I totally agree with you. My son is now in 3rd grade and he has had homework everyday since the first day of kindergarten. I just found out from my son they have taken away his recess to do extra work. I feel that recess is a time for my child to relax and get a break. I was told by some that I was wrong but I feel that that is why my child hates reading so much is because they make him do it all day long even during recess time. Am I wrong?
I feel the same. My 5 year old gets homework on Mondays to bring back Friday, which I think is great as far as if we cannot get homework done one night, we can pick up the next. My daughter likes school but it is very hard when I pick her up after 5, to go home and get to homework. She wants to play (and she should, she's a kid) but when it is time for homework, she does not want to settle down and if we do more than 2 pages at a time, she gets frustrated. I feel they demand too much from the kids and the parents to do whatever was not finished in school that way. She always turns in her homework on time, completed, even if a little messy. I sit with her on most of it, but for some, like tracing and writing her name, I leave her to do that as I am fixing dinner, but now the teacher is sending notes basically saying we need to sit with her through all of it.
I strongly believe in homework. The US is already way behind on that curve. With the No Kid Left Behind Act in place and the growing problems with our kids, it's so hard to teach them everything they need to know in school. School isn't all about "fun". School is about education and learning, there are some fun aspects like pe, recess, art, music, and so on, but math isn't necessarily suppose to be fun. If you think your daughter just go to school and play all day, you won't have a very bright child. Most say, 10 minutes per grade level on homework, that is a normal kid doing it. Now if you have a smart kid, they may get it done in half the time. If you have a slower child, it may take them 1 1/2 hours? Teaching your child is not just the TEACHER's job, that is what is wrong with AMERICA, the PARENTS are the first teachers a child has and you should continue doing so.
Cindy, you may as well get used to it. You didn't elaborate on what constitutes 'alot,' of homework, so not sure if it's extreme or not. I CAN tell you, though, as the parents of 2 teenagers, that homework is a part of high school. Life isn't what it used to be when we were kids, and school hasn't been 'fun' for some time now. LOL They have eliminated recess in many of the elementary and middle schools, and they are very focused on moving the kids along and preparing them for the next grade. In this world we live in today, it's just too fast paced and competitive. So, they cram stuff down our kid's throats. Your kids were supposed to have fun in preschool. LOL The only other alternative, if you are a SAHM is to homeschool. NOT an alternative for me..it's for my kid's own safety that they went to public schools. LOL I also work full time. You have to set aside time every night to sit with your child while he does his homework. And it'll probably be that way until he is ready for middle school. Good luck!
I have one son that is 10 and another that is 18. I can't believe the amount of homework these kids have today. They come home from school, start doing homework, which takes at least two hours, and then they eat supper and by that time they may have around one hour to relax. It is too much pressure for kids these days. Since they started the EOG's, teachers are forced to teach so much and at such a fast pace and the ones who are suffering are the kids. My 10 year old, which is in the 5th grade, is suffering with math, but because of time restraints to teach them so much, they don't have extra time to give any special attention. I have purchased math books with stuff to do at home with him, but by the time we finish what the teachers have given them for the night, I almost feel guilty about having him sit with me another hour and work more! I wish they would do something about this and have wished that for a long time now. But, my voice is one voice, but I do know a lot of other parents that totally agree with me and you on this! Sorry to say, it will probably only get worse for her.
I totally understand. I have a boy in Kindergarten this year and was amazed that they have nightly homework. I see both sides. I like that they do have homework, but I think it should only be 2 or 3 nights worth. This is kindergarten for goodness sake. I like that homework allows the parents to be involved as I think that is huge. We can't expect the teachers to do it all. But I also feel that they should have no more than 15 minutes worth of homework. They are in school all day, they need some play time, family time, and down time when they get home. I spoke to my son's teacher at the beginning of the year and told her how I felt. That really helped. Be honest w/ the teacher, she/he won't bit. They really only want the parents to be involved.
Good luck.
wendy
Hi Cindy,
I have a 2nd grade girl in public school in NC. She had no homework her kindergarten year - I don't think any kindergarteners in her school did. She has had nightly homework in the 1st and 2nd grade - usually one math sheet or math game to be played w/ a parent, reading, and writing a couple of sentences or studying spelling words each night, Mon-Thurs. Except for the reading, it takes about 20 minutes or so, depending on how much she fights with me about it. I don't think homework in k-garten is a good idea - just get them used to school and let them see that learning can be fun, like you said. Do you know parents of students in other k-garten classes at your school so you can compare notes? If you think it's a problem, I would encourage you to talk to your child's teacher/principal, but start with the teacher. Maybe something else is going on at school that is stressing your daughter out. Good Luck!
