Elsternwick Primary School Homework Guidelines

Transcription

1 Elsternwick Primary School Homework Guidelines Homework has to be purposeful and specific. Brendan Bentley, a PhD candidate and lecturer in the Education Department of the University of South Australia. The best thing you can do is to reinforce something you ve already learnt. John Hattie - Professor of Education and Director of the Melbourne Education Research Institute at the University of Melbourne 1

2 Our Homework Philosophy At Elsternwick Primary School, we believe that regular homework opportunities support children in consolidating their learning. Balancing school life with time spent on extra-curricular activities, relaxation and time with family and friends is an essential part of maintaining a healthy sense of wellbeing. Our philosophy has been created based on expert research and Departmental Guidelines (Department of Education and Training Victoria). We have also conducted forums with staff, parents, and students to gain an insight into their beliefs about what positive and effective homework practices look like. This extensive consultation process has helped us to create our Homework Guidelines, which we believe will support students, parents/carers and teachers with home learning practices. What does homework look like at EPS? The Department of Education and Training Guidelines recommends the following times for homework allocation. This is designed so that throughout their primary schooling, children are gradually building stamina and balanced homework studying habits. Year 1 to Year Four: 30 minutes each night Year Five and Six: minutes each night Year *Reading Writing Mathematics Flipped Learning Prep SEM1 5 minutes High Frequency Words Prep SEM2 10 minutes High Frequency Words Year 1 Years minutes 15 minutes High Frequency Words Writer s Notebook Mathematics game Teacher directed, as needed. Tasks will vary. Years 5 & 6 25 minutes Writer s Notebook *Please note that these times are to be used as a guide only. Our aim is for children to develop a love fof reading, whilst gradually building their stamina each year. Homework Timetable Teachers will encourage students to create a homework timetable to help them effectively manage their school with extra-curricular activities. Homework Cycle Homework is based on a weekly cycle. Within the 7 days, students need to decide which days they will complete their homework tasks. All children should be reading every night, Prep & Year 1 children will also be practising their high frequency words, but no time or amount of days have been set. This is the same for Year 2, however children are to participate with their Writer s Notebook, instead of high frequency words. Year 3-6 students should choose to complete homework 5 out of 7 days (reading every day). Flipped Learning tasks will be assigned occasionally, as needed and directed by the teacher. 2

3 Homework Expectations It is an expectation that all children complete their homework by the due date and in line with our EPS Homework Guidelines. Should students require an extension, parents/carers should communicate this request to their child s classroom teacher prior to the due date. If a child is unable to complete their homework a parent/carer, needs to write a note to inform the teacher (refer to sample below). It is also an expectation that if a student requires assistance from their teacher, that they seek it prior to the due date. Should students fail to submit their homework by the due date, (Years 3-6 only) they will complete their homework during a designated lunch break, to be determined by their classroom teacher. This aims to support students in developing greater responsibility for their home learning. No consequences will incur for Prep-Year 2 students who have not completed their homework. Opportunities will be provided at school to watch Flipped Learning clips and engage in Mathematics online games either before school or during recess or lunchtimes. SAMPLE Parent/carer letter to the class teacher Dear Mrs Smith Please note that Joan was unable to complete her homework this week, beginning Monday August 7 th. Kind regards, John Citizen Failure to complete homework communication slip (Years 3-6 ONLY) Failure to complete homework communication slip Date. Name. Class.. Dear Parent/Carer You child has not completed their homework by the due date. As such they will need to complete their homework during their lunch break on.. This is in line with the EPS Homework Guidelines, which aims to support families in helping children balance homework with extracurricular activities. Please sign and return this slip to your child s class teacher Parent/Carer name. 3

4 Homework Awards We will be starting a homework awards initiative whereby the class who has the highest percentage of children completing their homework by the due date will be rewarded with a special Morning Tea with Mr P. In addition, that class will receive a Principal s award which will be presented in Assembly. This will occur at the end of each term. Department of Education and Training (Victoria) Homework Guidelines Last updated April 2017 Teachers can support students by: setting varied, meaningful tasks related to class work to suit the students' learning needs giving students enough time to complete homework, considering home obligations and extracurricular activities assessing homework and providing timely and practical feedback and support helping students develop organisational and time-management skills Parents can support students by: developing a positive and productive approach to homework ensuring there is a balance between the time spent on homework and recreational activities talking to teachers about any concerns they have about the homework Students can take responsibility for their own learning by: being aware of the school s homework expectations discussing with their parents or caregivers homework expectations accepting responsibility for the completion of homework tasks within set time frames organising their time to manage home obligations, participation in physical activity and sports 4

