Home Learning

As part of the 2021 Home Learning review the community, teachers, and students were all given questions to determine their views and opinions surrounding the current Home Learning in place at Newlands Primary School. The response rate was positive and allowed for some in-depth analysis of what was needed going forwards. 

Based on the responses received, the community wanted to see a form of Home Learning remain, and felt that it was of benefit. The community saw value in the current Reading and Spelling procedures and would like to see more Maths tasks going forwards.

Newlands Primary School defines Home Learning as any activity that your child has been asked to complete outside of their time at school. This may be an independent task or one which requires some adult supervision.

While Home Learning often focuses on Reading, Writing, and Maths, it may also include more topic focused activities.

Home Learning is focused predominantly on opportunities for practice rather than the introduction of new learning. However, within the context of an activity, students may naturally lead their own exploration of new concepts.

Daily Reading at Home

Children will bring a book home each day to read. This is a book they have read with their teacher in a guided reading lesson. On Fridays, they will bring home their Poem Book to read the ‘poem of the week’ and other favourites.

Daily Spelling Practice

Each child will have three to five new weekly spelling words which are written in their home learning book. Children need to spend time practising and learning these at home ready for their test on Friday.

Daily Reading at Home

Reading may include text from the children’s guided reading lesson, personal reading such as a chapter book, or online text such as Sunshine Online. 

Daily Spelling Practice

Each child will have five new weekly spelling words which they have written in their home learning book. Children need to spend time practising and learning these at home ready for their test on Friday. 

Daily Reading at Home

Reading may include texts sent home by the school, online reading or assigned ‘personal’ reading. We want to foster children who love reading which includes allowing them to choose genres that they enjoy. 

Daily Spelling Practice

Each child will have 10 new weekly spelling words which they can access at home through Google Drive. Children need to spend time practising and learning these at home ready for their test on Friday.

For the remainder of the 2021 school year we will be trialling an online Home Learning Portal for the Te Pihi and Te Kohuri syndicates. Some of these activities are ones your child can choose to complete of their own accord, and some activities will have set tasks assigned to them. On the online portal, it explains below each activity what type of task it is. 

Link to the online Home Learning Portal

If there are any technical difficulties with this new portal please contact Emma Blake at emma@newlandsprimary.school.nz