My family recently had an extraordinarily good week. It was more relaxing, less stressful, and more harmonious than usual. I am saddened by the reason why—my third grader had a significantly reduced homework load last week. The weekly homework packet did not go out as usual due to parent teacher conferences. Then there were two out of four days without the generally assigned math homework, thanks to the third grade musical and an early release day. Instead of a 5-page packet with language, spelling, math, and writing activities, 4 daily math homework sheets, and a weekly reading log, we had two days of math homework and our weekly reading log. It felt like vacation.
Our afternoons and evenings were less chaotic and slower-paced, our weekends were free of the mandatory homework packet work, and we entirely avoided that “night-before-the-packet-is-due” freakout when we realize we’d procrastinated too long on the writing assignment. It dawned on me at the end of the week that we simply hadn’t experienced that familiar strain of rushing to get homework done. It had been such a pleasant treat. And next week, it would be back to normal. I felt depressed.
Third grade math has actually been easier than second grade: multiplication and division facts fall within my skill set. But last year? Second grade math homework frequently ended with my daughter in tears, and me scrawling a frustrated post-it note to her teacher. I am not kidding—there were some nights when I stared at the complex word problem and its intricate instructions for completion that read like Latin to me (Make a ten! Use a math mountain! WTF!) and hadn’t the vaguest idea how to complete it. Second. Grade. Math. And people: I graduated in the top 10% of both my high school and college classes. I took freaking AP Calculus, for Christ’s sake. But I was still unqualified to assist my seven-year-old with her math. Exhibit A:
The weekly homework packet isn’t terribly difficult, but it is time consuming. The kids complete several pages of spelling and vocabulary work, and then there is a fun! math game that generally takes for freaking ever. It usually involves dice, colored pencils, 45 minutes that I don’t have, and a glass of Syrah. After that comes the writing assignment, which as a writer myself I don’t dislike, but it also takes quite a bit of time, as the kids are expected to first brainstorm ideas, then revise and proofread their work, and finally neatly write or type (Ohmygawd have you ever stood behind a third grader and watched them type 5 sentences? 20 solid minutes of restraining yourself from intervening and screaming, “Jesus take the wheel!”)
And here’s the sad reality, folks—we don’t even have it as bad as some other elementary school students. A close friend of mine has a second grader at another school, and in addition to 4 days a week of math homework, they also have regular spelling homework, the reading log, and a Physical Education Log. That’s right—they’re expected to log their child’s physical exercise. If it were me, I wouldn’t be able to stop myself from scrawling snide and passive-aggressive entries such as “Johnny ran across the yard 42 times today!” or “Suzy jumped on the couch for 8 whole minutes while watching Austin and Ally!” Can you even imagine having to record that stuff?
I am fully aware that my anti-homework stance will be interpreted by some as whiny and lazy. Perhaps so. Maybe my attitude even merits being slapped with a condescending hashtag: I mean, if too much homework doesn’t qualify as a #FirstWorldProblem, what does? It’s right up there with me lamenting that my minivan needs an oil change and I don’t have time between my mani-pedi and Zumba class. (That’s a lie, by the way. I don’t get manicures and I suck at Zumba.)
But what if it’s about more than just an irritated working mother being pissed off that Homework Time has become the new Happy Hour? (Because, duh, you likely need to pour a cocktail to survive it.) What if it really is a bad idea in general to have such rigorous homework expectations for kids in the primary grades? Beneath any layer of laziness and annoyance, I honestly believe that too much homework is absolutely the wrong thing for our children. Here are a few reasons why:
- There is plenty of time for children to learn the value of hard work outside of school when they’re a little bit older. Kids in junior high, and maybe even 5th and 6th graders, benefit from the regular expectation of daily homework, writing assignments on their own time, and special projects. It’s great preparation for high school, college, and their adult lives. But is it really necessary for a six-year-old to spent 30-45 minutes per day on a math worksheet? I think not. When do our children get time to just be kids, the way we did 30 years ago? Parents who were raised in the 70s and 80s enjoyed so much more unstructured time than this generation of children does, and I personally don’t know anyone who had regular homework in elementary school in 1984. And for crying out loud, we turned out just fine. Let’s let kids be kids, and other clichés about things “going so fast.” Because it’s true.
