Princess Frederica

College Road, London, NW10 5TP Phone: 0208 969 7756 Fax: 0208 964 5372

CE VA Primary School
Headteacher - Mrs S. Nettey, NPQH Email: admin@princessfrederica.brent.sch.uk

HOMEWORK POLICY

Reviewed: To be Reviewed:

Spring 2012 Spring 2015

Princess Frederica CE VA Primary School Homework Policy

Aims of the policy To extend the childrens knowledge, providing them with opportunities to reach higher levels of attainment and make greater progress. To consolidate the concept and skills developed through class work. To enable the children to make valuable oral and written contributions to school work by carrying research related to their school work. To encourage self-discipline and enable children to be more responsible for extending their own learning. To allow the children to follow individual interests supporting the idea that learning is not confined to the classroom but, is an open ended and life long activity. To involve parents in the work being undertaken in the classroom thereby strengthening the links between parents and teachers. To prepare children to be life long learners by establishing good learning habits through the setting of regular/consistent homework appropriate to their ability. To use homework as a tool for evaluating the learning of children and teaching strategies.

Guidelines for Parents As Parents, your attitude to learning is the strongest influence on how successful a learner your child becomes. We encourage you to: Have set times for homework and incorporate them into your childs daily routine. Endeavour to make helping your child with their homework a positive experience. Set aside time to give your individual attention to your child and by so doing you will be able to motivate your child, build their confidence, raise their self esteem and help their progress. If for any reason you are unable to support your child, seek the help of siblings or relatives. Older siblings can help explain work that they may have recently covered themselves. Younger siblings can be excellent listeners, for example when a child is reading aloud. Help your child to follow the Guidelines for the Children Ensure that your child has sufficient sleep as not to be too tired. Help your child to plan when they will do their homework.

Sign your childs homework book and observe start and finish times to know how long it has taken them to complete the piece of work. Talk to your childs class teacher if you have any queries or concerns. Remember children may make a number of mistakes. Making mistakes is essential to learning. Mistakes do need to be put right but, not necessarily all at once. Avoid showing anxiety over your childs progress or make obvious adverse comparisons with siblings or friends. Offer reassurance if your child is experiencing difficulties. Aim to convince them of the importance of taking just one step at a time on the road to helping them catch up. Offer praise, even if progress is slow.

Home and School We regard any help that parents feel able to offer their children at home as really worthwhile. Parents are their childrens first educators and have already taught their children a great deal long before they come to school. By working together the children can only benefit from the partnership between home and school. Guidelines for Children (to be overseen by parents) Switch off the television/music. (If appropriate. Know your child some children work better with some background sound) Wash your hands. Sit at a table. Make sure that you are sitting comfortably. Use a sharp pencil or a good pen. Remember a rubber and a ruler help! Follow instructions carefully. Take care with the presentation of your work. Check your work. Make use of a dictionary, thesaurus or a word book. Remember to take your homework back to school on the right day. Write the start and finish time as instructed by your teacher or parent. Learn your times tables- you should know them all by Year 4. You will earn house points for bringing in your homework early.

What will Princess Frederica do? Inform parents of the schools homework policy and provide parents with a homework timetable for each year group through our curriculum letters. Give clear instructions to children (written on verbal). 3

Provide Reading Record diary, as appropriate. Keep a homework register to ensure that all children do homework regularly. Keep a teachers log to keep a check on the standard attained together with a checklist of; o Who has taken homework home o What subject it was. o Whether it was returned completed. Mark the homework and give appropriate feedback. Give children the opportunity to mark and evaluate their work and progress. Provide opportunities for independent internet activities, signposting resources from our website and subscribing to useful internet tools designed for children e.g. Mathletics Provide the opportunity to purchase books to support learning in English and Mathematics

What happens if children dont complete their homework? Nearly every child completes their homework every week. If children do not bring in their homework they will receive a warning and a letter informing you your child failed to complete and hand in their homework at the right time. Your child will be given another chance to complete their homework and return it to school the next day. If the homework is not returned, your child will be kept in school at lunch or after school hours in detention to complete their work. Naturally, if a child is unwell or there was a specific reason why the work couldnt be completed, please send a note to your childs class teacher to let them know. However, any emerging patterns will be challenged.

Homework in Reception How much? Children in Reception will be expected to read with an adult every day. Literacy and Numeracy homework will be given alternatively on a Friday. There will sometimes be occasional learning activities or things for children to find out. We suggest children spend about 10 minutes per evening doing their homework. Language Reading at home to include discussion about pictures and the story that is being read in your childs first language or English. Learning to write his/her first name and family name. Learning to recognise and learn colours, parts of the body and everyday objects. Learning the name and sounds of the letters of the alphabet. Writing shopping lists.

