At Sir Thomas Wharton Academy, homework aims to promote learning at home as part of a well-rounded education.

All homework will be meaningful, purposeful and focus on either:

1. Consolidation – Embedding knowledge, skills and understanding from previous lessons.

2. Prep Learning – Preparing students for learning in upcoming lessons.

Homework may also include revising for tests and examinations.

Homework can improve the performance and outcomes of students by up to five months when it:

· Allows students to practise what they have recently learnt and improves retrieval ability.

· Prepares students for learning which they will do in the near future.

· Increases the amount of study time.

· Gives students the opportunity to work independently in their own time.

· Allows students to access resources and materials not necessarily available in lesson time.

· Helps students learn how to manage their time effectively.

· Enables parents/carers to see the kind of content that is being explored in school.

Online Homework Platforms

Satchel One is used for setting most homework tasks, this is supplemented with Sparx for Maths homework and Tassomai for students in Years 10 and 11.

Satchel One is an online tool which shows all the homework created, published and logged by teachers.

Sparx Maths is an online platform that allows students to practice the mathematical skills and knowledge they gain in lessons and gain immediate feedback.

Tassomai is an app for students in Years 10 and 11 to use to support their independent revision in English, Science, Geography, History, Computer Science and Mathematics.

Satchel One: Show My Homework

Once a student joins Sir Thomas Wharton Academy, they will be given an Office 365 email account with a password that gives them access to Satchel One. Parents/carers will also receive a unique PIN number to sign in with.

Students and parents/carers are able to view and manage homework tasks by downloading the Satchel One app on a smartphone device or using the link on the Sir Thomas Wharton Academy website. The app sends reminders to remind students and parents/carers when work is due to be submitted. Students are able to use Satchel One to submit their homework, view all homework tasks and contact their teacher. of homework

The ‘Assignments’ and ‘Quizzes’ are the most common types of homework that teachers will use as it requires students to submit their work for a specific due date.

Other types of homework may include spelling tests to develop and support literacy.

Tassomai

Tassomai is an app for students in Years 10 and 11 to use to support their independent revision in English, Science, Geography, History and Computer Science. Students can access Tassomai by downloading the app on a smartphone or device, and using their academy email address and a password that is shared by form tutors to log in.

Tassomai makes it easier to learn and revise, at home, at school or on the move. Students just need to log in and start answering quizzes; the algorithm prioritises the right topics and ensures everything gets the attention it needs.

A student’s aim each day is simply to complete the daily goals in each of their subjects by hitting their target of correct questions. Familiar techniques from gaming incentivise regular usage, rewarding and motivating students, helping to build sustainable learning habits.

All students are expected to achieve their daily goals for each of the subjects they study.

Students will be supported to raise their engagement with Tassomai through weekly tracking in tutor time as well as individual and year group rewards. For more information, please use this link: https://www.tassomai.com/how-tassomai-works

SpArx Maths

Sparx Maths is an online platform that all students will use to complete their mathematics homework.

Homework tasks are set weekly on Sparx for all students; these tasks are aligned with what students are studying in lesson. Sparx homework allows students to practice the skills and knowledge they gain in lessons

and gain immediate feedback. Where students are struggling, they can watch videos that support them and further their understanding.

Sparx personalises the homework for students by revisiting topics that individuals have previously struggled with to support them to close the gap.

Students log onto Sparx Maths with their Microsoft username and password as they would do in the Academy.