Homework Policy
1. Why give Homework?
· To reinforce what the child learns during the day.
· To provide a link between teacher and parent.
· To develop a child’s concentration skills and develop a work ethic, especially to working on their own.
2. How often is homework given?
· Homework is given Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays. We give weekend homework as an immediate sanction for those pupils who misbehave during the week.
3. What is the context of homework?
· Ideally homework will contain a balance between reading, learning and written tasks.
· This balance is not always possible and can vary considerably from day to day. However, it should be noted that homework time devoted to reading and learning is as important as written work.
· Homework will regularly contain reading, spellings, tables, written work, pieces to be ‘learned by heart’ drawing/colouring, collecting information/items and finishing work started in class.
· Children often feel that reading and ‘learning by heart’ is not real homework. Parents can play an important role in listening to reading and items to be learned ensuring this work is done well.
4. How much (time) homework?
· The following are guidelines for time spent at homework
Junior/Senior homework to include work with words, rhyming actions and listening to reading
Junior/Senior Infants 10 to 20 mins
1st class 30 mins` 2nd class 30 mins
3rd class 40 mins 4th class 40 mins
5th class 1 hour 6th class 1 hour
5. How much help should parents give?
· Parents should try to help their children with homework by:
Providing them with a suitable place and time o do their homework
To prevent interruptions or distractions, like TV or other children
· Children should do written homework, the parents should help the child to overcome the difficulty with further explanation or examples, but not by actually doing the homework for the child. In this case the parent should write a note to the teacher explaining the problem.
6. How often should parents monitor homework?
· Parents should check and sign a child’s homework journal every evening.
· The pupil’s journal is an important record of the child’s homework. It is also a valuable means of communication between parents and teachers.
· Ideally all written messages to your child’s teacher should be put in the homework journal every day.
7. How often do teachers monitor homework?
· Ideally teachers like to check homework on a daily basis. However with large class numbers it is not always possible to check each child’s homework journal every day.
· As children get older and learn to work independently, some items of homework are checked less often e.g. every second day or once a week.
· Some items of homework (and classwork) may be checked by children themselves under the direction of the teacher. This can be a learning process for the children.
8. When should parents communicate with the teachers about homework?
· Your child cannot do homework due to family circumstances
· When your child cannot do homework because she/he cannot understand some aspect
· If the time being spent at homework is often longer than the recommended amount of time.
9. When should homework be done?
· Each family situation is different – both parents working, child minders etc. Ideally, homework should be done before any television is watched soon after school while your child is still fresh, however, some children need a break before starting homework. Homework should never be left until morning time before school.
A. Shared reading is not homework in the regular sense and it is simply meant to be an enjoyable exercise between parent and child. If it’s not enjoyable, shared reading should not be done.
B. If homework is a stressful experience between parent and child, something is wrong. This leads to poor learning and defects the whole purpose. Should this happen on a regular basis, please contact the class teacher.