- Many parents aren’t equipped to help their children with homework. I’m not just talking about the plight of the two-working-parent family and a lack of hours in the day. For those of us children of the 70s and 80s, the math our kids are learning is a completely different ballgame. We memorized problems, a practice that is discouraged in most elementary schools today. I know there are a plethora of angry Facebook groups of “Parents Against the Common Core!” but I’m not here to dispute that the “new math” is a solid program. Most of my teacher friends swear that it is a superior method of instruction, and I believe them. But most parents haven’t the first clue how to help our kids do it the “right way,” and nothing infuriates a first grader more than their parent using the wrong lingo during homework time. We parents don’t get a tutorial on how to teach this stuff, so if a 6-7 hour school day, 5 days a week, isn’t enough time for a child to learn a new concept, they shouldn’t be learning it. Expecting parents to have the necessary skills to back up a new style of learning is setting everyone up for failure.
- In our too-busy culture, there simply isn’t time for daily homework. I personally do not belong to the “over-scheduled family” club; it’s just too much for my sensitive temperament. Our third grader has one weekly dance class, and her poor three-year-old sister does jack squat outside of preschool. But that’s another pressure lurking in the cul-de-sac of modern families: aren’t we supposed to be doing at least one sport, learning a foreign language, perhaps a martial art, and obviously an instrument, too? Shouldn’t our child be playing competitive soccer on the weekends, traveling for gymnastic meets, and meeting weekly for Spanish club? Aren’t we supposed to be enriching our children’s lives, if not preparing them to look good on their college applications? And shit, I forgot all about Scouts, and church youth group, and let’s be mindful that if we don’t preserve “Family Meal Time” every night, our kids will turn into narcissists! And we can just forget about that archaic practice of “playing with one’s friends.” That’s so 20th century.
- It puts too much pressure and stress on children. When a first grader is in tears regularly because he or she can’t figure out their daily math homework, something is wrong. My daughter is not in the coveted GT (gifted and talented) program, but she does just fine in school; she is a good student and a great reader. Given that she has frequently become frustrated with homework in the past few years, I can only imagine the feeling of dread that accompanies homework time for the family of a student with learning or attention challenges or special needs. Combined with the above concern about over-scheduling our children and prematurely introducing the concept of competitive extra-curricular activities, we are sending the clear message that performance and excellence take precedence over happiness. Why do we want our children to be consumed with expectations of hard work, self-discipline, achievement, and competition at such an early age? Surely that is not the way to set them up for a happy, successful adulthood.
Maybe I sound like another angry mom who’s tired of being too busy. But I don’t really believe this is about me. What are we teaching our kids by putting so much on their plates at such a young age? What is there to be gained from it? There are other ways of teaching our children responsibility and work ethic. To be honest, I’m not even sure where to direct my frustration. The amount of homework given is not the directive of one teacher, or even the school itself. It begins with the district, the state, and even national standards. Many parents feel that there is nothing we can do to make a change. I am not in opposition to homework altogether, either—by all means, let’s give them a reading log, the occasional special project, and maybe even a night or two of math homework. But I believe that anything more than that is excessive. It’s counterproductive, it’s unnecessarily stressful, and it’s contributing to the very real phenomenon of families stretched to their breaking points.
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YAY I love this. It’s possible that I love it much because I’ve been complaining that my 5yo had homework in kindergarten!!! I mean, he has a week to complete it but still? He’s so behind already and it just seems dumb to make him try this crap. Part of it is, of course, helpful, but other parts, I HAVE FLUNKED TOO. Like there’s this entire page story about some farm family raising whatevers, and you have to count how many big c’s and how many little c’s there are. We were doing all of it and the little c’s was just getting old so I told my kid what the answer was (6) and then the homework came home WRONG because there were 11! WTF. I can’t do kindergarten homework. Or, else, maybe it’s just dumb homework because I graduated college with a 3.87 and got an A in Statistics and Algebra. I mean NOBODY I know got an A Statistics. I actually liked it. But can I count the c’s in a baby paper? Nope.
Seriously- her homework makes me feel TOTALLY stupid. Ugh.
AMEN! I have a first grader and recently asked at the PTO meeting about this very thing, particularly for K-3, but all of elementary school really. Enough studies show homework at this age has no positive impact on school performance. Reading at home, yes, but we do that anyway and I certainly shouldn’t have to produce a written log to prove it. When pressed about it, even my daughter’s teacher had no real basis for assigning what is essentially busy work, other than “that’s what the guidelines are.” That’s BS in my book. It’s still an ongoing discussion at this point but I won’t go down without a fight! Great post—so many of us are with you on this.
