interesting holiday homework

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20+ creative alternative homework ideas for teachers

When giving homework, it must always be based on learning goals your students have to reach, just like in your lessons. But it’s sad to see that lots of teachers are using homework as extra lesson time. Of course, as a teacher, you’re on a clock. But that doesn’t mean your students have to suffer from it and keep working on those boring textbooks and worksheets at home.

Consider goals like attitudes, real-life experiences, and practice, physical exercise, social encounters, creative solutions, and philanthropy as crucial as your lesson goals. These are things students don’t just pick up in your classroom. These are things they pick up in life.

In this blog post, I’ll give you some innovative homework ideas that will engage your students more. These alternatives to traditional homework will thereby also teach your students new things that can’t be taught in the classroom. You will find a variety of homework ideas: online and offline.

I will mention homework alternatives for primary school and high school. Some of these ideas can be changed a little bit, so they are the perfect fit for the right audience.

20 Creative homework ideas

You can divide homework tasks into the following themes or categories:

• Crafts & arts
• Outdoor activities & outings
• Games and activities
• Physical activities
• Digital or computer activities
• Philanthropy & social work

💡 Good to know : all the ready-to-use homework activities are created with BookWidgets . You can easily create activities like these yourself or duplicate an activity below for free, edit it if needed, and share it with your students. You can do so in the examples separately, or you can find all the homework examples in the BookWidgets Blog group folder .

Crafts and arts homework

1. prepare a dish from a recipe book.

2. Make a board game

3. Create a birdhouse

4. Transform a fictional book character into a hand puppet

Outdoor homework activities and outings

5. coupon game.

Students can also go grocery shopping with their parents. Here, they have to read the ingredients of the products and help their parents choose the healthiest products for the best prices, figure out the best deal between the sizes of items, …

6. Visit the zoo

7. Visit the local dumping ground or container park

8. Build a tree house

Games and activities as homework

9. bookwidgets games.

10. Minecraft

11. Play Cards

12. Play Zoo Tycoon or Rollercoaster Tycoon

Physical homework activities

13. rope skipping.

Many rope-skipping songs let your students do different tricks while rope-skipping. This is an excellent opportunity for homework as well. Ask your students to transform a rope skipping song into a song with lesson content. Let them count or spell or even sum up the different states or capitals. To engage their lifestyles even harder, you can additionally give them the assignment to create a TikTok in which they are jumping and singing.

Click here to see how you can get Tiktok more involved in the classroom.

14. Walking quest

If there aren’t any walking quests in the neighborhood, you could ask your students to create a walking quest like this for their fellow students. What a fun day it will be!

15. Obstacle Quiz

In order for students to answer the questions, they have to run and pass a challenging parkour. This is a fun homework exercise, and in the end, it’s a great lesson starter or lesson end.

16. Swimming games

After the activity, they can fill out an Exit Slip:

Digital or computer homework activities

17. create a picture album.

This teaches them to handle the online software, add pictures and write without spelling mistakes. And of course, creating memories is so much fun!

18. Video job application

19. Your life in 10 minutes - video

20. Email pen-pals

Is it still too complicated? Read the messages from your students, before they send them, and provide them with some feedback.

Philanthropy and social homework

21. grow a community garden.

22. Help in a retirement home

23. Help at a homeless shelter

24. Collect litter

Here’s another homework tip: Don’t call homework “homework”. Call it a challenge. Homework has become a negative word for students, and I bet they start rolling their eyes as you even mention the word.

Still looking for more inspiration? Check out the blog on short films and lesson activities that spice up your Google Classroom . Tip: even if you don’t use Google Classroom, there is a lot of inspiration back here.

Above you have read single assignments. But, you also have the option to involve your homework in a project. Find out more here .

So, as I mentioned earlier, there are many fun alternatives to traditional homework. Now it’s up to you to apply this in the classroom as well. In this folder , you will find all the examples you have come across.

Which idea do you or perhaps your students like the most? Let us know on Twitter . Of course, there are many more alternatives. If you have other ideas, you are always welcome to share it with other teachers in our Facebook group .

One more thing: don’t forget to say hi👋 on LikedIn .

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BookWidgets enables teachers to create fun and interactive lessons for tablets, smartphones, and computers.

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6 Creative Assignment Ideas to Make Your Holiday Homework Fun

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The term ‘holiday homework’ raises a collective groan when you mention it in class. The last thing your students want to do during their holidays is spending more time with their noses buried in textbooks. But who said homework had to be a dull and dreary activity? There’s plenty of time and then some to learn concepts at school; holiday homework can focus on skill-building and be a lot more fun! Here’s a list of top creative assignment or homework ideas to help students take the ‘work’ out of homework, and replace it with a whole lot of fun! 

“Assignment 1: For the Filmy Fans”

As a life coach who holds film therapy workshops in Bengaluru, Rohit Sasvehalli believes that movies can have a deep impact on the psyche when approached consciously. “Pick a specific concept the child wants to learn about, say Apartheid. Ask them to watch a movie like Invictus to understand the tensions in South Africa. It will invoke an explorative mindset,” says Sasvehalli. Give your students a choice of topics and movies to watch, review and write an essay or make a presentation on what it got them thinking about. Surely your students aren’t about to complain about watching a movie or two!

Do you see any budding filmmakers in your class? Mentoria’s holistic  career assessment test  could help them discover their calling by uniquely combining their interests and abilities! Find out more about the test here:

“Assignment 2: For the Wanderlusters”

Families often set out on trips during the holiday season. A trip is often a great platform to learn about new places and new cultures. Ask your students to document every bit of their travel, discover fascinating aspects about the place they’re visiting and turn their findings into a fantastic travel presentation for the class! It could cover a long vacation or even a day trip to the museum, beach or a nearby park.

“Assignment 3: For the Bookworms”

This creative assignment may not appeal to all your students, but the voracious readers in your class will surely welcome some binge-reading over the holidays! For this set of students, assign a list of books they can review over the holidays. Encourage them to get a library membership or even a Kindle, if they’re more accustomed to reading digitally. Give them a mix of fiction and non-fiction titles that will broaden their knowledge and urge them to think. It doesn’t have to strictly follow the curriculum; books on current events will also help them get a better perspective of what’s going on in the world.

Assignment 4: For the Crafty Ones

Do you see your students stumbling over certain difficult topics in class? Ask them to bring out their ‘crafty’ sides over the holidays and turn those concepts into flashcards!  Flashcards make learning easier , and making them will help your students hone their artistic skills!

Budding artists need guidance, and that’s exactly what we provide here at  Mentoria !  Speak to our expert career counsellors  about your future career path, or listen to the experiences of industry professionals in your field. Here Commercial Artist Mrs Krupa Patil shares what a day in her life looks like:

Assignment 5: For the Volunteer Wonders

A school in New Zealand recently got its students involved in building an outdoor classroom and won an award for creativity! Volunteering as a homework idea will help them understand the kind of problems the world is facing, put things in perspective and also help them learn how to work in a team! You could give them a list of places they could visit over the holidays or plan a class trip yourself. Let them volunteer at an animal shelter, old-age home or orphanage, where they can perform different activities like maintaining the gardens, teaching other children, reading to the elderly, or even organising a performance for the underprivileged.

Assignment 6. For the Budding Philosophers

If your students are at a stage in life where they have critical future decisions to make, ask them to ‘introspect’ over the holidays. What makes them happiest? Which activities do they most look forward to? What piques their interest and what fails to grab their attention? Give them a homework idea and ask them to write a detailed summary of their interests and how they could translate into a career option a few years down the line. If they’re confused, ask them to opt for professional guidance that will help them discover who they really are and what they should pursue in the future. We can help with that.  Students with clarity on their future are likely to be less stressed in class and focus better on their academics!

Holidays are perhaps the only time when students can study at their own pace without the looming burden of a jam-packed schedule. The holidays give students enough time to explore their interests and  use them to enhance their studying technique . Don’t overburden them with lesson plans and tough projects; instead, let them focus on building skills, exploring interests and making the most of the holiday season both in terms of education and entertainment!

We at  Mentoria  know that holidays can be crucial during high school, and students are busy figuring out what stream they want to enter. We try to make it easier for you. Our 4-step career guidance solution, helps us find the right career fit for you from 3 streams, 850+ courses & 12,000+ careers. Discover yourself during the holidays with Mentoria.

