Homework at Cottenham Village College

Every student at Cottenham Village College follows a single homework system. It is simple to follow, the same for every child in a year group, and grounded in how memory actually works. This page sets out how it operates and the reasoning behind it.

The thinking behind it

The system rests on retrieval practice. Instead of re-reading what they have learned, students return to it and try to recall it unaided. The effort that requires is precisely what fixes knowledge in the long term. Short, regular sessions achieve this far more reliably than a single long task the night before, and they establish habits of study that will serve students well beyond their time at school.

Open, clear and consistent

Parents can see what is set and when as all homework is published a half-term in advance. The arrangement is identical for every student in a year group, whatever their class or teacher, so a child’s homework no longer depends on who happens to teach them. Students who wish to move ahead are welcome to do so.

What is set each evening

Each evening there are two tasks, each of thirty minutes at most. Some are online. In English and Maths these are fluency tasks on Sparx Reader and Sparx Maths; in Years 10 and 11 there are also tasks on Sparx Science, Educake and Seneca. The remainder use each the wonderful knowledge organiser for a single subject, following the method of Look, Cover, Write, Check: students study a section, cover it, write down what they can recall, and then check their answer against the page.

The weekly timetables

The timetable is sent to students and parents each half-term, so there are no surprises.

Year 7, 8 and 9
DayFirst task (30 minutes maximum)Second task (30 minutes maximum)
MonMaths – Sparx MathsScience – Knowledge Organiser: Look, Cover, Write, Check
TueEnglish – Sparx ReaderMaths – Knowledge Organiser: Look, Cover, Write, Check
WedMaths – Sparx MathsSpanish – Knowledge Organiser: Look, Cover, Write, Check
ThuEnglish – Sparx ReaderHistory / Geography – Knowledge Organiser: Look, Cover, Write, Check
FriMaths – Sparx MathsEnglish – Knowledge Organiser: Look, Cover, Write, Check
Year 10 and 11
Day30 Minutes Maximum30 Minutes Maximum
MonMaths – Sparx MathsScience – Knowledge Organiser: Look, Cover, Write, Check
TueEnglish – SENECAHistory / Geography / RE – Knowledge Organiser: Look, Cover, Write, Check
WedMaths –  Knowledge Organiser: Look, Cover, Write, CheckSpanish/French – Knowledge Organiser: Look, Cover, Write, Check
ThuEnglish – SENECAMaths – Sparx Maths
FriMaths – Sparx MathsEnglish – Knowledge Organiser: Look, Cover, Write, Check
Checking, and time

Students always have a week in which to complete any task. Each week, teachers check that the work has been done through a short, low-stakes quiz. Its purpose is to show students what has stayed with them and what needs another look, not to catch anyone out.

The timetable sets the minimum daily expectation for every student, and teachers in all subjects remain free to set additional homework on top of it.

The tasks on the timetable should take no more than an hour a night at Key Stage 3, and many students will finish sooner. That is deliberate. We want students to be able to keep up their clubs and interests, and to have proper time to rest outside school.  At Key Stage 4, the grid reflects a floor amount rather than a ceiling, that is to say the minimum expectation of each student’s daily homework; other subjects may set revision-based or exam-practice tasks in addition to the grid.

Knowledge organisers

Students have been given their knowledge organisers. The lines to be learned in each half-term are published on this website in advance, so that you can see exactly what your child is working on.

Support after school

Two supervised spaces are open after school from Monday 5 October to support students with their homework. SB1, a computer room, provides a safe place to work online, and The Bridge is open to any student with SEN. Both are staffed and remain open each day until 16:15.

See homework information below for the current half-term

Use Look, Cover, Write, Check on the day shown. Students have the full week to complete each task.

