1. Harry Gosling Primary School
Providing Challenge at home and at school
19th May 2015

2. What we do to provide challenge
We have taken a number of steps to provide challenge for the children at Harry Gosling:
Extension and problem solving activities in lessons
Focus on building children’s general knowledge
Emphasis on speaking in full sentences using standard English
Careers Day
Visits to businesses
University visits
Competitions in various subjects

3. What you can do - General knowledge
The most successful children have broad knowledge bases. You can help by:
Having an encyclopedia at home (Usborne publishers produce a wide range of children’s encyclopedias: &area=EN&subcat=)
Having an atlas at home (you can find a wide range of children’s atlases on
Talking to your children about the news and current affairs (First News children’s newspaper and Newsround
Encourage children to complete the newsletter learning challenges

4. What you can do - Broadening Horizons
Children with the widest life experience perform best at school. You can help by:
Taking your children to lots of different museums and galleries ( museums-in-london-for-kids)
Exploring what the city of London has to offer ( to-do-with-the-kids-in-london)
Sports clubs and teams
Music lessons

5. What you can do - Puzzles
Puzzles are a fantastic way of developing children’s thinking skills, perseverance and resilience. You could try:
Sudoku in the free papers (Metro, Evening Standard)
Puzzle apps for iPad and other tablets
Puzzle books from amazon.co.uk, thebookpeople.co.uk
Jigsaw puzzles
Board games
Chess and draughts
(Free printable puzzles)

6. What you can do - Problem solving skills
HGPS is working hard to develop children’s problem solving skills. You can help by:
Explaining the importance of making mistakes and learning from them
Not giving your children too much help and doing homework for them. Instead, give clues and ask helpful questions when children are stuck
Encourage children to use trial and error and persevere when faced with difficult problems
Providing quiet spaces for children to complete homework (local library if home is too noisy)

7. What you can do – Involve children in discussions and decisions
Ask children advice about what to buy in the supermarket/shops e.g. If these drinks are 3 for £2.40 and those are 2 for £1.50, which is better value for money?
Talk to children about their reading using open questions e.g. What has happened in this chapter? Tell me about the main characters. Why do you like the book?
Before going on a journey, ask your child to locate the place on a map and plan the journey.