(updated 9/14/2024)
Homework / {Un} Homework Information
1. Home Reading
Students will be expected to read outside of school on a regular basis. The required weekly reading for the students in my class is at least 100 minutes (approximately 20 minutes daily on school days) each week. Students are expected to read books that are at their reading level but any kind of reading is acceptable. Reading aloud to your child is encouraged and those minutes will count toward the required 100 minutes per week. Any minutes completed in Lexia at home will also count toward the required minutes. The recording of these minutes on a weekly reading log will be due each Friday. Students will only turn in the number of minutes read with parent/guardian initials to verify the minutes read. You do NOT have to record what was read, etc. (That will, however, be required for the PTA monthly reading program.)
2. Home Folder
Students will be responsible for a Home Folder that they will take back and forth to school and home each day. Students are responsible to use their home folders to take home various notices, completed school work, forms to be completed by parents/guardians, and their home reading minutes. Any notes/forms that need to be returned to school, as well as home reading minutes, which are due each Friday, should be brought back in their Home Folder. Students are responsible for putting their reading minutes and any notes/forms that they are bringing back to school, in the appropriate bin/basket when they arrive in the morning.
3. Work Not Finished In Class
Sometimes a student gets behind with their classroom assignments. If this is the case, the unfinished work may be sent home and should be returned to school when finished. Depending on the situation, students may be required to complete any unfinished work during their free time (recess) and/or during their choice time on Fridays.
4. Optional Spelling/Phonics Activities
Attached to your child’s weekly reading log will be a quarter-sheet of paper of the current spelling list. In class, students will have some workbook pages and other spelling assignments to complete as well as the opportunity to do other fun activities related to the assigned words. Although it’s not required, students are encouraged to practice spelling at home to prepare for their tests that will be every other week. There is a list of Spelling Practice Ideas attached to this year’s spelling lists that I’m sending home. These extra activities are not required and do not have to be turned-in.
5. Special Projects
There may be some special projects during the year for students will do at home. These projects are meant to extend and expand your child’s learning outside the classroom and provide the opportunity for family involvement in the learning process.
6. Additional {UN}Homework Options
Students are always welcome to work at home on iReady Reading and iReady Math which they can access their Clever accounts. They can also go to my Symbaloo page at symbaloo.com and search for "Ms. Bark's Tiles" page under the heading "Web Mixes". Students can find a variety of fun activities including musical math (skip counting), math games, reading resources, and more. Please note that some sites may have shut-down or are now unaccessible so just try another link for something else. Students will learn more about my Symbaloo page in class as the year progresses.