Homework Policy

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Aims

To reinforce work covered in school.
To promote self-discipline as a life skill.
To help with retention of facts.
To encourage parental involvement in process of education.
Diary to be signed each night on completion of work.
Reading, learning and oral work is as important as written work. Please listen to your child read and examine spellings and tables.

Subjects & Time

Junior / Senior Infants 10-20 mins.
Showing work done in school, reading activity, etc.
1st & 2nd Classes 30 – 40 mins.
Reading, spellings, tables, maths/written activity every night.
3rd & 4th Classes 1hr aprox.
Reading, spellings, tables, maths, writing activity every night.
5th & 6th Classes 1 hr – 2hrs
As for 3rd & 4th Classes and other subjects depending on work done in class.
Project work will be given to pupils to do – research, etc. in their own time.

How often is homework given?

Homework is given on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, but not on Fridays. There are two exceptions:
- if homework has been neglected during the week
- in senior classes some project work is undertaken at weekends
Sometimes at the discretion of the class teacher or the principal, children are given “homework off” as a treat or as acknowledgement of some special occasion.
Please note homework may sometimes be given during the week or at the weekend if a child has not completed homework, had not made an honest effort or presented untidy work.

What is the content of homework?

Ideally homework will contain a balance between reading tasks, learning tasks 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 well done.

How much help should parents give?

Parents should try to help their children with homework by:
- providing them with a suitable place and time to do their homework
- to prevent interruptions or distractions, like T.V. or excessive noise/interruptions from brothers/sisters/friends (children)
Children should do written homework themselves and parents should only help when the child has difficulty.
If a child has difficulty with homework, 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.
Shared reading is not homework in the regular sense and it is simply meant to be an enjoyable exercise between parent and child.

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.
Please check that your child records his/her homework neatly in the correct page and ticks each item of homework when completed.
Please check your child’s journal for notes on a regular basis.

How often do teachers monitor homework?

Ideally teachers like to check homework and homework journal on a daily basis. However with large class numbers it is not always possible to check each child’s homework and 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 per week.
Some items of homework (and classwork) may be checked by children themselves under the direction of the teacher. This can be a useful part of the learning process for children.

When should parents communicate with the teachers about homework?

When your child cannot do homework due to family circumstances.
When your child cannot do homework after an honest attempt because she/he cannot understand some aspect.
If the time being spent at homework is often longer than the recommended amount of time.

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 alert, however, some children need a break before starting homework.
Homework should never be left until morning time before school.

Remember!

If homework is a stressful experience between parent and child, something is wrong! This leads to poor learning and defeats the whole purpose. Should this happen on a regular basis, please contact the class teacher.

Where exceptional circumstances prevent the completion of homework, please forward an explanatory note to the teacher.