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Related Articles

Holiday Homework Solutions

Holiday Homework Solutions for class 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 & 12 (During Summer Vacations) facility for the academic session 2022–2023 is being maintained to help the students and parents to do the holiday homework comfortably in Summer 2024-25. You are requested to upload your holiday homework in PDF format based on Latest CBSE Curriculum 2024-25 and get the solutions with in a week. You can also ask your Maths or science problems through Discussion Forum. If the problems are related to NCERT or NCERT Exemplar Problems please refer to NCERT Solutions page to get this. The solutions of holiday homework should be uploaded along with the school name at the end of this page. Notification of completion of homework will not be given by the website, you have to check yourself after a week for the solutions.

Download NCERT Solutions for all classes. Students of the upper primary level (Class 6, 7 and 8) are already well informed and are keen to find and learn more. According to CBSE, while assigning and preparing homework for the students, it is important to note they are able to develop the skills like relating, thinking, concluding, inferring. Homework should be such that the student neither feel it burdensome nor they lose interest in the subject matter. Moreover it is useful in providing them a happy experience. Homework therefore needs to be thought about and worked upon differently. Emphasis should be given on Vedic mathematics, designing quality homework rather than its quantity. Download NCERT Books and apps based on latest CBSE Syllabus.

Encompassing the aforesaid ideas, the CBSE has brought forth a Manual, “Alternatives to Holiday Homework” for classes VI to VIII. It is collection of ideas transformed into suggestive activities that are creative, interesting, meaningful and interactive, enhancing various skills, directly or indirectly related to subject matter providing students to enhance their learning and gaining knowledge based on NCERT Books following the latest CBSE Syllabus.

Suggestive Holiday Homework for Class 6

• Holiday Homework for Class 6 Hindi
• Holiday Homework for Class 6 English
• Holiday Homework for Class 6 Mathemaitcs
• Holiday Homework for Class 6 Science
• Holiday Homework for Class 6 Social Science

Suggestive Holiday Homework for Class 7

• Holiday Homework for Class 7 Hindi
• Holiday Homework for Class 7 English
• Holiday Homework for Class 7 Mathematics
• Holiday Homework for Class 7 Science
• Holiday Homework for Class 7 Social Science

Suggestive Holiday Homework for Class 8

• Holiday Homework for Class 8 Hindi
• Holiday Homework for Class 8 English
• Holiday Homework for Class 8 Mathematics
• Holiday Homework for Class 8 Science
• Holiday Homework for Class 8 Social Science

A well rounded development of individual knowledge happens not only from textbooks and formal education but more from the learner’s personal experiences, individual inquisitive nature and social surroundings. Homework is an area of importance and to make it more relevant for the NCERT Books classes 6th, 7th and 8th, appropriate strategies and meaningful activities may be suggested to the schools that give more time to child to explore the environment to develop creative thinking.

These activities (like OTBA for class 9 & 11 ) would be so framed that they keep the child interested in subjects and therefore would also help in enhancing the learning power. Homework is one of the areas that need urgent attention. As the students of class VI, VII and VIII develop a certain learning style and want to know and find more and more. Efforts should be made to make homework more creative and interesting so that the students do not feel burdensome while doing the same and the ultimate purpose of providing homework is served.

A survey was conducted through questionnaire prepared by CBSE to collect feedback from parents, teachers, students and other educationists on “Alternatives to Homework at Upper Primary Level” for Class Sixth, Seventh and Eighth so that appropriate strategies and meaningful activities can be designed and suggested to schools. The questions were directed to know the ideal quantity and purpose of the homework, whether homework should be assigned in all the subjects, internet usage should be a part of the homework or not, how homework helps in teaching.

Keeping in view emerging issues, there is a need to think about giving quality homework emphasizing on acquiring applied learning skills. Few points can be kept in mind while designing a quality homework by teachers: 1, Provide students capacity building activities which are followed up and acknowledged like drawing, creative writing, making puzzles, stories, plays, online games, reading online books and craft.

2. Provide them assignment sheets which improve their reading & writing abilities. Homework must enable the student to practice a skill independently. 3. A possible discussion can be held with different children on what they would like to do at home to improve in which ever area they deem necessary. Homework must be designed in a way that maximizes the chances of its completion by the students.

4. Parents should be able to understand the child’s needs and schools suggestions on how to learn mathematics, logical reasoning, etc. by doing puzzles, writing letters, reading to elders from the newspapers, making household lists, recipe making and cooking. 5. Learners who have dyslexia or number difficulty should have practice assignments overcoming their problems.

The child in middle school have a keenness to discover more and prepare for the examination. Learning is about developing new faculties, which become useful as an adult. The years 12 to 15 are years when rules become important, and doing well, excelling are given importance both at home and in the class. As the child grows chronically his/her emotional maturity also grows and there are interests which are beyond just what lessons can give.

The homework assigned should: 1. enhance study habits and practice skills (which learners are able to perform independently) 2. reinforce necessary skills both scholastic and co-scholastic among the learners. 3. enable learners to become independent learners and thinkers and develop among them 21st century skills so that they can participate in Make in India in future. 4. lead to the improvement in the academic achievement of the learner.

5. expand on the existing knowledge of the learners and be a part of the already acquired competencies in the classroom. 6. not put unneeded pressure or stress by including new learning material or difficult material to be worked upon by learners themselves. 7. be CBSE Syllabus based and as per developmental needs of the learners. 8. not require specific resources or technology which is not accessible to all learners. 9. have clearly defined, purposeful, creative and engaging activities.

It is also advised that teachers can refer to Life Skills Manuals, Health Manuals and Environmental Education Manuals which contain age appropriate and interesting activities which can be taken up by the learners individually. These activities can be assigned to learners so as to enhance their life skills, values and make them health conscious.

Homework is needed, and necessary for a teacher to be able to follow up with each child. The correction and feedback on homework is an important input that helps both parents and children to follow up and improve in areas which are needed. The recourse extra classes, can be reduced if the homework is used for learning improvement and acquisition of diverse skills. We are providing a handful help to solve or helping in solving the holiday homework.

What are concepts of the Holiday Homework for Class 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5?

The Holiday Homework 2024-25 for class 1 and Class 2 should be totally creative work only. We should prepare the homework in such a way that student enjoy the work like play. The holiday assignment for class 3, 4 and Class 5 should be totally creative work.

What are the Holiday Homework suggestions for Class 6, 7 and 8?

The ideas for Holiday Homework 2024-25 for class 6, 7 and 8 Maths, Science, English, Hindi and Social Science are given on Tiwari Academy. We should also include the interesting facts related to daily life with the topic of NCERT Books.

How to prepare the Holiday Homework 2024-25 for class 9 and 10?

The collection of Important Questions from NCERT Textbook, From board Papers, CBSE Sample papers and NCERT Exemplar Books may be the good holiday homework practice material for High School students.

What would be good the Holiday Homework for class 11 and 12?

The Holiday Homework for class 11 and 12 are generally selected as the NCERT Textbook topics. The NCERT Books back exercises and related questions which are asked in CBSE Board Examination may be a good assignment for intermediate students.

Copyright 2024 by Tiwari Academy | A step towards Free Education

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15 Innovative School Homework Ideas to Make Learning Fun

Aashita Pillai

Aashita is a writer here at Suraasa and has formerly worked as a Teacher Mentor for a couple of years. She wields words like weapons to help readers get clear and concise information.

Introduction

General tips to keep students hooked to school homework, 15 innovative school homework ideas to engage your students, theme a: arts and crafts, theme b: physical and outside activities, theme c: digital activities, theme d: games, theme e: entrepreneurship.

“Hi teachers! I am your old friend, School Homework. Over time as education changed, so have I— thanks to the endless innovations that happened to me.  Let me take you through my life and the various innovations that made me your best friend- I was born in the 1920s to help students reinforce what they learned in class. Until the 1980s, I was basically just pen-and-paper-based assignments.  The Internet was born in 1983. From there onwards, I made my stride into the ‘digital era’.

Until the beginning of 2020, I was slowly being integrated within online platforms and technology to help students learn better. Then at the onset of 2020, the world plunged into the COVID-19 pandemic. Schools shifted to a ‘remote learning’ mode of education. During this pandemic, you and I became very crucial in ensuring the continuity of our students’ learning. You all embraced creative approaches to keep the students engaged. You leveraged interactive games, virtual simulations, & more to make me engaging. Gone are the days when you, my dear teachers, would limit your homework to worksheets, textbook questions, literature reviews, and reports. Today as we stand here in 2023, there is no limit to innovative and exciting homework formats! Well, that’s from me. See you in the classrooms!”