I live in Wayne County, in NC...we have never had an issue with the amount of homework at my children's schools. Now, there have been issues with how long it takes them when they decide they want to dawdle and just not get it done. My children are 17, 15, 9, and 2. The 3 older ones never had more than one or 2 very simple homework assignments in kindergarten, and the teachers at the elementary school seem to really try to keep the homework to the 10 minute per grade level amount. This means that my 4th grader should have no trouble getting her homework done within 40 minutes. Usually she has it done in 20 minutes...when she decides to do it an not play around. That doesn't count the 20 min/night she's supposed to be reading, mind you. But that is fun reading, not school work. She does that at bedtime. Sometimes overdoing extracurricular activities can cause added stress. You don't mention if your childern are involved in extra things (sports, dance, etc), but if you try to fit too many things into a day that will definitely add stress.
Cindy,
I have a seven year old in first grade (his birthday is in October). Just last year, I was going through sort of the same thing you are. However, I DID have a rogue teacher but a little different. She would send my son home with the stupidest of homework assignments that did not have anything to do with what they were learning half the time. I wish she would have prepared my son a lot more for first grade. My husband and I bought many learning activities and programs to help him know the basics for first grade. They are pushed a lot harder these days starting from kindergarten and first grade. Now, in first grade, he falls somewhere in the middle in his class. We still have to keep on him because it is surprising how much some of those other kids know. I think their parents may have had them in school since they were four years old. Some read fluently already and my son still has to sound out the words.
Anywho, I would suggest, as I did, and speak to the teacher AND principal together. Make sure you understand what is going on in your child's classroom to know if your child is truly being unnecessarily stressed out. Come to an agreement of some kind with them and make your point to them. Maybe your child can use a different teacher. It made all the difference for me. Hope this helped.
I think that's ridiculous. It's more important for a child to be a child, to play, socialize, and exercise. If she's sick from stress this is not healthy. There's plenty of time for hard work after childhood. I would tell her she doesn't have to do it. I can't see any benefit at this point.
Hi Cindy!
I am worried about how much homework my son will get when he finally reaches school age because I have heard terrible stories of parents up late with their kids just trying to finish their daily homework. But, I was a music teacher in a state rated very high in education and in a school system that performed above state average and homework is absolutely a part of their education. If you go the route of public school education you just have to make the best of it. The teachers in that state were required to give an average of 10 minutes of homework for every level of grade (1st = 10min, 5th= 50 mintes) every night and with the "No Child Left Behind Act" they have struggled even with that. Schools are forced to take time from their classroom lessons to work on national standardized testing materials. Otherwise depending on each child's test results they could possibly be held back.
Teachers do care about your child and are not the enemy as so many parents believe. They often do not like the homework either. Remember that whatever students take home to work on teachers have to grade the next night (or when they can, being they have lives, too), so try to realize that teachers are not just assigning homework for the fun of it. Many times they are either required by the school system to give that amount or they have so much to teach in the classroom that they don't have even a few minutes for the kids to work on it during the day.
In defense of HW, reptition is neccessary when learning something. And taking HW home in an environment other than the classroom teaches them to think about the subjects they are working on in a different way. If you had a presentation to make but were forced to go to an unfamiliar site to make it you would need to have the skills to adapt. I don't think hours and hours of it is good, but I think it is the system's fault. Your child's teacher may be finding it difficult to fit in all the requirements of the curriculum during the day. Or maybe she's a fantastic, energetic teacher and is teaching them through activity based learning which takes more time. Or maybe she needs to hear your concerns in a kind way. Unfortunately teachers have been the scapegoats for the failure of our education system and I think parents tend to believe the negativity that is out there. I had many colleagues who worked hours and hours to make their students' learning experiences fun and meaningful but still made very little money and had parents complain about little things. Your daughters teacher may be wrking very very hard. Or maybe she's not. Maybe you could volunteer in your daughter's classroom. And, maybe there is something at school that is bothering her that has nothing to do wih the homework. But I agree with the previous poster that your daughter needs to see your support in her teacher and her education or she'll rebel and do poorly in the long run. That would be a disservice to her.
Personally, I hate to hear that kindergarteners receive homework at all - I think it should be a time to get used to school and to learn the skills that they will need to go to 1st grade in a fun, playful way. But now our kids have to read by the time they go to first grade.
I wish you the best!
