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At OPS, homework supports learning and reinforces skills taught in the classroom. All students are encouraged to read and practice math facts daily. 

Highlights of an MSI classroom include: 

• multi-sensory learning approaches that engage visual, auditory, and kinesthetic modalities

• small group instruction to target specific skill development

• structured, sequential lessons that build skills step by step

• individualized support aligned with student learning profiles

• emphasis on hands-on and interactive activities to reinforce concepts

• consistent routines to support focus and confidence

• ongoing assessment to monitor progress and adjust instruction

Highlights of an intervention classroom include: 

• small student-teacher ratios

• highly individualized instruction based on diagnostic assessments

• focused support on specific academic or behavioral skills

• frequent progress monitoring

• differentiated learning activities

• strong emphasis on positive reinforcement 

• student engagement to address the unique needs of struggling students

Reading Tips: 

• Have your child read aloud to you every night. Choose a quiet place, free from distractions, for your child to do their nightly reading assignments.

• As your child reads, point out spelling and sound patterns such as cat, pat, hat.

• When your child reads aloud to you and makes a mistake, point out the words he or she has missed, and help him/her to read the word correctly.

• After your child has stopped to correct a word, have him/her go back and reread the entire sentence from the beginning to make sure they understand what the sentence is saying.

• Ask your child to tell you in his/her own words what happened in the story. Encourage them to say what happened at the beginning, the middle, and the end. 

• To check your child's understanding of what they are reading, occasionally pause and ask your child questions about the characters and events in the story.

• Ask your child why he or she thinks a character acted in a certain way, and ask your child to support their answer with information from the story.

• Before getting to the end of a story, ask your child what they think will happen next.

Math Tips: 

• Play card or board games that involve counting or looking for patterns. Use dice or cards to make a game out of practicing math facts.

• Have your child measure ingredients for a recipe you are making. To practice fractions, have them halve, double, or triple a receipe.

• Count out loud with your child. Count the stairs as you climb up and down; count the steps as you dance. For older children, practice skip counting.

• Play with shapes. Pick a shape to look for wherever you go with your child. Some days, look for flat shapes like rectangles, squares, triangles, or circles. Other days look for cylinders, spheres, and pyramids.

• Notice what is the same or different about objects. Group objects, and ask which one doesn't belong? Which is the tallest, longest, heaviest? How much taller, longer, heavier?

• Track or graph scores or stats for a favorite sports team. Keep track of the weather. Use the information to look for patterns and make predictions.

• Since children love to collect items from the beach or a park, encourage them to collect and sort items by size, color, shape, and texture.

• Ask your child to count the change at the grocery story and to estimate the total cost when you are out shopping.

• Source: https://www.kusd.edu/docs/math-at-home.pdf