To not want to do DDs homework this evening?

[UnspecialSnowflake]

I am so bloody sick of the homework the school sends home. DD is in year two, and every half term we get given a sheet with a list of homework projects on it, one to be done each week, in any order we want.

Every single sodding project involves either model making, doing a PowerPoint, creating a fact sheet or a poster or some other sort of research which is far beyond the solo abilities of the average seven year old. Maybe I'm being a brat but I don't want To spend yet another evening creating a fucking fact file on some random animal. I want her to have a maths sheet, or some spellings to learn, or maybe some comprehension, or just something that she can do mostly by herself.

As far as I can see all the DCs in her class are learning from these homework projects is that your parents do the bulk of your homework for you. And the very worst thing is that these efforts don't get marked by the teacher, the children mark each other's parents work.

Argh, rant over.

YANBU, but don't do it. As in, get your dd to do it.

I refuse to help dd with hers (also y2) unless it's finding appropriate stuff on the internet, or printing stuff etc.

Not only will she not learn if I do it, I have two degrees and a postgraduate diploma, not to mention professional chartered accreditation with my professional body. I've done all my homework!

YANBU. My daughter is in Y3 and last term they had a none compulsory (but it would be great if you could do one part) homework project.

I gave DD a load of materials to build a shelter in a box by her self and said it wasnt homework if i did the majority of it. How bad did i feel when we took the shelter (which she did a brilliant job on by her self) and there was a child sized rocket out of wood, shelters with alot of detail and other things clearly not done by 8 year olds.

Homework should be things they can mainly do by themselves. it annoys me no end!

YANBU. We used to get termly projects involving building/designing. DD isn't capable of doing it by herself and I don't want to.

This sort of thread makes me dread my dd starting school.

It's OK Brearocks - not all schools are like this, and even out of those that do set daft projects like this, you don't have to do them - just remind the staff that your dd isn't able to complete the tasks unaided, and you aren't doing homework at your age.
Tbh, teachers I know don't want to set it either, but you'll find in some areas there has been pressure from parents.

Surely your problem is your lack of daughters confidence and fear of not coping about doing pointless make-work?

YANBU- most of DDs homework Yr3 is sheets or spellings so all good and relevant and I can see what they're doing and whether she understands it. In yr2 we had a couple of projects - make an alien, machine etc but at least that was it. Projects are too open ended for children that age and parents generally do all the work.

I am glad my children didn't get many of those ridiculous projects.

Mainly it was reading, spelling and numeracy/maths stuff, which was fine. Handwriting practice too.

To be honest, at that age I can't see the point of setting mega projects at such and early age. It is more like secondary school work.

Don't do it. If your daughter cannot get to grips with it then send a note or an email to the teacher stating why you think it is unsuitable homework at her age, and you believe that she would benefit more fro"m having more basic and traditional homework. Mention it at the next parents' evening too.

I am in the camp of "let them be children for as long as possible" rather than stressing them out too much. We seem to have lost the art of doing that these days.

Oh crap. Really ? DD is 5. I do enough PowerPoint at work, I have no intention of doing it at 8pm with a 7yr old.

It's not difficult to go online, select a few pictures, stick them on a sheet of paper and organise a few sentences for a caption.

My DD would be so proud of anything she took in, it was always worth it.

And it does help them to understand and learn how a piece of work is structured and produced - thereby saving you an awful lot of angst in later years.

They also learn they can trust you to help them - which is invaluable.

OP I can't understand why you've been doing her homework at all. Just leave her to it. If she takes in a cereal box sellotaped to a yoghurt pot and calls it a wind turbine, so be it. You really don't need to do it at all.

And a Year 2 child should be able to make a fact file by themselves if they have access to a non fiction book.

Give her materials to paint/draw a picture. Tell her to take it in and tell everyone what is on the picture.

Send in a note saying that you have decide that homework should be all their own work, and not done by parents, and if that is not acceptable then she will no longer be doing it.

I would also add she has spent xx minutes working on it, so that they can see she has done enough time.

Honestly, I don't think teachers have ANY IDEA how long it takes for a 6 year old to find 'a few pictures, download them (needs help) print them (needs help) cut and stick them, and then write a few captions (needs help again).

I think teachers do have a very good idea because it's the sort of thing they do in school. I think they just think the child will benefit from repeating some activities and the parent is best placed to help them.

There will be no time at all to go over some things in school. Especially when it's one or two adults to every thirty children trying to find things on the internet, print them, cut them, stick them and write captions.

But the parent should only help where necessary, such as finding a suitable website/book for the child to work from. Most 7 year olds can print, they do it at school, just show them how to do it on the home computer, or they can draw a picture instead. Presumably the child is given several days to complete the project, so ten minutes a day would be fine.

