Homework & Remote Learning

Through Show My Homework (SMHW). Work may exist on Microsoft 365 or on other online platforms, but SMHW is the 'hub' for home learning.

Work set will complement, further, consolidate, broaden, support, engage and build upon the work being undertaken in school. Its completion is important as the rest of the curriculum builds on the knowledge being learnt now. Think of lessons and home learning as bricks in a wall: if you miss out too many, you won't have the strength to build up higher.

For periods of home learning, the set work provides a similar amount of thinking and activity as if students were still in school. Sometimes this means the work may take less time than the normal school hour but has been created to maintain the integrity of the curriculum structure and sequencing of students' knowledge, so students will not need significant catch up work when they return.

All set work is initially checked by the Subject Leader. In fact, much of the work is designed together within Departments and often set across multiple classes. The Senior Leadership Team sample all subjects across every year once a fortnight and share back to Subjects their findings, including sharing best practice.

The school welcomes and encourages feedback from parents: enquiries@bostongrammarschool.co.uk

For periods of home learning, teachers welcome direct feedback from students, which helps enable the subtle changes that happen more naturally in class. Remember, all communication should go through SMHW, Teams or the school email system in order to protect staff and students. During periods of partial or full school closure, student voice will be taken each fortnight to get a feel of how the work is going and how they are doing more generally. Student progress will be checked at least once per half term for KS3 students, and twice per half term for KS4/KS5 students.

Home learning should complement lessons and be manageable within a normal working week, whilst providing enough work so that all students have homework for every work day evening. Pitching work at the right level is a key skill of a teacher, and students should expect the work provided to both support and challenge them. Teachers will always provide the necessary support and guidance for students to feel able to access the work set.

For periods of home learning, the work provided should enable students to engage with the curriculum in addition to their normal homework tasks. As students learn at different rates, it will sometimes feel as though there may be a bit more or a bit less than expected, but this is perfectly normal and it is important to consider the topic or unit as a whole. As parent and student together, you can make appropriate adjustments to the activities e.g. reducing the amount of written work if the activity takes you over the normal allotted time. Staff will sometimes create pre-recorded explanations, as appropriate to the learning, to further enhance support to students. If at all in doubt, or if you are struggling with the underlying ideas, you should email your teacher who can give you guidance as soon as they are able to.

As a school, we have been using most of the online platforms for some time now: SMHW, Seneca, etc. The students, where age appropriate, have been shown how to use them on a number of occasions in school. Our website provides direct links to these sites; please use the 'Remote Access' button at the top of each page.

For periods of home learning, should you require assistance you can contact teachers by email for support, or the main school email address to ask about anything you need to get fully set up: enquiries@bostongrammarschool.co.uk

If you are worried or anxious about anything, please always feel free to contact your Head of Year via email.

For periods of home learning, Form Tutors will contact their tutees as often as they can, via email, to check how they are getting on. However, if you would prefer to talk to someone then please contact the main reception so that we can direct you to one of our Pastoral Support Team / Counsellors, who will also be able to advise you on where to seek external support should it be required.

Students are typically asked to either bring evidence of home learning into school for submission during lessons or via an online avenue such as SMHW or email. It will always be clear as to exactly what should be submitted and how the teacher expects to receive it. Feedback will be provided by teachers to inform students about how their work has met expectations and what their next steps should be to make further progress.

For periods of home learning, subjects will check learning through a number of different avenues such as quizzing, online platforms, getting students to email work in or saving work into a shared folder on Office 365. During periods of partial or full school closure, student progress will be checked at least once per half term for KS3 students and twice per half term for KS4/KS5 students in an appropriate assessment, similar to in normal school, with developmental feedback given in a timely manner.

Accessing Teams via a console simply uses the device as you would any other computer. Open an internet browser and navigate to m365.bostongrammarschool.co.uk.

The following video will help parents to get set up. There are many other online tutorials and videos available via an internet search for "how to use my Xbox/PlayStation to access Microsoft Teams".

Online work is available for all students in all lessons via Show My Homework. Students can start learning straight away by accessing the flexible tasks that are set for all subjects and year groups every week of the academic year. Teams lessons start as quickly as possible and at the latest by the following day. This work follows the same curriculum knowledge but is sometimes structured differently to make it more accessible to undertake as self supported study. The school uses this approach as it also supports:

• individual students who are self isolating
• any student having difficulty accessing Teams in the short term
• any student who is unable to attend school for whatever reason at any point in the year

All students learning remotely cover the same knowledge content, wherever possible. The activities can differ, but only to reflect the nature of online learning. Perhaps the biggest difference is in core PE, where the focus is around healthy active lifestyles. Fitness challenges and tasks will be set weekly on SMHW for students to engage with in Years 7, 8 and 9. Certain theoretical aspects of the course will still be delivered through these challenges, with tasks reflecting the curriculum intent. At GCSE and A-level, the curriculum will continue as normal with online lessons.

