HOME LEARNING

 

At Diamond Creek Primary School we call homework, Home Learning. This is because we believe the tasks provided for children to complete at home are a purposeful extension to the children’s learning, not just more work for them to do.

 

When it comes to Home learning we endeavour to promote lifelong learning and connect families with what their child is learning at school. Meaningful home learning is a great way to promote real-life problem solving, logical thinking, creativity and imagination. We are also very realistic and believe it is important to have a balance between home learning provided and sufficient time for family and recreation activities.

 

The approach we take is varied across the school, and depends on the learning needs of each individual child, class and year level. The Home Learning material is linked to what each child is learning in class, so that parents can enjoy definite links with their child’s learning journey throughout the school year.

 

There are a variety of different learning opportunities when it comes to Home Learning ranging from reading with your child for enjoyment in the younger years, to completing inquiry projects in the senior years. Each year level outlines home learning expectations at the start of the year and we regularly monitor our approach based on feedback from teachers, students and our parents and carers.

 

Rationale:

• Home Learning benefits students by complementing classroom learning, fostering life-long study habits and providing an opportunity for students to be responsible for their own learning.

 

Aims:

• To support, consolidate and extend classroom learning.
• To develop positive study habits.
• To develop a responsibility for self-learning.

 

Implementation:

• The school’s Home Learning policy will be communicated to the school community.
• Each Area’s Home Learning expectations will be discussed at parent information sessions.
• Classroom teachers will set Home Learning appropriate to each student’s skill level and age.
• Each set task will be purposeful, meaningful and relevant to the current classroom curriculum.
• All Home Learning activities will be reviewed with appropriate feedback and support provided by teachers.
• The school’s website will include useful educational links for individual student / family choice.
• Home Learning is the student’s responsibility but parental support is to be encouraged.
• If the student has difficulty with any aspect of home learning this should be communicated to the student’s teacher.
• Unfinished class tasks, where the student has had appropriate class time to complete, may be required to be completed at home.

 

 

The details of Home Learning tasks for each different level are as follows:

 

Foundation

• At the Foundation level, Home Learning will consist mainly of:
• Reading each night to, with and by parents
• Revision and practise of sight words and codes

 

Years 1.2

• At levels 1 and 2, Home Learning will consist mainly of:
• Reading activities to, with and by parents.
• Weekly spelling and maths tasks
• Simple consolidation and extension tasks associated with classroom activities
• Projects will not be assigned to grade 1.2 students
• Home Learning task for students at levels 1 and 2 will generally not exceed 15 minutes per day and will not be set on weekends or during holidays

 

Years 3.4

• At Levels 3 and 4, Home Learning will consist mainly of:
• Reading on a daily basis; independently or with assistance as required
• Weekly spelling tasks
• Times tables and number facts practice
• Any projects assigned will be largely school-based projects and only assigned after the notion of a project and research has been introduced through the experience of completing a project in its entirety at school.
• Home Learning tasks for students at levels 3 and 4 will vary upon the classroom focus at the time and will generally not exceed 30 minutes per day.
• Students at levels 3 and 4 who do not return their home learning tasks by the due date will receive an appropriate consequence.

 

Years 5.6

• At Levels 5 and 6, Home Learning will consist mainly of:
• Reading on a daily basis; independently or with assistance as required
• Weekly spelling tasks
• Times tables and number facts practice
• An independent Inquiry project which will be assigned each term, based on the unit of study being undertaken. This project will form part of the classroom assessment schedule.
• Home Learning tasks for students at levels 5 and 6 will vary upon the classroom focus at the time and will generally not exceed 45 minutes per day (which includes 20 minutes of reading).
• Students at levels 5 and 6 who do not return their home learning tasks by the due date will receive an appropriate consequence
• Personal iPads will be used for some Home Learning tasks

 

Evaluation:

• This policy will be reviewed as part of the five-year review cycle.