to think that a 4 year old shouldn't gave to do homeowrk?

[amijee]

Wasn't sure to post here or education section.

My ds1 has just started reception and has been coming home with some of his school books. He is a bright kid so I just thought they were for parents to see what he has been up to at school. Neither myself not DH had been working on it with him (but we do lots of reading - fact and fiction)as we thought it was the school's role to teach him to read and write.

Now, we are being told that he is "falling behind" on his sounds and blending. I know he is a bright kid so I am assuming we are the only parents that are not doing formalised "homework" with him. I obviously feel bad about this and have started doing so now....but deep down I do not think it's right to have these sorts of pressures on a 4 year old when there is a whole lifetime of hard work ahead of him! Of course I would like my children to be a success in life but I can't remember having homework until I started secondary school ( but still did well at achool)

Or am I just being unreasonable ( or lazy)?

I don't like the idea of formal "homework" especially if the child is getting upset about doing it.

However, there is a big distinction between that and just reading for pleasure, which I think should be encouraged at home as much as possible.

DS1 is in Year 1 (one of the youngest as a June baby) and is allowed to play out with his friends or watch TV when he gets in from school. I'll worry about sitting him down to do proper homework when he's older.

But he loves to read at bedtime and over the last year we've progressed from me reading to him and now he reads to me. I also recently bought some English and Maths books from WHSmiths and some nights he insists he wants to do a few pages before having a story book.

If he's tired, we just have a story but more often than not it is him pushing to do more. Usually I just want to get downstairs to dinner and a large glass of wine! But I really think gently encouraging their willingness to learn at home makes a difference at school.

I think 4 is too young for formal homework, although I had it from the age of 7. DH had no homework at primary school.

DD suffered the ort, and so did we - I hated Biff, Chip etc. I can't remember how I learned to read - just getting 'pieces of pie' which were the cards with the words written on them if we got them correct. The sounding out of letters in words interfered with her speech and she said ple-ase for about 2 years which drove us mental.

Interestingly, despite a houseful of books, she is the one who will never pick up a book to read.

Maybe it's all that bloody Biff's fault.