So teachers, we heard from homework about how it has evolved over time. As it said, many innovative ways have come up to reinforce our students' learning. So, are you ready to make your students fall in love with these new school homework ideas? Let’s begin with understanding some general tips to keep your students engaged with their school homework.

1. Make it Relevant and Meaningful 

Connect the school homework to their lives, interests, or current events to make it more meaningful and relatable. For example, if it’s Christmas time, you can ask your students to explore the themes of charity, storytelling, etc.

2. Give Them a Choice

Allow students to have some choice and autonomy in their assignments. Ask them to select the format (e.g. written format in the online medium, oral format in the offline medium) in which they want to submit their homework. When they feel a sense of ownership, they are more likely to be motivated and engaged. This is how you become a 21st-century teacher who uses differentiated learning. 

3. Celebrate Their Achievements

When children get appreciated for their achievements or good behaviour, it boosts their self-confidence. It encourages them to repeat those actions. This creates a positive learning environment. They are more likely to deliver results when appreciated for their actions. Hence, you can celebrate their achievements via small rewards, recognition or a display of their work in class.

Let's move to the next part of this blog, where we will share innovative school homework ideas that will turn mundane homework into engaging learning sessions!  After assigning any of these innovative homework ideas, you might never hear students’ innovative excuses to avoid homework! To give you a quick run-through, these ideas have been grouped under some common themes. Under each theme, you will learn how to use 3 ideas listed alongside relevant examples to comprehend it completely. Come along as we give the ratty old homework a MAKEOVER!

By infusing the joy of arts and crafts into school homework, you can tap into the innate curiosity and imagination of your students. And you never know, you might end up being the person that shaped the next Da Vinci! So, let’s get right into it:

1. Create Your Storybook

We all have heard stories. We have loved them and adored them. So why not give our students a chance to write one?  After the students submit their storybooks, you can review their stories and give personalised feedback. Such feedback addresses each student’s individual needs, strengths, and areas for improvement. This fosters a student-centric learning environment.  Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

2. Make Your Own Board Game

Do you remember the joy of gathering around a table, rolling a dice, and playing Snakes & Ladders? As kids and even as adults, many of us love spending our time playing board games.  Now, picture becoming the teacher that integrates school homework with a board game! Students can design board games and incorporate artistic elements into their theme, board layout, cards, etc. They can become architects of fun and learning!

Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

3. Construct a Birdhouse

Now, let’s tap into the sweet nostalgia of DIY(Do it Yourself) Projects. It could be something as simple as bedsheet forts or something a little more complex like a birdhouse 🙂 Won’t it be wonderful to watch your students feel a sense of accomplishment when they build their own handmade creations?  Let’s focus on the idea of constructing a birdhouse. By assigning students this homework, you’ll additionally be encouraging kinesthetic learning . 

Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely: 

Students love spending their time outdoors. Assigning school homework that requires them to be outside is a big plus! It will also help them apply what’s taught in class in real-life situations and promote active learning.

4. Participate in a Scavenger Hunt

Everyone loves a good old mystery! Give your students the chance to be modern-day ‘Sherlock Holmes’ as they set out on scavenger hunts.  Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

5. Maintain a Physical Activity Journal

In this digital age, where mobile and laptop screens often dominate, the majority of the students lead sedentary lifestyles. School homework which encourages physical activity, can be a game-changer! And what better than maintaining a physical activity journal that helps with it? Additionally, it will also promote the healthy habit of having an active lifestyle among students.  Getting students to journal can seem tough, but with the right motivation & incentives, it can be done. Additionally, this can also be a fun summer holiday homework, where students can keep track of their activities all summer! Encourage them to document their daily exercise triumphs. Push them to go beyond their own records! Ask them to explore science concepts- BMI, heart and pulse rates, diet, and nutrition! Once you do this, exercise will not just be about breaking a sweat anymore. It will also be something that incorporates learning! Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

6. Conduct a Survey at a Local Supermarket

This outdoor activity is an extremely fun option for school homework. Most kids love running through the different aisles in a supermarket. Introducing a concept like surveys here gives them a chance to do some ‘real-life’ work and also provides much-needed relief to their parents!  Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely: 

In the age of tech-savvy students, we often find parents complaining about the excess screen time with their kids. But what if you could harness the untapped potential in technology? Today's kids are already immersed in the digital world, so why not tap into their enthusiasm and merge it with learning?  Let’s look at some innovative methods of assigning digital activities for school homework:

7. Record a Virtual Job Application

This can be a fun homework assignment for students of all grades. One thing that we often forget as teachers is that school is not just about the present; it's also about the future. But often, we don’t discuss the future. This results in students being almost lost when it comes to their future career opportunities.  This is exactly where this school homework activity helps. Assigning school homework related to professions is a great chance for students to explore their career options. This, in turn, will help them be better prepared for life after school.  Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

8. Participate in Online Collaborative Projects

Online projects are a catalyst for active learning and student engagement. They can be a tool for you to create a dynamic learning environment that goes beyond traditional classroom boundaries. Additionally, these activities enhance digital literacy and empower students to leverage technology for learning. Working on online collaborative projects will also help students learn how to function together as a team. This is something that also prepares them for life beyond school, where it’s crucial to learn to work together.

9. Virtual Cultural Exchange

Cultural exchange events open doors to new horizons, offering students a unique chance to explore diverse cultures. By immersing them in new traditions, you develop acceptance, and empathy in your students. You give them a chance to have a broad and more inclusive perspective of the world. Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

Game-based school homework is one of the best ways to engage your students. Integrating learning within games creates a powerful synergy where education and entertainment merge seamlessly.  It’s time to tap into your students’ natural love for games and leverage it!

10. Use Minecraft as a Learning Tool

Ah, Minecraft! A name that brings back memories of endless adventures in pixelated landscapes. It’s a game that is a nostalgic reminder of our childhood.  But did you know that Minecraft can be more than just a game? It can be a powerful learning tool to level up the educational experience of your students.  💡Learn how to leverage Minecraft to make your classrooms more engaging! Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

11. Encourage Role-Playing Games

Lights, camera, action! Role-playing games(RPGs) let students step into the shoes of a character and bring lessons to life. Even though RPGs are not typically classified as games, their unique blend of learning and fun makes them ideal for educational purposes.  You can assign students to act out roleplays based on a historical event, scientific concept or work of literature. They can develop characters, write dialogues, and present this to the class. Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

12. Online Challenges

You can introduce online challenges like coding of varying difficulties for different grade levels. Platforms like Scratch or Code.org can be helpful for this purpose. Coding challenges offer hands-on experience to students. It allows them to practice coding concepts and algorithms in a practical and engaging manner.  Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

In today's competitive world, students who embrace innovative thinking and an entrepreneurial mindset stand out. As a teacher, you can nurture these qualities in your students via thought-provoking school homework. Such assignments can ignite students' passion for problem-solving, creative thinking, and strategic planning. Let’s look at some of the ideas below.

13. Pitch Your Business Idea

Have you watched shows like Shark Tank or Billion Dollar Buyer? Have you been completely captivated by the business pitches on these shows? Now, imagine doing the same for your students— unleashing their entrepreneurial spirit. It’s time to bring the hustle of the business world into your classrooms! Encourage students to develop a business idea and create a persuasive pitch. They should research their target market, competitors, and unique selling points. In fact, students can present their pitch using multimedia tools, such as slides or videos, highlighting the problem they're solving and the value their business brings. Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

14. Design a Mobile App

Smartphones have become an integral part of our lives. Think about the countless hours that you spend on your smartphone, exploring different apps that make your life easier. This is a practice growing like fire amongst kids as well and is cause for serious concern! What if they spend time on their phone and learn at the same time? This homework assignment encourages students to apply their creativity and technical skills to develop a concept for a mobile application. Additionally, you can also assign this as a holiday homework assignment and let students go wild with learning during summer! Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely:

*Technologies like designing mobile applications can be too complex for the primary school. Hence, we focus on this idea only for middle and high school students.

15. Set up a Stall at the School Fair

This homework acts as an Introduction to Business 101 class for students of all grade levels. Students get to decide what stall to put up, then work on the logistics and finally manage the stall and finances on D-Day. This will teach students real-world skills and give them a feeling of ownership. Let's look at a few examples to understand this school homework approach more closely: 

Grade-Specific Tips to follow while Preparing School Homework ‍

1. primary school students ‍.

