A thread to exchange notes about year 6 holiday homework

[AChickenCalledKorma]

DD2's school never usually sets homework over the holidays.

Today she has brought home a one hour reading comprehension past paper, 30+ pages of maths and grammar revision exercises, several tasks on Mathletics, several sample online SPAG tests aaaaaaand ............ a cheery message from her teacher telling her it's very important she has a good rest and enjoys her two weeks off!

Oh, and a revision timetable which breaks each individual day of our holiday down into five handy slots.

Please help me calm down! We have been having a conversation with school about how pressurised she is feeling and how they are blowing the significance of SATs out of all proportion. This is not a helpful response.

[ihearttc]

We have had pretty much the same thing...despite the fact that since they did their mock Sats last week they have virtually nothing in school. Id have rather they spent this week actually doing the stuff they've told them to do over the holiday.

We are actually away for a week of the holiday so the whole lot has to be crammed into the second week.

[mercifulTehlu]

Blimey! We've got a reading, a spag and a maths test, but have been told they are very much optional - do them if you feel like it but mainly just have a good holiday. Revision has never been mentioned (all year. The whole SATS thing has been treated as very low-key.

[mrz]

No holiday homework

[Jaimx86]

Don't please the school- do what's right for your child. SATs results won't impact GCSE results, so don't worry.

[drwitch]

A Sats example paper for maths - nothing else, which is fine by me

[Balletgirlmum]

Ignore it. Neither of mine ever had holiday homework in primary. We've always gone on holiday at Easter anyway.

[cingolimama]

Ignore. You have a right to a family life, and your DC have a right to a holiday.

[forkhandles4candles]

Very little here. All optional. Just relax.

[shouldwestayorshouldwego]

No homework here either. In fact she doesn't seem to have had homework for ages. She has been doing tests but doesn't seem bothered by them.

[HanYOLO]

No actual homework.

Teacher's sent a message saying to try to get them to keep reading, and look over the spellings again. And that anything we care to do in terms of practice and online challenges will be a good thing.

DS is bored to tears, mind. Too much revision and not enough new learning to challenge and inspire. Still, it will be over soon.

I'd bin it OP and just stick to encouraging reading. Unless you want to do some stuff, in which case I'd tackle specifics if there's anything DD is less confident in, not plod though test practice.

(revision timetable, the nerve)

[DraenorQueen]

I've set nothing. They've worked their arses off, they're tired they're coming in for 4 days of Easter school (which is actually going to be really fun) and......(privately of course) the vast majority of them haven't a hope in hell of reaching Age Related Expectations this year.

[Chrysanthemum5]

No homework at all. Is this all SATS related? We are in Scotland so don't seem to have this fortunately

[Sallyhasleftthebuilding]

DS is behind and I have been told to "give him literacy lessons at home"

No books guidance printouts targets spellings etc

I already do extra maths with him at home to catch up - it's a joke

[ineedaholidaynow]

No homework here

Don't know whether that means our school has admitted defeat where this year's SATS are concerned. They've recently done their SATS mocks and the teacher has gone through in detail their results with the children, but there hasn't been any excessive testing

[LunaLunaLovegood]

DS has a few practice papers to do. I caught him meditating the other day, he said they've had lessons on it at school to cope with the stress of SATs. I found this hilarious but managed not to let on...

[TeenAndTween]

DD has to finish her SPAG and maths books, plus two 10 minute comprehensions. In theory I'm OK with it being done, but DD2 struggles with school and may find it too much/stressful.

We are going away for the second week and I don't intend to take the books with us. If it is all too much for DD she will leave some of it not done.

Last Easter was lost due to DD1's GCSEs. I'm not going to spend all of this Easter with DD2 working for y6 tests!

[nancy75]

We have got loads, they want an hour of maths revision per day, they have given a list of 30 words - DD has to write a paragraph using each one (that's 30 paragraphs) 2 sample maths test and must read every day.

As far as I am concerned the school can bugger off - the kids have done nothing but test papers all term. It's not even about the children it's just so the school get a good place in the league tables (this might not be the case for other schools but it is for our)

[goingmadinthecountry]

I sent home books and a couple of papers but made sure children and parents know it's optional. I reckon that covers the whole range of what parents want and expect. I obviously want my little lot to do their very best and I'm sure they will.

It's pretty hard to get it right as a teacher - some people want shed loads of homework, others will do nothing. How do we keep everyone happy? As a mother of 4, all I can say is that mine were never good at primary school homework.

[AChickenCalledKorma]

Very interesting to see the range of experience. I suspect some parents will think it's a good thing to do lots of "revision". I'm feeling that's it's way too young to be getting into revision timetables and there is far too much focus on one week of tests.

DD2 has decided for herself that she'll try and do a bit each day and I've told her that I'll back her up if she doesn't get through it all. So we'll see how it goes.

I'm pretty incensed at the lack of consideration of the fact that next term is a very long and emotionally draining term, when they will be looking ahead to leaving primary. SATs are actually pretty early on, and there is a lot to get through between May and July. She really, really needs a proper holiday if she's going to get through it all happily.

[Brokenbiscuit]

My dd has brought home a couple of workbooks but she has been told that it's optional whether she does them or not. I'm not going to push it at all, but she said she might do a bit.

Can't believe that some children have been given so much! Ridiculous!

[TeenAndTween]

Just counted:
2 x 10 min reading tests
4 x double page of SPAG book
19 x double page maths book
1 x arithmetic test
spellings

The maths will be 'fun' as she finds it very hard.

This is way more than DD1 had 6 years ago.
To be honest it is not far off the amount of work DD1 now y12 has to do.

[AChickenCalledKorma]

Washedris - I'm interested in how you are helping with techniques for test situations. DD2 is actually pretty good at maths, but doesn't believe she is, and keeps going to pieces when it's an actual test. I'm not sure how to help (or at least, everything I've tried so far isn't helping!!)

[TeenAndTween]

A good list there from Wash and pretty much what I did, albeit slightly scaled up, for DD1's maths GCSE last year.