HOME LEARNING

At Wairau we value the busy lives that our young people lead. Many of our students are involved in additional activities outside of the school day. These are often sports, cultural or further classes which support academic learning. While we do not set regular daily home learning, their will be times when your child is ask to complete one of the following:

We also strongly encourage students to read for pleasure, at home on a regular basis (15 minutes a day). This will support them to develop the skills needed to access a range of information across the curriculum.


Research also shows that students who read regularly have greater reading comprehension, verbal fluency and general knowledge than those who do not. They become better readers, score higher on achievement tests in all subject areas, and have greater content knowledge than their non-reading peers.

The benefits of reading for pleasure are extensive and long-reaching. Reading for pleasure:

·       boosts academic achievement, and provides a foundation for critical, digital and information literacy

·       builds cognitive function and stamina when immersed in the flow of reading

·       develops empathy and knowledge — of self, other worlds, culture, heritage, and ways of being and thinking

·       empowers students to become active citizens

·       improves and builds psychological wellbeing and healthy behaviours, and

·       crucially for young people, can be relaxing and provide an escape.

 

This can take many forms:

·  Reading instructions for, and playing, a game

·  Following a recipe

·  Completing forms

·  Reading books, magazines, newspapers, or information from the internet

·  Reading a letter or an email

 

Taking time to practice number fact at home such as the quick recall of times tables will also be invaluable during your child's time with us. This will support them to effectively solve a range of mathematical problems.