Reading and Writing Your child is learning phonics in school. The school teaches synthetic phonics and by the end of Reception children are expected to know all of their letter sounds and be able to blend these sounds to read word and segment them to spell. Children are also taught how to read tricky words and rehearse these regularly. Reinforcement of learning in phonics is mainly done by reading the books which are sent home from school. These are carefully matched to your childs level of ability. Children should have the opportunity to read to you each day. They should also be read to and enjoy different story books and rhymes every day. It is very important for future joined handwriting that your child starts every letter in the right place. Please concentrate on the small (lower case) letters rather than the capitals at this stage. A letter formation sheet is available from your childs class teacher. Further information and guidance about children learning to read at our school is available each year at curriculum information meetings. Maths Practical counting of beads, going upstairs and buttons on coats etc. Making sets of objects by colours, size and shape. Learning to recognise and name simple shapes in the home and environment e.g., squares, circles, triangles and rectangles. Learning the names of and counting numbers to ten and more.

Knowledge and Understanding of the World Experimenting with water using containers of various sizes. Observational drawing. Making models from junk (old cardboard boxes, empty containers etc.) Helping with cooking and washing. 5

Homework in Year One Children in year one will be expected to read daily and learn spellings or sounds as appropriate. Weekly homework in Literacy and Numeracy will be set. There will also be the occasional learning by rote and finding out activities. We suggest children spend about 15 minutes per evening doing their homework. Language Maths Playing games with real money so that your child learns to recognise and name different coins and can count them, using 1 ps initially. Learning to recognise and name shapes in the home and environment e.g., squares, circle, rectangles and squares. Playing simple games such as snakes and ladders, ludo and connect 4. Work sheets that reinforce concepts taught at school such as addition, subtraction and making sets. Familiarising the child with important times of the day such as the time s/he gets up, goes to school and has dinner. Daily reading and discussion about the book that has been taken home. Practising writing a letter and sounds learnt in class. Learning selected spellings from their own writing. Practising writing their first name and family name. Learning to write their address

Science Collecting objects e.g., for a nature table, a senses table, a display of metal or wooden objects. Keeping a record of what the weather is like everyday for one week. Keeping a record of food eaten at certain meals such as breakfast for a week.

Humanities and Art Collecting information from family members. Research connected with their projects. Drawing pictures of their own choice. Still life drawings such as flowers and fruit to heighten their powers of observation.

Homework in Year Two: Children in Year Two will have to do daily reading, learn spellings or sounds, weekly Literacy and Numeracy homework to be done and returned to school the next day. We suggest children spend about 20 minutes per evening doing their homework. Language Maths Number games that reinforce number bonds using the 4 rules to 20 and beyond for some children. Capacity e.g. how many cups of water does the teapot hold? Measurement and ordering of shoe sizes of family members. Practising counting in 2s, 3s, 5s and 10s. Completion of number patterns Practising measuring objects using standard and non-standard measures. Weighing e.g. packets of food, various ingredients when cooking, conkers and marbles. Daily reading. Learning selected spellings, possibly those pointed out by the children from their own writing. Re-telling a story and reporting back the reasons why the child liked it. Keeping a journal or diary (open ended) Creative writing e.g. working on an alternative story-ending with parents. Book reviews Bringing an object from home and giving a detailed explanation about it. Collecting objects that begin with certain sounds e.g. st, br and ch. Making lists of word families. Wordsearches.

Science Making collections of objects e.g. that are made from plastic, metal, wood, glass and fibres. Finding objects that float and/or sink. Finding objects that are attracted or repelled by a magnet. Classifying foods into their appropriate groups. Listing objects that use electricity.

Humanities Finding about life in the past from family members. Learning the country of origin of family members. Learning of own address. Drawing a simple plan of a room in the childs house e.g. bedroom. Drawing map of the route home from school.

Homework in Year Three Children in Year Three will be expected to read every day in addition to set homework. A minimum of 20 minutes a day should be spent on homework. Language Maths Learning multiplication tables. Problem solving Surveys Measuring objects in the home using a ruler/tape measure. Writing book reviews Carrying out research on various topics. Learning spelling related to their work and word families. Re-telling a story and reporting back the reasons why the child liked it. Keeping a journal or diary (open ended) Creative writing e.g. working on an alternative story-ending with parents.

