Brain Builders An new approach to providing effective homework at Crawford Village Primary School

Our aims To improve the quality and effectiveness of homework tasks. To extend learning by linking homework to activities completed in the classroom. To make homework something that children can take control of, actively engage with and take pride in.

What’s so great about Brainbuilders….? They encourage individualism and independence. They enable you to see the world from the child’s perspective. They’re fun – engaging children in their learning. They are driven by the child and not the teacher. They challenge the children to express their learning. Children take control of, actively engage with and take pride in their own learning.

When will they be set? Children will receive a Brainbuilder activity once a fortnight. Brainbuilder tasks will still be supplemented by regular reading, spelling and mental maths work. There will be opportunities during school time to review, share and discuss Brain Builder tasks. Brain Builders will be high profile and high status in school – assemblies, rewards, Team Points.

What does a ‘Brainbuilder’ look like? This system is used in many schools up and down the country with huge success and positive comments from children, parents and teachers….they are as good as the children want them to be….

An example of a Reception child’s Brainbuider demonstrating their learning about alphabetical order.

A Year 1 Brainbuilder about odd and even numbers.

Year 2 demonstrating their learning about using number lines to solve problems.

A Year 3 Brainbuilder involving English, Maths and Science.

Year 4 work demonstrating learning in Spelling and History.

Year 4

Year 5 Brainbuilder about the Tudors.

Year 6 work on measures.

What will it involve? Brain Builders will be given out following a session to discuss ideas. The Learning Objective(s) will be clearly stated and linked to the learning happening in the classroom. Some suggested activities and ways to approach the task will be offered – this will be at a level that reflects the age and needs of the individual child.

How can parents/other family members support their child? Give children time to talk about what they have to do. Offer ideas on how to present the work. Give children a space to work which is away from other distractions. It doesn’t have to be done in one sitting – that is why you have 2 weeks to complete it.

What can we include? We will be encouraging the children to be as creative with their homework as possible. They can complete these tasks in any way they want to as long as it is broadly based on the theme of the Brainbuilder. The children can do as many or as few of these suggestions as they wish, or they can make up their own.

They could… Draw pictures Label them Take photographs Write lists Stick in food labels Research from books or the internet Write a poem or story Interview a family member Make a collage Cut pictures out from magazines Make a model Draw a diagram Draw a graph / pictogram Conduct a survey …or anything else they can think of!

They can display their work in their book however they wish – painted, coloured, using different types of writing implement (e.g. gel pens, biros), in collage, … They can include any work they would like to – poems, stories, information, plays, facts, instructions, interviews with family members, lift the flaps, pockets with letters in, pictures cut out from newspapers and magazines...

What Now? Brainbuilders are a partnership between school and home. For these to be effective, everybody needs to be working towards a common aim. Good quality homework supports and consolidates learning that has taken place in school.

SKILLS FOR LIFE Children will: Be proud of their learning Be eager to share Develop learning life skills