To be slightly annoyed about DD2s homework...and to tell her not to do it....

[unlucky83]

First I have to say I think a bit of homework isn't a bad thing and I don't recall ever feeling like this before ...
DD2 (7) gets reading homework once a week, ideally to be returned asap but they get a week. No problem.
She gets some more home on a Tue to be returned by Fri. It is this homework I'm annoyed with.
First time wise it is a bit of a struggle - she has an after school activity on these three nights. As the weather is still nice she is also enjoying playing with her friends after school. I'm a SAHM and I'm sure it would be harder if I was WOHM.
But my biggest gripe - I strongly believe their homework should be their own work and therefore they should be able to do it with maybe a little parental guidance if they really need it.
So the homework is some maths work (they have done in school), learn some spellings (20) and a spelling activity. All fine. And something else.
This 'something else' has been to 'research' something and do xyz. The 'research' - with three days and the local library only open for one of those days -is obviously 'google'. Most people have internet access at home now but I don't think the school should expect them to. And that isn't actually 'research' in the true sense of the word - no independent thought required.

And what they are 'researching' is potentially complicated. Not this but eg How does a seed grow? Google obviously turns up things suitable for everyone from preschool to a Phd student.
I am finding that every week I am having to help her more than I think I should (and that is not laziness on my behalf - more I am doing it for her - choosing the content etc).

And from what she has said on this week's work they haven't covered it at school at all (or she was totally not paying attention and I don't think that is the case).
I have spent 30+ mins finding an appropriate diagram from hundreds, explaining it to her. It would have taken her literally hours. And then finding the answers was equally tricky - I found myself starting to tell her the answers.
So I've told her if she can't do it to leave it.
It is not my homework ...maybe I'm missing something?
Am I being unreasonable?

I hate homework! Up until now ds1 (8) has had a small amount if homework, numeracy last year each week and a project each half term. This week he has come home with 6 sides of a4 printed sheets, set on Wed, due in Monday. Included is handwriting practice, writing out 30 words twice, alphabetically organising 20 words, writing 'number stories' and other such stuff. We have made a start but I think it is too much for children.

Sorry (teenage DD being a PIA - the joys of parenthood...)
Glad to see IANBcompletelyU...
I don't mind helping to a degree - I do agree with listening to reading and the spelling activities are done in pairs ...in fact the maths this week was also done in pairs. But I think this is a lot to get through in 3 days...
It is just her sitting watching me google - I think is a bit pointless...and she loses interest and concentration - and all in all it isn't pleasant parent /child bonding.

All I've said to her is if you can't do it and you will have to tell your teacher that. I will write in her homework book that she found it difficult to find appropriate material and we could do with some pointers. It says something about from your research or classwork answer these questions but she doesn't have a clue -they really mustn't have covered it in class...
(maybe they are behind for some reason - she has a couple of different teachers as her 'real' teacher is off long term sick - a breakdown of communication?)
And I did used to help DD1 (13) with her primary homework a lot more .... and I think that was a mistake - they have to do learn to work independently ...and DD1 struggles...

Well you'd better get used to it now because high school is just round the corner. Why not say to daughter, right we will spend 20 minutes together trying to do this and after that stop. That's 20 minutes of you and her doing something together and her feeling that you are involved in her education rather than school just being a place where she has to go, cheap daycare. Whilst there is limited value in homework per se the biggest influence in a child's success is a parent who is involved.

Athrawes As I said my DD1 is at high school and I did used to be full on helping her at primary level - to the point of even typing up projects for her. Now I get either we don't have any homework (and unless they have written it their book you don't know) or I've done it on the bus ...
But then someone with older DCs warned me off helping too much - as she rightly said you can't do the exams for them. And I know (from where I used to work) that lots of first year university students seriously struggle because they have been spoon fed by both teachers and parents...

