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Homework Help

Homework should build confidence, not frustration. This page is designed to help families understand the activities students bring home from the Slingerland Approach and provide simple, practical ways to support learning.

 

You don't need to be a reading expert—just an encouraging partner. Together, we can help your child practice new skills, celebrate progress, and build lasting confidence as a reader and writer.

Routines as Support

Most students face challenges with homework at some point in their educational journey. That is totally normal.

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Setting consistent routines with homework can ease some of the challenges.

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  • start homework when it's best for your student

    • many students need a break when they first get home from school to reset​

    • some students prefer to do homework immediately so the rest of the day is free

  • ​create a comfortable, well-lit, distraction-free homework environment 

    • TV and videos off

    • no social media

    • turn off notifications

    • optional: turn on quiet music with few or no words

  • daily homework: 

    • check-in daily on what homework was assigned

    • have your student show you what they have completed; celebrate success; help them redo anything that needs addressed

  • long-term projects:

    • have your student explain the project in detail and show you any assignment sheet

    • help determine priorities 

    • set goals with deadlines to finish those tasks on time

    • offer guidance on organizational strategies 

    • celebrate completing every step of the project

  • let your student move to independence

    • as your student becomes more successful with homework tasks, celebrate the growth and offer less input on how to do the work

    • don’t stop checking in 

    • keep celebrating even little victories

Check in with your student’s teacher(s) and tutor(s) to gain their insights and expertise on how to reinforce and support what is taught in the classroom.

Rely on Stronger Modalities

Researchers have found that students learn through different modalities (pathways) including auditory (hearing and speaking), visual (seeing and writing), and motor-kinesthetic (moving and doing including speaking and writing). Slingerland Screening identifies when students have challenges learning through a particular modality. Those students frequently benefit from multisensory (multimodal) instruction because learning through stronger modalities support development of the weaker modalities.

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At home, students need a reminder to use strategies that activate their stronger modalities to learn more effectively. 

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The following strategies are organized by modality. The strategies are organized from most foundational to most independent. You will need to determine which strategies are best for your student at this time. Do not be surprised if over time, the most effective strategies shift to reflect your students’ progress.​​

Child Studying Together

Auditory Strategies

  • Read together to build vocabulary and comprehension.

  • Read to them so they hear fluent reading.

  • Let them read to you so they can develop their fluency.

  • Revisit familiar books through repeated readings to build fluency.

  • Have your student listen to an audio book while reading along 

  • Have your student read aloud (to themselves or to you)

  • Have your student repeat information out loud

  • Ask your student to explain the information they just repeated 

  • Discuss the topic with someone (you, a friend, a sibling, a mentor, etc.)

  • Record information as an audio note. Then, the students can play back that information while studying to help themselves remember it

Visual Strategies

  • Make model letters, words, and phrases for your student to copy

  • Before writing a word, have them form the words in the air to ensure they have the formations correct (if they have had Slingerland, they will know how to do this)

  • Make concepts more understandable by visualizing the information using drawings, pictures, charts, graphs, maps, and timelines

  • Watch a video on the topic together (discuss the video and apply what was learned)

  • Make meaningful flash cards

  • have your student make flash cards with important words/terms on one side and the definition and a picture that helps them remember the meaning on the other

  • Take notes 

  • Use a consistent note-taking method such as Cornell notes

  • Review the information with your student

  • Review notes

  • Quiz your student by showing them part of their notes (terms, definitions, descriptions), and have them provide the matching element

  • Have your student make connections between the things they are reading in their notes and other things they have learned or their own experiences

  • Have your student quiz themselves (remember: reading the notes is not studying; they need to do something with the information for it to stick)

Motor-Kinesthetic Strategies

  • Write letters or words in the air or invisibly on any surface

  • Use their meaningful flash cards to play trivia, bingo, or matching games to reinforce learning 

  • Play card or board games that incorporate math 

  • Use dice or dominos to practice math skills 

  • Role play as characters from books or historical figures to better understand their point of view and actions

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