Dear Parent/Carer
The Mathematics department is delighted to let you know that from 22nd February 2022 students will be completing their maths homework with Sparx Maths. Sparx is an exciting online platform that offers every student a personalised maths homework. This is an evolution and improvement on our current Hegarty platform.
We know that you want to support your child’s maths progress so we’ve put together this letter to explain how Sparx works and why it is important to make sure that maths homework is 100% completed.
How does Sparx homework work?
Sparx personalises each child’s homework, creating a weekly set of questions tailored to their level of understanding and learning pace. The questions are designed to be achievable whilst offering the stretch that learners need to make progress.
Each week, topics are set by your child’s maths teacher and will make up the majority of the homework questions. Questions from previous topics will also be included in the homework so that students can keep practising the skills they have learned.
How can I help my child with their homework?
We appreciate that you will of course want to support your child with their home learning but please try not to help them with a question until they’ve had a go first! It is really important that they complete their homework independently, and that questions are marked as correct. They can watch the short support video if they need to. This way, Sparx can make sure your child continues to see homework that’s at the right level for them.
Why does my child need to achieve 100% compulsory homework completion?
Sparx Homework is deliberately designed to help students really get to grips with and understand the concepts and skills they are learning by ensuring they cover the essential building blocks needed to make progress in maths. Sparx’ research (sparx.co.uk/evidence) has shown that an average of 60 minutes a week of this type of personalised maths home learning leads to clear progress. It is therefore advised that students do their homework as early as possible, so they have the time to have a go themselves and seek help from their teacher if needed. Homework is not marked as complete until all of the compulsory questions have been answered correctly, so starting early is key to finishing before hand-in time.
You can keep track of your child’s homework completion in the weekly email you will receive from Sparx.
How will we be managing the transition from Hegarty to Sparx?
All students will be introduced to Sparx during their Maths lessons before half term. Their teacher will talk through how to log on and how the platform works. We will also be recording a short video for students absent during this lesson. Once classes have been introduced to Sparx they are free to choose between the two platforms for their homework up until half term. We hope that by allowing students to begin their first Sparx’s they are supported in transitioning to the new website. Please don’t be alarmed by any emails referring to incomplete homework prior to half term.
Here is a short video for parents to watch explaining how sparx works and how you can help to get your son/daughter started.
We hope you agree that Sparx will play an exciting and important role in helping your child’s understanding, success and confidence in maths to grow.
Here are the Top tips for parents (Sparx Maths Homework)
If you have any questions regarding Sparx maths please contact darren.newley@hdhs.school
Kind regards
D.J. Newley
Deputy Head of Mathematics
