5th Grade Home Learning Policy
Fifth grade marks the beginning of a transition in your child’s education. Next year, students will be in middle school. It is a goal of our 5th grade team to prepare students for the challenges ahead by focusing on improving organizational skills, developing solid work habits, and instilling within them a sense of personal responsibility. With that in mind, home learning opportunities given in 5th grade reflect the curriculum with an emphasis on the quality of work as opposed to the quantity.
With this in mind, you can expect for your child to be assigned the following types of assignments to be worked on at home:
1. Homework—Students will be assigned homework in the form of worksheets or practice book pages that review and extend the day’s lessons on a regular basis.
2. Reading Log—Research has shown that the amount of independent reading a student does significantly influences his/her level of reading performance. Therefore we require that students read 20 minutes nightly and highly encourage them to read more.
3. Web Based Assignments—Students will be required to complete activities on different types of internet based programs that will practice and enrich the skills that are learned in class. More information on these web based programs will be sent home at a later date. If your child does not have access to a computer at home, please let us know.
4. Research Projects and Presentations—Application of skills learned in school to real life scenarios has proven to be highly beneficial in terms of a students’ academic growth. Students will be assigned research projects throughout the year which they will then present to the class. Please look for these assignments as they come home and give assistance as needed.
We expect that all assignments are completed and turned in on time. We also expect that students will put forth their best effort on all assignments. If an assignment is not completed to satisfaction, it will be discussed with the student and asked to be redone or corrected.
At this level, students will be expected to accurately copy home learning assignments from the board into their planner. Note taking, listening, and organizational skills are vital for academic success. Therefore, we will not be creating weekly to do lists for students, but rather developing a SPIN—Student/Parent Involvement Notebook with students (please see attachment). All assignments will be explained in detail in class, and students are encouraged to ask questions to clarify assignments during this time. At the end of each day, students will be reminded and expected to organize their backpack and gather needed materials to complete assignments at home.
You can help at home by consistently monitoring and participating in your child’s SPIN tablet. Your child’s SPIN tablet serves as an important communication tool between you and I. Please feel free to send me notes about your child’s home learning assignments through your child’s planner.
Should your child choose to not complete his/her home assignments, he/she will miss a learning opportunity and the natural consequences of falling behind may occur. While at school, your child may be required to sit out of ‘fun’ activities to complete their missing assignments. We may also require your child to call home to inform you of their missing assignments. Please note that we are not doing this to be mean or to embarrass our students, but rather to help them understand that home assignments are their responsibility. We also encourage you to set consequences for your child at home.
We understand that home life can be busy. If your child was not able to complete an assignment, please write us a note explaining the circumstances and we will extend the due date. We ask that you not ask us to keep your child in at recess to finish his/her homework. Recess is a time that we need to use the bathroom and prep for upcoming lessons.
Please note that home learning opportunities should be a pleasant experience for your child to apply and share with you what he/she has learned in school. You can expect for homework to last between 30-90 minutes a night. This includes your child’s reading log. If your child is consistently taking longer than an hour to complete assignments, or if your child cannot complete assignments independently, please contact us for a conference.
Lastly, if your child is absent, please contact the office for a homework request. We cannot guarantee that homework requests given later in the day will be honored as it takes time to put together these requests. In addition, you can check the daily updates section of this website for current homework assignments.
Thank you for your time and attention to these matters. It is essential that we all work together in order for each and every student to be successful. We hope these guidelines provide you with a clear understanding of what is expected of your child this year.
Fifth grade marks the beginning of a transition in your child’s education. Next year, students will be in middle school. It is a goal of our 5th grade team to prepare students for the challenges ahead by focusing on improving organizational skills, developing solid work habits, and instilling within them a sense of personal responsibility. With that in mind, home learning opportunities given in 5th grade reflect the curriculum with an emphasis on the quality of work as opposed to the quantity.
With this in mind, you can expect for your child to be assigned the following types of assignments to be worked on at home:
1. Homework—Students will be assigned homework in the form of worksheets or practice book pages that review and extend the day’s lessons on a regular basis.
2. Reading Log—Research has shown that the amount of independent reading a student does significantly influences his/her level of reading performance. Therefore we require that students read 20 minutes nightly and highly encourage them to read more.
3. Web Based Assignments—Students will be required to complete activities on different types of internet based programs that will practice and enrich the skills that are learned in class. More information on these web based programs will be sent home at a later date. If your child does not have access to a computer at home, please let us know.
4. Research Projects and Presentations—Application of skills learned in school to real life scenarios has proven to be highly beneficial in terms of a students’ academic growth. Students will be assigned research projects throughout the year which they will then present to the class. Please look for these assignments as they come home and give assistance as needed.
We expect that all assignments are completed and turned in on time. We also expect that students will put forth their best effort on all assignments. If an assignment is not completed to satisfaction, it will be discussed with the student and asked to be redone or corrected.
At this level, students will be expected to accurately copy home learning assignments from the board into their planner. Note taking, listening, and organizational skills are vital for academic success. Therefore, we will not be creating weekly to do lists for students, but rather developing a SPIN—Student/Parent Involvement Notebook with students (please see attachment). All assignments will be explained in detail in class, and students are encouraged to ask questions to clarify assignments during this time. At the end of each day, students will be reminded and expected to organize their backpack and gather needed materials to complete assignments at home.
You can help at home by consistently monitoring and participating in your child’s SPIN tablet. Your child’s SPIN tablet serves as an important communication tool between you and I. Please feel free to send me notes about your child’s home learning assignments through your child’s planner.
Should your child choose to not complete his/her home assignments, he/she will miss a learning opportunity and the natural consequences of falling behind may occur. While at school, your child may be required to sit out of ‘fun’ activities to complete their missing assignments. We may also require your child to call home to inform you of their missing assignments. Please note that we are not doing this to be mean or to embarrass our students, but rather to help them understand that home assignments are their responsibility. We also encourage you to set consequences for your child at home.
We understand that home life can be busy. If your child was not able to complete an assignment, please write us a note explaining the circumstances and we will extend the due date. We ask that you not ask us to keep your child in at recess to finish his/her homework. Recess is a time that we need to use the bathroom and prep for upcoming lessons.
Please note that home learning opportunities should be a pleasant experience for your child to apply and share with you what he/she has learned in school. You can expect for homework to last between 30-90 minutes a night. This includes your child’s reading log. If your child is consistently taking longer than an hour to complete assignments, or if your child cannot complete assignments independently, please contact us for a conference.
Lastly, if your child is absent, please contact the office for a homework request. We cannot guarantee that homework requests given later in the day will be honored as it takes time to put together these requests. In addition, you can check the daily updates section of this website for current homework assignments.
Thank you for your time and attention to these matters. It is essential that we all work together in order for each and every student to be successful. We hope these guidelines provide you with a clear understanding of what is expected of your child this year.