Homework

Schools provide homework for a variety of reasons. At Ditton Primary Academy School, we believe that regular opportunities to undertake homework can benefit our pupils for the following reasons:

• It consolidates the skills we have taught in class
• It allows pupils to explore areas of interest within a topic, encouraging independent study
• It gives parents an insight into the learning that is taking place in class
• It encourages partnerships between parents and teachers
• It further demonstrates that learning can be fun
• It prepares pupils for secondary school – both in terms of workload and organisation

For children at primary schools the guidelines are:

• Years 1 and 2: 1 hour per week
• Years 3 and 4: 1.5 hours per week
• Years 5 and 6: 30 minutes per day.

Homework is sent out on Friday and is returned on Wednesday.

Reception Pupils

We ask that children read at home at least three times a week and that this is recorded on Boom Reader.

Tapestry is updated each week and children are set a phonics and Maths task to complete at home. 

READING

Reading books are provided for all children along with a login for our online reading diary. Children's reading books are matched to each child's current reading ability and they are changed regularly.

We ask that children practise their reading at home and for parents or carers to log this in their online reading diary. We value any time spent reading with your child and any comments you add. Please ensure children bring their books to school everyday. 

Spellings

Weekly spellings will be sent home each Friday. The number and difficulty may vary from year group to year group and teachers sometimes have several groups of spellings depending on their children's ability.

Teachers inform children and parents/carers of test days and suggest strategies for learning such as LOOK SAY SPOT THE TRICKY BIT COVER WRITE CHECK. We recommend learning these over several days, returning regularly to the ones children find difficult.

Homework Tasks

This is usually a piece of Maths and English work that should be completed in your child's yellow homework book. Homework books are sent home on a Friday and should be returned to school by the following Wednesday morning.

Times Tables

We have provided all children from Years 3 to 6 with a log-in account for Times Table Rock Stars. This website allows children time to practice their times table facts. We would ask that children log-in and complete the online activities each week.

For those children who do not have access to the internet at home, we offer other opportunities to access. Your child's teacher can advise you on which multiplication tables your child needs to work on.

The shortcut below will take you to the log-in page for Times Table Rock Stars.

TTrockstars School Login

Parental Support

We are aware that, for many families ensuring that homework tasks are completed can be difficult at times especially when we are juggling work life and home life. We want our parents to feel as confident as our pupils about what is expected for each class. With this in mind, we have put together some pointers for parents:

1. Please don’t feel ‘burdened’ by homework! By the time children are in KS1, pupils confidently adopt classroom routines and take on greater responsibility. Our teachers are promoting independence for all year groups, but they will still remind children about reading books and homework.
2. Pupils know what to do if they get stuck. Part of the classroom discussion about homework includes strategies for overcoming common problems. For example, Who should you see if you are stuck? The Teacher. When should you see the teacher? Before the day it’s due in!
3. Pupils succeed when it’s fresh in their minds. As you might expect, most children find homework more manageable if they attempt it as soon as it is set, rather than waiting until the night before it is due to be handed in.
4. Helping a little helps a lot! We are delighted to have such supportive parents, who find the time to share in their children’s school activities. We would like to thank you for your input and reassure you that there is no such thing as getting it wrong!
5. Homework club is available on a Tuesday after school but must be booked by the end of Monday each week to ensure we have adequate staff available.
6. Help is out there. For parents of older children, you may find that it’s a struggle to develop a homework routine that is manageable; you might even dread it!

As a school, we don’t endorse any specific websites, but you may find articles, such as: 'The School Run - Simple Strategies to End Homework Wars' useful, so we thought we’d share it with you. Let us know if you find useful articles to share with other parents.