The high school library has special research methods and worksheets to help students organise and do assignments. Encourage your child to use these. They work!

Assignments aren’t easy if a student is disorganised. Encourage this approach:

Getting started

• Understand the task
• Read the assignment task
• Ask… “What is this about?”
• …”How do they want it answered?”
• Underline the ‘what’ word/s…the facts
• Underline the process word/s…the how to answer
  • Understand the form wanted
  • Is it…a paragraph/essay/display sheet?
  • Does it need…diagrams/graphs/illustrations/quotes?
  • Is there a cover sheet? What is on it?
    • Understand the time
    • When is it due?
    • How many days?
    • Make a plan for research time and writing time

Researching the assignment

• Use the library research sheets and strategies

Writing it up

• Check…the facts…the what?…the how?…the form?
• Plan it
• Write a rough copy
• Proof read
• Write out neat copy – check bibliography/cover sheet/titles/labels

Hand it in…on time!

Parents: Please help but don’t do the work!

Help with organisation right from Day 1

Study Area

Set up a quiet area for work and study – a desk or table

Make sure it’s away from TV, radio and anything else distracting

Check the light – is it comfortable and shining on the work area?

Equipment

What is needed?

Paper (reinforced A4), pens, rulers, small note pads, plastic sleeves, files, punch, ring reinforcers, a dictionary on the desk

Timetable

Make a timetable for school and after school

Set up a regular time for homework (1-1½ hours homework and study per night approx) – include sport, training and other commitments

The diary has a study schedule plan and hints to help make the plan

Pin the plan up above the desk

Timetables will change in Term 3 so make a new plan then

Study and Homework Routine

Help organise a regular routine for homework and study.

Try this:

• Go to work/study area at the agreed time
• Check diary
• Write a list of work due and dates due (small white notepads are great for this)
• Write a list of work to do that night – do hardest things first
• Tick/cross out work done
• If there is no set homework – READ or STUDY in the set time – study means going over work and learning it
• Finished: * tidy up work area * tidy up files * pack bag for the following day

A regular routine really helps!

Files are a mess! How can I help?

Many students find it difficult to keep files organised. There are five main subjects – Health and Physical Education, English, Humanities and Social Sciences, Science, plus Maths and five\six elective subjects. That’s a lot to organise.

There are two file choices: Lever Arch or Ring Binder.

Lever Arch Files

• Use file dividers …clearly labelled with each subject
• Reinforce the holes with ring binders – they tear with use
• Use reinforced A4 paper
• Use plastic sleeves for worksheets or reinforce them – they come loose
• Date each page and worksheet used
• Write a title on each page eg “Society & Environment – Making Laws”
• Write on one side of the paper – it’s easier to study from
• Writing notes, develop a pattern
• Put headings/main ideas near the margin
• Write notes further in
• Write one main idea on each line
• Number notes clearly

Tidy files each night – check paper supply and order

Clear out file when a unit of study is finished

Ring Binder Files – these are easier for students to organise, as they don’t break as much

• Get three A4 ring binder files, use different colours
  • one Maths and Science -a file divider between
  • one English and Humanities and Social Sciences – file diver between
  • one Health Education and elective subjects – file dividers between
• Buy, label and reinforce the dividers – one for each subject
• Label files on the cover and spine
• Buy four A4 ruled and punched 7mm Tudor lecture pads for main subjects
• Label with subject and number each right-hand page (don’t use back of each page)
• Buy two packets of plastic sleeves to store handouts
• Buy reinforced A4 paper for work which needs handing in

Set up main subjects

• File dividers and label for each subject
• Plastic sleeve for current worksheets
• A4 book for class work
• Sheets of paper for work that has to be handed in (5-10)
• Plastic sleeves for old worksheets and work (5)

Help with organisation right from Day 1

Study Area

Set up a quiet area for work and study – a desk or table

Make sure it’s away from TV, radio and anything else distracting

Check the light – is it comfortable and shining on the work area?

Equipment

What is needed?

