Home learning January 2022
Thankfully, even though the numbers of infections are increasing due to the Omicron variant, schools remain open to all children. This is what all of our community wants and knows is best for the long term prospects of the children.
Nevertheless, we accept that there will be continued absence due to Covid-19 and that this will mean many children will miss periods of school.
As children can often be well during this period and are isolating as part of the aim to restrict transmission, school will provide work for children to complete at home.
Teachers will provide an overview of a schedule (via Tapestry or Class Dojo) which can be applied at home where children will access our online activities as well as book activity. We provide laptops to those who do not have access and so if there are any need for hardware, please contact the school office.
Types of activity (KS1 & KS2):
- Reading programme (Lexia or Reading Plus)
- Maths programme (My Maths, TT Rockstars, Numbots)
- Grammar book
- Phonics videos
- Reading book
- Spelling
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What we did for Home Learning January 2021
With a national lockdown being announced at such short notice, we have taken the first two weeks to organise and adjust to the new expectations. Now that we have ensured that our pupil numbers are managed, we are looking to focus our efforts on embedding and supporting a consistent Home Learning approach and developing our communication with families.
It is important to understand that, on top of staff being face-to-face with groups of children, teachers are now expected to deliver to children within school as they would normally but also manage Home Learning; in essence, two jobs.
From communication with parents/carers, it is clear that there is an understanding of the challenges faced by schools and that we are working hard to get the balance right for school and home. We know from our experience over the year that the vast majority of parents/carers accept that home is not school and, therefore, the learning we set has to reflect this.
There are guidelines for schools which provide some flexibility and, along with a common-sense approach, has allowed us to provide what we believe is sensible and balanced.
We will consolidate our practice and ensure that there is familiarity with what has been done previously. Children in school will do much the same that is being asked of at home which means that children who access our in-school provision on specific days will be able to keep in line with the programme throughout the week. This also means children working at Home are not missing out compared to those attending school.
Our provision will:
- Focus on basic skills in English and maths
- Provide opportunities for activities across the curriculum
- Provide guidance and support for learning through PowerPoints, videos and explanations
- Provide a range of online work (maths and Reading apps) and written work (to be recorded in the children’s Home Learning books)
- Allow older children to work as independently as possible (to support parents working from home)
- Provide approximately the allocated time per day (as per Government regulations)
- Provide feedback through the subject apps and from teacher comments
Virtual Class Meets
We are setting up the opportunity for weekly Class Meets, where groups of children within the class will meet virtually through Microsoft Teams. This is currently being organised and staff are being trained ready for the first sessions to begin week beginning Monday 25th January (via email invites).
This will provide the opportunity for children to see classmates and to have a time talking with them and the teacher. The main focus will be on well-being with a ‘circle time’ approach. Information will be provided to support set up and organisation.
Supporting Parents/Carers
We know that each household has differing circumstances, and this means the way the day is structured will be different for everyone. Although we have given a schedule in a particular order, each day’s activities can be done in any order to suit what else is happening at home.
Teachers are available at various points in the day to support queries and questions from families which should come through class Dojo or Tapestry (dependent on Year Group). Teachers will aim to support as swiftly as possible so that children can continue with their work.
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The following information is previous provision which is currently not applied during current lockdown (Jan 2021).
Home Learning When School is Open to All
During lockdown, we worked with families to develop a Home Learning system which allowed children to focus on basic skills in Reading and Maths, whilst having other subject-based activities that could be undertaken in a range of ways. The design of this was to cover the long period we found ourselves in.
With an understanding of schools being open but the potential of children being absent for up to 2 weeks at a time, we are developing our homework practices to become a more fluid Home Learning system.
From September 2020, we will establish Home Learning activities which children will undertake weekly, both online and in books. This will allow children and parents/carers to develop routines and understanding of activities which, in the event of being absent, can be implemented and enhanced quickly and easily.
All children will have brought home a guidance sheet which explained each year group Home Learning schedule. These can also be downloaded below.
We greatly appreciate the support of parents/carers whose role to guide Home Learning is crucial. If there are any queries, the class teacher can be contacted who will be more than happy to help.
What we did during lockdown 2020
We will be posting our home learning information on our website to allow parents easy access to resources and instructions. This page will be used to summarise what we are doing for the whole school which will allow parents/carers to:
- understand what children should be accessing whilst learning from home
- know what resources are available for a range of activities
Each Year Group will manage their learning through their Year Group pages over time and so children should visit these pages regularly.
Please read the information in the tabs below to find out more. Remember you can contact teachers via the year group email addresses (see Staff Involvement section).
