Week 7.1: My View on Homework

Based on your readings and experience in this class and beyond, create a rationale/purpose for giving homework and independent work.

Within the first week of teaching kindergarten, parents were already asking me when I was going to start sending home homework. At first I was taken aback because I thought students were too young to be receiving homework. Instead, I sent home weekly newsletters that informed students about what we were learning at school and how they could help at home. Eventually, I began sending home writing practice for students to practice their letter of the week. I also encouraged my students to read their sight word books to parents and to READ every night! I quickly realized how important homework is even if it is just 20 minutes a night. Parents are given the opportunity to see what their child is learning in class and students are given the time to practice what they have learning in school. In addition, homework can teach students to work independently and encourage self-discipline and responsibility. (Colorín Colorado)
 

What will constitute meaningful homework?

Meaningful homework will be students practicing something that they have already learned in class. For 
example, my students learned how to make the letter M in class so I sent home practice for them on making the letter M. Parents are encouraged to monitor their child’s homework and to make sure the student is completing the work correctly. This type of scaffolding should eventually decrease as the child gets older in order to increase independence. Feedback will be provided by me within 1-2 days. For my kindergarteners, feedback was in the form of a sticker that read “good job” or “keep up the good work.” For older elementary students, I would provide more specific comments for the student. “Homework helps your child do better in school when the assignments are meaningful, are completed successfully and are returned to her with constructive comments from the teacher” (Colorín Colorado).

What are your intended homework objectives for your students, particularly those who are English Language Learners?

I will send home a letter at the beginning of the year that communicates the homework policy for parents. The letter will encourage parents to use their native language when discussing vocabulary with their child and will also encourage parents to model literacy in their native language as well. (Hill&Flynn, p.78) I love the Colorín Colorado article, “Empowering Hispanic Parents & Families at Home,” because it includes suggestions for parents who can speak only Spanish but may not be able to read. I would include these suggestions in the letter but also hold a “back to school day” for parents to discuss the homework policy as well as other policies. There would preferably be a translator on hand to translate in Spanish.

My students would be encouraged to read every night and to keep track of their minutes in a reading log. The reading logs would be checked on a daily basis and I will put a smiley face to let students and parents know that I am checking.

My students are encouraged to practice reading their sight word books with their families. I always tell them to read it to three different people and give them examples of people which could include their pet. J

My students are encouraged to practice their letter of the week and to turn it into me the following day. ELL students can be given extra time if needed.

 How will you provide specific feedback and overcome potential language barriers in home-school communication?

As stated above, feedback looks a little different for kindergarten then it does for other grades. I do believe specific feedback is important so if I see Bobby (made up name) is having difficulty with his homework, I would have a conversation with him instead of making a bunch of comments on his homework that he wouldn’t be able to read. I would also get in touch with Bobby’s parents to provide them with feedback on how best to help Bobby at home. If the parent doesn’t speak English, I will have a translator speak with the parent. If the parent receives emails, I could always have an email translated to the parent’s native language. I could also send home a translated letter.

References

Hill, J., & Flynn, K. (2006). Classroom instruction that works with English language learners. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Homework: The Basics. (2005). Retrieved June 15, 2015, from http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/20469/

Empowering Hispanic Parents & Families at Home. (2007). Retrieved June 16, 2015, from http://www.colorincolorado.org/educators/reachingout/empowering

Week 6.1: Fiction & Non-Fiction Text Features

Stories that are age appropriate for Kindergarten	Features of story that will support students learning to speak English.	Features of story that will be challenging for students learning to speak English.
Fiction Story: Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? Bill Martin Jr./ Eric Carle	Repetition of “Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see? Brightly colored illustrations to draw students’ attention. This will also help them make a connection between the words and the pictures. Easy to follow along in the story. Students can easily predict what animal will come next on the page which entices the student to keep reading.	Text says “I see a ______ looking at me before actually seeing the animal.” This may confuse some children. Difficulty of reading direction on the last two pages. Students are taught to read from left to right starting with the left page. On these pages, students are expected to read all the way across the two pages left to right in order to follow the right animal sequence. Confusion of colors chosen for animals. Students associate yellow for duck but not purple for a cat.
Non-Fiction Story: Camping Text by Gill Munton Developed by Ruth Miskin	High-frequency words throughout the story. They are in a different color (red) in order to help separate them. Brief introduction to three key vocabulary words (plastic, match, supper) at the beginning of the story. Real pictures correlate nicely with the next.	Distracting having high frequency words in a different color then the rest of the text. Students may not connect with the topic if they have never been camping. This may affect comprehension of the text. Unfamiliar vocabulary words.
References Martin, B., & Carle, E. (1992). Brown bear, brown bear, what do you see? New York, New York: Henry Holt and Company. Munton, G., & Miskin, R. (2009). Camping. Oxford: Oxford University Press.