How can parents help?
Most of the points listed below will be obvious to parents. It may however be helpful to provide a summary of what parents can do to support the work of the school.
- Ensure that pupils attend every day unless genuinely ill.
- Ensure that pupils come fully equipped.
- Make clear to pupils that school work must be given the highest priority. To achieve this the establishment of regular routines is very important e.g.
- ensure that pupils get down to work soon after they arrive home and are not allowed out until homework is completed.
- In keeping with the latter point, pupils should spend about 1-2 hours per night on school work during Year 8, and similar times at weekends. The time each evening should be significantly increased when revising for examinations.
- Make available a place to work where there are no distractions (e.g. from TV).
- Provide a table or desk and a firm chair.
- Provide advice on how pupils should approach revision for tests and examinations
- the need to make sacrifices in other interests - to devote enough time to it
- the importance of planning a programme of revision within a timescale
- the need to learn their work thoroughly and to test themselves as they proceed. (Perhaps parents can help in this respect). The school will provide advice on how to structure the approach to their revision in the various subjects.
- Ensure that pupils promptly copy up work missed due to absence and seek help from subject teachers if some of it is not fully understood.
- Oversee homework and coursework and ensure that it is completed to the best of pupils' abilities and handed in on time.
- Provide reading materials to allow your child the opportunity to read papers, magazines, books etc.
- Spend some time with your child to help their reading and writing skills.
- Provide opportunity where your child is able to use numerical data in the home to increase their understanding of number e.g. totalling shopping bills, working out time differences e.g. when T.V. programmes will be on etc.
- Check pupil's homework diary and planner.