• Keep it Interactive and Hands-on Younger children thrive on tactile and interactive experiences. Incorporate more of arts and crafts, storytelling, etc., to make homework enjoyable for them.
• Use Visuals Vibrant colours will capture their attention and make tasks visually appealing.
• Keep it Short Primary school students have limited attention spans. Give them small tasks that they can accomplish in a limited timeframe. ‍

2. Middle School students ‍

• Offer More Choices Middle schoolers are often teenagers already on the precipice of changes beyond their control. They will appreciate having some control over their learning. Allow them to choose topics or formats that align with their interests.
• Incorporate Technology Middle school students are often technologically savvy. Utilise online resources, interactive platforms, and digital tools to make homework more engaging and relevant to their interests.
• Encourage Independent Research Foster their curiosity by assigning research-based projects. Encourage them to explore various sources and present their findings in creative ways. ‍

3. High School Students ‍

• Encourage Critical Thinking and Analysis High schoolers are capable of higher-order thinking skills. Assign tasks that require critical thinking, problem-solving and analytical thinking.
• Encourage Self-expression Offer creative assignments that allow them to express their thoughts, opinions and ideas. Remember that they are young adults finding their voice in a loud world. Encourage them to write essays, create multimedia presentations, or engage in spirited debates.
• Push for Practical Application Assign tasks that connect to real-world situations, allowing them to see the relevance and importance of their learning. ‍

How to Improve Your Homework and Other Teaching Strategies?

Do you want to learn about more strategies to improve school homework? What if you could upskill and improve all your teaching strategies- classroom management, assessment, and lesson planning, among many others? Book a call with a mentor to get dedicated teacher counselling on upskilling and improving your teaching strategies.

In a world where school homework is generally met with students’ whining, you can use these approaches to turn it into a gateway for innovation! By infusing ideas such as game-based learning, digital activities, and arts and crafts, you can help students engage with school homework meaningfully. This will foster a lifelong love for learning among your students, ultimately helping them succeed in and beyond the classroom. Want a short compilation of all the amazing school homework ideas? Click the button below

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Alternative festive homework ideas for the school Christmas holidays

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We think the school Christmas holidays should be a time for reflection, relaxation and ridiculously fun activities — for teachers and children alike! With this in mind, we’ve created an alternative list of homework activities for teachers to set their class. It’s the perfect balance of super-fun activities, memory-making tasks and educational skills. Below you'll find a printable sheet with 15 festive, free, fun activities to send home with your class to help them channel that festive excitement into some meaningful and enjoyable missions.

They can choose their favourites to do or complete them all if they wish!

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Here are 16 fun, free festive homework ideas for the Christmas holidays:

• Write a letter to Santa’s elves, it’s usually Santa that gets all the post!
• Can you design a Christmas card and send it to your favourite person?
• Make a festive decoration for around the house or to hang on the tree.
• Create a homemade gift and give it to a friend or family member.
• Make a list of things you really want to learn or achieve in the New Year. Remember to write a note to yourself and pack it away with the decorations for you to be reminded of next year.
• Have a dance party in the living room to your favourite festive songs.
• Can you find out about Christmas in another country? How does it differ from Christmas in yours?
• Can you make a Christmas tree out of something different? Lego, plasticine, the choice is yours!
• Can you write your own Christmas song or rap, and perform it to your family?
• Have a meal with your family and talk about your favourite memories of this year and the best things that happened to you.
• If you’re lucky enough to receive Christmas presents, write thank you notes and send them. Can you include something you loved about the gift?
• Birds can get very hungry at this time of year. Can you make a festive bird feeder out of a milk carton, box or bottle and hang it outside?
• Can you make a snow globe out of an empty container? What will you put inside?
• Have a festive movie night, get cosy and tune into a Christmas classic.
• Can you help to bake some Christmas cookies? Or a Christmas cake?

And of course, the most essential thing to do is… Have lots of festive FUN!

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4 fun and easy play-based holiday homework tasks

Often, at the start of the summer holidays, we send children home with small set tasks, worksheets or optional homework to provide them with learning opportunities over the break.

But after a disrupted school year, perhaps we need to have a rethink about how we approach this. On the one hand, we have parents who feel more prepared than ever to lead the learning at home after taking on this role for remote learning. 

However, just as we have those feeling ready for the challenge, there will be many parents who are feeling fatigued by it all. These parents will not be excited by the thought of their children being set more work.

So, how can we balance the needs of both of these groups? One way is to set learning as games and activities this summer, where, rather than doing “work”, children are learning through play.

This will also be hugely beneficial to children who need an opportunity to “catch up” on missed play owing to the pandemic . Here are four of my favourite games you could set over the summer holidays to help your class learn through play this summer:

1. Toy parachutes 

Set this fantastic, fun, science-based task for children over the summer - wonderful for developing creativity and scientific enquiry skills.

Using household items (such as paper, string and Clingfilm), children have to design and make their very own parachutes for a toy of their choice, then drop them (with supervision) from a small height and see how long they take to fall.

2. Garden hoopla

Children can enjoy making their hoop by cutting out the centre of a paper plate and then decorating it.

The children then need to pop plastic cups on the lawn and try to throw their hoops over them. This activity is fantastic for hand-eye coordination, concentration and gross motor skills. It’s also a low intensity, low-cost and high time-occupying activity that parents should appreciate.

3. Ice-cube races

This exciting Stem (science, technology, engineering and maths) activity can help develop team-building and creative-thinking skills through play.

First, ask children to design and create a “track” for their ice cubes using aluminium foil. They then need to make their ice-cube “boats” by freezing water in an ice-cube tray (or freezer bag) and putting a lollipop stick, or similar, in the top.

Once frozen, take them out and attach some paper to the stick to make a sail. They can then have fun racing their ice boats down their foil track until they melt. After that, they can try it all over again

4. Postbox fun

Why not set your class the task of creating their own postbox this summer?

All they need is to start by painting a cardboard box red and cutting out a slot for the letters to fit through. If appropriate for your context, this can always be partly started in class before you break for the summer.

Once in place, the postbox will provide a wonderful imaginative play resource for children to create their own role-play games - and perhaps most importantly,  supply endless literacy opportunities over the holidays as they use it to write and post pretend letters, cards and postcards.

Georgina Durrant is a former teacher and Senco, founder of The SEN Resources Blog and author of  100 Ways Your Child Can Learn Through Play

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• New Magazine Experience New Magazine Experience • 18th November 2021

Learning with Fun: how to enjoy Holiday homeworks

Summer holidays mean relax : students can finally take a break and spend some time with their friends and families. Assigning them books to read, exercises to complete and problems to solve is an outdated homework model. Thanks to education technology , it is now easier than ever to stimulate students during holidays , motivating them to keep on training their mind. Here are some ideas.

But first, catch their attention and enthusiasm

Before using smart tech tools to engage students and help them to enjoy the summer learning activities, it is important to understand their needs and catch their attention , improving their motivation and enthusiasm. This has nothing to do with technology. It is a previous process that teachers should conduct face to face in the classroom.

Rule #1: appeal to students’ interests

Students enjoy their homework when it sounds funny, interesting, relevant to them: that’s why teachers should incorporate what their learners know and love in the summer assigments. How? First of all, taking a poll to find out what the majority of the class is into – sports, arts, nature? – and then creating a way to integrate the favourite subjects into the summer homework. Appealing to students’ interests is a great motivation driver!

Rule #2: keep it short

Holiday homework has the purpose to practice – or extend – those concepts learned at school during the school year. The duration of homework per day depends on the purpose . The National PTA (Parents Teacher Association, U.S.A.) recommends 10-20 minutes of homework in the 1st grade, arriving to 120 minutes of homework for a student in high school. But it is very tough to find a student who enjoys 2 hours of homework per day! In fact, consistent studies suggest that shorter – and more frequent – homework assignments are more effective , because learners are more likely to complete them.

Rule #3: stimulate sharing

During summertime, students prefer to stay outdoor, enjoying leisure with friends . Holiday homeworks can be a great opportunity to leverage on students’ cooperation, stimulating them with assignments including teamworks and activities to complete together with their classmates.

Rule #4: make it fun

Instead of force students to do traditional summaries regarding books they have read during summer, try to assign different kinds of homeworks, maybe including more subjects at the same time . An example: a written recap of summer holidays where students have to talk about the places they visited, merging this story with the music they listenend to, the histories they learnt and including even the photos they took during holidays. This could be a great way to test the students’ capability to deal with multitasks and activities of different nature. Regarding the many ways students can learn with fun, technology gives a lot of solutions suitable for students to do their holiday homework and keep on learning during summer in a more engaging and funny way. In Google Play Store , you can find a lot of apps that allow innovative and effective ways to learn at home during holidays :

• To students , the apps enable them to learn and to do homeworks in a more innovative and – above all – fun way;
• For teachers , it will be possible for them to assign homeworks and other activities with the possibility to better organize students’ tasks and to collect homework in an easier way when students will be back to school.

