Homework

 

At Roto-o-Rangi School, we offer regular homework segments for students. Students will have a variety of activities to complete over a week. The emphasis of our homework is on practice – practising the basics at home 1 on 1. This does require parents committing to spending time with your child/ren practising the learning. Don’t try to teach your child during this time, rather practice what they know – consolidate what they are learning.

Here are some general tips/reminders that you might find useful around homework:

• Let your child have a bit of time to unwind after school
• Discuss your expectations with your child about how long the homework will take
• Feed their brain first – give them a snack and drink before they start
• Choose a space that is comfortable and reasonably quiet
• Get your child to check that they have everything they need before they get started – don’t get things organised for them, make them take responsibility themselves
• Show an interest in their work and offer guidance when needed (but don’t do it for them)
• Don’t allow homework to become stressful. If things get stressful and hectic, leave it for the night and pick it up another time. If necessary, let your child’s teacher know that it wasn’t completed and what the issue was
• If you are looking for extra, try the link of activities below – there is plenty here to keep them busy and it is fun!

 

Reading Strategy Videos

These videos are not here to make you a reading teacher but to show some of the techniques teachers use. If parents use similar techniques then it reinforces and supports the reading. ALWAYS make sure it is an enjoyable time together, not another lesson done at home.

Both of these videos are available off Youtube and created by another school.

Slideshow overview of reading strategies to do at home This is a slideshow that explains some of the reading strategies used by teachers to help children learn to read. By using the same techniques at home, and a few extra tips, you can support your child more effectively with their reading progress.

https://youtu.be/uv4DAcIF-jk This is a video that demonstrates what those strategies look like in more detail. These are not step by step strategies that you use. You don’t move from one to the next. Use the different strategies as much as your child needs. If they are reading the book and not getting stuck on words or making mistakes, then focus on asking questions about the story. If they are struggling with lots of the words, only read a page then you read it for them and they follow your reading.

Additional websites for learning 

We see homework as an opportunity for parents/caregivers to enjoy learning with their children, and gain some insight into what is happening at school.  "The Basics” homework schedule provided by classes are:

 

Spelling

Learning the common words needed in our writing, so we can be faster, more accurate writers, or learning spelling patterns (long/short vowel patterns, word families, etc) so we can use these patterns in words we don’t know.

 

Reading

The more we read the better we will read and write. Enjoy the reading, don’t worry about teaching reading. Practice the strategy the child is working on in class. Ask the teacher if you are not sure what they are currently working on. Strategies can be using the first letter to guess the word; miss the unknown word – read on and then come back to see what word would make sense; understand the story by recalling the main points; predict the next part; etc. DON”T FORGET – reading to your child is still hugely important, no matter how old they are.

 

Maths

Basic facts. Quick and accurate recall of the maths. For younger ones that might be recognising the numbers and their names, through to older ones knowing all their times-tables in less than 3 minutes.

All students have access to an online resource called ‘Study Ladder’ which provides further opportunities for students to practice the basics. 

We firmly believe that time spent with your children exploring other activities and events outside of school is critical in a child’s development, and as such takes precedence over homework. If you have a hectic schedule of after school activities, do not put pressure on your child to complete all of the homework provided, but please write a note for the teacher so that they know why homework was not completed.  Homework should be enjoyable and not a long drawn out process. If you are spending more than 20-30 minutes a night total covering all 3 areas then talk to you child’s teacher about the homework.
 

Below we are creating an ever-expanding list of activities that parents and children could be doing together as "Homework”. Click on them and try some. Send us your own suggestions that we can add.

Year 1-3 Activities

Year 4-6 activities

Occasionally homework is not set by a teacher. The above activities could be done for homework that week. Alternatively ask your child to explain what they have been learning in maths, or reading, etc and get them to demonstrate to you how the teacher has shown them. This helps their understanding and your ability to give them examples to practice. REMEMBER –  it is about enjoyment, practice and sharing the learning together.