Tuesday 8 March 2016

Home learning

Kereru team Homework.
I have had some questions about homework so I will take the opportunity to answer them and explain about homework in the Kereru team........
Research tells us that not much is gained from 6 year olds doing lots of homework. But it is a good idea to get children into the habit of attending to some short, formal activities related to school from time to time.
READING: We expect children to read at home, to an adult, daily. This might be their reader from their group lesson, their independent reading book selected by them from a box below their instructional level which will be ‘easy’ for them, their library book which you may need to read to them, and on Friday it will be their poem book –yes believe it or not, this IS reading and you need to sign it to show you have either listened to them read their poems, or helped them to read them, or you may have read some of the poems to them.
If there is no book in the book bag, it does not mean no reading. It simply means that you should ask them to select a book from home to read to you, or for you to read to them.
Read to your child as often as possible for as many years as they will listen. My own daughter was still listening to stories when she was a teenager as she listened while I read to her younger brothers. She talks about those books still, many years later. Picture books are great for discussing pictures and stories. A family chapter book is a wonderful way to engage in conversation, in teaching children how to react to a mystery or a scary moment or a joyful one. Read in English or in your home language. Children need to hear the richness of language read by a competent reader.
SPELLING:  Home Learning Book:  In it will be a variety of guides for you to read. Please do so. There will be a list of spelling words which they can practise at home according to the guide. Three or four or five words a week is fine to learn. They should be able to tell you a sentence using the word, and they should be able to write the word. They may want to write a sentence using the words. They can practise this in the Home Learning Book using one double page a week. When they know the words (and this may take a week or more) they can tell me and I will check their progress. This is Home Learning and may not always be “marked.” We do not “test” these words. They are practised in class  in various ways, after the child has learned them.
BASIC FACTS: We expect the students to learn basic facts as set out in the guide in the Home Learning Book. Those who know their basic facts with instant recall are far better equipped to move along in Maths. Remember you can play number games in the car, walking the dog etc.
Mathletics: Tasks will be set according to the student’s level, once we get underway. One or two tasks a week is what is expected and if they are keen to do more, they can go onto Rainforest Maths on the Mathletics site. Plenty of excellent activities there.

We want our students to spend time playing outside, exploring, climbing, using balls and bats, running, having fun. From years of experience we know this makes for a far happier student than one which is made to sit doing Homework for long periods of time when they are only 5 or 6 years old. Please attend to the necessary items over a 10 to 15 minute timeframe , then let them play outside.    Thanks -     Jill Bonniface, Kereru Team Leader.

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