Summer 2 Home Learning
As of Monday 8th June, there will be increased numbers accessing school which means that we are moving from a childcare provider back to an education provider. Over the next 6 weeks, we know that there will be some children accessing school whilst other continue with Home Learning. In order to support both, we will be providing a package which can be delivered in either situation.
Children will be provided with opportunities to learn and practice English and maths skills whilst also having access to other subject areas through a new topic: ‘Our Community’. The information provided through these tabs will allow direct access to the new ‘curriculum’ for the second half of the summer term.
If there are any queries, parents/carers should contact teachers through the year group emails addresses.
Children need constant practise of basic reading and maths skills. To support this, we will continue with the use of the following programmes each day:
Lexia or Reading Plus – 20-30 minutes
Mathletics – 20-30 minutes
All children have login details to access these programmes.
Read, Write Inc (Reception and Year 1) – daily phonics via YouTube (Phase 1, 2 or 3 depending on child). Click here
In addition, a week of English work has been set based upon a text (see English tab).
Each Monday, year groups will be set a week of English work based on a short text.
The activities set will start with reading and will move onto grammar before ending with writing.
The idea is that this will replicate a week of English teaching in a simplistic manner.
Staff will provide support material which will help explain the learning and the tasks.
We know that, as time has gone by, children may have exhausted their books at home. Reading for pleasure is still an activity we would encourage, daily. To support this we have access to two resources which are basically online libraries.
For children in Reception to Year 3, we would encourage using Oxford Owl (click on the name) which has a wide range of books to choose from, organised by age. You will have to register to access it, if you have not done so already, but this requires a few simple details.
For children from Year 3 to Year 6, we now have access to a new resource called myON (click on the name). There are thousands of books available and although you can’t narrow the selection by age, children have the opportunity to choose by interest. The books can also be heard as audio books which allows children to follow along with the text.
Please encourage your child to access some of the texts available to them but also feel free to read along with them.
Rather than having different children with different topics, we know that it is easier for families to have the option of one theme for all. Consequently, we have created a second topic theme, this time ‘Our Community’ which has a range of ideas for families across the curriculum. The attachments below provide the Theme overview and an Appendices of resources which can be used to support. This will also be the work that children will access in school as teachers attempt to have continuity between home and school.
There is no expectation about how many of these activities families will do. We also understand that they might simply provide inspiration for different activities to be done instead.
Additionally, families may find that their children are interested in something specific and they would rather follow these interests (e.g. The Olympics, The NHS, Rainbows etc.)
Basically, at this time, it is not the topic itself that is important but the process of learning. Although we know that it can be challenging to ‘home school’, all children should have the capability of doing some daily schoolwork in line with the limited amount we have provided so that when they come back to school, they have not fallen behind their classmates. If parents/carers are finding difficulty with this, they should contact the class teacher.
The expectations on the youngest with regard to what they can do through home learning is very different to older children. Nursery and Reception aged children learn through their everyday experiences and particularly through play. which allows them to develop new skills in a meaningful way. The guidance below will help families understand the types of activity they can do with their children during their normal lives which will have a huge impact on their child’s progress. It must be emphasised that what underpins all of this is the development of communication and language as well as reading. Please keep in touch with teachers through Tapestry who will be happy to provide further guidance.
Each week, a book/story focus will be posted with some ideas about other activities (e.g. maths, writing) which could be done linked to this. There will also be some resources attached to provide a little more help.
Phonics:
Watch the daily Read Write Inc lessons online and then complete the reading and letter formation activity sheet that goes with each lesson. Click on the link below.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCo7fbLgY2oA_cFCIg9GdxtQ
From 1st June:
All lessons will be available at 9.30 am.
Set 1, 2 and 3 Speed Sounds lessons will restart.
Set 2 and 3 Speed Sounds lessons will include new words for reading and spelling.
The Read Write Inc Lesson schedule for the next few weeks can be found here:
Accompanying activities, worksheets and speed sound books can be found here as well as home reading books and free Read Write Inc E-books.
https://home.oxfordowl.co.uk/reading/reading-schemes-oxford-levels/read-write-inc-phonics-guide/
As school opens to more pupils from each year group, the ability for staff to monitor the children’s access to the work set, on an ongoing basis, will reduce. However, examples of pupils work would be welcomed by staff who will look to post on the year group web page.
Summer 1 Home Learning
From the announcement on Thursday 16th April, we know schools will remain closed for the next three weeks. Whether we are closed for just this half term or the full term, it is important that we support families with the home learning process.