5 Reading Year Level Prep (Sem 1) Prep (Sem 2) Years 1-4 Years 5&6 Duration (5 days) 5 minutes 10 minutes 15minutes 25 minutes Times are to be used as a guide only. Providing a Literacy-Rich Home Environment One of the most effective approaches to helping young children develop literacy skills is having a home environment that supports literacy. Books are the key ingredient to creating a literacy-rich home environment. Families can support language and literacy learning by creating a home atmosphere in which reading, writing, talking, and listening are a natural part of daily life. Reading to and with your child promotes a love of reading for life. Make Reading Materials Available To create a healthy reading environment, start with a good supply of reading materials newspapers, magazines, books, and catalogues. It doesn't matter if they're owned or borrowed, new or used. What's important is that reading materials are a natural part of your home and everyday life. A small collection of books thoughtfully gathered over time is better than a large collection that goes unread. Paperback and hardcover books, a dictionary, an atlas, songbooks, magazines for parents and kids, newspapers, and catalogues all have a place. Make sure your library includes something for everyone at every reading level. Reading Log Students from Prep-Year 2 have a yellow reading log book in their stationary packs to use Year 3&4 children will complete a log sheet, which teachers will give each week Year 5&6 students will complete their reading log online in Google Classrooms 5

6 Writing Year Level Prep & Year 1 Years 2-4 Years 5&6 Learning Task High Frequency Words Writer s Notebook Writer s Notebook Writing Habits When a child begins to write he/she may run the risk of receiving criticism parents have the job of encouraging their child to continue. Therefore, whilst it might be tempting to correct or edit their writing, this discourages children from wanting to write. Fostering good writing habits will make a big difference in your child s attitude about writing. Remember as soon as a child can pick up a writing tool, they are writing. So yes, this includes scribble on the wall. They are communicating a message and are therefore, writing. Perhaps just encourage them to write on paper, not the wall. Help your child learn to write well and enjoy doing it! To further support children in their writing development, Prep and Year 1 children will practise reading and writing their high frequency words accurately. Provide a place for your child to write The writing space should be an area that is quiet and well lit. Stock it with supplies such as paper, pencils, textas and/or crayons. You can also gather family photos and magazines in the designated area that can be used as inspiration for creative writing ideas. Writer s Notebook EPS writing consultant, Brenda Leonard, has helped students to develop a love of writing, through the creation of their Writer s Notebook. This notebook is a place for students to collect important things from their life which may prove valuable in later writing. It s a place to record thoughts, feelings, sensations, observations and opinions. Children may write an entire story, paragraph, sentence, key words, or simply have a diagram, photo, or clipping. The Writer s Notebook is not a place for adults to correct spelling or punctuation and grammar, it is a creative space where students plant seeds for writing ideas which will later develop and grow. How can I support my child with their Writer s Notebook? You can support your child at home by talking to them about their many experiences, memories, thoughts, observations and understandings of the world. You can also assist them to collect artefacts which could be placed into the notebook and written about. Artefacts may include; 1. Tickets (movies, plane, fun parks, sporting events etc) 2. Cards (birthday, postcards, Get Well, etc) 3. Newspaper/magazine articles of interest 4. Photos (pets, family members, events) 5. Drawings (a small sketch to summarise an event/moment) Please be aware that teachers will support students in guiding them on how to best use their Writer s Notebook as part of their homework each week. 6

7 Writer s Notebook 7

8 Mathematics Year Level Year 1 Year 4 Years 5&6 Learning Task Mathematics game Mathematics game Helping your child with primary school Mathematics Young children have numerous mathematical experiences each and every day. They read numbers on a clock, operate a remote control, count their toys and decide how many biscuits they want. As they grow, they will learn to measure play-dough, fill their water bottle and pack their belongings so that they fit into a bag. They will also portion out food into equal shares, calculate the time left in a day and use words to describe where things are, such as over, under and next to. As you can see, Mathematics is everywhere in our children s lives. The nature of teaching and learning Mathematics has changed since we were at school. Research now suggests that rote learning times tables is not necessarily the best way to learn, as children need to make connections with numbers and visual representations of these numbers, too. (Jo Boaler, Professor of Mathematics Education at the Stanford Graduate School of Education. Mathematics Mindsets). Mathematics homework tasks are designed to be fun, engaging and where students can practise knowledge and skills learnt at school. The Mathematics online games are designed to meet the wide range of learning needs which exist in each year level. They are adaptive and allow children to practise skills at their own pace. Teachers will provide links to a range of Mathematics games during each homework cycle. These games will be in line with the content learned in class and assist in the consolidation of learning. Games will be sent (to parents/carers) each Monday by the class teacher via Konnective. An example of some games and apps (ios) which may be assigned as homework are listed below. Fuse Education Dice With Buddies (Level 2-4) Mathematics Apps (ios) Virtual Manipulatives (By ABCya.com) (Level 2-6) Teachers also have Mathematics games which do not require technology. Please speak with your child s teacher as needed. 8