Thank you SO much for that, Kristen. I do think it comes down to “guidelines” and not whether it has any real value. I’m just not even sure how to begin the conversation in our school district. But I feel inspired to try.
Totally agree. My oldest is only 4, so no real homework yet, unless you count decorating a turkey color sheet as a family, but I think I can handle that. I DREAD the day when the real homework starts rolling in and 2nd grade is too young. I understand assignments, but not the load of work you are talking about. My parents always left it up to us to do it, so it wasn’t a stress on them. We could ask for help, but no one was signing an assignment notebook or checking our bags to see if it was done. If we got an F, it was on us. I love that approach and want to do that with my kids, but that doesn’t work until kids are in upper elementary and can organize themselves around a NORMAL homework load. The shit you are describing is ridiculous. It should never impact a child’s entire home life at that age. A second grader can learn a lot more taking a walk with their family after dinner than they can doing a convoluted word problem. Other parents must be feeling the same.
I can’t tell you how much I appreciate that comment, Susan. I was beginning to wonder if I was being an unrealistic, whiney baby. That makes me feel better. 🙂
I completely understand how you feel. Third grade homework has been overwhelming. At parent teacher conferences we found out that we weren’t alone in our confusion over homework assignments as parent after parent asked questions about how it was supposed to be completed. The Math is the worst, and I hear it from so many other parents. I can tell that the workload stresses my kids out. My older son Max, became a much easier going kid the day summer vacation started and now that school’s back in session he’s a whole lot grumpier. You’re right – they need to send wine – by the case load. 😉
Thanks, Linda- it really helps to know that other people are struggling with this, too. The math really is the worst. And it makes me sad to think of a kid being noticeably more relaxed and happier during summer vacation- that’s just not right.
OMG I could not agree more with this!!! It’s just insane to put that kind of pressure on elementary age children.
Right? I’m feeling better by the minute here, knowing that others agree.
I totally agree with you, and I am dreading those days. My son is in Kindergarten and has one worksheet a night, which is fairly easy, but we just about find the time to do that. Luckily, my mom will help him with it when she has him after school, so by the time we get home at 6pm, he can have dinner, take a bath, read, and maybe get some play time in. He was in tears one day because “I never get to play anymore.” He’s only in 1/2 day K, too. I hate to see what next year will bring. It’s hard to be a working parent. PS: I think they need to have new math workshops for parents. I took a look at my friend’s daughter’s homework and was completely lost until she explained it… and I was an AP Calculus student, too!
Yes, it IS hard to be a working parent. How on earth are we supposed to cram in ALLTHETHINGS between 4-8 when the kids go to bed? I too feel sad that they get less time to just play. It’s not right. And yes, apparently parents need some sort of new math bootcamp!
Ohmygosh, I have so much to say (write).
Yes, absolutely, and I will go further. I don’t think anyone K-5 should have to do homework other than nightly reading and the occasional long-term project that should be clearly divvied into smaller tasks that each have their own due date. I think planning out and learning to notprocrastinate is an insanely important skill that you can’t expect kids to just know how to do (or a lot of parents (me included)). You have to teach that skill, and I think upper elementary school is a good place for that. (My background here is special education teaching–LD, ADHD, etc. Can you tell?)
I agree with all your reasons, but #4 especially. What is with our culture right now that we actually encourage this overwork and overstress tendency in our children? I think it is shameful! I don’t believe for one second that kids get enough academic good out of homework to make it worth the stress. My daughter comes home from Kindergarten so frickin exhausted that it is plain criminal to make her keep working! She needs downtime; she needs to decompress. If only I could think of another trendy d word to go with those three.
Ok, and now for the disagreement:
I actually love current math curriculum. I recognize I have an advantage over you in that I’ve been involved in the current swing towards math concepts over math algorithms so I’m familiar with the terminology. And I think that’s one of the main blocks for parents–the vocabulary of it–like “make a ten” or “math mountain” (OK, I don’t know what a math mountain is, I admit it). And that’s a failure of communication that should be remedied. I think Glennon Doyle was writing about that recently, too.
And I admit that I don’t know the whole of the math curriculum so I am not speaking as a fully informed person here. BUT! I was always a smart student. Like you, academics (except math–I’m such a stereotype) came easily to me, and I was always at the top of my class. That said, I don’t think I really got place value until I was an adult. Seriously. And that is a serious problem. The push in math now, as I see it, is towards a better understanding of math concepts like place value. As a math education expert said to me on Friday, “We are raising a generation of mathematical thinkers.” And I think that’s a good thing.