As a leadership team, we have discussed and evaluated the structure we have implemented so far; we believe that we have not over-complicated things, knowing that working at home is very different to what can be done in a school. We have really appreciated the positive feedback from families who have engaged in what we have done. However, we have also identified where we could help make things easier for families, particularly where they have more than one child. Therefore, we will be continuing with the general structure we have created with some slight changes.
Please click on the tabs to see what the children should be doing at home over this period.
Children need constant practise of basic reading and maths skills. To support this, we will continue with the use of the following programmes each day:
Lexia or Reading Plus – 20-30 minutes
Mathletics – 20-30 minutes
All children have login details to access these programmes.
Read, Write Inc (Reception and Year 1) – daily phonics via YouTube (Phase 1, 2 or 3 depending on child). Click here
Rather than having different children with different topics, we have realised that it would be easier for families to have the option of one theme for all. Consequently, we have created a ‘Summer’ theme which has a range of ideas for families across the curriculum. The attachments below provide the Theme overview, an Appendices of resources which can be used to support, and a Time Capsule activity pack.
2020 Covid-19 Time Capsule Sheets
There is no expectation about how many of these activities families will do. We also understand that they might simply provide inspiration for different activities to be done instead.
Additionally, families may find that their children are interested in something specific and they would rather follow these interests (e.g. The Olympics, The NHS, Rainbows etc.)
Basically, at this time, it is not the topic itself that is important but the process of learning. Although we know that it can be challenging to ‘home school’, all children should have the capability of doing some daily schoolwork in line with the limited amount we have provided so that when they come back to school, they have not fallen behind their classmates. If parents/carers are finding difficulty with this, they should contact the class teacher.
We know that, as time has gone by, children may have exhausted their books at home. Reading for pleasure is still an activity we would encourage, daily. To support this we have access to two resources which are basically online libraries.
For children in Reception to Year 3, we would encourage using Oxford Owl (click the on the name) which has a wide range of books to choose from, organised by age. You will have to register to access it, if you have not done so already, but this requires a few simple details.
For children from Year 3 to Year 6, we now have access to a new resource called myON (click on the name). There are thousands of books available and although you can’t narrow the selection by age, children have the opportunity to choose by interest. The books can also be heard as audio books which allows children to follow along with the text.
Please encourage your child to access some of the texts available to them but also feel free to read along with them.
The expectations on the youngest with regard to what they can do through home learning is very different to older children. Nursery and Reception aged children learn through their everyday experiences and particularly through play. which allows them to develop new skills in a meaningful way. The guidance below will help families understand the types of activity they can do with their children during their normal lives which will have a huge impact on their child’s progress. It must be emphasised that what underpins all of this is the development of communication and language as well as reading. Please keep in touch with teachers through Tapestry who will be happy to provide further guidance.
Each week, a book/story focus will be posted with some ideas about other activities (e.g. maths, writing) which could be done linked to this. There will also be some resources attached to provide a little more help.
There are writing tasks within the topic plan but for those who would like the option to do a little more, each week there will be a writing task set by year group teachers.
Each Monday morning, staff will post the activity, along with various resources to help.
Where there are siblings, families may wish for all the children to attempt the same task from one of the year group options. This is absolutely understandable and we would still be impressed that the children are attempting one of the writing opportunities.
Teachers would love to see completed work so please send a picture of the finished work to the appropriate year group email address.
Remember, all you really need to write is some paper, a pen/pencil,a positive attitude and some imagination!
Staff will monitor the children’s access to the work set, on an ongoing basis, and will set tasks in some cases. Pupils will find these set tasks when they log on.
Pupils will have brought home a year group email to which photos of the exciting things that children are doing can be sent. Teachers will access these once a week to create posts on the website so pupils can see what their classmates are involved in.
Spring Term Home Learning
The basic home learning set up means that children will have access to reading and maths programmes and will have a topic sheet with activity ideas.
Staff from each year group will focus their information via their year group page on the website. There will be updates weekly to keep communication ongoing. However, most online activities provide independent development and progress and will function with the support of family members.
It is essential that children receive some structure in the day. Structure provides consistency and reduces stress through maintaining a regular body clock. We have provided an example structure for parents but this is meant only as guide and we are sure families will create structures which work for them.
| Year 1 Year 2 | Year 3, 4, 5 & 6 |
Reading | Lexia | Reading Plus |
| Mathematics | Mathletics | Mathletics TT Rockstars |
Every child has log in details for these and will have taken them home or they will have been posted. If you do not receive them, please contact school.
Ideally, children should access these everyday to support their basic skills otherwise they will find they will struggle with school once they return.
