Andoversford Primary School - Homework
At Andoversford, we know that it takes a village to raise a child! Links between home and school are very important to us. Everything you can do at home to support your child's education, will help them develop positive attitudes towards learning and help them become more successful in all areas. However, we know it can be a challenge to get the right balance for a modern household. Our approach is little and often so that children develop a love of learning which will help them throughout their future lives.
All children should read their banded reading book for at least 20 minutes 3 times per week. This is in addition to reading for enjoyment, or storytime as part of the bedtime routine. Please help your child to record when they are reading in their reading record. We expect children who are fluent readers (Band Lime or above) to complete their reading journal to keep track of what they have read and their feelings about the books they have chosen. Take a look at our Reading and Phonics web-page for more ideas and guidance to help with reading at home.
In Reception and Year 1, children will bring home the new phonic sounds they are learning. They should use flashcards to recall the sounds. You might use the flashcards, to practise blending sounds into words. From Year 2, we learn a spelling pattern each week. Your child will bring home some words which use this pattern. They should practise the words to learn the spelling pattern, not just learn the words by rote. We test spellings by writing a short dictation with the words in context. As children move up the school, we will include words from previous weeks in the spelling checks to make ensure that they are learning the spellings for life, rather than memorising a list for one week only. Practising spellings is best done for a short time every day - we recommend spending between 10 and 15 minutes. Ideas for activities to practise spellings can be found below.
Daily Maths Practise
From Year 1 onwards, we use the CGP Daily Maths Practise Books. Your child will need to complete an activity, which should take no more than 15 minutes every day. The activities cover a range of mathematical concepts and give children the opportunity to revisit the topics covered throughout the year. In Key Stage 2, we encourage children to use the related Study Guides to help recap their understanding, before asking a parent or teacher for help if they are stuck.
Numbots or TimesTables Rockstars
All children have a login to Numbots (in YR to Y2) and TimesTables Rockstars (Y3 to Y6). They should use the online games and resources to practise their recall of key maths facts at least 3 times every week. These activities are fun and exciting games and children have the opportunity to gain badges and prizes as they move up.
Starting in September 2021...
From Year 1, children have a Fluency Fact File. Each Half Term, the teacher will share some activities and games which will help to practise the fluency facts which are being taught in school. Across the year, your child will revisit and repeat key facts so that these are learnt off by heart. We have to repeat key learning many times to help store these facts in our long term memory.
At the start of each topic, the class teacher will set 9 homework projects which can be completed across the term. These might include a writing task, creating presentation, a piece of artwork or even some cooking. We use a project approach so that families can fit the activities into the busy home schedule. We know that sometimes you have more time and at other times, there is less free time at home. The project approach means that children can select which projects they want to complete and do them at a time and in a way that suits your family. Completed projects are displayed and celebrated in school.
You can find the Homework Policy and the Home School Agreement on the Policies Page.