HOMEWORK

Primary School
In the Primary School at UWCT we believe home learning tasks should be motivating
and promote the love of learning. Home learning tasks will be engaging and
interactive, usually relating to our unit of inquiry (UOI), rather than done in isolation.
Home learning tasks are differentiated depending on the needs of the individual
student. The tasks are prepared by the homeroom teachers and are designed to
provide opportunities for all students to enjoy success.
These may include
developmentally appropriate tasks such as:
Family interactions
Number work
Reading
Unit research
Standalone literacy tasks
Community service
Please view your childs class Weebly page to access more detail relevant to their
grade level.
It is important to note that students should be balanced and participate in a range of
activities including physical and creative pursuits. Home learning tasks should not
replace these pursuits. If you feel the amount or level of home level tasks is not
suitable for your child, please discuss this with your homeroom teacher.
Time allocation
Due to the nature of the programme and student learning needs varying greatly, set
time allocations do not apply. Exceptions may lie with ESOL and SEN learners, who
may need extra exposure or more direct instruction at home.
However, we do not believe children in Preschool or below should participate in
home learning activities and students in Kindergarten Grade 5 should be spending
more time focusing on numeracy and literacy development than specific home
learning assignments.
Parental note
All children are motivated by parental interest in their home learning tasks and in
particular, their reading. This interest could look like:
Reading to or listening to your child read

A discussion and sharing of viewpoints on a subject

A casual check in: How is everything going at school? Do you need any
help?
Providing time for support with tasks such as surveys or community service
Being a sounding board for ideas.

Remember, home learning tasks are not meant to cause conflict or stress so please let
your homeroom teacher know if your child is struggling to complete his or her tasks or
appears anxious.
Growth Mindset
Positive reinforcement will lead to a growth mindset in your child. This is a concept
that we work towards fostering at school. We want all students to believe that they
can succeed with any given task over time. If this means that there is an aspect of
homework they need further help with, we would encourage them to take
responsibility and come into class and share this with their teacher. They can then
work in partnership to set future goals for success.
Our Reading Philosophy
At UWCT, we believe that reading is an essential skill that will help support all learners
throughout their lives and is key to their success. In fact, evidence suggests that
reading for pleasure is more likely to determine a childs success at school than their
social or economic background. With this in mind, we encourage and support all
reading at home and hope you enjoy the experience with your child as much as we
do.

Secondary School
Our growth mindset campaign is also based on an approach called the 4Ps and
encourages students to be punctual, prepared, perceptive and persistent.
The following guidelines should be used by MYP and DP teachers as maximum time
frames.
Grade 6 students could have up to six hours of homework a week (approximately 45
minutes per subject group).
Grade 7 students could have up to eight hours of homework a week (approximately
60 minutes per subject group).

Grade 8 students could have up to ten hours of homework a week (approximately 75

minutes per subject group).
Grade 9 students could have up to 12 hours of homework a week (approximately 90
minutes per subject group).
Grade 10 students could have up to 15 hours of homework a week (approximately 90
minutes per subject group and 3 hours for Personal Project).
Grade 11 and 12: In the IB Diploma Programme (DP) successful students will spend at
least 20 hours a week outside of class completing requirements and homework. This
includes assignments and assessments, Extended Essay, and activities related to the
Creativity, Action, Service (CAS) component of the DP.