Sparx Maths
It is our expectation at Trinity Academy Leeds that students complete 90 minutes of home learning each evening, comprising of: 30 minutes of reading, 30 minutes of Knowledge Organiser work, and 30 minutes of maths practice. The maths element of students’ home learning is set, marked and monitored using a brand new online platform called Sparx Maths. Sparx is an exciting platform that has been developed specifically for KS3 students in direct response to feedback from students, teachers and parents.
How does Sparx home learning work?
Sparx personalises each child’s home learning, creating a weekly set of questions tailored to their current level of understanding, confidence and learning pace. The questions are designed to be achievable whilst offering the stretch that students need to make progress. We believe that – if they use the support available within Sparx effectively – students can achieve 100% on each homework.
How can I help my child with their home learning?
We appreciate that you will want to support your child with their home learning but please try not to help them with a question until they’ve had a go first! It is important that they complete their homework independently so that Sparx can accurately assess their level of understanding and set appropriately-pitched questions in the future. Students have access to support videos for each question should they need them. If your child is presented with the purple ‘seek help’ notification then at this point they can seek support from a parent, carer, peer or teacher.
Why does my child need to achieve 100% compulsory homework completion?
Sparx ensures students cover the essential building blocks needed to make progress in maths and provides an opportunity to consolidate their learning. Research (sparx.co.uk/evidence) has shown that an average of 60 minutes a week of personalised maths home learning leads to clear progress. It is therefore advised that students do their homework as early as possible, so they have time to have a go themselves and seek help from their teacher, if needed, before the weekly hand-in deadline.
What support is available to my child should they need it?
It is important to us that all students engage with their home learning and develop the successful learning habits that they will need as they progress through their educational journey with us at Trinity Academy Leeds. In order to support students in doing this, we offer a weekly Sparx Support session each Monday after school where students can drop-in to receive help with topics they are struggling with, or to use our IT facilities to complete their work. If a student has not fully completed their maths home learning during a given week they will attend a compulsory catch-up session on Friday after school.
What should my child do if they complete their home learning early?
Alongside the compulsory home learning task that is set each week, Sparx Maths offers two additional sets of questions for students to complete – XP Boost and Target. XP Boost questions cover previously-taught topics and give students the opportunity to further consolidate their learning. Target tasks offer students a set of challenging extension questions to take their learning to the next level. All of the above tasks allow students to collect ‘XP Points’ which contribute to our weekly Sparx Superstars leaderboard.
If you have any further questions regarding Sparx Maths please do not hesitate to get in touch with Mr Weston, Curriculum Leader for Maths, or your child’s Team Leader.