But as for the homework of watching your child type or play one of those math games, I feel your pain (did I mention my former career?). It’s painful. It’s miserable. And it would take more than one glass of wine for me (though I prefer a Malbec). That’s the thing about homework. Homework should involve skills at which the child is already pretty fluent or the assignment should be really, really short. No one gets any good out of that kind of pain and frustration.
And, rant finished.
First of all… Malbec is my favorite, too! 😀 😀 Second of all, thank you SO much for such a thorough and thoughtful comment. I really, really appreciate it.
And I have to say this- I really don’t dispute that the new math is better. I don’t at all. But if parents don’t know how to DO it, how can we possibly “help” in a way that doesn’t send us or our kids through the roof? It seems like a trap. I definitely want my kids to have a better understanding of math, and a more thorough application skill set. But I really hate that we are expected to spend time on this at home when we are pretty much clueless.
Again- thank you, thank you, thank you for your perspective and honesty! xo
Yeah, I agree with that. Someone above said something about a math boot camp? That’s the truth! So glad my comment was well-received!
I have loathed homework since I was a child. It wasn’t because it was hard; I always picked up on lessons rather easily. It was because once I got home I felt my work was done for the day. I’d already spent 7+ hours at school doing work and listening to lectures, why should my time at home be spent doing MORE work instead of having fun?
To this day, as a parent, I feel the same way. Time for our children to be, you know, children, is valuable to them The memories and friendships they create as children will be with them forever. We shouldn’t be sending all that work home with them.
Luckily, my children (to date) have never had an abundance of homework, and for that I am grateful.
OK, you summed it up perfectly: “Once I got home, I felt my work was done for the day.” YES. That is as it should be for kids! I’m very appreciative of your comment- thank you so very much!
This line jumped out at me: “Expecting parents to have the necessary skills to back up a new style of learning is setting everyone up for failure.” I think that’s an excellent point. I grew up in the 70s and 80s and or the most part my homework took less than 2 hours, without help from my parents, and then I went outside and played. I don’t know too much about the new standards so I can’t speak to that but I have to say I’m already concerned for my 4yo.
I just don’t really get the point of starting so soon, you know? Not with that much intensity. There is just SO much time for that later in life, heck, in just a few years!
I’m torn — as a teacher, I don’t like to judge other teachers without a knowledge of their curriculum, etc., but 45 minutes a night for 6yo’s sounds like a lot. I thought the general maxim was 10 minutes per grade (so by third grade, 30 minutes a night would be expected). I think homework gets a bad rap because there IS evidence to indicate that it is beneficial to learning, provided it is high quality work and not “busy work.” I also think that it’s important for students to learn the value of a routine — I go to school, I come home, I have a snack, I do homework, I go to soccer, mommy drinks a lot of wine 🙂 — so that when the homework does get to be harder, more intense, they can ease into it.
But that’s because I’m a teacher and I like homework. 🙂
I know, and I’m torn, too. I fully appreciate the value of a routine and also the development of work ethic and responsibility. In first grade, they didn’t want us to exceed 30 minute on math. FIRST grade!! It was so stressful for my daughter. And some nights we do spend just about 30 in third grade, which is apparently the right guideline. I just feel like some of it IS busy work, that we could accomplish the same comprehension with just TWO nights of math worksheets (leaving the other 2-3 nights to complete the language/math/writing packet) with so much less stress. Was there really anything so bad about the way we grew up in the 80s, not having so much homework until junior high, aside from the occasional special project? Gah. And I’m really sure the new math is great, I’m sure it is. I just don’t know how to do it. 🙂
I was hoping you’d weigh in on this. 🙂 🙂
Hi there – As a Canadian teacher for just over a dozen years (before I stayed home with my littles) I do not think kids need homework after spending all day at school. My stance was not popular, surprisingly. I couldn’t believe the number of parents that equated “good teaching and good learning” with a ton of homework. They couldn’t believe that I could possibly teach everything they needed to know during the day. Sigh. Not only that we had a “homework club” that penalized students through detentions both during all recesses and after schools for incomplete homework and parents not signing agendas daily. Guess who was most penalized? Kids whose parents worked long hours/shift work, military families who often only had one parent home at a time to hold down the fort, kids/parents who had issues like attention/behavior/organization… and “homework club” slips were sent home after detention to be signed. Don’t get it signed and brought back the next day? Congrats, you’ve won yourself ANOTHER detention and another form to be signed and returned. O.M.G. Of course if you don’t want to have kids “participate” in this gong show, you’re labelled as not being a team player as a teacher. Worst teaching years ever. Sorry for my rant. I wholeheartedly agree – get ‘er done during the day and let families enjoy some much needed down time 🙂
NEVER apologize for a rant! 🙂 And I think it was much too thoughtful and articulate to be a rant. And you know you’re in good company. Thank you SO much for that comment!