9 Flipped Classroom What is it? The flipped classroom is a pedagogical model in which the typical in class learning and homework elements of are reversed. Short videos about a topic could be viewed by students at home before the class session, while in-class time is devoted to a range of learning tasks or discussions. So, in essence, children are using homework time to prepare themselves on what will be taught the following week. This will help students come to the class with some prior knowledge. For example, if students are learning about how to stay healthy and happy as they grow as an Inquiry investigation, the teacher could give them a link to a video to watch at home, and discuss new learning during class time. Flipped Learning once a homework cycle: This may include preparing for Show and Tell (Prep) watching a clip, or reading about a topic being learnt in class. 9

10 Correcting Homework: Giving and receiving feedback The research is clear: effective feedback practices can greatly improve student learning and teaching quality. Academics have devoted years and thousands of pages to collating evidence about effective feedback and how to apply it. AITSL Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership Professor John Hattie s research suggests that student feedback should be timely, goal specific, and focus on where the student is at, their next steps in learning and how to achieve their goals. At school, teachers do this in a variety of ways, for example taking the time during lessons to give specific 1:1 feedback in relation to a lesson goal, both verbally and in written form. Therefore, effective feedback should be communicated to the student during learning. As such, this presents a challenge in regards to giving, receiving and actioning feedback on homework content. Most students see homework as separate to what they are learning in school and often do not make connections with what is being learnt in the classroom and what skills need to be practised at home. Traditionally, teachers will spend several hours correcting homework and writing suggestions for future improvements and giving positive praise. For this process to be meaningful and actioned, teachers need to spend time with each child, going through this feedback in detail. For an average class of 24 students, with ten minutes of 1:1 feedback, 4 hours would need to be available and consequently taken away from teaching and learning each week. Therefore, the correction and feedback process is not as effective as it could be. We believe this alternative model would be more beneficial for students, teachers and parents. Prep-Year 4 1. Parents/carers will be sent an electronic copy of the homework sheet, which includes online links to Mathematics practise games for the week, their Writer s Notebook log (high frequency words for Prep & Year 1) and Flipped Learning link to videos or readings. They continue to use their yellow reading log books as usual.* Note, Prep children will practise reading and learning high frequency words. 2. Students keep their homework sheet in a folder/book to take home. 3. Reading, Writer s Notebook and Mathematics logs are ticked as completed. 4. Students hand in their completed log sheet. Year 5&6 Students receive and complete all homework tasks via Google Classrooms. Comments are also written in Google Classrooms, by the student and teacher. 10

11 Sample ONLY My Prep Homework High Frequency Words I practised my High Frequency words this week (tick) 11

12 Sample ONLY Year 1 Homework Tracker High Frequency Words I practised my High Frequency words this week (tick) Mathematics Maths Game Name I played a Maths game this week 12

13 Flipped Learning Please circle your answer We did not have a Flipped Learning Task this week We did have a Flipped Learning Task this week and I watched the clip. We did have a Flipped Learning Task this week and I did not watch the clip. Sample ONLY Year 2 Homework Tracker Writer s Notebook What did you do? I did some Writer s Notebook this week (tick) Maths Game Name I played a Maths game this week ( tick) 13

14 Flipped Learning Please circle your answer We did not have a Flipped Learning Task this week We did have a Flipped Learning Task this week and I watched the clip. We did have a Flipped Learning Task this week and I did not watch the clip. Sample ONLY Year 3&4 Homework Tracker (tick the 5 days you did homework) Date Reading Book Title/s & pages read M T W TH F Sat Sun Date Writer s Notebook M T W TH F Sat Sun Mathematics 14

15 Date Maths Game Name M T W TH F Sat Sun Flipped Learning. Please circle your answer We did not have a Flipped Learning Task this week We did have a Flipped Learning Task this week and I watched the clip. We did have a Flipped Learning Task this week and I did not watch the clip. 15