Year 2 Homework

Reading homework

Reading homework is not ‘set’, the expectation is that your child reads daily for at least 20 minutes. This is recorded in your child’s Home/School reading record and is monitored weekly. Children are expected to change their reading book daily until they reach ‘chapter books’. You can help your child to read at Year 2 by questioning their comprehension rather than ‘listening’ to them decode. You can help your child by showing them how to ‘read behind the lines’ and ask questions about characters’ motivation, thoughts and feelings or predicting what might happen next in the story based on what they have already read.

Maths homework

Children also receive weekly maths homework that builds on skills taught in class, though it may occasionally reflect future learning. While, work is differentiated according to ability in class, homework is not generally tiered. We focus on the mental skills needed for the KS1 SATs test. Knowledge of times table and division facts by heart is imperative. We learn in the order of 10x; 2x; 5x; 4x and 3x tables. Functional skills, such as telling the time, totalling money and finding change are all excellent ways to practice maths every day at home. Adult support and supervision of homework is expected, though the pitch is always geared so that a child should be able to complete it independently. Every day we are building our children’s ability to be the best they can be in the world of tomorrow.

Spelling homework

Each week, the children get a total of 12 spellings: ten core spellings and two ‘challenge’. These words build on the spelling rules that are taught as part of the National Curriculum for Year 2. Children also learn ‘common exception words’ that must be known by heart. These words are listed in the Appendix to the National Curriculum. Children sit a weekly spelling test in class and are tested nationally in the Spelling, Grammar and Punctuation SATs test in May. We expect children to practice their spellings daily, using the ‘Look, Say, Cover, Write, Check’ method at first, and then progressing to using spelling words in a sentence they can use in composition.

English homework

It is the expectation of the National Curriculum that children begin to develop a confidence in using cursive writing in Year 2 and we recommend that children practice daily handwriting at home by copying out their spellings. We use the Nelson handwriting scheme in school, though any cursive style is accepted.

Project homework

Children have a great opportunity to live our school values of caring, friendship, endurance and community (koinonia) through the half-termly ‘holiday’ homework. These are open-ended, cross-curricular tasks that allow the children to show their creativity and individuality. Parental guidance is always welcome, though children’s own achievement is celebrated school wide.