Making homework fun at St Winning's Primary
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When 5-year-old Nathan Miller enjoys a game of football in the park with his mum and cuddly toy Hamish, the 'Highland Coo', the emphasis is firmly placed on fun. Yet while Nathan enjoys the games, he is also embarking on a very positive learning experience.
When they return home, Nathan and mum Juliet will sit down together and write about their activities with Hamish in the 'big book', adding photos and illustrations. 'Nathan, being in P1, struggles a wee bit with confidence and bringing home these things gets him to talk more about what he's doing at school, and it also helps us to get more involved,' says Juliet. Nathan will then treat his class to a presentation about his adventures with Hamish.
This fun project is part of an initiative at St Winning's Primary School that is designed to encourage parents and carers to get involved in their children's education through a series of engaging homework activities. The emphasis is very much on active learning, whereby children learn through experience and through play.
Sharing practice
The idea came when an infant teacher at the school attended a sharing practice conference organised by the local authority. Aiming to foster stronger links between home and school, the project centres on literacy. Children take home a cuddly toy each week and document its adventures with the help of their parents. In the early stages parents complete most of the writing, with their child learning along the way. By P2 and P3 pupils are able to take over the writing themselves with minimal support.
The school has also developed a maths initiative which involves quick quizzes, in which parent and child must answer as many questions as possible against the clock. The fast pace keeps the children interested and adds a fun element to the subject. The school has also set up a maths-game lending library which allows children to take math games with question cards home to play with their family. Caroline Frew has greatly enjoyed working through the games with her children Ciara and Bradley.
'You bring in real-life contexts when you’re doing it in a home environment. You're saying to them as an adult how you're using maths in a daily context, and it’s putting paths for future learning in place.'
Positive results
Teachers at St Winning's are also delighted with the results. Since the initiative started, they have noticed that parents are more willing to approach the school to discuss any concerns or issues they may have, whilst the children are more enthusiastic about the learning process. The school now plans to develop more active homework projects at all stages to maintain the welcoming environment they have so successfully created.
Of course, the biggest benefit lies in creating a positive environment for learning both at home and at school. 'It's about working together as a family and spending quality time', says Caroline. 'It's unusual but I have my children coming home saying, 'Mum, we want to do our homework!' That has to be a good thing.'