Humanities Watching TV programmes that give information about life in other parts of the world. Collecting stamps and postcards from different countries and finding these in an atlas. Using the local library for research into a chosen topic. Drawing simple maps e.g. from your friends house to yours.

Design Technology Designing and planning for model making. Collecting materials for model making.

Homework in Year Four Children in Year Four will be expected to read every day in addition to set homework. A minimum of twenty minutes a day should be spent on homework. Children should be creative with their time and use their initiative to spend time reading at home each day. Language Maths Learning multiplication tables. Worksheets related to work taught in the classroom. Doing surveys. Making 3-D models. Measuring objects around the home. Work on telling the time. Timing activities, e.g. How many skips in a minute? Writing and recording information from topical TV programmes Designing Maths games using own rules. Follow up class work. Learning spellings related to their work. Daily reading for at least 20 minutes. Writing about a book they have read, likes and dislikes, re-telling the story, writing from the point of view of one of the characters etc. Crossword puzzles and Wordsearches. Finding a number of small words using the letters of a larger one. Activities involving the use of a dictionary or thesaurus. Visits to the library to get information for topics. Reinforcement of an aspect of English studied in class lessons.

Science and Technology Collecting objects made of different materials. Collecting materials for technology projects. Designing and planning for model making.

Humanities Collecting stamps, currency, photographs and postcards from different parts of the world and finding the countries in the atlas. Drawing maps of journeys in the local area. Producing a personal profile on family member or the life of a famous person. Researching the class topic.

Homework in Year Five Children in Year Five will be expected to spend at least thirty minutes each day on homework. Language Maths Carrying out surveys and recording these in various ways. Revising multiplication tables. Problem solving activities. Designing a maths game. Consolidation of new aspects of maths introduced during the term. Learning spellings and meanings from related work. Visits to the library to gain information for topic work. Reading for at least twenty minutes a day. Writing book reviews. Finding words for the topic in home language. Crosswords and Wordsearches. Making research notes. Development of a particular aspect of English arising from the class work.

Science and Technology Carry out investigations at home. Collect materials for technology projects. Designing and planning for model making.

Humanities and Art Carry out interviews related to project work. Collecting information from reference books or from the media and presenting it to a group/class. Collecting ideas for discussion. Carrying out individual research projects. Still life drawing. Designing covers/posters. Collecting pictures and artefacts related to the topic.

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Homework in Year Six Children in Year Six will be expected to spend at least thirty minutes each day on homework. Language Maths Carrying out surveys and recording these in various ways. Revising multiplication tables. Problem solving activities. Practising new aspects of maths introduced during the term. Practice for the SATs. Mental Maths Strategues. Learning spellings and meanings from related work. Visits to the library to get information for topics. Reading for at least twenty minutes a day. Writing book reviews. Finding words for the topic in home languages. Creative writing, including stories and poems ( some timed). Reinforcement of English grammar and comprehension. Crosswords and Wordsearches. Making research notes and developing different types of factual writing. Practice for the end of year tests (SATs).

Science and Technology Carry out investigations. Collect materials for technology projects. Designing and planning for model making. Revise science for SATs Practice for SATs

Humanities and Art Carry out interviews related to project work. Collecting information from reference books or from the media and presenting it to a group/class. Collecting ideas for discussion. Carrying out individual research projects. Still life drawing. Designing covers/posters. Collecting pictures and artefacts related to the topic.

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Example homework timetable This is an example of how homework might look in your childs class Monday Foundation Reading Stage (10mins) Phonics (5mins) Year 1 and Reading 2 (10mins) Spelling (10mins) Year 3 & 4 Reading (10mins) Spelling (15mins) Spelling (15mins) Reading (15mins) Reading (30mins) Tuesday Reading (10mins) Maths (10mins) Wednesday Reading (10mins) Thursday Counting (10mins) Friday Letter formation (15mins)

Reading (10mins) Times Tables (10mins) Reading (10mins) Times Tables (15mins) Literacy (20mins) Tables (10mins)

Reading (20mins)

Numeracy (20mins)

Literacy (20mins)

Reading (20mins)

Numeracy (20mins)

Literacy (20mins)

Year 5

Reading (15mins) Science (20mins) Spelling (15mins) Reading (15mins)

Numeracy (30mins)

Extended Reading and Writing (30mins)

Year 6

Literacy (20mins) Tables (10mins)

Science (30mins)

Numeracy/Literacy (30mins)

These set times may vary depending on ongoing work in class whole school initiatives/current issues. There will be times when children will be asked to find information for lessons the following day, e.g. listening to the news, bringing in a newspaper drawing etc. There will also be times when homework set will cover a given period, e.g. a project.

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