And YY to not letting DD2 loose on my laptop - I use it for work too.
And also not letting loose unsupervised on google - I've not got safe search set on mine...
actually maybe I should have , it would have spared me some of the things I've discovered courtesy of MN and the fatal 'whatever you do don't google X'

I would have struggled to have found time to complete that mid-week when DS was that age. The teacher needs to give time over the weekend.

I think it is lovely that you do this, that you have turned something so poorly thought through into this. Agree though that your time could be better spent together and Y2 is too early to be sending home internet search homework.

I staged a mini-rebellion once when DD was told to 'research pictures of Tudor Kings and Queens' for homework.

I let her google them in her own words
I let her choose her own pictures from google
I let her print and stick them in her book

Over half of the pictures were of actors playing the Ks and Qs in films and TV series.

The teacher pointed this out, and I asked how DD was supposed to know that, given that there was no direction as to which websites to use etc. Teacher said that I could have helped, so I asked when, considering that both the days DD had to do the homework I was working until 8pm? (Without pointing out that DD doesn't go to bed until 9)

Teacher was a bit pissed with me I think, but I noticed that from then on the worksheets had 5 or 6 suggested websites on whenever 'research' was required.

This week (new school) DDs weekend homework is to find a biography of a celebrity and write out 10 facts they learned from it. Again no guidance for websites and I'm a little concerned that DD will choose someone inappropriate, or an inappropriate fact to use (For example one of DDs first choices was Cheryl Cole - I can think of a few things i'd rather DD didn't know or didn't write about her). I'mmtrying to steer her towards Jacqueline Wilson instead.

Mine have only been back at school a week. I am struggling just with reading have not tackled homework yet (only got it yday)
Both dc (yr1&2) have reading books between 20 and 35 pages long. They have three of these a week. During the week that is them each reading over ten pages a night.
I am a working mum, I don't often get home before 6pm and I have a one year old too!
I am struggling.
Yr2 child this wkend also has 20 spellings, math questions and a library book to get through as well as usual reading book
Yr1 child is being eased back in more gradually with just reading and spellings but I know proper homework will start next week too

yanbu must homework even at secondary level (where coursework and revision is important) is a complete waste of time also.

If it turns children off school it may even lead to results being worse.

Oh and then the next day the government will be on about childhood obesity. .... Why not let them just play then?

Your concerns are perfectly valid and reasonable. I so agree that homework should be work the child is able to do independently, based on work already covered in school. Research on the internet involves a great deal of guidance and is very time-consuming, and not always accurate; it needs to be very specific to be of any value.
Definitely send your comments into school, in writing, and ask for them to be discussed by the teachers, PTA, Governing body etc, particularly the ones about holiday projects; most teachers hate them as well, as they know they depend on (uneven) parental support, and take ages to mark fairly, and are usually not relevant to the curriculum.
This is true parental involvement; perhaps a working party could be set up to investigate and make homework functional and productive, but don't hold your breath.

Eve Jacqueline Wilson isn't squeaky clean either. One of her books isn't something I would want my child reading.

My primary school child finishes at 3.30 and then they have half an hour in prep to do their homework. He mostly gets it all done and then once home at 4.30 he finishes it, I check it and then if necessary any mistakes are rectified. He has 20 spellings to learn in a week, has to read every day and gets maths and English twice a week. He has 11+ and topic homework once a week. We have three hours to get everything done - homework, tea, bath, play etc - and it does all get done but those 3 hours are always quite busy.

we have had a letter home yesterday apparently people have been "asking" for homework personally i think he is five chuffing years old doing reading every night spellings and maths and english is a bit much especially as most children go to bed at 6pm (apart from mine) so when exactly do they get a little down time?

we have to sort out family stuff this weekend pictures (we quote "might" get back) and special people in our lives! our family is a minefield im not looking forward to this at all

I am a primary teacher. I think homework is generally unnecessary. Homework policies are set by the school management. I would advise directing your views to them. I must say though that most parents LOVE homework and I have been accused of not setting enough on several occasions. On a few occasions I have had parents say they think there is too much. All I can suggest is to make your views known to the Head/Governors.

