Homework policy

“The school’s caring and inclusive atmosphere fosters good relationships with pupils and their parents.” OFSTED July 2017

At St. Augustine’s, we believe that homework enables our children to share and deepen their learning with parents and carers.

We teach children to develop as responsible and independent learners. Our expectation that homework will be completed to a deadline and to a high standard is one way that we can help children to acquire the skill of independent learning and prepare them well for the more formal homework tasks which follow at secondary school.

We try to make homework tasks varied and to give our children the opportunity to present their homework in different ways.

We always link our homework to the learning which has taken place in school. Homework activities will focus on practising, applying and consolidating skills that have been taught in school.

We will always make homework tasks accessible to everyone by differentiating or adapting homework activities.

We will ensure that homework is set every week and will notify you if any changes are made to this policy.

Click here for our Homework Policy

Lower School Homework

(Years 3 and 4) READING

  • Rewards are given for reading regularly. We expect children in lower school to read to an adult at home AT LEAST 3 TIMES A WEEK. Please make a note in your child’s reading record book when you read with them at home and add any comments you wish to make to your child’s class teacher about your child’s progress in reading.
  • Children may also complete a book review at home if they wish by taking a “Recommended Reads” sheet home or completing an online version available on “Google Classroom”

 

SPELLING – GIVEN ON A THURSDAY, RETURNED THE FOLLOWING THURSDAY

  • Weekly spelling rules will be taught in class. All children will receive a sheet linked to the spelling rule along with their “Practise Book” on a THURSDAY. We expect children to use this book to practise the weekly spelling rule however they wish eg. They can write the words in sentences/ write definitions of the words/ find other words which contain the same spelling pattern etc. Practise books need to be brought to school the following THURSDAY when a knowledge of the spelling rule will be tested.

 

MATHS – GIVEN ON A THURSDAY, RETURNED THE FOLLOWING WEDNESDAY

  • A thorough knowledge of multiplication facts is vital at this stage. Maths homework in lower school will be related to this, to be completed in their maths homework book. Children are expected to spend no less than 20 minutes on their maths homework.

 

TERMLY TOPIC BASED HOMEWORK

One topic related, open ended creative project will be set at the beginning of each term. The children have a half term to complete and return this homework to give enough time for it to be shared and celebrated in school.

 

Upper School Homework

(Years 5 and 6) READING

  • Rewards are given for reading regularly. We expect children in upper school to read independently at home AT LEAST 3 TIMES A WEEK. In addition to this, we expect children at this stage to be able to read aloud confidently with appropriate expression. We request that you listen to your child read aloud AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK. Please make a note in your child’s reading record book when you have listened to them at home and add any comments you wish to make to your child’s class teacher about your child’s progress in “performance reading aloud.”
  • Children may also complete a book review at home if they wish by taking a “Recommended Reads” sheet home or completing an online version available on “Google Classroom”

 

SPELLING – GIVEN ON A THURSDAY, RETURNED THE FOLLOWING THURSDAY

  • Weekly spelling rules will be taught in class. All children will receive a sheet linked to the spelling rule along with their “Practise Book” on a THURSDAY. We expect children to use this book to practise the weekly spelling rule however they wish eg. They can write the words in sentences/ write definitions of the words/ find other words which contain the same spelling pattern etc. Practise books need to be brought to school the following THURSDAY when a knowledge of the spelling rule will be tested.

 

MATHS – GIVEN ON A THURSDAY, RETURNED THE FOLLOWING WEDNESDAY

  • Maths homework in upper school will focus on practising and applying maths concepts which have been taught in class. This homework should be completed in their maths homework book. Children are expected to spend no less than 30 minutes on their maths homework.

 

 

EXTRA “SATs” PREPARATION MATERIAL MAY BE GIVEN AS HOMEWORK TO YEAR 6 DURING THE AUTUMN AND SPRING TERMS.