5 Must-Give Winter Break Homework Assignments

Jen Schneider Blog , Reading 0

This post contains some affiliate links. Purchasing from these links helps me keep this blog running to share education ideas with this community. Thank you for supporting teachers! It’s almost winter break and your students are going to be at home with family, eating, possibly playing video games, and maybe even enjoying some snow! You want to make sure they are learning, right? Winter break homework is essential! Send home these 5 assignments to give over winter break to make sure your students come back to school ready to learn!

1. Be kind.

Kindness doesn’t cost a thing. First, encourage your students to choose kindness every time they can. Hold the door open for a stranger, bite their tongue when they really want to snap at a sibling or a parent, and do a needed chore without being asked. #Bekind may seem like a trendy mantra for schools, but it’s really a way of life that spreads the holiday spirit. Winter break homework should be all about kindness!

#BeKind can't just be a hashtag. We have to live and model it to our Ss every day. In your words online and in person, show those around you at even though it can be tough to #choosekindness , you never know what someone is going through. Learn their story and #bekind . pic.twitter.com/ACymQgmuVz — Jen Schneider (@jenmschneider) August 7, 2018

2. Sleep in.

Teachers, students, parents all deserve some rest! When we get time off, we should use it to let our bodies relax. School starts so early for most kids, so give them an assignment to sleep in a bit (with parental permission and without sleeping the whole day away, of course)!

3. Spend some time with people you care about.

No matter what holiday (if any) your students celebrate over the break, hopefully they will be surrounded by people who they love and care about. Keep in mind, this isn’t the case for every student in your school.

For some, school is their happy place, and home is not the best place to be. For these (and really all) students, make sure they know how much you care before they leave for the break. I don’t send my 100+ middle schoolers home with gifts (I have to watch my wallet too), but I try to let them know every day (through words and actions) that I really do care about them. If you’re worried about a student being safe over break, you should let a counselor know. If it’s more than just a worry, make sure to go through the proper channels to report suspected abuse.

4. Take a nap.

Even if your students slept in, they could take a nap (provided they wake up before nap time). I promise, I will be taking a mid-day snooze on December 26 after my sugar cookie coma and Lego overload (holy cow my daughter has some Legos under the tree. . .shh. . .) subsides!

5. Read. . .anything.

OK, this sounds like a true homework assignment, but I am simply recommending for my students to read ANYTHING over break. Turn on the closed captioning on YouTube videos and Netflix shows. Read a blog post or a web article about Minecraft. Take a trip to the library and check out the latest Neal Shusterman Scythe book or an inclusive LGBTQ YA title . Anything goes over winter break. JUST READ!

Here are a few favorite titles I recommend!

Elementary Readers:

• Pax by Sarah Pennypacker

Middle School Readers:

(My middle schoolers recommend these titles!)

• The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die by April Henry

High School Readers:

• I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson

Check out some places to find FREE ebooks online !

These 5 homework assignments to give over winter break will have your students back to school refreshed and ready to learn in January! Of course, sending students home with bundles of worksheets, packets, and work is not recommended. “Homework” should be about enjoying time with family and a well-deserved break for teachers and students!

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Imaginative activities and projects to pack your students' summer holidays with creativity

13 July 2022

Bonus: Homework for teachers. Take some time over the summer to look after your own wellbeing (although maybe wait until just before the new term starts!) with these Dreamachine Teacher Wellbeing CPD videos and creative activities .

1. Dreamachine Resources At Home Pack

Print off the entire pack or just one or two from this collection of activities from the Dreamachine Schools resources, specially picked out for families at home. They include science, global citizenship and wellbeing activities suitable for all ages, but will need adults to support the delivery as they are written in a lesson plan style. The activities include an interactive science survey into the senses: Life’s Big Questions – with videos to watch presented by Newsround’s Martin Dougan and fun illusions to try out.

2. British Science Week Activity Packs

For child-facing activities that are print off and go try this year’s British Science Week activity packs , which include a Dreamachine optical illusion challenge.

3. Summer Reading Challenge 2022

This year’s summer reading challenge is online and even if your school didn’t sign—up, children can still register to join in online and get books form the library: www.summerreadingchallenge.org.uk/

You could print out this resource from StoryTrails and Unboxed Learning , with lots of ideas for storytelling.

4. The Poetry Society and Stemettes About Us Competition

About Us is all about exploring the many ways life across the universe is connected. Young people aged 4-18 can enter their poems and/ or Scratch projects on the theme of ‘connectivity and the universe‘, to win books and tech goodies, talent development opportunities, and free workshops for their school. All entrants will receive an e-certificate for participating and the competition closes on 31 August 2022. www.aboutus.earth/about-the-competition

5. Teaching for Creativity Taster Cards

Our Teaching for Creativity Taster Card activities are short and simple so could easily be facilitated by a parent or carer!

6. Keep an alternative journal

Document your summer break in a diary, but try to do it without writing a word! Create a scrapbook (or box!) of your summer, to remind you of what you did and how you felt. Try to include something for every week, but you can include as many entries as you like. How many different types of entries can you do? Some ideas are:

• Draw or paint a picture of what you did
• Draw the weather that day
• Close your eyes and draw how you feel
• Take a photo
• Collect a memento e.g. a ticket, a receipt, a food packet, newspaper, a leaf, a stone
• Draw a list of the music you listened to / books you read / games you played
• Make a collage of something you are looking forward to
• Make a picture of the tastiest food you ate – try using something unusual in a collage like pasta, lentils or cut up food packaging
• Listen to the noises outside and draw what you think you can hear

7. Design a new invention

Invent something to solve the problem of ____________.

Draw your invention and label it or make a model of it and a short video explaining how it will work. Think about: How does it work? What size will it be if you made it for real? What material is it made of? Where does it get power or energy from to work? What will you call it?

Check out Little Inventors for inspiration: www.littleinventors.org/ideas

Insert a problem to solve that you think your students will know about / connects to your learning this year or look on www.littleinventors.org/mini-challenges/

Some ideas are: plastic food packaging, ocean pollution, keeping cool in the heatwave, keeping house plants alive, how to stay dry when camping, learning times tables, getting to school on time.

8. Put on an art exhibition

Visit Tate Kids and choose some of the activities to create your own artwork: www.tate.org.uk/kids/make

Once you have enough pieces, stage an art exhibition in your home or garden and invite families and friends. Think about how you want them to feel when they are in the exhibition. Do you want them to feel excited/calm/intrigued or think about issues you care about? How can you display your work to try and achieve this? Take photos and collect some quotes of how they found the experience!

9. Learn some origami

Learn to make something out of origami, the art of paper folding. Maths on Toast have some how-to-videos: www.mathsontoast.org.uk/activity-category/videos/

All you need is some squares of paper – even newspaper will do (an easy way to make a square of paper is to fold one corner over to the bottom edge and then cut along ).

10. Write a cultural review

Write a review of a film/book/computer game/album/podcast /play/day out/experience – anything cultural that interests you! How did it make you feel? What were the best bits? What could improve? What surprised you?

You could provide them with a quick list of family days out (preferably free and local) to spark ideas. If your students are London based, here is a list of some free goings on in the capital to get you started:

Greenwich + Docklands - International Festival 2022 (FREE) 26 August – 11 September / Festival - free theatre, art, dance and circus.

Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster: Alienarium 5 at Serpentine South Gallery (FREE) until 4 September / Art exhibition - a speculative environment that invites us to imagine possible encounters with extraterrestrials.

Covent Garden Cool Down – August Bank Holiday weekend / Experience - an annual ice cream festival on the streets of Covent Garden.

Take One Picture 2022 at the National Gallery (FREE) until 11 September / Art exhibition - primary schools from across the UK have responded creatively to 'The Finding of Moses' by Orazio Gentileschi.

Hew Locke: The Procession at Tate Britain (FREE) until January 2023 / Art exhibition – an installation of sculptures of people gathering and moving together to and ‘to celebrate, worship, protest, mourn, escape or even to better themselves’.

Kids Week – throughout August / Theatre - children 17 and under can go to theatre shows for free when accompanied by a full price paying adult.

