Homework

At The Long Eaton School, ‘Academic Excellence‘ is one of our core values, and one of the ways we believe that this can be achieved is through frequent and meaningful homework. Homework encourages the development of independent learning skills and allows students to take responsibility and ownership of their education. The regular completion of homework from Year 7 helps to prepare students for Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5 and, in turn, aids our students’ progression and development. In addition to this, a rigorous homework regime is fostered for the following reasons:

• The completion of regular tasks at home encourages the development of positive learning routines, developing the skills, confidence and motivation needed to study effectively on their own.
• Setting time aside for study involves a personal commitment to school and academic endeavour.
• Homework extends the time available for the curriculum and allows additional reading. It assists in meeting the needs of the coursework requirements of external exams.
• The completion and monitoring of homework encourages a partnership between parents and school.

What homework does my child receive?

Meaningful homework tasks are set on a regular basis by teachers and can be found at the beginning of each term’s Knowledge Organiser. When students engage with the homework tasks and complete them to a high standard, they will arrive to lessons with a better level of prior understanding.

Year 7, 8, 9 and 10:

At The Long Eaton School, Years 7 through to Year 10 will be given specific homework tasks through the Knowledge Organiser. The Knowledge Organisers are issued at the beginning of each term as a printed document and can also be found online. Students are expected to complete three homework sessions each week, which will take students on average between 45 minutes to one hour to complete. Each homework session is composed of tasks set by two different subjects, meaning there will be homework from six different subjects over the week. The tasks have been designed to support students in developing their ‘self quizzing’ skills, which will ultimately support them in completing better independent study and they will be able to use these skills in assessment revision.

Where should my child complete their homework?

Each student will be issued a homework wallet, which will contain a homework exercise book and the Knowledge Organiser for that term. Students need to neatly complete the homework tasks within their homework book. Students are expected to keep their homework wallet with them throughout each school day and then have them on their classroom table, so that they can use the Knowledge Organiser within lessons.

How is homework checked?

Every lesson at The Long Eaton School begins with a ‘Retrieve’ task which is completed in silence, to support students in retrieving information from their long-term memories. The ‘Retrieve’ tasks will feature questions based on the homework tasks, so that teachers can check the understanding of their students.

Students will also have their homework checked in the morning during Personal Development on a particular day of the week. Year 10 homework will be checked on a Monday, Year 9 on a Tuesday, Year 8 on a Wednesday and Year 7 on a Thursday. Ultimately, students will see the benefit of completing homework as their readiness for learning and their levels of understanding will greatly improve. However, if students do not complete their homework, then they will receive a 30-minute detention on the same day that their homework is checked. During this detention, students are expected to complete any missing homework. Should students need help with completing their homework, then there are many avenues of support available to them.

The video below provides a detailed overview of our homework strategy:

Year 11 and 16+:

Homework guidance will be communicated with all students through their subject teachers. As a minimum expectation, Year 11 students will receive a minimum of four homework sessions per week. However, it is likely that Year 11 students will receive more than four homework sessions per week.

As a minimum for Year 11, subject areas will set homework based on the timetable below:

For 16+ students, they will receive weekly homework and independent learning tasks aimed at a completion time of 4 hours per subject area.

How can you support your child with homework?

• Check GO 4 Schools and encourage your child to complete their homework in order of priority, completing the homework with the soonest due date first.
• Make sure your child has a quiet, well-lit place to do homework.
• Avoid having your child do homework with the television on or in places with other distractions.
• Be positive about homework.  Tell your child how important school is. The attitude you express about homework will be the attitude your child acquires.
• Help your child with time management. Establish a set time each day for doing homework. Don‘t let your child leave homework until just before bedtime.