I’m torn on this as well. I am a former teacher (although I didn’t give my special needs preschoolers homework) and the daughter of two high school teachers. I get the purpose of homework in theory – after all, practice makes perfect, right? However, after being at school and working all day, the last thing my kids want to do when they get home is more work. Even if the work itself is not difficult, simply getting them to do it is a frustrating struggle. Around here, not event he teachers like Common Core and, while I appreciate the principle behind it of more critical thinking and less rote memorization, it has been my experience that it often just makes things far more complicated than they need to be.
It does seem like sometimes the new way complicates things? I wish I understood it better. Sort of. 😉
I am a teacher and I actually agree with you. I assign homework but it is usually just a math page each night and I rarely give homework on the weekends. I will send a study guide out before a test but that’s about it. I have a son with ADD and trying to get his homework done is like experiencing the seven stages of grief every single night. School is hard for him and to have to come home and do an hour or two more each night is brutal!!
That is so helpful to hear, Tina! Thank you so much for sharing that- it’s great to get the perspective of teachers on this topic.
I don’t have kids but I LOVE your blog!! It is so honest and real and I totally appreciate that!! If I did have kids, I would agree that they need time to just be kids!! Tell ’em how it is Mommy, for real!! Xoxo
Aw, that made my day. Thank you so much!!
Stephanie,
Homework is so lame! Why? Who decided kids had to be buried in academia every minute of their lives? I did all my homework in school and I still don’t remember a single thing I was learning!
I’m a big fan of Montessori. My oldest son is in 1st grade and almost never has homework, which makes me very happy, although admittedly I’m not sure how it will be in future grades, but I do think the Montessori model is more inclusive as far as other forms of learning are concerned. I don’t know. You always seem to say the thing all the other moms are thinking. That’s probably why your blog is so popular!
Brittany
Aw, I love you for that comment!! And my kids have done Montessori, too, and we switched to public school for kindergarten and up. I was really torn, and I think that one of the huge advantages would’ve been the lack of homework that accompanies the child-directed philosophy. Sigh.
YES!!!! Homework makes me hate the school year. I try to stay positive and upbeat so my daughter will not pick up on my bad vibes, but we usually deteriorate early on and everyone melts down. She struggles in school, struggles with attention issues, and loves nothing more than to just play on her own in imaginary world. Dragging her out of that down time after a full day of school just seems mean!! And, of course, I want her to be well rounded so I want her to play outside, do activities, be creative, etc. There are not enough hours in the day!!!
Thanks for this, at least I’m not alone!
You are NOT alone. I wish we could somehow all join forces and make a real change. It does seem mean to force that kind of work on a kid who just got out of school for the day!!
Stephanie, I remember when you first posted about this on FB and I so agree! My son is only Kindergarten, so it’s not quite as bad, but I have already been thrown by what is expected of them. I think your graphics is perfect and sums it up beautifully. Thank you for posting this!
I’m so glad you appreciated it! I worried that I would receive a lot of backlash for this, but instead I’ve gotten a lot of validation and support!
Don’t mind me, I’m just standing here, swaying in the background with my hands in the air, periodically yelling out “PREACH!” or “AMEN!” Is that weird? Seriously, though, it’s like you’re reading my mind.
NOT weird at all. In fact, having people shout AMEN or Preach it! while I rant about various subjects is sort of a dream come true. 😉 Thanks for the support!
I have to add an amen to this post! I too have found our afternoons more relaxed when the homework is more manageable for my 4th grader.
This year his teacher explained what she wanted out of the homework and how much time they should be working on it. She also said that if our kids were going beyond 40 minutes (for 4th grade) then we should feel free to stop them and send in a note explaining. Our district has a basic homework policy for the primary grades and I have found that teachers follow that. But even with all that in place, I still can freak out over the kids deadlines and my own.
It really is unbelievably helpful and comforting to hear from other people on this subject, Kathy. Thanks so much for adding your perspective!