Paper (reinforced A4), pens, rulers, small note pads, plastic sleeves, files, punch, ring reinforcers, a dictionary on the desk

Timetable

Make a timetable for school and after school

Set up a regular time for homework (1-1½ hours homework and study per night approx) – include sport, training and other commitments

The diary has a study schedule plan and hints to help make the plan

Pin the plan up above the desk

Timetables will change in Term 3 so make a new plan then

Study and Homework Routine

Help organise a regular routine for homework and study.

Try this:

• Go to work/study area at the agreed time
• Check diary
• Write a list of work due and dates due (small white notepads are great for this)
• Write a list of work to do that night – do hardest things first
• Tick/cross out work done
• If there is no set homework – READ or STUDY in the set time – study means going over work and learning it
• Finished: * tidy up work area * tidy up files * pack bag for the following day

A regular routine really helps!

Files are a mess! How can I help?

Many students find it difficult to keep files organised. There are five main subjects – Health and Physical Education, English, Humanities and Social Sciences, Science, plus Maths and five\six elective subjects. That’s a lot to organise.

There are two file choices: Lever Arch or Ring Binder.

Lever Arch Files

• Use file dividers …clearly labelled with each subject
• Reinforce the holes with ring binders – they tear with use
• Use reinforced A4 paper
• Use plastic sleeves for worksheets or reinforce them – they come loose
• Date each page and worksheet used
• Write a title on each page eg “Society & Environment – Making Laws”
• Write on one side of the paper – it’s easier to study from
• Writing notes, develop a pattern
• Put headings/main ideas near the margin
• Write notes further in
• Write one main idea on each line
• Number notes clearly

Tidy files each night – check paper supply and order

Clear out file when a unit of study is finished

Ring Binder Files – these are easier for students to organise, as they don’t break as much

• Get three A4 ring binder files, use different colours
  • one Maths and Science -a file divider between
  • one English and Humanities and Social Sciences – file diver between
  • one Health Education and elective subjects – file dividers between
• Buy, label and reinforce the dividers – one for each subject
• Label files on the cover and spine
• Buy four A4 ruled and punched 7mm Tudor lecture pads for main subjects
• Label with subject and number each right-hand page (don’t use back of each page)
• Buy two packets of plastic sleeves to store handouts
• Buy reinforced A4 paper for work which needs handing in

Set up main subjects

• File dividers and label for each subject
• Plastic sleeve for current worksheets
• A4 book for class work
• Sheets of paper for work that has to be handed in (5-10)
• Plastic sleeves for old worksheets and work (5)

Remembering is something we can all improve, having a method for remembering helps.

Some of the methods people use are:

The List…Look…Say…Cover

• Write the facts to be learned in a list – one above the next
• Read the list through slowly, concentrating on each word
• Do this three times
• Cover up the list
• Write them out
• Check
• Repeat until they’re all right
• Just before bed, test again by writing out the names
• The next day, test again

The Link

Link the facts to something familiar which is easy to remember eg you want to remember a car registration 6CH1983

You may have friends called Chris and Helen

They will call at 6

1 from 9 is eight and 3 is half of 6

Repeat until remembered

The Rhyme or Jingle

Make up a rhyme or sentence which is easy to remember using the first letters. Repeat or sing until known. Re-test following day/s:

Colours of the rainbow – Red Orange Yellow Green Blue Indigo Violet – Richard of York Gave Battle in Vain

or

In fourteen hundred and ninety two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue

The Acronym

Make up a name or nonsense word from the initial letters:

BIMDAS – order of operation for Arithmetic

Brackets, Indices, Multiply, Divide, Add, Subtract

Remembering is something we can all improve, having a method for remembering helps.

