Welcome to the wonderful world of homework!
Homework Overview
The most important thing that students can do at home to be successful in Grade 1 is to read every night. In addition to reading, I will also provide an online math activity and activities to help master the sound we are learning in class each week. Please note that since I cannot assess or evaluate any work that is completed at home, students are not required to submit completed homework to me, and homework will not be marked. Completing the work that is provided will be beneficial to your child, but it is up to each family to determine what works for them. If your child has any questions about the homework I am more than happy to work with them to clarify any questions or support their learning.
The homework activities are described in more detail below:
Lecture - every night - reading log to be submitted as each level is completed
Every night your child will be sent home with a levelled French book to practice their reading. Please have them read aloud to a parent or older sibling. Even if you are unable to read in French, you should be able to recognize if your child is struggling with a book. If you notice that your child is having difficulty with a specific book, please indicate as such on the reading log and I will help them select a more appropriate level. Reading at home should feel “smooth” and “comfortable” for your child; if this is not the case, please let me know.
Students will be assigned a reading level, and will be given a log to track the books read and the number of minutes spent reading at this level. Please colour in one box for every ten minutes that your child spends reading. Talking about a book before or after reading also counts toward reading minutes. The expected number of minutes will rise with each level to correspond with the increased length of the books.
As a class, we will be keeping a running total of our hours of reading throughout the year and trying to meet our goal of 300 hours. As soon as a reading level is completed, please send it to school so that it can be added to our total and so that your child can be given the next level.
Sound of the Week - does not need to be submitted
Students will practice reading a short text including the sound studied in class during the previous week. They should read it every night and try to become comfortable and fluent reading it. There will also be 5 words containing the sound that students should practice reading and spelling. You can practice these any way you choose, some ideas may include copying the words, tracing the vowels and consonants in different colours, highlighting the sound of the week in the word, building the words with scrabble tiles or other letter manipulatives, building the words with playdough, stamping the words, etc. Lastly, your child will also receive the Jolly Phonics page for the sound we have been studying, and can colour the page and practice printing the sound and doing the accompanying action.
Prodigy Math - does not need to be submitted
All students will have an account on Prodigy Math, which is an online game that is linked directly to the Ontario Mathematics Curriculum. In order to play the game and advance in the levels, students are required to answer math questions and challenges. There are options to pay for a premium membership, but this is unnecessary. Students will always be able to access all math components of the game at no cost. Each week I will be able to assign specific questions related to the content we are working on in math class, and once students have completed those questions the game will automatically give them other questions that span the 5 strands of the curriculum. The better your child does, the more challenging the questions will become.
Occasionally I may assign a different math game or task to be completed as homework, but Prodigy will be the major component of the math homework. It can be accessed on a computer, tablet or smart phone but does require internet access. If your child is unable to access the internet to play Prodigy, please let me know so that I can arrange an alternative.
Incomplete Work
Students who are unable to complete their work during class time will sometimes be asked to complete it at home. I understand that it is not always possible to complete the work the night it is brought home. If your child is unable to complete the work in one evening, please return it to school the next day with a note. This allows your child to work on the next steps or continue to use other pages in their notebook at school the next day. I will simply send the unfinished work home the following night for a second opportunity to complete it.
The most important thing that students can do at home to be successful in Grade 1 is to read every night. In addition to reading, I will also provide an online math activity and activities to help master the sound we are learning in class each week. Please note that since I cannot assess or evaluate any work that is completed at home, students are not required to submit completed homework to me, and homework will not be marked. Completing the work that is provided will be beneficial to your child, but it is up to each family to determine what works for them. If your child has any questions about the homework I am more than happy to work with them to clarify any questions or support their learning.
The homework activities are described in more detail below:
Lecture - every night - reading log to be submitted as each level is completed
Every night your child will be sent home with a levelled French book to practice their reading. Please have them read aloud to a parent or older sibling. Even if you are unable to read in French, you should be able to recognize if your child is struggling with a book. If you notice that your child is having difficulty with a specific book, please indicate as such on the reading log and I will help them select a more appropriate level. Reading at home should feel “smooth” and “comfortable” for your child; if this is not the case, please let me know.
Students will be assigned a reading level, and will be given a log to track the books read and the number of minutes spent reading at this level. Please colour in one box for every ten minutes that your child spends reading. Talking about a book before or after reading also counts toward reading minutes. The expected number of minutes will rise with each level to correspond with the increased length of the books.
As a class, we will be keeping a running total of our hours of reading throughout the year and trying to meet our goal of 300 hours. As soon as a reading level is completed, please send it to school so that it can be added to our total and so that your child can be given the next level.
Sound of the Week - does not need to be submitted
Students will practice reading a short text including the sound studied in class during the previous week. They should read it every night and try to become comfortable and fluent reading it. There will also be 5 words containing the sound that students should practice reading and spelling. You can practice these any way you choose, some ideas may include copying the words, tracing the vowels and consonants in different colours, highlighting the sound of the week in the word, building the words with scrabble tiles or other letter manipulatives, building the words with playdough, stamping the words, etc. Lastly, your child will also receive the Jolly Phonics page for the sound we have been studying, and can colour the page and practice printing the sound and doing the accompanying action.
Prodigy Math - does not need to be submitted
All students will have an account on Prodigy Math, which is an online game that is linked directly to the Ontario Mathematics Curriculum. In order to play the game and advance in the levels, students are required to answer math questions and challenges. There are options to pay for a premium membership, but this is unnecessary. Students will always be able to access all math components of the game at no cost. Each week I will be able to assign specific questions related to the content we are working on in math class, and once students have completed those questions the game will automatically give them other questions that span the 5 strands of the curriculum. The better your child does, the more challenging the questions will become.
Occasionally I may assign a different math game or task to be completed as homework, but Prodigy will be the major component of the math homework. It can be accessed on a computer, tablet or smart phone but does require internet access. If your child is unable to access the internet to play Prodigy, please let me know so that I can arrange an alternative.
Incomplete Work
Students who are unable to complete their work during class time will sometimes be asked to complete it at home. I understand that it is not always possible to complete the work the night it is brought home. If your child is unable to complete the work in one evening, please return it to school the next day with a note. This allows your child to work on the next steps or continue to use other pages in their notebook at school the next day. I will simply send the unfinished work home the following night for a second opportunity to complete it.