DaySubjectw/c 5 Octoberw/c 12 Octoberw/c 19 October
MonSciencePage 27, lines 1–10Pages 33–34, lines 1–10Page 40, lines 1–11
TueMathsPage 17, lines 1–11Page 18, lines 1–15Page 19, lines 1–18
WedSpanishPage 155 all linesPage 156 all linesPage 157 all lines
ThurHistoryPage 70, lines 1–10Pages 70, lines 11–20Page 71, lines 21–30
FriEnglishPage 2, lines 1–17Page 3, lines 18–30Page 3, lines 31–38

Use Look, Cover, Write, Check on the day shown. Students have the full week to complete each task.

DaySubjectw/c 5 Octoberw/c 12 Octoberw/c 19 October
MonSciencePage 27, lines 1–10Page 36, lines 1–10Page 46, lines 1–10
TueMathsPage 18, lines 1–10Page 18, lines 11–16Page 19, lines 1–12
WedSpanishSentence builder task to be set by teacher: no booklet in Y8Sentence builder task to be set by teacher: no booklet in Y8Sentence builder task to be set by teacher: no booklet in Y8
ThurHistoryPage 74, lines 1–10Page 74, lines 11–20Page 75, lines 15–25
FriEnglishPage 2, lines 1–16Pages 3–4, lines 17–37Page 4, lines 38–49

Use Look, Cover, Write, Check on the day shown. Students have the full week to complete each task.

DaySubjectw/c 5 Octoberw/c 12 Octoberw/c 19 October
MonSciencePages 23–24, lines 1–8Pages 31–32, lines 1–8Page 39, lines 1–10
TueMathsPage 12, lines 1–11Page 13, lines 1–8Page 13, lines 9–16
WedSpanishSentence builder task to be set by teacher: no booklet in Y9Sentence builder task to be set by teacher: no booklet in Y9Sentence builder task to be set by teacher: no booklet in Y9
ThurGeographyPage 83, lines 1-10Page 83, lines 11-20Page 84, lines 21-30
FriEnglishPages 5–6, lines 1–26Page 7, lines 27–50Pages 2–3, lines 1–17

Use Look, Cover, Write, Check on the day shown. Students have the full week to complete each task.

DaySubjectw/c 5 Octoberw/c 12 Octoberw/c 19 October
MonSciencePages 38–39, lines 1–20Pages 41–42, lines 1–20Pages 43–44, lines 1–21
TueHistoryPage 100, lines 1–10Pages 100–101, lines 11–20Page 101, lines 21–30
TueREPage 181, lines 1-10Page 181, lines 11-20Page 182, lines 21-30
WedMathsHigher: page 23, lines 1–9
Foundation: page 24, lines 1–15		Page 25, lines 1–8Pages 25–26, lines 9–18
Wed

Spanish / French		Spanish page 234 first column
 
French Page 214 all lines		Spanish page 234 middle column
 
French Page 215 all lines		Spanish page 234 third column
 
French Page 216  all lines
Thur: No knowledge organiser task (English: Seneca; Maths: Sparx Maths)––––
FriEnglishPages 2–3, lines 1–23Pages 3–5, lines 24–37Pages 5–6, lines 38–51

Use Look, Cover, Write, Check on the day shown. Students have the full week to complete each task.

DaySubjectw/c 5 Octoberw/c 12 Octoberw/c 19 October
MonSciencePages 33–34, lines 1–23Pages 38–39, lines 1–23Pages 44–45, lines 1–16
TueHistoryPage 55, lines 1–10Page 55, lines 11–20Page 56, lines 20–30
TueREPage 151, lines 1-12Page 152, lines 13-25Page 152/3, lines 26-37
WedMathsFoundation: page 22, lines 1–11
Higher: page 23, lines 1–8		Higher: lines 9–12
Foundation: page 22, lines 1–11		Higher: page 24, lines 13–16 and 1–9
Foundation: page 24, lines 1–9
Wed

French		Page 177, all linesPage 178, all linesPage 179, all lines
Thur: No knowledge organiser task (English: Seneca; Maths: Sparx Maths)––––
FriEnglishPages 5–7, lines 51–79Pages 7–9, lines 79–101Pages 9–11, lines 1–31