Students at St James complete study tasks out of lesson time. This can be completed at our homework club, or at home.

The retrieval practice activities that students complete for their homework is grounded in extensive research as being an effective tool for building long term memory. It focusses on the acquisition of knowledge, study skills and cognitive recall: all essential lifelong skills for our students.

Students receive an independent study pack that consists of an exercise book, a mini whiteboard and pen and a wallet to keep these in. Some subjects will provide a knowledge organiser page to stick into their homework exercise book. The knowledge organiser contains essential information and core knowledge for the subject. 

Students focus on the weeks laid out in the knowledge organiser that correspond with the teaching week in school. Your child will read that section, cover it up and attempt to write down the information from memory. They will then check they have done this correctly and self-correct any missing content or mistakes using a green pen. This method is known as ‘read-cover-write-check’. Every student will be provided with a homework timetable which will tell them which subject they should complete each day. For the core subjects of English, maths and science homework is completed online using Sparx.

 

 

Older year groups need a greater variety of revision and retrieval practice activities to use during their homework time. They use these additional techniques:

Students need to bring their independent study pack to school every day so that teachers can check their independent study at home has been fully completed. If a student fails to produce the expected work, they will attend a compulsory catch up after school, for 1 hour. Homework detentions are set for students who continue not to complete homework or who do not attend a catch up session when requested to. 

Your support is always greatly appreciated. Please familiarise yourself with the Independent Study timetable and check each day that your child has completed their homework. Please also ensure that they do not forget to bring in their independent study packs each day.

Knowledge organisers

As core subjects set homework online, they do not print knowledge organisers. The online learning platforms we use have independent study areas that students can use to revise online. However, we recognise that some students benefit from having access to a knowledge organiser for revision and practice. All of our subject knowledge organisers are provided below. Students may request a printed copy from their teachers if they would like one.

This excellent video was shared with year 11 students at the start of the year and is presented by an expert in the field of retrieval practice, cognitive scientist Pooja K Agarwal PHD.

Should you experience any issues related to the knowledge organisers or homework, please do not hesitate to contact Mrs Charlotte Webster on charlotte.webster@stjamesexeter.co.uk

Homework

Recording Homework 

• Students will be able check homework deadlines by referring to the homework timetables, which they will stick in their pink books 

• Most instructions for homework will be online, for example through Sparx or a Google Classroom 

• For written pieces of Homework, students will record instructions in their pink books 

• We will continue to reward homework completion through our system of celebrations in assemblies 

• If homework is incomplete, we will follow this up through our detention system