Some of the methods people use are:

The List…Look…Say…Cover

• Write the facts to be learned in a list – one above the next
• Read the list through slowly, concentrating on each word
• Do this three times
• Cover up the list
• Write them out
• Check
• Repeat until they’re all right
• Just before bed, test again by writing out the names
• The next day, test again

The Link

Link the facts to something familiar which is easy to remember eg you want to remember a car registration 6CH1983

You may have friends called Chris and Helen

They will call at 6

1 from 9 is eight and 3 is half of 6

Repeat until remembered

The Rhyme or Jingle

Make up a rhyme or sentence which is easy to remember using the first letters. Repeat or sing until known. Re-test following day/s:

Colours of the rainbow – Red Orange Yellow Green Blue Indigo Violet – Richard of York Gave Battle in Vain

or

In fourteen hundred and ninety two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue

The Acronym

Make up a name or nonsense word from the initial letters:

BIMDAS – order of operation for Arithmetic

Brackets, Indices, Multiply, Divide, Add, Subtract

The Sentence

Form a sentence from the first letters of the words:

The planets in the Solar System

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto

Men Very Easily Make Jugs Serve Useful Needs and Pleasures

Other Hints

• Active remembering works best…write and say
• Don’t try too much…six or seven facts or words at one time
• Keep re-testing until it’s really learned

• Recognise your child’s successes in reading and offer encouragement
• Ensure your child is exposed to a wide range of reading materials eg newspapers, letters, recipes, TV guides, magazines, puzzle books
• Provide a quiet, well-lit study area
• Take your child to the library regularly
• Encourage your child to read for different purposes eg
  • reading recipes during cooking
  • reading and explaining instructions for using new appliances
  • reading interesting articles from the community newspaper
  • reading to younger brother and sister
  • reading to find out more information about a topic
• Help your child find other books written by favourite authors
• Encourage your child to talk about books he or she has enjoyed
• Support the learning process by guiding and advising (this doesn’t mean doing the work for your child)
• Provide guidance and explanation of ways of understanding what is read
• Support your child’s school research tasks by:
  • taking your child to the local library to find appropriate books
  • encouraging your child to jot down all that is known about a topic
  • helping your child to classify this information
  • encouraging your child to explore the topic further by brainstorming topic-related questions using a “Question Word” framework – “Who”, “How”, “When”, “If”, “Where”, “What”, “Why”
  • encouraging your child to use the following procedures when taking notes:
    • Short Notes
    • Key words and phrases with the reference book open
    • Long Notes
    • Own sentences with the reference book closed
• Encourage reading if no set homework

• Buy books as presents
• Play games such as Scrabble that focus on letter patterns
• Take an active interest in TV programs watched by children
• Talk with children about their interests
• Take delight in children’s use of new words and encourage them to use the words in conversation
• Try simple crosswords with children
• Encourage children to write riddles, puzzles or letters for the children’s pages of newspapers
• Encourage children to write postcards, letters, lists
• Help children to contribute to writing family shopping lists
• Ask children to underline any words that they think are misspelled in their writing
• Let children see that adults consult dictionaries
• Encourage children to read a variety of functional material eg simple recipes, TV guides, newspapers, how to make…
• Show children how adults spell a difficult word eg write it two or three times and choose the one that looks right
• Be patient and supportive
• Encourage children to make up plays for the family (children may write the script)
• Buy puzzle books that include word games
• Talk about informational books like atlases or street directories and how they are set out eg contents, index, glossary, headings, diagrams, graphs etc
• Talk about ways to remember the spelling of tricky words eg the word “here” is in “there”
• Take children to see suitable “live” theatre performances
• Help children see relationships among words
• Help children make generalisations about spelling
• Encourage children to write stories or books for younger brothers and sisters
• Talk about the layout of newspapers
• Write family rosters
• Be prepared to talk through homework tasks so that children clarify their planning and thinking
• Talk about writing tasks undertaken at school
• Provide a quiet study area for children
• Be prepared to discuss writing tasks with children
• Encourage children to continue to read and write for information and pleasure
• Discuss current events
• Talk about the mass media and its influence on society
• Encourage children to use writing to get things done eg letters to politicians, newspapers etc
• Encourage children to use writing to express their feelings and respect their privacy if they choose to keep personal diaries or letters
• Play word games, talk about word meanings
• Encourage children to use dictionaries and thesauruses independently
• Understand that the process of writing and refining writing for publication takes time
• Understand that writing is for different purposes and audiences
• Understand that different types of writing require different language, setting out and special vocabulary eg a business letter is not the same as a letter to a pen pal