Brent Biennial 2022: In The House Of My Love (FREE) until 11 September / Art exhibition - artists and community groups whose works explore the many meanings of homemaking.

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November 18, 2023

8 top holiday literacy resources your students will love + freebies.

December is often a busy time not just in the classroom, but in our personal lives as well. That coupled with the holiday excitement that the students bring to school each day, it can feel overwhelming to manage everyone and everything. I found over the years that when I bring the holiday fun into the classroom with purposeful, engaging activities, things seem to feel a bit less chaotic. So I say let’s bring on the Polar Express, holidays around the world, and reindeer by including holiday literacy activities in lesson planning.

Today I want to share some of my favorite holiday literacy resources to add some holiday cheer to your literacy block. Additionally, many of these resources also make great displays for the hallway or your classroom.

Why I Love Integrating Literacy and Holidays

During a busy season like the holidays, you can make more time to do fun holiday activities and crafts when you get creative with how you fit them into your day. Through read alouds, shared reading, interactive notebook activities, writing crafts, and themed centers, we can easily integrate reading and writing through the season to bring holiday cheer in our classrooms while improving literacy skills.

I also love any opportunity to sneak in extra practice with writing conventions, reading comprehension, and word work. When we do activities that are truly engaging, my students don’t always realize that they are learning and practicing important skills at the same time.

Top Holiday Literacy Activities

These are some of my favorite holiday literacy activities for kinder, first, and second grades. I also sprinkled in some freebies , so be sure to check them out!

December Literacy Stations

One great way to bring holiday literacy activities to your classroom is through literacy centers. Holiday-themed literacy stations always bring cheer to your reading block time! The December Literacy Stations has seven centers for you to use this month:

• Book Making
• Sight Words
• Pocket Chart

With simple-to-prep stations, you and your students will all love these engaging activities!

Get December Literacy Stations HERE!

Gingerbread Writing Craftivity

The Gingerbread Writing Craftivity is perfect for your students to self-assess their own writing! For each writing convention, the students earn a part of their gingerbread kid. It’s a great way to integrate some meaningful writing and be purposeful with an adorable craft! Plus, the finished activity makes a great display for the holiday season.

Get the Gingerbread Writing Craftivity HERE!

Gingerbread Man Activities and Literacy Activities

With 18 different reading and writing activities for everything gingerbread, this Gingerbread Printables resource will bring a ton of fun to your literacy time! The gingerbread holiday literacy activities include retelling, sequencing, comparing different gingerbread books, a mini book, writing activities, and everything you need for a gingerbread man hunt!

Get the Gingerbread Printables HERE!

FREE Mouse and Movie Retelling Activity

After reading the book If You Take a Mouse to the Movies , use this FREE Mouse and Movies Retelling activity for students to practice sequencing. My students and I loved any chance we could to make a purposeful craft! For younger students, they can draw what happens in the book. First and second graders can write (and draw) the events.

Get the FREE Mouse and Movies Activity HERE!

Holiday Flip Books

These 19 Holiday Flip Books are perfect for your social studies or science interactive notebooks. They can be used after reading The Polar Express, after an elf visits your classroom, or as you learn about reindeer! They are also a great fit for teaching about Christmas Around the World and are a great way to integrate literacy!

Get the Holiday Flip Books HERE!

Christmas Around the World Flip Up Book Bundle

Do you teach Christmas around the world, but struggle to find a way for students to document their learning and keep up with each country’s traditions? The Christmas Around the World Flip Up Books are for you!

They are the perfect little activities for your students to be engaged as they learn about Christmas Around the World! Each flip book includes reading, sorting, and writing! It is easy to create with the printing instructions that are included.

Get the Christmas Around the World Flip Up Books HERE!

Winter Word Making Freebie

This little activity has three mystery word making activities for you to do whole group, in a small group, or even to drop in a word work center. You could also make it a competition during your holiday party. Students will use the letters provided and see how many words they can build. This activity is always a hit!

Get the Winter Work Making Freebie HERE!

Holidays Around the World Bundle

This Holidays Around the World unit helps students compare and contrast Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, and Christmas. It makes it simple to learn about Kwanzaa , Hanukkah , and Christmas as you celebrate them all! You’ll easily integrate reading and writing with social studies with each of these resources.

Each resource has graphic organizers, vocabulary cards, sorting activities, and a craft. You’ll be set for social studies for the whole month with packing in lots of literacy at the same time! I bundled them together so you get all three units for the price of two!

Get the Holidays Around the World Bundle HERE!

I know the month of December can feel a little chaotic in the classroom. That’s why I like to harness the holiday excitement and integrate holiday fun into reading and writing as much as possible. All of these holiday literacy activities do just that! You can also shop my whole shop’s Christmas and holiday section of resources HERE .

Happy Teaching,

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EASILY PLAN YOUR K-2 READING SMALL GROUPS​

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Hi, I'm Amanda

I’m a K-1 teacher who is passionate about making lessons your students  love  and that are  easy to implement  for teachers.  Helping teachers like you navigate their way through their literacy block brings me great joy. I am a lifelong learner who loves staying on top of current literacy learning and practices. Here, you’ll find the tools you need to move your K-2 students forward!

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10 entertaining homework ideas for online English Language Learners

Did hearing the words, “do your homework,” when you were a child excite you? 

For most of us, the word homework doesn’t conjure up exciting or fun memories. 

Homework was likely one of the last things you wanted to do as a student!

However, what if you could make homework fun for students? What if homework was entertaining? 

In this article, we share some entertaining homework ideas for English language learners to help them improve their English while having fun!

You might be familiar with lots of ESL games and activities for your students , but assigning the right homework can feel overwhelming. 

This is particularly true if you don’t want to burden your students with a tremendous amount of information. 

Have you ever thought about combining games with homework? 

There are many alternative ways to create memorable lessons, such as incorporating karaoke songs to learn English. 

Here are 10 fun and entertaining homework ideas for your ESL students:

• Cafe hopper
• Tiktok star
• Let’s go to the movies
• Hello Mr. Teacher
• Interview a stranger
• Shine like a Karaoke star
• Expert on the loose
• 24 hour challenge
• It’s a wrap!
• Masterchef in the making

1. Cafe hopper

Most people love checking out cafes and this is an easy homework task to assign to your students.  

Have your students visit a variety of cafes as part of their homework. 

Then, consider what they could do for homework in a cafe of their choice.

Here are some fun ideas for turning cafe-hopping into homework:

• Practice ordering in English off of the menu.
• Take a photo of the cafe’s and share the differences and similarities with you in class.
• Speak to a stranger in each cafe in English and ask them some interesting questions about their life.
• Interview the barista about their favorite kind of coffee or beverage.

This is a stress-free homework idea that your students will love, especially if they are coffee or tea lovers!

2. TikTok star

Tiktok is a fun social media application where you can watch videos and songs from creators. You can also watch creators lip-synching to catchy tunes.

Show some fun examples in your class of some famous TikTok songs being lip-synched to by others and practice doing one together.

• For homework, have them choose their favorite song on TikTok.
• They can lip-synch to the song and download the song to their camera album without having to actually post it to TikTok.
• Have them share their creation with you in the next class!

Depending on the age and location of your student, TikTok might not be an option for them. If you are teaching older students or adults , then it might be easier for them to use social media for this homework assignment rather than young children.

If they are too young to use the app, have them find an online video of their favorite song and ask a parent to record them singing!

3. Let’s go to the movies

Going to the movies doesn’t sound like homework, does it? Well, as you might already be discovering, homework doesn’t have to be conventional!

Find some interesting movies that are playing in your students’ area or ask them to watch a movie of their choice in English. 

Tell them that their homework is going to be based on the movie they watch.

Here are some ideas for making going to the movies part of their homework:

• Have them write a summary of the movie or their favorite part.
• Tell them that they have to give you a movie review in your next class.
• Have them act out their favorite part of the movie with a sibling or family member and record it (in English of course!).
• Ask them to make a poster advertising the movie with captions, titles and text to accompany any drawings.

If you are struggling to find movies they can go and watch in the cinema, you can always use these ESL movies and TV shows as a resource. 

Students can also watch movies from the comforts of their homes. 

4. Hello Mr. Teacher!

Students love playing the role of the teacher! 

This can work for in-person or online ESL classes.  

Tell them that as part of the next classroom activity, the first 5 – 10 minutes will be their time to shine as the teacher!

