Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Learning Environments Torn about homework load

Wait, is it the child who is supposed to be reading aloud, or the parent? Having the child read aloud doesn't make much sense, because the skills for decoding and speaking are different than for comprehending. I can't imagine a child reading aloud for 30 minutes without being utterly exhausted, and still be able to relate what went on in the story. Having the adults read aloud makes so much more sense, because they will read books above the child's level, expanding vocabulary and concepts. But even still, before 30minutes are up I need a glass of water.

There's nothing like turning an enjoyable activity into "homework".

Meg ... my second son was in second grade last year, that sounds about right to me.

Although, I think of the reading as 2 hours a week as opposed to 30 minutes Mon - Thurs. My son would typically spend way more than two hours a week reading, I don't monitor it on a daily.

Spelling exercise and pretest... if they are not required to be turned in, we don't do it. He had fairly challenging words but an great memory so not a tough task. I input them into an app on iPad on Mondays when he gets them and he practices as he sees fit. At the very beginning of the year, I reminded him to practice at least once on the way to school on Fridays. Again, I don't monitor it much, I check occasionally to confirm he has gotten any wrong in the last couple weeks.

That leaves the sentences, 2 a night (but my son prefers to get it all out of the way at once) and the math, I assume they both can be completed in 10-15 minutes a day. She should get faster as the year goes on I would assume.

One small difference is our math is online so that does make it a bit more fun.

Maybe she would prefer to spend 10 minutes before school on homework and then just the reading after school?

The reading is supposed to be by the child. We did reading aloud all summer long and it greatly improved her reading, but she's still not capable of 30 minutes at a stretch. I suspect by the time she is, she will have achieved "lift-off" and be reading for pleasure, at which point I will refuse to make it be homework, and will tell the teacher so.

I don't really have any problem with the *kinds* of work they're assigning, but I do have a problem with how *much*. In a way I appreciate that they are trying to get kids up to speed on writing so that they can go on to do writing for writing's sake. The older grades write stories and essays, and articles for the school newsletter, which I think is awesome, and they want to get the little ones writing as quickly as possible.

Unfortunately, the teacher wants a reading log for the reading aloud, so there's no weaseling out of that one.

Meg, can you ask to have the 2 hours of reading spaced through the entire week instead of monday through thursday? Your log will just look different thank the other families.

I also think the volume of homework is far too much.

This is less than my DD was assigned in 2nd at a gifted magnet, but the HW is and has always been a major sore point. She had 30 minutes of reading aloud (yes, it was aloud in 2nd, though I eventually asked for and got an exemption--she read silently) and 15-30 math problems every day, plus spelling, writing, science, and social studies assignments throughout the week, for a total of at least an hour a day. I don't endorse it and I don't know if it's typical. But that's what it is. In fifth, we are at about 1.5 hours a day, but sometimes much less or much more--oddly inconsistent.

Vacation homework does not seem appropriate as vacation is an important break from school to enjoy family, friends, hobbies, and self-directed learning.

Some parents are concerned with "no homework" policies and restrictions against bringing books home, as these preclude parents from proactively or concurrently seeing what their children are learning.

When my DD was in K and 1st, they sent us the weekly reading logs to fill out, and we basically told the teachers that we weren't going to be participating, because it would be harder to stop DD reading than to make her begin, her reading ability and her interest levels were not a concern. Both teachers, having already had a look at DD's abilities, agreed with our assessment, and offered no resistance.

What is the point of the homework? Is there a goal? A level of desired proficiency in some area? I am reminded of the story about the Japanese baseball team where the motto was "practice till you die" (and not the more sensible "practice till you are ready for your game baseball game").

You know its very easy for a parent to correct the situation of not enough homework if you really feel that's the case. Just add assignments of your own. Personally, I'm mostly in the camp of reading is enough for most weeks in the younger grades.

I am on team NO HOMEWORK. School should be at school and home at home.

Exceptions can include reading (without a log), make up work if child has been absent, or once in a while reviewing for an upcoming test a specific concept that might need a bit more work.

But 99% of the time I want to hear "no homework mom other than to read!"