Homework & Revision
Homework at Parkside Academy is an essential part of the curriculum which is designed to consolidate and enhance the learning the students receive in the classroom and promote their resilience and independence.
Across both Key Stages, the tasks students are expected to complete at home vary depending on the needs of the individual classes and student. Subject areas set their own homework schedule to suit the demands of their curriculum and to ensure it is both meaningful and manageable
All homework is set using the online platform Class Charts. All students and parents are actively encouraged to download the Class Charts app to ensure a real-time overview of the tasks that have been set and the deadlines for submission. All homework is also availble publicly here:
Guidance on how to do this and on how to use Class Charts can be found below:
KS4 Homework
In years 10 and 11, homework is set across all subjects to assist with preparing the students for their GCSE examinations. Tasks are bespoke to the needs of each subject, class and individual to enhance the application of core skills. Below are some strategies to support the successful completion of homework at KS4:
- Complete every task to the best of your ability as everything students are learning could feature in their exams at the end of year 11.
- If there are elements that students are unsure on, use resilience to discover ways of overcoming this (e.g. independent research, accessing Firefly or contacting the teacher)
- Start revision early. If no specific homework has been set by subjects, trial different ways of revising key content (e.g. flash cards, GCSE Pod). These can then be kept for future use which would alleviate pressure in the lead up to exams.
KS3 Homework
Similar to KS4, homework in years 7,8 and 9 is bespoke to the needs of each class and student and is set dependent on each subject’s curriculum. However to streamline the expectations of each task and aid the support the students can receive to complete these, all homework will fit into one of three categories; prepare, research or review.
| What are students expected to do? | How can students be supported? | |
|---|---|---|
| Prepare | Students are required to complete a variety of activities that will supplement their learning in the classroom and ensure students have a good understanding of topics that will be discussed in their lessons. This could include reading articles, researching websites or creating a presentation to use in class. | Make sure the homework is completed ahead of the deadline to ensure students can fully participate in classroom activities. Aim to note down the general points to provide an overview of the topic being studied. Trial different ways of making notes (e.g. mind maps, bullet points) so that students feel confident on how to do this. |
| Research | These tasks require students to investigate a concept or enquiry question and present their findings in a particular way. These tasks will usually be longer pieces of homework which will involve students using their independent skills to engage with the topics. | When using a website and/or text to research, read the whole of the text first before making notes. Avoid just copying and pasting the first piece of information found. Use a variety of different texts/websites to broaden the knowledge. Find the definitions of any key words which cause uncertainty and write them down; this will help students to remember the words in the future.Avoid using every piece of information in the homework task; select the points that are most relevant. |
| Review | These tasks require students to complete activities to consolidate the learning they have done in lessons and allow them to revisit key concepts to aid with knowledge and skills retention. These may include quizzes, worksheets, online programmes or tasks where students are summarising key learning. | Aim to complete all review tasks without any additional assistance to provide an accurate representation of what students are capable of. Aim to complete all tasks/questions that are required so that staff can provide effective feedback. |
Year 11 Revision
A collection of links to help with revision in Year 11.
Click on the pictures below to take you to the appropriate websites and resources.