For homework, ask them to:

• Think of one topic that they know a lot about (This could be a sport, musical instrument, game, topic, etc…).
• Have them prepare 5 important things that someone needs to know about their topic.
• Tell them that in their next class they will be the teacher and share their knowledge! (They can even give you homework!).

Have fun with this homework idea and role-play the student where you ask them questions after they finish. 

Your students will love this one!

5. Interview a stranger

This one might need some parent support and guidance if you are teaching children, but having them interview someone is an entertaining homework idea for English language learners.

• It encourages their own voice as they come up with ideas.
• It helps with writing skills as they write out their questions.
• Interviewing encourages conversation and role playing which is a fun way to learn English.

You could have your younger students interview a family member and ask questions related to that family member’s childhood. 

Here are some sample questions you could help your students form:

• What kind of things did you like to do when you were my age?
• What was your favorite thing about school?
• What types of sports did you play when you were young?
• Tell me about what life was like when you were a child.

Have them choose and write out 5-10 questions and come back to class to report on their findings!

6. Shine like a Karaoke star

Who doesn’t like a bit of karaoke? Imagine….singing your heart out to “I love rock n roll” in the privacy of your own home!

You don’t need to go to a karaoke place to actually sing karaoke songs. There are lots of great karaoke songs available online to learn English with your students.

YouTube is a great place to start, just by searching for your favorite song + “karaoke lyrics” in the search bar.

In class, help your student(s) choose a song and task them with finding the online karaoke lyrics to sing along.

Have them sing this for homework! You could even ask a parent to help them record it if they are comfortable with that.

Here are some fun and popular karaoke songs online to learn English:

• “I Will Survive” with Gloria Gaynor
• “Livin’ on a Prayer” with Bon Jovi
• “Summer Nights” with John Travolta and Olivia Newton John
• “Don’t Stop Believin’” with Journey

7. Expert on the loose

There is an expert in all of us, including your students!

In this fun and entertaining homework idea, have your student share their expertise on something!

To add a different dimension to the homework idea, “Hello Mr. Teacher,” task your students to dress up as the expert and make a short speech on their topic of choice.

Here are some examples:

• Harry Potter
• Michael Jordan (to talk about basketball)
• Favorite sports athlete
• Insect scientist
• Astronaut (if your student knows a lot about space)
• Presidential candidate
• Pilot (for students who know a lot about countries)

Even if they are not an expert on the topic, part of the homework assignment could be to do some research and learn more about their chosen field.

You could even ask them to dress up and come to class in the role, ready to share their knowledge with you! 

8. 24 hour English challenge

This one is self-explanatory and incredibly fun!

Set a challenge for your student to only speak in English for 24 hours. 

This means that you might need to get parents involved with the homework assignment, so that they can help out.

The idea is that they have to speak only in English (as much as is possible given their situation) when interacting with family, friends and at school.

Your students might already be immersed in English environments, but, oftentimes, they are speaking their native language at home with family and friends.

Having your students force themselves to only speak in English is challenging and a great way to encourage English outside the classroom.

9. It’s a wrap!

Lots of students love to rap! Rap music is poetic and encourages a lot of ESL language skills that we want to build in our students.

This is an activity that you can model with your students in class and assign it for homework for them to create their own rap.

Again, they can come back to class and rap their new song to you! It might, however, work better with older students who have a good base level of English, to begin with.

Here are some fun homework assignments incorporating rap:

• Create their own rap if they are the creative type
• Find a well known rap online and practice it to present in class
• Assign your students to find a rap online that they sing and record with their friends

10. Masterchef extraordinaire

For the food lovers, creating a homework assignment that includes cooking can be really fun.

Most kids love the idea of cooking, especially if it centers around cooking their favorite food!

When considering this as a homework idea, consider these possible assignments:

• Create and write out a recipe for a unique culinary dish.
• Make a video about the cooking experience.
• Record a tutorial of how to cook something.
• Turn it into a competition if you have multiple students.

Plus, this works with physical and online classrooms. 

Of course, if you have a physical classroom with multiple students, this could be a really fun in-class experience with some homework assignments to accompany it.

Who doesn’t love a food-related assignment? 

If you choose Masterchef extraordinaire, allow your students to share the food they make with the class and encourage lots of conversations in English.

Homework doesn’t have to be boring!

As you can see, homework doesn’t have to be boring! 

Most of your ESL students have a lot to do even outside class, and that’s why assigning homework that doesn’t feel like homework is ideal!

This is an opportunity to get creative, creating excitement for your students to learn English.

If you use some of the homework ideas mentioned here, make sure you document the experience and continue to discover new activities that bring laughter and joy to the classroom. 

And when you are applying to online teaching jobs , be sure to share how you plan to creatively incorporate class assignments and homework for your students!

Enjoy the process and make learning an enjoyable experience for everyone. 

Enjoyed this article? Don't forget to share.

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Your Career• 3 Min read

6th September 2020

Creative Homework Ideas

How can you create homework assignments that build on the day’s lessons and encourage creative, student-led learning? It’s a challenge for most teachers, especially as motivating pupils to complete homework can add a whole extra layer to your lesson plans. But it’s essential to bridge the gap between teacher and student learning –  the skills gained through independent study reinforces knowledge from your class, as well as a host of other benefits:

• Extended learning time – outside of the constraints of the school day, students are free to learn at their own pace and in their own environment.
• Independent learning – vital skills for exam preparation and higher education
• Teaches students to be resourceful and to overcome challenges independently.
• Gives students the freedom to be creative in their learning, gain valuable problem-solving skills and confidence in their own abilities.

Tips For Setting Creative Homework

• Plan independent learning both in and out of the classroom – you can monitor students effectiveness and address issues that may arise in the classroom before they become problematic for pupils at home.
• Don’t leave homework assignment to the end of the lesson, rushing through the task might leave some students confused which inevitably leads to a lower homework completion rate. Write plenty of time for explaining homework assignments into your lesson planning – read our Beginner’s Guide To Lesson Planning here
• Homework should to not too easy nor not too hard, offering pupils a challenge that reinforced the topics learnt during the day
• Give room for creative expression – allowing students to add their own diagrams, decorations or chose their own project topics from a selection. 
• Try using peer or self-assessment to mark homework – a double whammy of reducing your workload and allowing pupils to take control of their own learning.
• Include timings and explicit steps for completing more complicated assignments, especially for pupils that you anticipate might struggle. Comprehension of the task is the biggest hurdle in getting pupils to work on an independent basis.
• Self-driven projects, posters, creative tasks and research are more exciting than standard comprehension tasks and might encourage pupils that find sitting and writing dull or hard to complete the homework set – give students the freedom to learn and be creative in their home study.
• Provide specific instructions and internet safety reminders for research-led assignments. It’s very easy for children to find research overwhelming with a vast amount of information available online. Provide suggested websites and links in your homework to keep things on track!
• Don’t introduce a new topic for homework – keep it to topics that you’ve already covered in class
• Taking note of the subjects that excite and engage your class and set homework accordingly – try keeping dryer topics and  for the classroom so that you can monitor engagement
• Mark work promptly – essential to keep students motivated to complete work in their own time!
• Offering students the opportunity to select the homework that they would like to do from a selection guarantees a higher rate of completion. We’ve seen some teachers create grids or sheets of homework assignments for the pupils to select, or offer baskets of activities for younger children to take home and complete with an adult.

Creative Homework Ideas For All Ages

Coming up with innovative ways for students to reinforce their knowledge at home can be difficult – many of these ideas would be suitable for lots of subjects with a little tweaking!

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13 Entertaining ESL Homework Ideas to Keep Your Students Engaged

Homework may not be many students’ favorite thing, but research says it’s truly an effective learning tool that teachers should use .

The trick is assigning great homework.

To help you do this with ease, we’ve compiled an awesome list of 13 homework assignments that will have your ESL students begging for more.

1. Read a Short Story

2. share a passion, 3. start a chat group, 4. listen to a podcast, 5. write a letter, 6. write an amazon review, 7. do a wikipedia edit, 8. write a short story or poem, 9. share their culture, 10. catch a movie, 11. meet new people, 12. analyze a song, 13. go on a photo scavenger hunt, what makes homework effective.

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

Have students read a short story for homework and then ask them to tell the class about the story in the next session.

I would recommend giving students some suggestions on what short stories to read, depending on the level of your students.

Here are some suggestions of short story collections for each level of ESL learner:

• “The Very First Americans” by Cara Ashrose: This collection of short stories features Native American culture and history, written in simple language.
• “Oxford Bookworms Library: Starter Level” This series offers simplified versions of classic stories, such as fairy tales, adventure stories and more.
• “Classic Tales for ESL Students” by L.A. Hill: This collection of classic stories from literature is retold with easier vocabulary and sentence structure.