I have two sons, ages 19 and 15. While they have been out of grade school a long time, I can definitely relate to this. What really concerns me more is that more is placed on the teachers than what they can reasonably cover in a day in school so they have to burden these young children down with homework to help cover the school board's expectations of what needs to be covered in the length of a school year. What is even more distressing to me is that the quality of the education my sons got what not near what I learned as a young child. Watch Jay Leno sometime when he goes out and asks questions to folks on the street that should have been learned in regular school. Teachers are also teaching to a test. They do not have the freedom to teach as they think will get through to the kids, but to a test that will determine this child's ability to progress through the grades or not. As long as this remains the case, nationwide, the problem of more homework and more expectations, even from younger children, will be made. It's a fact of life. Don't get me wrong, I think every child should have the opportunity to a good education. But, do we hold all kids back because a few have a hard time or may be can't do the work for whatever reason. That's fine. Pull those few out, get them the help they need but move along at a reasonable pace for the others and don't burden children with a problem that isn't theirs. You turn kids off to school early like that, and you are in for a bunch of trouble on the down the road.
hey Cindy i also have a child in kindergarten and it seems that he does have alot more homework than we use to i honestly think they push children too hard and his teacher is also kinda young im not sure if thats why or its just that they are trying to push kids to learn more at earlier ages i noticed my niece in 2nd grade and my son are both learning some of the same things kinda strange to me shouldnt they have already done the same things if they are 2 yrs ahead of him oh well i dont really know but just wanted to let u know i also see that they give children to much homework at an early age and are pushing them sorry if i babbled or didnt make sense this is my first time responding to a question on here
As a former first grade teacher - I know I set limits on the amount of HW per night (and I think the school district did as well) We assigned at most 10 minutes per subject per night, with none on the weekends (i.e. - 10 minutes toward spelling/writing and 10 minutes of math) Some children were able to do it in less than 20 minutes and some took about 30 minutes but never more. I also sent a note home at the beginning of the year explaining this to the parents so they knew what I expected and there were no surprises. I think with Kindergarten the teachers did either spelling/writing or math each night - but I am not sure. Have you asked her teacher?
Well, my son is not yet even close to K, but I am a teacher (ESL) and a doctoral student in "Social Foundations of Education", which to put it succinctly, is the study of why we do what we do in schools. The questions we ponder and debate include homework. "No Child Left Behind" as it is now, has dynamically changed the way teachers and administrators are forced to approach school. For everyone it has become punitive and unfortunatly that includes the children. So sad that your baby is stressed to the point of vomiting at such a young age! You're right, she should be allowed to be a child. The whole point of Kinder "garden" (A German concept that was brought over to the US and unfortunatly has been changed for the worse) is that children can explore and learn through play. Some of my students do not yet know their ABC's and I fault the system that wants to push push push kids beyond what they're ready for. Okay, I don't want to write a book here, but if you want to talk more, I'm more than happy.
As for advice, put a time limit on homework time. What gets done in 20-30 min. (that's age appropriate) gets done, the rest, should have been addressed at school.
i have a friend whose daughter is also in kindergarten and she does have homework as well. i'm not sure about it in kindergarten, but you could talk to the teacher and see the rational behind it.
That's crazy!!! My daughter isn't school age yet- she's 2 1/2- and i'm not sure i'll be ok with that sort of school structure. We didn't get homework until we were in, maybe, 3rd or 4th grade when I was a kid (i'm 25), and even then it was pretty minimal. I hear ya, but don't have any advice. Sorry!
What school or county does your child go to? Mine is at Sanford Creek Elementary in Rolesville, NC. She only has a bout 5 min on paperwork that is sent home to review and they suggest reading for 10 to 15 min depending on the book and then do a story telling walk thru. Sometimes we write instead of reading. It takes up about 15 ot 20 minuets. I don't think that that is to much this far into the school year. But at first she had nothing for HW. I hope things get better for you.
I am also a midlife mom with a 5 year old at home who is reading, writing, and tests first grade second semester in math . . . we homeschool . . . having a ball (both of us)!!!! Contact k12.com for more expertise on this subject.
(HUGS)
Shirley
I too have a 5 year old in Kindergarten. I do have an issue with homework from school, in the first few years anyway. I think they are being pushed way too much. When I was in Kindergarten we did not have homework or such a tough curriculm. Now it is as if the parents are expected to do half the teaching of the R-W-A. I am a 42 year old Mother of a 5 1/2 year old and a 3 1/2 year old. I just started my 3 year old in a pre-school because he wanted to be with his friend. Otherwise I was going to wait until he was 4,they have to know so much before going to Kindergarten is why I have them go at all. Both my children complain of school being too hard. Three year old preschooler has homework. It is getting out of hand I believe. The people that I know that had the same expierence as I did in Kindergarten all turned out to be successful people.
Marijane S.