So what’s up with homework these days? Do you assign your students homework? Do you have a weekly homework plan? Does your school have a homework policy?
Around our office there’s a fair amount of homework-related chatter. It’s interesting because I see it as the flip side of homework. I know students groan over homework—been there, done that! What is somewhat of a surprise is that parents groan over their children’s homework too. And teachers, well, if you’re a teacher who assigns homework, won’t you admit to groaning over the additional paperwork that homework creates?
So here’s my burning question: is there great value in assigning bunches of homework to elementary-age students? Yipes! I’ve asked the question. It’s a hot one, I know, and I’m prepared for your honesty!
Wondering,
Diane
As a preschool teacher I of course do not send home homework other than the letter bag and a couple of family oriented projects. But boy am I thrilled with this question,
Having recently taken care of my grandchildren for a few days I saw the amount of work they were bringing home and I was some what shocked. Is this because they are in advanced placement class and in the talented and gifted program or is this the norm.
I too am awaiting the responses to this one Thanks Diane
I feel there is value in assigning homework.
There are several reasons why homework is important.
Here are just a few of them:
1. Homework helps you to remember the things you learned in class. By spending some time in the evening doing homework you are reminded of the material you covered in class during the day. This does several things for you in terms of helping you to remember those ideas. We often call this concept “learning by rote” and it is a tactic that has been proven effective for centuries.
2. Homework is also important because it teaches you critical thinking skills. When you do your homework you are often forced to take the material beyond what was covered in class. You are asked to think more critically about the subject matter. Whether it is a piece of literature or whether it’s a certain type of math problem or whether it is a science experiment. So, homework takes the learning experience and lets you apply the important critical thinking skills. While you may not use the actual subject matter later in life, those critical thinking skills will stick with you later in life and you will use them on a daily basis.
3. Homework is also important from the teacher’s perspective. Homework allows a teacher to keep tabs on a student to see how exactly they are progressing in relation to the rest of the class. It helps a teacher to identify a student who is not keeping up and allows them to give extra help to a student as needed.
4.Assigning homework serves various educational needs. It serves as an intellectual discipline, establishes study habits, eases time constraints on the amount of curricular material that can be covered in class, and supplements and reinforces work done in school. In addition, it fosters student initiative, independence, and responsibility and brings home and school closer together.
5. Research in the last decade has begun to focus on the relationship between homework and student achievement and has greatly strengthened the case for homework. Although there are mixed findings about whether homework actually increases students’ academic achievement, many teachers and parents agree that homework develops students’ initiative and responsibility and fulfills the expectations of students, parents, and the public. Studies generally have found homework assignments to be most helpful if they are carefully planned by the teachers and have direct meaning to students.
6.Finally, homework is important because it teaches children discipline. It offers them an opportunity to manage their time. In a sense, they are forced to “budget” their activities so that they have time to do the things they want to do as well as time to do the things that must be done. In this way, homework plays a small but significant part in the process of growing up and becoming a responsible adult.
While homework isn’t the only important part of an education, it is one vital component of the education puzzle.
Dear Darlene,
You didn’t mention what grade your grandchildren are in so it’s hard to offer specific comments. I teach 4th grade. I have a weekly spelling assignment which includes looking 5 high use words up to find their part of speech, to syllabicate, and often use with prefixes, suffixes or to use in compound words. I also use one of the words and give the children 3 idioms to choose from and to find the meaning. Monday through Friday we have a math assignment of 10 problems. We practice math facts 2 or 3 nights a week. We also practice non-fiction reading 2 nights a week with 5 multiple choice questions and a short essay question. We have science and social studies terms to learn. We have 10 general vocabulary words to learn every 2 weeks. With all of these choices the children usually have 3 “pieces” of homework and additional studying to do. I rarely get complaints. I hope this helps.
Sincerely,
Vicki
I have a homedaycare/pre-k program, I have spent countless hours speaking to several schools and teachers regarding this very topic. I have been asked to send home homework as a way to prepare not only the kids for what will be expected in school but also to prepare the parents as well. I have seen schools change in the last 2 years where as 2 years ago my nephew had very little homework in kindergarten now it has changed in this new school year and they are now sending home 5 year olds 8 to 10 pages of math ect and expecting it to be turned in by Friday. So I am now sending homework too. I have opted to send home 5 pages of Math and English in addition I ask that they read no less than 20 minutes a night and keep a journal of what they read and what their favorite part of the story was. It so far is working very well, both the kids and parents have been informed of what will be expected in elem.. school and I have a special homework treasure box that they turn in their completed pages for that week 5 tickets gets you into the box to pick the toy of your choice. I have 3 and 4 year olds flipping homework in 1 to 2 nights because they want the toy they have chosen in the box and know as fast as they get it done they can get the toy before the weeks end it all is based on how fast they want to do it. But like the school I give it on a Monday and ask it to be completed by Friday.