Intermediate

• “The Best American Short Stories” This series features contemporary short stories from a wide range of American writers, so there’s something for everyone here.
• “Short Stories in English for Intermediate Learners” by Olly Richards: This collection of engaging stories is designed specifically for intermediate ESL students.
• “Roald Dahl: The Collected Short Stories” This delightful collection of quirky and imaginative tales has become a favorite of many of my students.
• “Interpreter of Maladies” by Jhumpa Lahiri: This Pulitzer Prize-winning collection of short stories explores the immigrant experience, something which many ESL students can relate to.
• “Dubliners” by James Joyce: This classic collection of interconnected stories captures the essence of Dublin in 1914. But it still feels modern to many students.
• “Nine Stories” by J.D. Salinger: This classic collection of short stories is a class favorite when I’ve used it.

What do your students really care about? Give them a chance to talk about it in front of the class. 

Have each person choose something they’re passionate about, something they might consider themselves an expert on.

Challenge students to think of a creative way to present five must-know facts about that subject. They might make a movie, create a poster or brochure, write a song or even put on a skit.

Have each person present their creative project to the class, and then give the class five minutes to ask questions of the presenter.

Set certain parameters like students must speak in complete sentences or require that every student ask at least two questions at some point during the presentations.

Students will love sharing about their passions, and they’ll get some great speaking, listening and discourse information in the process, as well as teach the rest of the class some interesting vocabulary.

Ask for class for a volunteer to start a class WhatsApp chat group. They can also decide to use another messaging app like Telegram, Viber, Voxer or any other app that has a group chat function. 

Encourage them to send at least one message and to respond to a couple others for their homework. 

This text group has the added advantage of students being able to make friends with one another, and a place to ask about missed homework assignments on days when they can’t make it to class.

Note that if a student doesn’t want to be included in the chat group, you should have a back up assignment prepared for them.

Listening is one of the ESL student’s most difficult skills to acquire, so listening to a short podcast episode is ideal homework.

You can ask students to write a little about the podcast to turn in to you, or you can ask them to briefly summarize what they heard for the class in the next session.

Here are some suggestions for well done podcasts:

The English We Speak : Produced by the BBC, this podcast focuses on teaching commonly used phrases and idioms in conversational English.

The Moth : A storytelling podcast where real people share their personal experiences and anecdotes in English.

Stuff You Should Know : Though not specifically designed for ESL students, this podcast covers a vast array of interesting topics, providing exposure to diverse vocabulary and subject matters.

Ask your students to write a letter . The letter can be written to a friend or family member (which they could then actually mail or email), or it could be a fan letter to a favorite musician or actor. They could even write a letter to Santa Claus or a historical figure. 

For example, a student might choose to write a letter to Marie Antoinette, asking her what it was like to be the queen of France at such a young age. 

You can also choose to have students write letters to one another. Then the next homework can be writing that letter writer back.

Ask you students to review a product on Amazon (or any other shopping website that has reviews). Ask them to select a product they have really used, so they have a genuine opinion on the quality of the product and whether it lived up to their expectations.

Then, in the next session, show the reviews on the overhead projector to the class and ask a student to read the review.

You can then go over any errors in vocabulary, grammar or sentence structure and revise the review together as a class.

Since anyone can edit a Wikipedia article, it’s a great place for ESL students to hone their writing and editing skills, and they’ll have a built-in readership, too!

Ask students to select a person that they know a lot about—a well-known figure from history, pop culture, music or film would all work. Then ask them to read the Wikipedia entry to see if they can add anything else to the article.

Perhaps the article on Ryan Gosling is missing a key detail about his recent Ken performance. If so, the student will revise and edit the article. They should take notes on what they changed, so they can explain it to you or the class the next day.

Ask your students to get creative. Have them write a short story or a poem . This can get them to use descriptive language that they don’t always have a chance to use.

One good activity to do before you assign this homework is an adjective bubble chart. For this, you start with one adjective. For example, write “moist” on the board, circle it and then draw 4-5 lines coming off of the”moist” bubble.

Ask your students to come up with other adjectives that are related to “moist” and so on. They may come up with “wet,” “watery,” “soaked” or “damp.” Then draw lines from each of those. This can lead to words that you never expected to come up.

Have your students select 3-4 adjectives from this introduction activity that they’ll use in their story or poem.

Ask your students to prepare a short presentation on an aspect of their home culture to tell the class about in the next session. 

For example, a student from China may explain the Lunar New Year, a student from Vietnam may explain Tet or a student from El Salvador may tell the class about their quinceañera .

They can use photos, art, a PowerPoint presentation or they can just explain in their own words.

Then open the class up for questions.

Can you legitimately send students to the movies for homework? You can when you’re teaching ESL.

Your students don’t have to commit to a full-length movie. Instead, you can use the videos on FluentU to screen mini-lessons using clips from TV shows and movies, movie trailers, news segments, vlogs or music videos.

Use these videos in the classroom or assign homework to watch a few and complete the subsequent quizzes. You can also ask students to complete flashcard quizzes based on vocabulary words you want them to pay special attention to. These quizzes are adaptable so every student will have a unique experience catered to his learning level.

There are plenty of ways to use a movie for language development. And whether students watch a new release or catch an old Elvis flick on TV, they can do any of the following activities as homework:

• Summarize the plot.
• Describe a main character.
• Note new or interesting vocabulary (particularly slang) they hear while watching.
• Write an interview with one of the characters in the movie.

I’m sure you also have your favorite movie-related language activities and many work as homework assignments. So get creative with how you have students share about what they watched.

For the most part, people are willing to help someone in need, and that is doubly true for someone who needs to complete an assignment for school.

That’s why sending students out to interview native speakers on campus is such a fun homework assignment.

Start by helping your students write a list of questions they’ll use for their interviews. Students can choose a topic or you can assign one, like leisure activities or celebrity news.

Tell students to list five to ten questions they might ask on that topic that will elicit specific answers. 

As a class, discuss how students might introduce themselves to a potential interviewee. 

Then send students out to their interviews after class. They can share the answers they got in the next session.

Music is great for English learners since it stresses many aspects of language that can otherwise be hard to isolate, like the emotion of language, intonation and stress.

Have students choose their favorite English language song to listen to for homework and then ask them to do the following:

• Practice the lyrics to learn intonation and rhythm.
• Note slang and cultural references in the songs.
• Summarize the theme of the song, or just what it’s about.
• Have students share their favorite lyrics and what a particular song means to them.

Give individual students or groups of up to three students a list of items to find on their homework scavenger hunt. But instead of being specific in your list (for example, including items such as cat), be descriptive in your list.

You might include items such as something frightening, something beautiful, something quiet, something cool.

Students find items they think fit the description. For example, someone who is claustrophobic might choose an elevator for something frightening. They then take a picture of it.

The next day, have each person get with a partner and show them the pictures they took for each item on the list.

If the connection is not obvious, students should ask their partner to explain why they chose a particular item, such as the elevator.

Assigning homework that works isn’t as hard as you might think, especially if you focus on the following points.

• Put your homework in writing. It can be tempting to just announce homework assignments to students at the end of class, but language learners benefit when you reinforce what you say with what they can see. So take a minute to write any homework assignment on the board so students can read it as well as listen to it.
• Let students know what goals you have for a particular assignment. Is it practicing a certain grammar point ? Improving their listening skills ? Pronunciation practice ? When students know why they’re doing something, they’ll be able to tell on their own when they’ve successfully completed their homework assignment.
• Keep your homework practical . Your students may not find themselves planning out a menu for Thanksgiving when they leave your ESL classroom, but odds are they’ll have to order food at a restaurant at some point. Think about realistic ways students will have to use English in the real world and try to make your homework practical.
• Let your students be creative . Give your students choices on how they express themselves or present information. It’s okay for students to make a home movie, put on a one-man play or paint a picture to present to the class. Just because you prefer a particular type of creative expression doesn’t mean your students do, so give them choices and let them express themselves.
• Make homework fun! Every class has its own personality, so what’s fun for one might not be fun for another. Tailor your assignments to the personality of your class. Think about what they would think is fun, and go with that.

No matter what you believed in your student days, homework doesn’t have to be boring. With a little creativity when assigning homework, you might find that the activities you assign for outside of class become the highlights of your students’ days.

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