Homework Hints To Help Your Child Succeed in Division 1
Homework will be assigned from school each day but if you feel that your child could benefit form extra practice at home here are some ideas from current research have been compiled together for you to use at home to enhance student learning. Please use the ideas provided, as you feel fit. Because one of our goals as educator and parent/guardian is to build a desire in our kids to learn and motivate them to do their best at all they do, parents are encouraged to ‘test’ out their kids before insisting that extra work is necessary at the end of a full school day. If you know that your child can handle the extra work and will be able to effectively complete the work then go for it. If you sense that your child is irritated and/or his/her attention span is not 100% focused on the task then he or she may be too tired. There may also be a need for some adjustments as to where the child is doing homework or to the type of work that’s being completed. Try out the activities below with your child, give them some choice in what they do to make the work meaningful to
them and have fun. Learning and spending time with your child while they are learning can be magical.
Journal Writing- have your child keep a diary or journal that they can write in everyday or when they feel like writing. Topics
could include any problems they are having, anything they may be excited about or creative writing time where they could write stories, poems, etc. You may even want to use it as a communication book for you and your child if you are noticing that they are not ‘into’ talking to you about how their day went. Encouraging your child to be specific and detailed in his/her writing will help develop strong communication skills with writing.
Reading Reviews- reading books at home is essential to increase your child’s reading ability. Any genre of writing will expose your child to rich ideas and build a sense of appreciation for reading and writing. Allowing your child to choose his/her own books will work to ensure that they are interested. As you are reading to your child read, you will find teachable moments to extend your child’s learning, encouraging your child to tell you about it (verbally or written) will help to ensure that your child understands what he/she is reading.
Word searches- these activities are fun to do as a race or when traveling. They help kids notice patterns in spelling, think of new meanings for words and help increase vocabulary. If you have the opportunity to go through the words with your child, to ensure understanding of the meanings of the words, this activity can be very rewarding.
Family games- these fun and valuable moments spent together as a family can be made into an educational experience. Almost any game can be made into a learning activity. Some popular examples may be: Snake and Ladders, Hangman, various card games (dealing with adding sums together), Scattergories, etc. **Have the child keep score to build even more math skills! The best thing about games is that the child does not even realize that he/she is learning so they often don’t complain.
Scrapbooks- Your child can keep a record of pictures (taken or drawn), pamphlets, interesting facts learned, etc. of places and things that they did on family trips or outings they did during the day (parade, birthday party, sleepover, movie). Be sure to have your child
write about the event using as much detail as they can. To help motivate your child you may want to try giving them as much choice in what they can write about or about the events that are to be included in the writing.
Recipes- Have your child read you the recipe or follow the instructions when helping you cook.
Grocery lists- This could be a time to help develop responsibility in your child. Have them look through cupboards/fridge/ pantry to see what is needed. They could make a list with you about what is needed for the next week and then search and develop a list to take to the store. They are also working on need vs. want in class this year and are aware of healthy vs. Non-healthy which you could remind them about when they are doing this.
Spelling Practice- You can encourage your child to practice for spelling tests doing the one or more of the following:
1. Read and spell each word. Cover it up and write it. Uncover the word and check to see if it is correct
2. Find the words on the spelling list in printed materials such as books and magazines
3. You read the word aloud and ask your child to spell it (either aloud or written on paper)
If there is anything else I can do for you please let me know. I look forward to continuing to work with you and your child for a
successful year in grade One!
Mrs. MacKinnon
Homework will be assigned from school each day but if you feel that your child could benefit form extra practice at home here are some ideas from current research have been compiled together for you to use at home to enhance student learning. Please use the ideas provided, as you feel fit. Because one of our goals as educator and parent/guardian is to build a desire in our kids to learn and motivate them to do their best at all they do, parents are encouraged to ‘test’ out their kids before insisting that extra work is necessary at the end of a full school day. If you know that your child can handle the extra work and will be able to effectively complete the work then go for it. If you sense that your child is irritated and/or his/her attention span is not 100% focused on the task then he or she may be too tired. There may also be a need for some adjustments as to where the child is doing homework or to the type of work that’s being completed. Try out the activities below with your child, give them some choice in what they do to make the work meaningful to
them and have fun. Learning and spending time with your child while they are learning can be magical.
Journal Writing- have your child keep a diary or journal that they can write in everyday or when they feel like writing. Topics
could include any problems they are having, anything they may be excited about or creative writing time where they could write stories, poems, etc. You may even want to use it as a communication book for you and your child if you are noticing that they are not ‘into’ talking to you about how their day went. Encouraging your child to be specific and detailed in his/her writing will help develop strong communication skills with writing.
Reading Reviews- reading books at home is essential to increase your child’s reading ability. Any genre of writing will expose your child to rich ideas and build a sense of appreciation for reading and writing. Allowing your child to choose his/her own books will work to ensure that they are interested. As you are reading to your child read, you will find teachable moments to extend your child’s learning, encouraging your child to tell you about it (verbally or written) will help to ensure that your child understands what he/she is reading.
Word searches- these activities are fun to do as a race or when traveling. They help kids notice patterns in spelling, think of new meanings for words and help increase vocabulary. If you have the opportunity to go through the words with your child, to ensure understanding of the meanings of the words, this activity can be very rewarding.
Family games- these fun and valuable moments spent together as a family can be made into an educational experience. Almost any game can be made into a learning activity. Some popular examples may be: Snake and Ladders, Hangman, various card games (dealing with adding sums together), Scattergories, etc. **Have the child keep score to build even more math skills! The best thing about games is that the child does not even realize that he/she is learning so they often don’t complain.
Scrapbooks- Your child can keep a record of pictures (taken or drawn), pamphlets, interesting facts learned, etc. of places and things that they did on family trips or outings they did during the day (parade, birthday party, sleepover, movie). Be sure to have your child
write about the event using as much detail as they can. To help motivate your child you may want to try giving them as much choice in what they can write about or about the events that are to be included in the writing.
Recipes- Have your child read you the recipe or follow the instructions when helping you cook.
Grocery lists- This could be a time to help develop responsibility in your child. Have them look through cupboards/fridge/ pantry to see what is needed. They could make a list with you about what is needed for the next week and then search and develop a list to take to the store. They are also working on need vs. want in class this year and are aware of healthy vs. Non-healthy which you could remind them about when they are doing this.
Spelling Practice- You can encourage your child to practice for spelling tests doing the one or more of the following:
1. Read and spell each word. Cover it up and write it. Uncover the word and check to see if it is correct
2. Find the words on the spelling list in printed materials such as books and magazines
3. You read the word aloud and ask your child to spell it (either aloud or written on paper)
If there is anything else I can do for you please let me know. I look forward to continuing to work with you and your child for a
successful year in grade One!
Mrs. MacKinnon