Home Learning

Home Learning

At Ormiston Denes Academy, we believe that effective home learning plays an important role in supporting students’ achievement and developing independent learning habits. Home learning provides opportunities for students to consolidate classroom learning, strengthen their understanding and build long-term retention of key knowledge and skills.

Our approach is designed to help students take increasing responsibility for their own learning, develop effective study habits and prepare successfully for future assessments and qualifications. We aim to ensure that all students have regular opportunities to practise, retrieve and apply what they have learned in lessons.

Independent Study

Students are provided with Knowledge Organisers and other curriculum resources to support independent study. Teachers direct students to specific areas of learning that require revision, retrieval practice or further study, often using strategies outlined in our Denes Desirables programme.

Independent study focuses on helping students revisit previously taught content and retrieve knowledge from long-term memory. Regular retrieval and review strengthen learning, improve retention and help students make connections across the curriculum. Teachers may assess students’ understanding through a range of methods, including low-stakes quizzes, written responses, discussion, mini-whiteboards and knowledge recall activities.

The emphasis is on developing effective study habits and ensuring students secure the powerful knowledge they need to be successful in their learning.

Practice and Application Activities

Alongside independent study, teachers may set additional home learning activities to help students apply and extend their learning. These may include:

• Practice questions and exam-style tasks.
• Extended or timed writing activities.
• Reading and research tasks.
• Creative projects and presentations.
• Subject-specific rehearsal and skill-development activities.

The nature, frequency and level of challenge of these activities will vary between subjects and year groups, reflecting the curriculum being studied and the needs of individual students.

Recording and Completing Home Learning

All home learning should be recorded in students’ planners, including any deadlines and guidance provided by teachers. Students are expected to organise their time effectively, complete work to the best of their ability and seek support if they encounter difficulties.

Where students require additional support to complete home learning or independent study, they may be invited to attend our after-school Homework Clubs, which provides a focused and supportive environment for learning.

Through our home learning programme, we aim to develop confident, independent learners who are equipped with the knowledge, study habits and resilience needed for success in school and beyond.

Setting home learning

• To enable parental support, teachers will ensure that students record homework and a deadline clearly in the student planner.
• Teachers will help students programme independent revision (using their knowledge organiser) in the student planner in between homework being set.

All home learning will be validated, and rewards given in line with the school policy – students should feel proud of work completed independently at home.

Online learning

Please see the student guide below to help you access online learning with Microsoft 365.

Sparx Maths

Sparx Maths Homework

At Ormiston Denes Academy, students use Sparx Maths to complete their weekly maths home learning. Sparx provides personalised homework tailored to each student’s current level of understanding, helping them build confidence and make secure progress in mathematics.

Homework is set each Wednesday and is due the following Wednesday.

We know that parental support plays an important role in students’ success. The information below explains how Sparx works and how you can help your child complete their homework each week.

What is Sparx Maths Homework?

• Sparx creates personalised homework for every student, providing questions that are both challenging and achievable.
• Most homework focuses on recently taught topics, while also revisiting previous learning to strengthen long-term retention.
• Students access their homework through their online Sparx account, where they receive immediate feedback and opportunities to correct mistakes.
• Although homework is completed online, students are expected to show their working in their maths workbook. Sparx’s “Bookwork Check” feature encourages good study habits and mathematical presentation.
• Every question includes a linked support video, enabling students to access help independently whenever they need it.

How Can You Support Your Child?

• Provide a quiet space and regular time for homework each week.
• Encourage your child to begin their homework early, allowing time to seek support from their teacher if needed.
• Check the weekly Sparx parent email and praise your child for their effort and completion of tasks.
• Encourage independence. Students should attempt questions themselves before seeking help, as this ensures Sparx can accurately personalise future homework.
• Remind your child to use the support videos and learning resources available within Sparx if they become stuck.

Support Available at Ormiston Denes Academy

Students can access additional support through:

• Homework Club, is available every day after school in the library – on Wednesday afterschool the Maths department is in attendance to support students who need further support.
• The Library, which is open during break and lunchtime for independent study and homework completion.

Parent Portal

Parents and carers can register for the Sparx Parent Portal to view:

• Homework that has been set.
• Progress and completion rates.
• Areas where additional support may be helpful.
• Guidance on how to support learning at home.

For more information, please visit the Parent Portal via Sparx Maths.

If you have any questions about your child’s progress in mathematics, please contact the academy on 01502 574474.

Knowledge organisers

All students are provided with half-termly knowledge organisers. These booklets contain the key information students need to know to be successful in the scheme of learning they are following in lessons. Students will be taught in assemblies, tutor time and lessons how to best use the knowledge organisers and build an understanding of the revision and memory techniques which underpin them.

Checks will be conducted to ensure students have their knowledge organiser in school, they keep them in an appropriate condition and are completing the tasks set out to help learn the knowledge on the back page of each document.

Click here for a parental guide to support your child use their knowledge organiser effectively at home.

Follow these links to the spring term knowledge organisers:

Year 7Download

Year 8Download

Year 9Download

Year 10Download

Year 11Download

Parent involvement

Parents have a considerable contribution to make to students’ success at school. At the academy, we encourage parents to support their children with home learning by creating an environment and routine at home to enable home learning to be completed. Parents should check the student planner on a daily basis to see what homework has been set for their child.

If there is no homework to complete, parents should ensure that their child engages with the information and tasks in their knowledge organiser. The table that follows sets out the minimum required home learning that students should complete to support their learning in school.

When independent revision is completed by their child, parents should sign the planner to confirm they have witnessed them complete the revision and sign their reading logs, where appropriate.

Homework and independent revision frequency