Homework has been a constant source of frustration for us as well. Both of our gifted kids struggle with it from time to time but for different reasons.
It is unreasonable for teachers to expect a 9yo (or even a 15yo) to have full executive functioning capabilities. Some people believe that gifted programs are for smart kids who are motivated and focused, but that's not what the law states. If your child has executive function problems, see if you can get a 504 or IEP. That has helped us force the teachers to be flexible in terms of homework deadlines and content.
The other major problem with homework is lack of clarity. So many assignments are not fully specified, or require that the students make logical inferences to understand what to do. If my wife and I can look at an assignment and come to two different but equally reasonable interpretations of what it is asking, how do they expect a child to figure it out?