Parent "love" homework? Really? Bollocks.

I can only speak from my own experience itsfab. I am not in favour of daily homework.

Homework in the UK sounds ridiculous.

In NZ, DS2 (year 1/2 mixed class - he's 6/y2) has 7 spellings each night (the same ones!), some maths, extra maths for those that want and an "independent" question (last week's was to write down a car number plate and then find 3 objects in the house that started with each letter, plus draw a picture of one of each of the three). He also has a reading log that he is expected to fill in, I just sign off the entries. He gets this Monday, to be in Friday.

DS2 - year 3/4 mixed class, is 8 and y4 (probably) - has 8 spellings each night (again the same 8 Mon-Fri), one or two sheets of maths timed problems (20 sums in each list, max 60s per list, should do min 1 list per night but can do all sheet if keen), and occasionally a longer project (make a volcano, research a country of your choice and present findings to the class in a poster or PowerPoint presentation, research an ancient monument of your choice and present it however you like) - the longer projects are normally set on the Mondag to be in Friday week, allowing the weekend in the middle.

Both boys do their homework with minimal input from me.

(He chose to do the Pyramids of Giza, looked them up online and then recreated them in Minecraft and did a guided tour movie a la Stampy Longnose. Not how I'd have chosen to do it but he did a very good job!)

Do you not have junior encyclopaedias etc, personally I have found these far more useful than googling etc .

I am no fan of primary homework either but I did encourage mine to do it

Monday. Not Mondag. It's been a long day the bubbly wine in the airline lounge probably doesn't help accurate typoing

Yaddnbu. I used to hate this kind of h/w. It really just felt that they'd flagged up a new topic and sent it home for to us to teach. And with 3 dc it was a lot of work and decimated weekends/evenings.

Then it'd be followed up with a fun fancy dress day about it at school. So the donkey work was being ploughed through at home.

H/w at this age (if it's even necessary at all which I dispute, other than encouraging reading) should be reiterating what they've been doing in class and should be achievable largely without parents otherwise it can be defeating.

Knowing how to research something is a skill in itself and at this age they just don't have that skill. I clearly remember my dd at eight sobbing night after night overwhelmed and ploughing though piles of books trying to produce a project on Barcelona. I complained to the teacher who was sarcastic and unbothered.

I did the damn thing for her in the end. It was far too much for her to manage at that age. And when the projects were displayed in the school foyer it was patently obvious 99% had been done by parents too. So how did that help anyone?

By contrast at secondary school, yes they get more h/w and it's harder but I if I get involved it's only at the thinking aloud stage if they want to discuss an idea. They know what they're doing with it and get it done on their own because it's age appropriate.

I had difficulty with my son in year 1 not wanting to do his homework so I would say don't do it. he was far too concerned about getting in trouble not to.

Year 2 he just got on with in. none yet for year 3

I often wonder who the parents are that supposedly ask for all the h/w that schools are responding to. I didnt know any.

And just because someone asks doesn't mean the school have to supply it. They could always say too much at this age isn't necessary and stick to that policy.

What the school/teacher should be doing is giving the children one or two web sites to use to find the info. It might be worth telling them this.

I am a teacher and I think that's OTT. I would never set research like that for such young children. They do not have the skills to filter the info.

My DCs Primary stopped Homework,map art from spellings, reading, and some voluntary suggestions (mainly MyMaths and projects for half term like making a pin hole camera). They were made to re-introduce Honework by Ofsted.
But even at 7 mine could have done a supervised google search.

Homework as described appears to be more to satisfy parents that a work ethos exists in the school. Believe it or not, children need to have time to assimilate and accommodate work they have been involved in during the day. That means different, more undemanding activities. Too much input means less effective learning. Reading is a different thing altogether as it should ideally be a "cosy", fun time for parent and child. Reading together and being read to is part of developing a love of books which reflects on all aspects of education.