starting on homework.
To turn off the TV - but you could have music on if they find it helpful.

Please:

Don't give your child the answer in order to get a task finished. Instead, explain how to look up information or find a word in a dictionary. If in doubt, ask the class teacher.
Don't teach your child methods you used at school. It could confuse them.

Any problems or queries about homework should be discussed in the first instance with the class teacher. If questions are of a more general nature, parents should contact either the Deputy Headteacher or Headteacher. Finally, if they wish to make a complaint about the school homework policy or the way it is implemented, parents should follow the complaints procedure.

Your child’s responsibility

To listen to instructions carefully in class and discuss with adults at home so that they can support you
To try your hardest and make sure that the standard of your homework matches classwork
To work with some independence and make sure you own your homework (don’t let other people do it for you!)
To complete work on time, to the best of your ability and return to school
To ask for support and guidance when and if needed

Homework at Central – Specific Guidance

What homework will be set?

Children in Year 1 to Year 6 may be set weekly tasks (Reading, and Phonics/ Spelling) and will be set a topic based project which should be selected from a menu. These are due in on a specific, named date at the end of the topic. Children in the Foundation Stage will be set weekly tasks (Reading) only.

At Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1, reading is the most important homework. Your child should always have a book from the classroom in his or her bag - try to read the book together every night but at least three times a week. This reading routine should continue into Key Stage 2 but with growing independence.

Please fill in a ‘reading record’ about your child’s progress with reading. If your child reads anything else of their choice such as a magazine or computer games instructions, this can be recorded too. Special moments or milestones that should be documented such as when a child reads to an audience for the first time or reads his/her brother/sister a bedtime story can be recorded here too.

Your children are sometimes asked to talk to their families about what they learned in school on a particular day. This can be the most valuable homework of all, especially if you show interest and play an active role by asking your child questions about their day.

How long should your children take completing tasks?

Please note that the following time allocations for homework are for suggestive purposes only. In 2014 the official government guidelines for the amount of homework that should be given were formally removed. The time your child spends on homework is less important than his or her understanding of it. But the following is a rough guide to the amount of time he or she should be spending on homework at primary school:

FS2: 40 minutes per week

Y1 and Y2: 60 minutes per week

Y3 and Y4: 90 minutes per week

Y5 and Y6: 120 minutes per week

What feedback will be given in school?

School Responsibility

Reading records will be checked by an adult every Friday when we will celebrate those children with a good reading regime. If they read more than the recommended amount of times, they will be awarded a point/star.

Weekly homework will be collected or discussed on a day outlined by the class teacher and if collected in for marking, be returned by the following week. Feedback may be in the form of reflection and discussion with the class or with peers.

Topic Projects will be shared and celebrated within class. There will be an expectation that the children explain their work to the class, discuss the learning and answer any questions.

Together, we can.