Homework and Practice

1. Given that “schooling occupies only about 13 percent of the waking hours in the first 18 years of life”, homework is an effective means of extending student learning beyond the school day. Fraser, Walberg, Welch & Hattie Homework and Practice

4. Classroom Instruction That Works – Effect Size Homework and practice .77 28 134

5. 4 Generalizations for use of Homework • The Amount of Homework assigned should be different from elementary to middle to high school. • ParentInvolvement in homework should be kept to a minimum. • The Purpose of homework should be identified and articulated. • If assigned, Homework should be Commented On. Homework and Practice

6. 1. Amount of Homework Assigned should be different from elementary to to high school. Homework and Practice • Rule of Thumb: • Formula for determining amount of daily homework • H = G X 10 minutes (H - homework, G – Grade Level) • Example: 1st Grade (10minutes/day) 7th Grade (70 minutes/day), • 12th Grade 120 minutes/day • Timothy Z. Keith’s data indicates “for every 30 minutes of “additional” homework a student does per day, his/her overall GPA increases ½ point

7. 2. Parental Involvement in Homework Should be Minimal • While it is certainly legitimate to inform parents of the homework assigned to their children, it does not seem advisable to have parents help their children with the homework. • Marzano, Pickering & Pollock, 2001 • Parents can support their children by providing • Place to study • Established time for study • Resources for study • Support without solving content problems for students. Homework and Practice • ELL Parent should also • Use Native Language when helping with homework • Model literacy in their native language as well

8. Two common purposes for homework: • Practice • Structured around content with which students have a high degree of familiarity. Otherwise, it will be inefficient and possibly, serve to habituate errors or misconceptions • Preparation or Elaboration • Structured around setting the context and/or background knowledge for upcoming learning • Structured around extension and deeper understanding of concept Homework and Practice 3. The Purpose of homework should be identified and articulated.

9. Homework and Practice 4. If assigned, homework should be commented upon.

10. Homework and Practice • Student Assignment Notebook • Subject: Due Date: • What I have to do tonight: • Purpose of Assignment: • What I must already know/be able to do in order to complete assignment: Homework Policy: Informs Students and Parents the Purpose of Homework Estimates the Amount of Homework that Students will Typically Receive (by class/teacher and total) Discusses the Consequence for NOT Turning in Assignments Suggests Ways in Which Parents Can Help

11. Homework Policy: Homework and Practice Sample Homework Letter to Parents: Help set up a consistent organized place for homework to be done Help you child establish either a consistent schedule for completing homework or help him create a weekly schedule each Sunday night for the upcoming week Encourage, motivate, and prompt your child, but do not sit with her and do the homework. The purpose of the homework is for the child to practice and use what has been learned. If your child is consistently unable to do the homework by themselves, please contact the teacher If your child is practicing a skill, ask him to tell you which steps are easy and which are difficult, or how he is going to improve. If he/she is doing a project, ask what knowledge id being applied to the project. If your child is consistently unable to talk about the knowledge he/she is practicing or using, please contact the teacher With some exceptions, the minutes your child should spend on homework each day should equal approximately 10 times his/ her grade level (10 X 2nd Grade = 20 minutes, 10 X 10th Grade + 100 minutes or 1 hour and 40 minutes) When bedtime arrives, please stop your even if he/she is not done.

12. Homework and Practice Mastering a New Skill Requires Practice Spread Out Over Time

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14. All students acquiring a new language will pass through these five stages.

15. Homework and Practice • Preproduction – benefit from peers helping them with word selection. These students need to learn the vocabulary before they can make sense of the content • Early Production – benefit from classmates modeling correct grammar for them • Speech Emergence – benefit from explanations given by English-dominant students on how to expand and combine sentences • Intermediate and Advance Fluency – benefit from sharing their ideas with English-dominant students ELL Recommendations Whenever possible, send translated policy letters home Vary ELL homework depending on the student’s level of language proficiency or stage of language acquisition. See student profiles in Filemaker Pro. ELLs benefit from seeing examples for homework from other students and hearing the explanations Preproduction – benefit from peers helping them with word selection. These students need to learn the vocabulary before they can make sense of the content Early Production – benefit from classmates modeling correct grammar for them Speech Emergence – benefit from explanations given by English-dominant students on how to expand and combine sentences Intermediate and Advance Fluency – benefit from sharing their ideas with dominant ELLs should NOT be pressed for speed ELLs need explicit explanation of reasoning behind skill or process; teachers can accomplish this through Think-Alouds