TERMLY TOPIC BASED HOMEWORK

  • One topic related, open ended creative project will be set at the beginning of each term. The children have a half term to complete and return this homework to give enough time for it to be shared and celebrated in school.

 

PARENTS AND CARERS

  • We expect that parents support their child to complete homework on time, using an appropriate pen or pencil (not felt tip/crayon etc.).
  • If you have any queries about any aspect of your child’s homework, or your child is experiencing difficulty in completing homework, we ask that you contact his/her class teacher in the first instance.
  • If for any reason a child is unable to complete their homework, a parent or carer should contact their child’s class teacher. Children will be expected to complete outstanding homework during Friday break time.

End of Key Stage 2 Expectations

In order to be awarded the expected standard, a child needs to show they consistently meet all the standards recorded below.

READING

  • read age-appropriate books with confidence and fluency (including whole novels)
  • read aloud with intonation that shows understanding
  • work out the meaning of words from the context
  • explain and discuss their understanding of what they have read, drawing inferences and justifying these with evidence
  • predict what might happen from details stated and implied
  • retrieve information from non-fiction
  • summarise main ideas, identifying key details and using quotations for illustration
  • evaluate how authors use language, including figurative language, considering the impact on the reader
  • make comparisons within and across books
WRITING

  • creating atmosphere, and integrating dialogue to convey character and advance the action
  • selecting vocabulary and grammatical structures that reflect the level of formality required mostly correctly
  • using a range of cohesive devices*, including adverbials, within and across sentences and paragraphs
  • using passive and modal verbs mostly appropriately
  • using a wide range of clause structures, sometimes varying their position within the sentence
  • using adverbs, prepositional phrases and expanded noun phrases effectively to add detail, qualification and precision
  • using inverted commas, commas for clarity, and punctuation for parenthesis mostly correctly, and making some correct use of semi-colons, dashes, colons and hyphens
  • spelling most words correctly* (years 5 and 6)
  • maintaining legibility, fluency and speed in handwriting through choosing whether or not to join specific letters.
MATHS

  • The pupil can demonstrate an understanding of place value, including large numbers and decimals (e.g. what is the value of the ‘7’ in 276,541?; find the difference between the largest and smallest whole numbers that can be made from using three digits; 8.09 = 8 + 9 ?; 28.13 = 28 + + 0.03).
  • The pupil can calculate mentally, using efficient strategies such as manipulating expressions using commutative and distributive properties to simplify the calculation (e.g. 53 – 82 + 47 = 53 + 47 – 82 = 100 – 82 = 18; 20 × 7 × 5 = 20 × 5 × 7 = 100 × 7 = 700; 53 ÷ 7 + 3 ÷ 7 = (53 +3) ÷ 7 = 56 ÷ 7 = 8). • The pupil can use formal methods to solve multi-step problems (e.g. find the change from £20 for three items that cost £1.24, £7.92 and £2.55; a roll of material is 6m long: how much is left when 5 pieces of 1.15m are cut from the roll?; a bottle of drink is 1.5 litres, how many cups of 175ml can be filled from the bottle, and how much drink is left?).
  • The pupil can recognise the relationship between fractions, decimals and percentages and can express them as equivalent quantities (e.g. one piece of cake that has been cut into 5 equal slices can be expressed as 1 5 or 0.2 or 20% of the whole cake).
  • The pupil can calculate using fractions, decimals or percentages (e.g. knowing that 7 divided by 21 is the same as 7 21 and that this is equal to 1 3; 15% of 60; 11 2 + 3 4; 7 9 of 108; 0.8 x 70).
  • The pupil can substitute values into a simple formula to solve problems (e.g. perimeter of a rectangle or area of a triangle).
  • The pupil can calculate with measures (e.g. calculate length of a bus journey given start and end times; convert 0.05km into m and then into cm).
  • The pupil can use mathematical reasoning to find missing angles (e.g. the missing angle in an isosceles triangle when one of the angles is given; the missing angle in a more complex diagram using knowledge about angles at a point and vertically opposite angles).