Home Learning

At The Castle School we believe that home learning is one of a range of teaching and learning styles available to us and is important for a number of reasons:

it encourages students to study on their own, building their independence, perseverance, self-discipline and organisation

it allows parents and other adults to become involved in their son or daughter's work

it can facilitate academic curiosity

consolidation of knowledge and practice of skills which can build confidence

more rapid progress can be made as more ground is covered

work in school can concentrate on activities requiring the teacher's presence

it enables the use of materials and information sources not available in the classroom.

What types of home learning tasks are set?

Home learning may take a variety of forms. It might involve writing, drawing, revising, memorising, reading, researching, practicing skills learnt in class, investigating, collecting data, completing a quiz etc. There will be some variety in the ways in which home learning tasks are set.

How will students and parents know which home learning tasks have been set?

At The Castle School we use Satchel One’s 'Show My Homework' online platform to record home learning tasks for students in years 7-11.

Students should log into their personal account regularly to see the details of home learning tasks which they have been set. These details will include task instruction and support links/materials, due date, the format in which they should submit the work and an estimated time for completion. Students can access their accounts, which show only the home learning tasks that they as an individual have been set, either via an App or computer.

As parents you will also be given personal log-in details to access this information about your child's home learning tasks.

This link will take you directly to the whole school homework calendar, where you can search for and view any homework tasks from across the school should you wish to do so:

https://www.satchelone.com/calendar/school

In Sixth Form we use Google Classroom to communicate home learning task instruction.

How can parents help with home learning?

There are many ways in which parents and carers can help: encouraging and supporting their child, checking presentation, handwriting and spelling, testing what has been set to be learnt, listening to them read what they have written, asking them to explain what they have been studying.

It is not helpful to do their work for them, but where there is difficulty, parents can help by talking through with their child what they think is needed or what they do not understand.

We ask parents to support us in seeing that homework is done conscientiously and in the best possible conditions. To do their homework well students need somewhere quiet, where they can sit comfortably, at a table to work.

Children work at different speeds and so home learning tasks will take longer for some than for others. If there is a repeated difficulty, we encourage parents to contact the subject teacher or form tutor. Similarly we will make contact if we are concerned about home learning problems which parents could help resolve.

How will home learning be assessed/monitored and rewarded?

Home learning tasks may be teacher marked, peer- assessed or self-assessed. Students’ learning may be checked through tests, presentations, performances or discussions. Teachers will record if tasks are submitted, not submitted or submitted late. This will be visible to both students and parents. Achievement points will be awarded for the completion of good homework to deadline

How often will home learning we set?

Home learning will be set at different times across the two-week timetable. As a rough guide, the table below outlines how much homework students should expect to receive:

For KS3 and KS4 students can expect to receive the following (approximate) amount of homework:

Faculty	Subject	Year 7	Year 8-9	Year 10	Year 11
Arts	Art	1 x per half term		1 x per fortnight (c. 2 hours)
	Dance	1 x per half term		1 x per fortnight (c. 2 hours)
	Drama	I or 2 x per termly unit (c. 30-40 mins)		1 x per week (c.60 mins)
	Media	N/A		1 x per fortnight (c. 2 hours)
	Music	N/A		1 x per week (c. 60 mins)
	Photography	N/A		1 x per fortnight (c. 2 hours)
BCH	Business	N/A		1 x per fortnight (up to 60 mins)
	HSC	N/A		1 x per fortnight (up to 60 mins)
English	English	2 x per fortnight (c. 30-45 mins each)		2 x per fortnight (c. 45-60 mins each)
Humanities	Geography	1 x per fortnight (c.30 mins)		1-2 x per fortnight (up to 60 mins)
	History	1 x per fortnight (c.30 mins)		1-2 x per fortnight (c.60-90 mins)
	RS	2 x per term (c. 30-45 mins)		1 x per fortnight (c.60 mins)
	Sociology	N/A		1-2 x per fortnight (up to 60 mins)
Maths	Maths	1 x per week (c. 30-45 mins)		1 x per week (c. 45 - 60 mins)
Modern Foreign Languages	French	1-2 x per fortnight (c. 30 mins)	1-2 x per fortnight (c. 30-40 mins)	1 x per week (c. 45 mins)
	German	1-2 x per fortnight (c. 30 mins)	1-2 x per fortnight (c. 30-40 mins)	1 x per week c. (45 mins)
Physical Education	Physical Education	Health Ed 1 x per fortnight	N/A	1-2 x per fortnight
Science	Science	1 x per fortnight (c. 30-45 min)		1 x per week (c. 45-60 mins)
Technology	Computing /ICT	1 x per half term (c. 30 mins)	1 x per half term (c. 30-40 mins)	1 x per fortnight (c. 30-40 mins)		1 x per fortnight (c. 40-60 mins)
	Technology	1x per fortnight (20-30 mins)		2 x per fortnight (60 mins)		1 x per week (40-60 mins)

Sixth Form : As a guide, students are expected to do approximately one hour’s independent work/home learning for every hour of teaching they have. Year 12 students are told that they should be aiming to do 20 hours of independent work per work by the end of year 12.

Where can students go for further information or additional resources?

Students should consult their teachers if they are unsure about home learning tasks, but they may also find help from the Resource Centre, and recommended websites. Below is some subject specific guidance.

Integra. Home Learning - Online resource for home learning, supporting parents to help their children when normal school attendance is disrupted and they are learning from home. It brings together a range of free and easy to access online activities and learning to support parents of children of all ages, clearly grouped into subjects and topics.

What types of home learning tasks are set?

Where can students go for further information or

additional resources?

Integra. Home Learning - Online resource for home learning, supporting parents to help their children when normal school attendance is disrupted and they are learning from home.

Resources are clearly grouped into subjects and topics.

https://www.integra.co.uk/home-learning

English

Reading, Research

Learning key words

Planning, drafting and revising pieces of writing

BBC Bitesize,

Skills Wise

Maths

Hegarty Maths - tayloered video tutorials, quizzes and revision tools.

Bitesize KS3

KS4