In relation to Reading Plus, all children in KS2 who were in school on the last day sat a baseline assessment and can start immediately on the activity. Those who had been absent on that day will have to sit the assessment task which will take approximately 30 min. The programme has clear instruction with videos and audio so this should not be difficult.
We have recently increased our subscription to Lexia, which is now available to all children in Year 1 and Year 2.
Topic plans with ideas will provide parents and children with ideas for a range of other activities which would be similar things that would have been done in school within other curriculum subjects.
These activities can be done independently but would be a lovely way of working as a family.
Year 1_Home Learning 1_Dinosaurs
Year 2_Home Learning 1_Emergency
Year 3_Home Learning 1_Water of Life
Year 4_Home Learning 1_Theres No Place Like Home
The expectations on the youngest with regard to what they can do through home learning is very different to older children. Nursery and Reception aged children learn through their everyday experiences and particularly through play. which allows them to develop new skills in a meaningful way. The guidance below will help families understand the types of activity they can do with their children during their normal lives which will have a huge impact on their child’s progress. It must be emphasised that what underpins all of this is the development of communication and language as well as reading. Please keep in touch with teachers through Tapestry who will be happy to provide further guidance.
It is important that children and their families take time to focus on their health and well-being. Children should have time to make contact with friends and family even if that is via phone calls or FaceTime (supervised). People might even start writing letters to each other!
Eating healthily and exercising is extremely important as we are restricted in where we should be going. Try to eat healthily and at regular times with children involved in understanding why this is necessary. Get exercise outside but also in the house. We may all be following the Joe Wicks regime at the same time on You Tube, which would be nice for children to think they and their friends are doing this together.
Staff will monitor the children’s access to the work set, on an ongoing basis, and will set tasks in some cases. Pupils will find these set tasks when they log on.
Pupils will have brought home a year group email to which photos of the exciting things that children are doing can be sent. Teachers will access these once a week to create posts on the website so pupils can see what their classmates are involved in.
Our support will evolve and we will keep everyone updated when there are changes. However, we know that families understand this is a work in progress and that it will take a little to run smoothly.
Your support is invaluable in relation to our home learning provision and all staff are hugely grateful.
Please click on the tabs to see what is happening over the Easter period.
Although it is strange at present to think of school holidays and bank holidays, the next two weeks are officially the Easter holidays. However, due to the current situation, Harlow Green will still be accessible for those parents/carers who are critical key workers and who must work during this period to ensure that we are safe and well as a community.
Child Care for the Appropriate Children
We have contacted parents/carers who are in this category in order to confirm numbers and this has allowed us to create a schedule for staffing.
In order to keep pupil numbers down to a minimum, for the safety of them and staff, it is essential that those accessing our provision have no other means of looking after their children. We know that parents/carers understand that schools are catering for emergency cover for their children and there must not be a situation where one parent/carer is working from home but the children are in school.
Staff Availability
As you will know, during the current pandemic, although school is closed, staff are either providing child care in school or working from home. This will change slightly over the Easter period. All teachers and teaching assistants will have the opportunity for a break and will not be available via the communication channels we have set up.
However, due to the nature of the time we are living through, the Senior Leadership team will still be involved in home/school communication.
Phase/Year Group | Phase Leader | Email Contacts |
Early Years Nursery & Reception | Miss Bradshaw | [email protected] |
Key Stage 1 Year 1 & Year 2 | Mrs Hamilton | |
Lower Key Stage 2 Year 3 & Year 4 | Mr Hollingworth | |
Upper Key Stage 2 Year 5 & Year 6 | Mr Allen |
Families at Easter
We would encourage families to take more personal time over these two weeks where you can reduce the expectation of work and be involved in more family activities. However, where children still want to do some work to keep them ticking over, the learning resources are still available to them.
Contacting School in An Emergency
If there was a more critical matter that required support, either Mrs Chapman, Mrs Hamilton or I will be in school daily. This means that contact via the phone could be made but please understand that we will not always be in the office so you may have to try a couple of times.
Thank you for your understanding in this matter
Easter Activities
As we are coming to Easter, children will start expecting to reduce school work but will need occupying, especially if we are still isolating in our homes.
To support families at home over the next two weeks (06/04/20-17/04/20), we are setting an optional Easter Bingo Challenge.
The aim is to look at the activities suggested and see how many you can complete as a family. This challenge will be something you can do together if you don’t already have lots of other things planned.
Good luck and have fun!
What else can I do?
If there are times when you want to have a go some other activities just to keep things fresh here are a few links to website that may help.
DAILY MATHS LESSONS – A guided lesson for every day of the week, suitable for the whole school.