Of course teachers realise. Many of them have children of their own!

The point is 30 minutes of your time will be really beneficial to your child.

Often more so that a day at school with one teacher and 30 or so other children.

I disagree faire.

When ds was in year 4 he was given a task, keep a diary over half term, then same again over Christmas, and same again over feb half term.

At easter I happened to see class teacher and said sorry, but if you set diary for homework over easter, ds will not be doing it. Why she asked. So I described the 2 hour stroppy melt down that we had over homework, and that with a diary that strop happened 3/4/5 times over the holiday. After the long strop he would eventually sit down to it, and do it in 20 minutes.

At school same task takes 20 minutes, without strop. She had no idea that kids did not work as willingly at home as at school.

And in year 6 they were asked to make a Native American costume at very short notice (for tomorrow) I said sorry we can't I am busy this afternoon. Oh, just get him to make something out of an old sheet she said. I looked at her. so....

1. I don't have endless supplies of old sheets
2. it would need cutting and sewing with a machine, skills he does not yet have
3. Native American costumes don't look like that (togas being Roman)

She genuinely couldn't see why he couldn't just rustle something up without help.

olgaga - the only teacher in our school with kids is the head.

Actually since she has arrived homework has improved massively. All maths is now done online on the Matheletics site which they love, and can do themselves.

So you're one of those parents who makes my DS feel bad about not being as good as Billy/Aysha/Rishan/Tyler... Because that's how children feel when their project is worse that others'. You're actually setting standards for other children and their parents. And they are setting even higher standards to you. And it goes on and on and on. While there is 1 or 2 students who are trying to do their own homework and feel bad about it.
Thanks for that.

By year 4 a child needs to understand that homework is a part of life and they should not be stropping about it. There is a reason why he will do it in school and not at home and that needs to be addressed as independent homework expectations will only increase each year.

I know what it's like, I also had a child who would rather cry for half an hour than do ten minutes work. He didn't get out of it. I told him he had to do it and he could waste an hour arguing first or he could get it done and go do some fun things. He learned to just get on with it.

Regarding costumes, if they can't do it themselves, then they can't do it, that's all there is to it.

Im another one saying don't do it. It's ridiculous in primary school. I'd also tell them this. I never helped my DS with homework in secondary either.

What I really hate is when DS's homework is to research your chosen aspect of X and present your findings in a method of your choosing. DS then takes 4 hours trying to decide what aspect to choose and whether to do a poster or leaflet or model or.... and about 20 mins actually doing the work. It would be so much easier for him and avoid all the angst and arguments and tears if he was set a fixed task for homework. Bring back worksheets!

By year 4 a child needs to understand that homework is a part of life and they should not be stropping about it. There is a reason why he will do it in school and not at home and that needs to be addressed as independent homework expectations will only increase each year.

I know what it's like, I also had a child who would rather cry for half an hour than do ten minutes work. He didn't get out of it. I told him he had to do it and he could waste an hour arguing first or he could get it done and go do some fun things. He learned to just get on with it.

yeah right thanks for that.
sigh
We tried all that, he did learn to get on with it....after he still stropped for an hour,or quite possibly the whole of saturday. I was sick to death of all our family time disappearing under homework.
My point is that the teacher had NO IDEA that home work is different to school work, and that the dynamics are different.
ds went into year 7, and immediately his attitude to home work changed. he does it all himself, independently, in a timely way and without a fuss.

The reason? It is relevant. It is properly marked, and every child in the class has to do it, and a high standard is expected. Don't do it and there is a school based consequence. I am not involved, other than to sign his planner to say it has been done.

Regarding costumes, if they can't do it themselves, then they can't do it, that's all there is to it.
never come across a child who could make a costume that was actually wearable without any help at all.

It does sound really difficult. My son is Y1 and just has a writing sheet and numbers sheet every evening. We do it before he goes to bed (once the toddler is asleep). I just check it over and chat with him about any mistakes and I can see the benefit as the teacher can't give individual attention. Luckily they do art projects at school rather than at home.

By the way my DS is studying for his A levels now and doing a brilliantly.

I did my duty and asked him to do his homework at secondary, I never checked it, nor did I get on his case about it.

My sister is a primary school teacher and she agrees that it's a waste of time and more hassle than its worth.

You will be suprised on what a year 2 pupil can do.

Dd who is at an average level can turn on a PC, upload a picture and edit it. She is 5 years old.

She can also play without any help minecraft and club penguin.

You would be better off getting your child to do it herself

Just let her do it by herself and hand in whatever the end product is. Don't sweat it.