I am a current high school principal, a former high school math teacher, and a mother of a 3rd grader and a 5 year old. I completely agree with you on all of this!! I am fortunate that my daughter’s elementary school has not gotten completely crazy – our homework is reasonable and they encourage students to stop before getting frustrated. But I agree – kids need to play, to move, to be with their families after school – NOT be consumed by so much work that the love of learning and school is extinguished before they even reach middle school. UGH! Thanks for sharing your thoughts – couldn’t agree more!
Oh my goodness, I can’t tell you how much your comment means to me. I really appreciate hearing that, particularly in light of your perspective and experience. Thank you so much!
I totally agree!! I think the stress around the LOADS of homework is totally overwhelming and TOO MUCH for such young kids!! i struggle with the unbelievable amounts too…
I think it’s the common core and the push for doing well on the state tests. I swear when Cade started Kindergarten three years ago, they had a meeting to tell the parents about how all the academics are basically raised two grade levels with the changes in the standards of education.
And the teachers have HUGE pressure to produce!
It’s awful.
I agree- I think a lot of it has to do with test scores. I don’t blame teachers at ALL for this excessive homework. All of these standards and the pressure weighs just as heavily on them, if not more so. It’s not right for anyone.
I feel yah! I have a 3yo and she goes to nursery school for 2 hours M-F and she has homework almost everyday! I come home at midnight from work so that means she is asleep. The morning that we are supposed to spend time bonding are spent making homework before we head for school!! UGH!
It’s like you got inside my brain and wrote what I was thinking. I agree with every single point of this article. We just had conferences this week, almost all of these concerns about homework came up. The stress to meet standards, how parents are not equipped to help with “new” math. If you delve further into approaching a change at your district or state level please post about your experience. Something’s gotta give!
Amen! My daughter is only in kindergarten and fortunately her homework doesn’t have to be returned, it’s more of a suggestion. We rarely do it. When I get a quarterly report of what she needs to work on, we work on that.
My sons on the other hand, I homeschool, and are completely spoiled with all their free time. They get upset if we have more than two hours of school a day. I’m like, kids go to school for 6-7 hours a day and you’re whining over 2! That said, I’m thankful they don’t have much work. They started taking some classes at the school now and have had a little homework, but nothing really painful. I like that they have a lot of time to play and jump and wrestle and beat on each other and build robots out of random crap around the house. But it also makes me want to hit the bottle a few times a week. So, toss up.
I so feel you! I’m a kid of the 80s-90s and I still remember when everything changed, and ultimately, I changed. The start of 2nd grade. I got assignments in 1st grade, but they weren’t regular and I still remember the freedom of the evening. The older I got, the shorter the time seemed. I was always in an honors program so it was drilled into our heads that tons of work equal excellence equals a good and happy life eventually. It took me graduating college and being in the workforce to realize both that that’s bullshit and that’s not my definition of happiness. So I quit my job and sought it out myself. Obviously along the road of life I realized different things. But it wasn’t until I was an adult that I could face myself. In hindsight I’m glad for the amount of work I had simply because I don’t understand life without it. zz BUT as a mom who won’t have this issue because I live in Amsterdam and they really do value your quality of life so kids aren’t burdened with loads of work. I just wonder when my son is school age, how that side of me will react.
Wow, no one has made me leave such a long comment in a while. Let’s be friends.
AMEN AMEN AMEN!!!
YES. I can’t tell you how many times both my son and I ended up in tears over homework. He’s old enough now though, that he comes home, finishes it on his own, and goes about his business. For YEARS, it was wrought with frustration.
We do not have the same cultural beliefs as the Chinese. So let’s not pretend like we do!
I couldn’t agree with you more!
Hello Stephanie! You know what I call it? Parent work. And yes it makes that time after school draw out into after dinner and sometimes after breakfast the next day. And a bonus? Neither of my boys enjoy coloring. Anything. At all. Or games that don’t involve a keyboard and mouse. I loved your note…I never thought to ask for a drink with my “I’m sorry I don’t understand what my kid’s supposed to do” notes.
I just discovered you today, and I’m loving your blogs. Thanks for sharing your gift and your life.
Your points about leaving children time to be children and including a practical approach to homework are valid views. Your children deserve an appropriate amount of time for family interaction and daily recuperation. You do as well.
As someone who went through college without much homework, I ended up applied what I learned in real world applications. Compare that to busy work in elementary school, and beyond I feel like more homework assignments should tie to real world applications. Ths is just my opinion, however. Great article!