The school provides learning in line with what students might be expected to undertake during 'normal' schooling, including homework. Some homework tasks are more open ended to enable families to be flexible with their day and make decisions together about what is best for their child's day to day experience and mental health.

The figures below are an approximate guide to the expected daily work a student should undertake, including self-managed study:

• KS3: six hours a day
• KS4: seven hours a day
• KS5: seven hours a day

Within Microsoft 365 the school uses a variety of tools, but the main three are Teams, SharePoint and Outlook (email).

• Teams is the tool we use to deliver live online lessons where teachers screen share, explain, run Q&A, give verbal feedback, etc. This is the main vehicle staff use to 'teach' during any period of classes being absent from school. Staff are online for at least of 30 minutes each lesson.

• SharePoint is mainly used as a resource drop - each year group has a space where staff make all resources for learning available. Students also have their own spaces to save their work.

• The use of school email is an occasional tool. It is used by staff to send reminders, updates, bespoke feedback, etc. It is also used by some subjects as a tool for work collection from students.

The school has provided over 100 laptops/Chromebooks to students who have needed them. It has also provided internet access dongles.

Where students are struggling to work remotely they can contact reception by phone or email. Where the request is granted the school then prepares a Chromebook / internet dongle and contacts home, usually via phone. Parents are invited in to collect the device(s) and will need to sign a 'loan agreement' before they can take the device(s) home. Where parents are unable to get to school within normal opening hours the school makes alternative arrangements, including home delivery.

Where we are unable to resolve issues with online learning the school finds the next best solution, e.g. attending school.

Predominantly via 'live' online lessons through Teams. Also through recorded teaching, resources, guidance and tasks on the platforms described above e.g. Show My Homework.

Students are expected to engage with all Teams lessons, where they are able. Students are expected to complete all tasks set on SMHW. Flexible learning (also on SMHW) should be completed where students do not have access to Teams lessons.

Parents are not expected to teach or monitor their child's school learning any more than they would do normally. Parents are already teachers of their children; they explain the world, teach morals, expand horizons and much, much more. We know parents have their own responsibilities and daily tasks that they have to complete to enable their families to function. However, we welcome parental engagement with the process e.g. quizzing, and at times we may ask some parents for further support in engaging their child with the learning.

More generally, it is the obvious things that probably don't need stating that the school needs help with. Keeping students in routines, providing them with the best space possible to learn, keeping expectations of them to do family activities to a minimum during school hours, supporting them to ask for help when they are unsure, contacting school where they have concerns (e.g. mental health) and talking to them positively about their learning.

We also welcome feedback, including positive, about how learning is going or how we can support you further. Please check our contact page to identify the most appropriate person.

Attendance registers are taken of all Teams lessons. Live lessons are routinely punctuated with Q&A or expected student response, to ensure students focus on learning. Staff continue to set work and collect work that is checked, and appropriate feedback is given as a whole class and individually. Please remember that not all feedback is written and not every piece of work receives a grade.

Where students seemingly fail to attend live lessons the school will call parents the same day and check if this is accurate. In most cases there is a plausible reason for students being missed on an attendance register. Where it is an issue, school works with families to find an appropriate solution, which may include inviting the student in to work at school, or arranging a home visit.

In terms of completion of work, staff follow normal routines of agreeing extensions, where appropriate, or contacting home. This is normally done by the individual teacher or by the Head of Year.

The school also conducts phone call welfare checks with parents every fortnight to discuss any issues, and continues to run tutor sessions every morning which include welfare talks with the students. Where concerns are raised, the school increases welfare chats as appropriate to the need.

Teachers continually assess students' learning through AfL during Teams lessons, similar to in school lessons. Teachers continue to follow the school's marking and feedback policy. Subjects run lots of low stakes quizzing to check student's understanding but also use Q&A, task feedback and more formal assessments. All this understanding of student progress leads to termly holistic grading which is shared with families as an 'Attainment Grade'.

Students with SEND have weekly welfare check phone calls, as we know how important communication is at this time. Direct contact links with the SENDCo are promoted and we actively encourage parents to use this if they feel they or their child needs some support.

All students are contacted with additional links of ways they are able to support themselves through utilising available resources such as readers, reading materials and ways to dictate answers. All staff are given additional guidance on how to practically support students with SEND whilst home learning.

Alongside this, additional support lessons are offered for those who need it. To ensure all students have equal access, SEND students along with our disadvantaged have been prioritised to ensure they have a device to access the online lessons and resources.