Important update from TheSchoolRun
For the past 13 years, TheSchoolRun has been run by a small team of mums working from home, dedicated to providing quality educational resources to primary school parents. Unfortunately, rising supplier costs and falling revenue have made it impossible for us to continue operating, and we’ve had to make the difficult decision to close. The good news: We’ve arranged for another educational provider to take over many of our resources. These will be hosted on a new portal, where the content will be updated and expanded to support your child’s learning.
What this means for subscribers:
- Your subscription is still active, and for now, you can keep using the website as normal — just log in with your usual details to access all our articles and resources*.
- In a few months, all resources will move to the new portal. You’ll continue to have access there until your subscription ends. We’ll send you full details nearer the time.
- As a thank you for your support, we’ll also be sending you 16 primary school eBooks (worth £108.84) to download and keep.
A few changes to be aware of:
- The Learning Journey weekly email has ended, but your child’s plan will still be updated on your dashboard each Monday. Just log in to see the recommended worksheets.
- The 11+ weekly emails have now ended. We sent you all the remaining emails in the series at the end of March — please check your inbox (and spam folder) if you haven’t seen them. You can also follow the full programme here: 11+ Learning Journey.
If you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected]. Thank you for being part of our journey it’s been a privilege to support your family’s learning.
*If you need to reset your password, it will still work as usual. Please check your spam folder if the reset email doesn’t appear in your inbox.
How to help your child with their homework
Where should my child do homework?
Your child needs a space that is free from distractions. So TV, computers (unless needed for research) and noisy siblings are best avoided.
If you have the space for a desk in a family room, that helps reinforce the working message. A desk in a younger child’s own room can make them feel isolated from help and can also be distracting if surrounded by toys and possessions. If you don’t have room for a desk, set up some space on the dining table.
Start a unique learning programme!
- Weekly programme for each school year
- Worksheets sent direct to your inbox
- Keeps your child's learning on track
They should have enough room to spread out books.
What equipment do they need?
It’s a good idea to have all equipment ready before starting the homework. This ensures time isn’t wasted searching for items and that your child doesn’t get in to the habit of procrastinating.
You should assemble pens, pencils, colouring pencils, rulers, sharpeners and a calculator. You might also need a dictionary, an encyclopaedia or a PC with internet access for homework that involves research.
When should homework be done?
Most schools set homework to be done on the night it is issued while the topic is still fresh in your child’s mind. You could try sitting down and doing the homework as soon as your child gets home from school so that you can ‘get it out of the way’. Or, you might like to give your child some downtime then approach the work after tea. You might need to experiment to find out what works best for your child and you.
How much should I help?
It can be tempting to take over and do your child’s homework, especially if it is challenging or your child is unenthusiastic. However, your child will not learn anything if they don’t do the work.
If you can, be on hand to talk through the piece of homework. Also be available to answer questions and explain how to find answers if the question has stumped you.
I hated homework, how can I stay positive?
If you have a loathing of homework left over from your own school days, try not to let it seep into the way you talk about homework. Avoid negative speech such as “I could never do that” and “I’ve always hated maths”. Instead, try to say, “I’m not sure of the answer, let’s work it out together” or “This looks like an interesting topic”.
Many parents find the volume of homework off-putting, especially if their child is reluctant to do it. The easiest way to combat the inertia is to make homework time into a fun, sociable activity. Make both of you a warm drink, get some snacks and use it as time to help you both understand what the school is teaching.
How much homework will my child get?
The government has guidelines on how much time your child is expected to spend on homework. They are:
- Reception – practise reading the book sent home by school
- Years 1 and 2 – one hour per week
- Years 3 and 4 – one and a half hours per week
- Years 5 and 6 – 30 minutes per day
