Learning at home

This section of the website provides information and access to online learning resources for use at home.

We recognise that some pupils may not have suitable online access at home and will discuss arrangements with parents where appropriate.

Homework

At Windwhistle Primary School, we would like children to focus on the following two areas for homework: reading a book that is challenging but appropriate; and learning number facts.

Reading

Your child has access to appropriate reading books in school which they can take home to read. For younger children, reading is recorded in a reading record.

For access to reading books, please talk to your child’s class teacher.

Maths / number facts

Children in Key Stage 2 have access to online resources such as Times Table Rockstars which practise and assess children’s understanding. The level of difficulty and the times tables to be practised can be altered by the child or the teacher.

The resources section at the foot of this page provides appropriate links for your child’s stage of learning.

Suspension

If your child is suspended from school for a fixed period of time, you will have had a letter to confirm the details and on your child’s return, a reintegration meeting with a member of the senior leadership team to discuss how we can support your child moving forward.

Whilst your child is suspended, they should be learning under the supervision of an appropriate adult. Resources for learning in this situation are available at the foot of this page. In addition, you may have received paper learning from your child’s class teacher.

We would expect that remote education (including remote teaching and independent work) for a child who has been suspended will take pupils broadly the following number of hours each day:

Primary school-aged pupils

KS1 children are given an average of 3 hours per day of remote education

KS2 children are given an average of 4 hours per day of remote education

Remote learning in the event of a lockdown or school closure

We are not expecting a lockdown of the type we experienced in 2020-2022, but as it took place so recently, the facility is available to support learning remotely if needed.

In the event of a lockdown, learning would be provided via this section of the website and we will provide additional information around how it can be accessed.

If the school is unable to open as a consequence of an adverse event such as poor weather or similar, learning will be provided via this section of the webpage.

How to learn remotely

Start by planning what you want to achieve during your period of remote study. If you want to focus on Maths, then think about what you have been learning in class, what you find challenging to understand, and what you will be able to learn at home without a teacher's support. For children in Key Stage 2, the Corbett Maths and Top Marks websites both have a range of mathematical learning to focus on, and you can choose to build up the difficulty or speed of the questions to answer.

General tips for using online resources over the course of a day or a longer period of time include:

keeping to regular routines e.g. normal bedtimes and getting up times and getting dressed before starting school work.
ensuring your children engage with regular daily exercise, walk as a household, playing in the garden etc.
creating a space for your child to work in.
removing distractions such a games consoles and mobile phones while they are engaging with their learning.