Help me decide what to say to school re 6 yr old homework

[Aviana]

DD (6) has come home today with her homework diary in which she has drawn a picture of a tree, some leaves and a nut. Her homework, according to her, is to go to the forest to collect nuts. For Friday.

I double checked it wasn't a "we're going to the forest to collect nuts on Friday, please wear appropriate clothing." type message. She is adamant "mummy had to take us."

I've checked with another mum. Who didn't know they had homework 😂 She said she'd let me know if she found out anything from her DD. Not heard back.

There is no way we can do this before Friday. Over the weekend, yes. Or I could go next Thursday after school. But I can't exactly cancel my other child's therapy appointments, nor am I going to cancel previously made arrangements for homework.

Don't know if I should call the teacher in the morning or write a message to a) check DD has understood correctly and b) say DD can not complete it through no fault of her own and she is not to be punished for it.

This has just reminded me - when ds was 6 he did space as a topic at school - over half term I was duly informed that his homework was to go on a quick trip to outer space and then write about it...

When I pointed out that as nobody has ever been to outer space, let alone come back and that maybe he had remembered it wrong, he was absolutely furious with me, worried that he was going to get into lots of trouble because he hadn't done his homework, upset because he wanted to go, to the point that it almost spoilt half term because he was so determined he wanted to do this homework.

At least it was so outrageous I knew it wasn't the actual homework (turns out it was to research 5 facts about outer space!) - much more difficult when the homework could be possible!

hopefully the teacher will not have given this homework and if s/he has, will realise that it's not possible to do homeworks like this with only a day or two's notice.

I think the school has lost its marbles if that’s what they are doing with them!
My dd who’s 6 and in yr2 gets set homework a few topics a term, sometimes we do them all, sometimes just 1. No state school can punish the children for not doing homework, bonkers

Just get her to draw a circle and colour it in brown, thats good enough at 6.
Contacting the teacher is way too much bother for both of you

Sorry read that she just had to draw a nut rather than collect them, probably would just buy some in that case and roll them in a bit of mud.

That’s a ridiculous homework to be done midweek.

You could easily spend hours finding a tree with nuts if you don’t know where to look. We spent all day in a forest a few days ago. Didn’t see a single nut, despite my toddler’s intense interest in everything on the ground. I know there’s oak trees in there somewhere too.

I’d be tempted to just buy some nuts from the supermarket. If they’ve started stocking the Christmas nuts you might even be able to buy some in the shells.

Although querying the homework with a comment about how this can’t be done by Friday also sounds sensible.

but I also don’t think the teacher is being unreasonable to expect children to generally have some outdoor time during the week!

She does get outdoor time, she spent mist of yesterday afternoon outdoors. In a playground whilst waiting for DS and then in a friends garden. There was one young tree in the playground, friend's garden is fruit trees!
The forest is 20 minutes walk from out house, some kids obviously live closer. DH takes the car for work, DS has broken his arm so can't take the bikes. I just don't have time this week. Nor can I just run out to the shops. Due to bus times it would take the best part of the morning and I have work today. I did look in the small supermarket next to DS's therapy - the only shelled nuts they had were peanuts. No autumn decoration stuff, only Christmas.

I opened with "I think DD must have misunderstood the homework!"
She hadn't!

Leaves are not wanted. I said we were happy to do it, but it wouldn't be before the weekend. Teacher said that was ok, it's an ongoing project so Monday is ok.

Is it just me that's thinking nuts in school (even if they're not the edible kind) wtf? I'm clutching my pearls at the very thought

No, not just you. My nephew's nursery did this and it resulted in him being blue lighted to hospital as he has a severe allergy. I'm very surprised at a school asking children to bring in a product that's banned in most schools

I don’t think the homework itself was unreasonable. It just happened not to be convenient for you this week. Which you explained and the teacher was fine with.
Another family may well have enjoyed a walk up to the forest after tea with torches. I know my kids would have loved that and considered it a big adventure.

Another family may well have enjoyed a walk up to the forest after tea with torches. I know my kids would have loved that and considered it a big adventure.

Mine too, but I wouldn't be doing it on a school night! My kids go to bed after tea.

I'm very surprised at a school asking children to bring in a product that's banned in most schools
That did cross my mind and is why I didn't buy the peanuts which were the only shelled 'nuts' I could find.

Really? I think that’s pretty unusual. My kids eat at about 5 and whenever they’ve been to tea at friends houses it’s been about the same.
Anyway you told the teacher it wasn’t convenient and you have a busy few days on it was fine. It doesn’t mean that the rest of the class wouldn’t be able to do it.

It's not really the point if the teacher is happy to let you off or give you extra time if you make a point of going in to explain.

It's about schools making unrealistic, unreasonable demands on families, which leaves adults feeling guilty and children feeling unsupported if they fail to meet the demands.

My DC's primary school does this sort of things all the time - dressing up, baking cakes, extra homework etc. all without proper notice or consideration for parents who work or have other commitments. My OH just says 'Well, don't do it then' but DC feel worried or disappointed or singled out if they don't.

In our house, DP picks DC up from school. Most days one or other of them have some kind of activity (play date, after school football club, gymnastics, cubs, etc.) and he gives them their tea and (gasp) lets them have some free time whilst he does jobs.

I get in from work at half 6 - wash up, make packed lunches, then get DC bathed, listen to them read and get them to bed at half 7 or 8.

Zero time for fitting in extra school projects.

I think this is pretty normal, and that schools should stop!

It's about schools making unrealistic, unreasonable demands on families,

and illegal. They cannot force or penalise any child with regard to homework.

I'm sorry you feel you need to justify yourself for not being able to do this trip to the forest on one of two evenings at very short notice, OP (on here or to the school). It is a really unreasonable request made by the school and it is shitty behaviour on their part because of course all the children want to comply and please their teacher! There are loads of reasons you might not be able to do it (or pop to the shops etc) - be that paid work, care of other children or relatives, other after-school activities, the list goes on.

I am certain that if my DS (yr 2) class had been set the same task, a maximum of five children would get it done. Everyone else is too busy, overworked, overwrought, overwhelmed. I would be able to do it just now as am on maternity leave with a very portable biddable baby, but if I was working I definitely couldn't and I couldn't do any compensatory shopping instead.

The marble thing is also fucking stupid and I like the idea of miraculous extra marbles appearing each week - do it!

The problem comes when you’re in the vast minority by having two FT WOH parents. Our school is reasonable about homework (we filtered out one which where the Head was horrified that I couldn’t go to work late EVERY Friday to come to the school assembly) but yet there are complaints that we don’t bake cakes at two day’s notice etc. and because we’re almost the only family (of 90) in that position DS sometimes feels it accutely.

I don't even work full time, just part time! But my kids have a life outside of school and it just so happens that this week and next week we have stuff scheduled every day except next Thursday. We are usually home at 630 pm, eat supper and then put the DC to bed. I don't think that's too extraordinarily early for a 6 year old. But no, they definitely don't like working parents here.