Excellent resource, follows school and one for every single day the children are off. Put it on and let them get on. Available online or on Facebook. No log in or password required.
https://whiterosemaths.com/homelearning/
MATHLETICS – maths reasoning and practise set by the teacher.
This is the website we use at school, updated every weekend for the following week. Children have their log in or contact school via email.
iseemaths LESSONS – A guided lesson for every day of the week of Years 3/4 or 5/6.
Great, short 7 – 10 minute activities to keep children engaged with elements of their maths. Free access, no password or log in required.
http://www.iseemaths.com/lessons34/
http://www.iseemaths.com/lessons56/
TIMES TABLE ROCKSTARS – website on which all of the children from Years 3-6 have access.
Daily use will help times tables, teachers set battles and challenges throughout the week. All the children have passwords for this.
TOPMARKS MATHS GAMES – website with variety of free maths games.
Hit The Button is a favourite along with doubling, halving and number bonds, times tables and more. Free access, no password needed.
READ WRITE INC – phonics reading guidance for children in Nursery, Reception, 1 and 2.
Follows the exact books in school, children should know their levels of phonics but if not, please contact school via email. Good for daily reading use.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCo7fbLgY2oA_cFCIg9GdxtQ
LEXIA – phonic sound skills and spelling activities for early spellings and learning sounds.
Used throughout school, children have their passwords if they use it and can access it at home. Ideally best used daily for about 20 minutes.
READING PLUS – Guided reading support for all children Years 3-6.
Should be used daily and children can message their teacher directly for guidance or support. Has reading, vocabulary and comprehension. Children have passwords, please contact the year group teacher if they children don’t know their passwords.
https://student.readingplus.com/
AUDIBLE FREE BOOKS – Free audio books from Reception up to Teenage and some young adult books.
Suitable for quiet reading time, let the children relax and listen to a story ideally every day unless you are reading to them. No password required.
https://stories.audible.com/start-listen
ELEVENSES WITH DAVID WALLIAMS – Free audio books read by David Walliams.
Suitable for quiet reading time, entertaining. New chapters added daily at 11am.
https://www.worldofdavidwalliams.com/elevenses/
POSTCARDS OF KINDNESS – A Facebook group for writing postcards and letters to residents in care homes.
Children and grown-ups can send postcards and children should be guided by an adult. Join the Faceboook group for addresses and guidelines. Good for writing practise and postcards can be made too. The children can show off their handwriting skills, tell stories and all sorts. (Observe current restrictions on going outside, shopping and mixing with others.)
BBC TEACH – LITERACY BASED LIVE LESSONS – free short lessons about various elements within English and literacy.
Guided activities and suggestions on activities children. Lots of familiar faces for the children too from TV.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/live-lessons/primary-live-lessons/zmc9jhv
ADDITIONAL – children can write letters, diary entries and short stories about their time off school, experiences at home and thoughts whilst home.
ESPRESSO – All the children have passwords for Espresso where they can read about news updates, access a variety of daily activities. Passwords were issued, if you need a further copy please email the year group teachers.
PURPLE MASH – All the children have passwords for Purple Mash and most have used it at school. It is computer programming software that allows them to complete different activities all around programming and using their computers. Whole range of activities that cover all subjects including maths, English, writing, science and much, much more.
ALL SUBJECTS – BBC TEACH LIVE LESSONS
Packed with ideas for everything in the curriculum – art, history, English, maths, science, French, computing etc.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/primary/zd7p47h
ALL SUBJECTS – BBC SUPERMOVERS
Packed with ideas for getting up and active and learning too. Phonics songs, times table dances and all sorts. Lots of familiar faces to the children too with people, sports stars and celebrities they’ll recognise.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/supermovers
FUN – ZOO CAM
Watch the animals play!
https://www.edinburghzoo.org.uk/webcams/panda-cam/
https://www.dublinzoo.ie/animals/animal-webcams/
https://www.youtube.com/user/OfficialChesterZoo/videos
HISTORY / GEOGRAPHY / SCIENCE
Great virtual tours round dozens of museums, galleries, zoos, aquariums etc for the children to explore.
ART
Daily lunchtime doodles;
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL14hRqd0PELGbKihHuTqx_pbvCLqGbOkF
PE
Joe Wicks PE
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAxW1XT0iEJo0TYlRfn6rYQ
Any football skills videos or game skills for sport, such as;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IeMYh7roBjk&app=desktop
The PE Shed
Lots of fun videos uploaded daily with great PE challenges on such as the teddy bear challenge etc.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-5_kDXdkW-f62RJb8khjyQ
GONOODLE
Hundreds of exercise videos, guided dances, mindfulness videos and different activities. Needs parents to log on to the family section.
