ST PETER’S SCHOOL HOMEWORK POLICY

Introduction
St Peter’s School values effective homework and thinks that learning at home is an essential part of good education. We believe that it can play a significant role in improving learning and raising achievement. It supports the development of independent study skills, including the habits of enquiry and investigation and supports the learning that is taking place at school.
Aims:

To encourage the skills needed for independent learning
To develop students’ study skills
To promote student self-discipline
To consolidate knowledge and understanding gained in lessons
To practise skills learnt in lessons – to encourage learning by doing
To develop the partnership between student/parent/teacher at St. Peter’s
To manage particular curriculum demands, such as GCSE course work.
To complete work not suited to classrooms

Amount of Homework
The approximate amount of time for Homework is given below. It is based upon DCFS recommendations. However, the precise amount of time that may need to be devoted to activities will vary from student to student.

Year	Time allocation	Approximate Weekly Time
Years 7	20 Minutes per subject	3 to 4 Hours
Year 8 and 9	30 Minutes per subject	5 to 6 Hours
Years 10 and 11	45 Minutes per subject	7 to 8 Hours*
Years 12 and 13	5 Hours per A/ AS level	15 hours to 20 hours**

*This may vary at certain times of the year, for example leading up to exams and during coursework.
** This includes work done during study periods.

Setting Homework

Homework will normally be set once per week. However, sometimes the homework will be an 'extended task' to be worked on over a longer period of time. This should be entered for every week for the extended task. In some subjects homework will be set in smaller “chunks” as for Languages.

Teachers:

Set homework for each year group/subject as per the above table.
Do Not usually ask students to complete homework for the next day. This will support the students as they develop the important skill of planning their use of time to include their other activities, and leaving enough time to ask their teacher for help with their homework if they need it.
Set homework during the body of the lesson not at the end to allow time for students to copy it into their organiser
Communicate homework set effectively e.g. by writing it on the board, using stickers or homework sheets stuck in the students’ books.
Identify days when homework is set and when it is handed in, this will normally remain the same throughout the year. This helps students plan their time effectively and develop good patterns of study.

Student Organiser
Organisers provide a convenient means of home/school communication. Parents can use them to send messages to Mentors or class teachers and vice versa.
Students must take their Organiser to all lessons and are expected to record all homework set and the date for completion. They are expected to look after their Organiser, keeping it in a good condition without graffiti, for example.
Rewards and Sanctions.
We expect homework to be completed and to be handed in on time. This gives students valuable experience of working to deadlines and helps staff with their marking schedules.
Good quality homework will be recognised in line with the school's rewards policy. If homework is not completed, then sanctions in line with the Behaviour for Learning policy will be applied.

Supporting Your Child With Their Homework
Parents can help the school make homework more effective by doing the following:

Sign the Organiser on a weekly basis, preferably at the weekend. The Organiser should also be used to communicate with the school (for example, providing absence notes in the allocated space).

Provide a reasonably peaceful, suitable place in which students can do their homework or help students attend other places where homework can be done, such as homework clubs or local library.
Provide a suitable bag to help transport books and equipment to and from school.
Make it clear to your child that you value homework, and support the school in explaining how it can help them make progress at school.
Encourage your child and praise them when they have completed homework.
Expect deadlines to be met and check that they are.
Inform the Achievement Director if they have any concerns about homework.

The amount of time spent on a given homework will vary from student to student and with the different activities set. Sometimes a student may complete an activity quickly whilst at others it may take longer.
What to do if:
Your child has tried but is unable to complete the homework within a reasonable time
Parents should note this in the student’s Organiser and stop the student from working. Students need to be fresh for school the next morning if they are to learn effectively.
Your child does not understand a homework task
They should

Speak to a friend to see if they can help
Ask the subject teacher before the work is due to be handed in
Talk to their mentor

Your child has forgotten their homework

Apologise to the teacher at the start of the lesson
Give the work in the next day
They will receive a C1

Extended Learning

Students have different levels of commitment out of school and different experiences open to them. The school values many of these experiences and this section is an attempt to both recognise them and encourage students to broaden their experiences. Together with the opportunities offered by the school and through the extended school (Wednesday afternoon) these activities will benefit all students develop in areas not in the “normal school curriculum”

Students are to record as part of their self-assessment when they have taken advantage of one of the opportunities listed below. Staff or parents should then sign to indicate that this has taken place. Mentor will allocate rewards based on the level of commitment.

The Student organiser HW page has been adjusted to allow parents and staff to sign off on a weekly basis student involvement in extended activities. Students will then not only receive recognition for this involvement through praise points but will also be able to use it as evidence for their personal statement on the full report.

Activity	Signature	Activity	Signature
E-learning		Leadership/Team work
Enrichment		Healthy bodies
Community		Culture and citizenship

Below is a list of the types of activity that can be included in each section. The list is not exhaustive and recognition should be made for activities outside of this list. Work in school and out of school should be recognised. Activities can count in more than one area.
e.g. Captain of a school team covers leadership and healthy bodies

E-learning

This gives students additional opportunities to learn independently using a number of packages as well as the internet and school intranet. e.g.

E-folio (The schools own Intranet site)
My maths www.mymaths.com Your Maths teacher will give you the log in details for this site
BBC bitesize www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize
English on-line www.englishonline.co.uk Your English teacher will give you the log in details for this site

Enrichment activities

Wednesday afternoons
Leading edge activities
Able and talented activities
Other learning experiences outside of the normal curriculum

Community

Student voice e.g. membership of School or Year Council, peer mentoring etc
Supporting at school and community events e.g. open evenings, school events
Membership of school and external clubs
Caring for other family members
Helping in community on a voluntary basis

Leadership and teamwork

Student leaders (prefect)
Year /form reps on school council
Team sports
D of E
JSLA
Guides/Scouts etc

Healthy bodies

Sporting activities
Healthy eating
First aid/life saving courses

Culture and citizenship

Theatre, Museum, overseas trips
Music, art, drama, clubs and extra curricular activities
Reading
Radio station etc

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