to think this is too much homework for a three year old

[Waggamamma]

I've never posted in aibu before so getting ready to be told I might be unreasonable.

My ds just turned three and was moved into the preschool room at his private nursery which he attends two afternoons a week while I work.

Since moving up I feel they are setting too much 'homework.' In the last three weeks we've been asked to:

• Bring in an 'animal' (soft toy) for show and tell and learn 5 facts about that animal.
• Make a model that represents space and talk about it
• Carve a pumpkin for the halloween competition (and do a costume for the party). At three years old seriously?
• Learn two pages a4 of songs for the nativity in early dec.

Aibu in thinking this is a bit much for a preschooler who attends nursery ten hours per week? Or am I being a lazy parent? we do our own crafts/baking at home plus swimming lessons and trips out to see friends etc. It's hard to find the time for the nursery stuff too. We're struggling to fit it all in.

I was really happy with the toddler room the change to preschool seems the expect a lot overnight - learning the alphabet etc. He's moving to the preschool attached to our catchment school in January anyway so we can make use of the funded hours.

[FennelAndOnions]

ZOMBIE THREAD

FFS what’s the point.

[VickyEadieofThigh]

@ReallyTired

It sounds like homework for the parents rather than a child. There is no way I would let a 3 year old carve a pumpkin. Thankfully my daughter has never been to a nursery or that celebrated halloween. Many people have religious objections to halloween.

My daughter in reception doesn't get homework. I think at this age the best thing a parent can do is read library books to your child.

Absolutely correct! I'm not one for complaining (I'm an ex secondary head) but I'd have had words with the nursery head about asking 3 year olds to carve a pumpkin, because that really is just a task for the parents.

I am not a believer in homework for small children. By all means, encourage parents to read with and do activities with their children (many do, some do not) but they really shouldn't be coming home with such things as directed "homework".

[Prachis10]

😂

[ReallyTired]

"Homework at some point is inevitable. Surely it's better to start early with the idea of homework so that it becomes a normal part of a child's school experience?"

A three year old cannot do homework independently. Infact its unreasonable to expect a child to sit down and do homework independently before year 3 at the absolute earliest.

There are ways that a nursery can interact with home without homework. Dd was asked to bring in photos of her as a baby, ds used to love show and tell.

[Mummyoftheyear]

Totally unreasonable to expect a 3y old to remember five things about a toy/ animal. Two or three maaaaaybe. Am surprised they've asked at all!
Just ignore it all and send a toy. Ridiculous.

[LifeHuh]

The idea that children have to do homework at some point so they might as well start at 3 amazes me. Not all children come home happy to do whatever school / nursery has suggested, some just want to play what they want to play with their families. Some take what seems like hours of angst and misery to do tasks you'd expect to take 15 minutes. Why should your time with your child be taken up with things that perhaps neither of you want to do? At 3? (Or even at 5,7,or 9. We didn't have any homework pre secondary school- did just fine.)

[popperdoodles]

sounds like they are misinterpreting the requirement to support parents with learning at home. All they need to do is suggest activities parent COULD do at home with their child if they WANT to. there is no obligation for homework. ignore them. they are clearlynot understanding the statutory framework which would worry me a bit.

[LittleRobots]

Glen won't they end up doing all that again in the first term of reception?

[glenthebattleostrich]

Not heard of homework from a day nursery before. I was fairly shocked when dd started bringing home phonics work (words, letters so far but reading books to be expected soon) with a diary but she does love doing it and we don't have to buy those bloody mags as often as they keep her entertained :)

[sturdyoak]

Sorry, my comment wasn't aimed at you grump. I understand your explanation but do not think it is best practice.

[reelingintheyears]

Any homework is too much homework for a three year old.

[grumpalumpgrumped]

Extact from a report

To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:
?
involve parents more actively in their children's learning and development by providing further information about the Early Years Foundation Stage and helping parents to support children's learning and development at home

[grumpalumpgrumped]

Sturdyoak never said I agreed just trying to think why they might have done it!

[sturdyoak]

Ofsted are having a big push at the moment at encouraging learning at home so it may well be that the pre-school has got a little carried away!

They are not inspecting parents though are they? Encouraging is different from dictating. As I said before curriculum maps, booklets of suggested activities, toy libraries, book give aways would do this and is more suitable for pre-schoolers.

Home learning is valuable because it is different from the learning that takes place in pre-school settings, it reflects a child's individual family. Trying to make home learning serve the purposes of a pre-school setting defeats the object and just tries to make the home emulate a school environment, which would be wrong.

[grumpalumpgrumped]

Ofsted are having a big push at the moment at encouraging learning at home so it may well be that the pre-school has got a little carried away!

[sturdyoak]

^remember a lot of the parents will be professionals too, for what it is worth. Although it would be sad if a person only treated those deemed professionals with respect IMO.

[sturdyoak]

I never called childcare professionals 'hired help' that was midlandslurker.

I said nurseries and pre-schools, which parents pay for, are service providers. Like it or not.

[Tanith]

Childcare professionals are not the "hired help", sturdyoak.

You do nothing for your argument by insisting that it's acceptable to use derogatory terms towards them simply because you don't like the way Ofsted and the Government want them to work with parents.

[merrymouse]

A 3 year old doesn't need a teacher to tell them to do homework. They are doing 'homework' when they are picking up a leaf, pouring water in the bath, singing songs in the back of the car, hiding under the bed, throwing a ball for the dog, drawing on the wall...

If parents need tips on how to interact with their children, 'carve a pumpkin' is a pretty rubbish tip. I have made a pumpkin 'with' a 3 year old. They get bored and wander off after a while. Decorate a pumpkin might be an idea - there are probably loads of tips on the internet on how to do this with a 3 year old. However, 'carve a pumpkin for the pumpkin competition' strikes me as a rather lazy way to fill some time and get somebody else to organise the classroom Halloween decorations.

[sturdyoak]

We had no official homework in primary. We learnt timetables and spellings at home and could take our reading books home to read.

When I went to Secondary homework was a novelty in the beginning, it felt grown up. They eased us into it. They taught me to the end of A Levels and I went on to do a Degree, as many others did from our school.

[sturdyoak]

When is acceptable? Secondary School. All the rest leave to the parents. Supply books for reading, curriculum maps so a parent knows what their child is learning. Parents can decide whether to do extra at home or not.

[ConsideringTheFuture]

So what age is acceptable then? 5? 8? 12?

Homework at some point is inevitable. Surely it's better to start early with the idea of homework so that it becomes a normal part of a child's school experience?

[Morloth]

I don't need instructions from daycare on how to interact with my child.

Raising a child, isn't actually rocket science, the vast majority of people know how to do it.

[TeWiSavesTheDay]

A 3 year old is NOT at school.

They are 3, learning through play via child led activities. Homework of any kind isn't child led, because it's a set task to do by a set date whether the child is interested or not.