Being a Special Education teacher I do see the benefit of homework but not just for the students but also for the parents. Homework is a great way for parents to gauge how their kids are doing in school as it pertains to what they are learning and in what areas they are having trouble.
I always encourage my parents to sit and help their child with the homework as to help the parents be more involved in the learning process and not just a bystander.
In response to you Darlene, AP classes as well as Gifted and tealented classes sometimes do offer more homework but in my experience it’s not necessarily quantity but quality. Hope this helps
Meaningful practice makes for effective homework. The amount of work given should match the age of the child. Our school conducted a parent survey regarding homework, and we found that most parents were satisfied we were giving a reasonable amount of homework. We have a homework schedule, so parents know which subjects to expect homework in for certain evenings during the week. Homework 3 nights a week and never on weekends is a school policy.
Oh, I’m enjoying your homework comments! I’ve been reminded of the many values of homework, which I think is something parents can easily lose sight of when dealing with hectic day-to-day schedules. Thank you! Communication is so important. Have a super-duper day!
Homework? Well I believe that homework has to be
a review of what the student has learned or practice that day. Many of parents like having homework sent home on a daily basis because it keeps their child busy and also because the parents can see what excalty they are learning that day.
I have had my same homework policy for eleven years and I feel that my student like what they have to do everynight because they are used to the routine and they can see where they still need the extra help.
Thank you
I have such a hard time finding out that preschools are sending home homework! I am a 23 yr teacher and now a kindergarten teacher (full day)for 15 years and feel homework is tough to give to my 5’s and 6’s! these kiddos have ben in school all day. I feel that reading, reading, reading is probably THE most important ‘homework’ a young child can have. I do send home a few pages on Monday to be completed by Friday and by a few I mean a few pages…no more than a little book about the letter we are discussing, to hunt for the letter and then color one thing on each page that begins with that sound. It has a cute story about the pictures with a lot of the sight words we are learning. There are also 3, and at the most 4, sheets sent home on MOnday, to review skills we have taught the previous week in math, reading, science, etc. I truly hope we are not burning these little people out on school with extra work at home!
For Susan:
ITA about the home work concern for the Pre-k levelers however it is very much become a sign of the times, as the State Standards grow harder by the year, and now it’s expected that by mid to end of October all Kindergartner’s must be able to in random order state ever letter of the alphabet in 30 seconds, both upper and lower, make it’s sound in random order in 32 seconds, as well as know by sight numbers 1-25 in 32 seconds, so having made that a State Standard these kids are expected to know this and be solid in it in aprox 6 weeks of the start of the school year, from there they must begin to learn to read, so it has to start in Pre-k to get the kids ready for what will be expected at the next level and by doing it and getting the kids ready before they get there, I am sending home as requested, home work, I send home a page a night as well as a requirement for reading each night, while ITA that it seems young and feel they can be burned out, it does better prepare them for the shock of the amount of home work that will be put upon them after Pre-k, my nephew is 7 and in second grade and is being sent home 18 pages of math, 22 spelling words with words like amphibian, reading 20 minutes a night ect..all sent home on Monday and expected to be completed and returned by Friday, so even at that age level he barely has any play time by the time he gets done at night. It’s sad but very much where school is heading anymore.
I teach 4th grade and do not assign homework other than a nightly reading requirement and a spelling pre-test on Monday night. I used to assign regular homework for Math, spelling and reading until I read The Homework Myth, which really changed my whole outlook on homework. I would rather have my students focus on completing classwork, which they do not generally have time to do in class. I know that those assignments are rigorous and quality assignments while most homework is nothing but busywork. I also have my students do one project a month, whether it be a themed book report, inquiry project or something along those lines. I just don’t see the value in sending home busywork like worksheets or having 4th graders write spelling words 3 times or 5 times each ~ their time is more valuable than that and so is mine!
Now i am a teacher in profession. I always assign my students homework and keep track record of performance every month. I take an examination test of my students at the end or every month.