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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think that ds's school shouldn't give projects over school holidays

180 replies

Glassofwineneeded · 21/12/2015 16:18

My ds 9 has a project to do over the Christmas holidays. 10 + pages are expected.
My thoughts are that school holidays should be for relaxing and not for doing massive projects in year 4!
As this is the Christmas holidays we have lots planned including 3 days spent with family and then my ds is going to his dad's. As well as other days out etc it makes it hard to find time to fit project work in and make a decent job of it.
He is currently working on it now when what I want to do is curl up on the sofa with him and watch a festive film!
So AIBU ?

OP posts:
Sirzy · 21/12/2015 18:28

DS is in year 1 his homework is to practise writing numbers 1-100 (which he can already do) and to keep a weather diary for a week. It was all sent home a week before the holidays though.

A bit of flexible work is one thing but large projects with set standards expected is too much IMO. Something like "research Greek homes" which can be as much or as little as you want makes most sense I think.

Skullyton · 21/12/2015 18:29

yanbu

but then i'm a homework refuser, my kids dont do any and the school know exactly why.

9yo is autistic, and i'm very strict about home being a work/stress free zone.

6yo is too young for homework!

ProcrastinatorGeneral · 21/12/2015 18:32

Sirzy we've had 'research Viking homes or boats' before. That was a fabulous laugh. It got a bit heated in my house at one point though, there was much discussion of who had the best sails on their boat:o

SummerNights1986 · 21/12/2015 18:33

I've never understood the horror some parents have over homework tbh. Our school have given weekly homework and something to do over every holiday (except the 6 weeks summer holiday) since nursery - Yes, since they were 3 Shock.

I'm glad of it and think it's good for dc to get used to having homework. The regular weekend homework takes around 30 minutes. that's 30 minutes of work between 3.20pm Friday and 8.50am Monday - it's really not too much to ask IMO.

The holiday homework is usually a couple of hours worth - again, 2 hours homework spread over a full fortnight - hardly slave drivers are they?

A 10 page project in Year 4 sounds completely reasonable to me. It's a project, which is not the same as 10 full A4 sheets of writing - that would be a 4000 word essay fgs which I highly doubt ANY school would ask an 8 year old to complete Hmm

My year 3 ds did a project recently that was about 8 pages. Lots and lots of pictures and 'fun facts' in fairly large text and bullets. It's really not hard to fill an A4 page.

YoungGirlGrowingOld · 21/12/2015 18:36

Ye Gods! A bit of homework is hardly grounds to invoke the ECRC for goodness sake! Only on MN!! Grin

SummerNights1986 · 21/12/2015 18:37

Oh and about 3 of his 8 pages were full A4 size pictures.

BarbarianMum · 21/12/2015 18:37

My 10 and 7 year olds are banned (by me) from doing homework in the holidays. I find they do better for a break now and then. Academically it seems to be working and the school has accepted it.

Sparklingbrook · 21/12/2015 18:39

First School were very keen on the children doing Presentations in Year 3 and 4. Two years of termly 15 minute presentations on all sorts of subjects with all work done at home on top of all the other homework. Lots of school holidays were taken over by working on them. By the time DC2 was about to do his 6th one I said no more. Enough was enough.

TheOriginalMerylStrop · 21/12/2015 18:39

YANBU
But then I don't agree with homework for primary aged children and our school are happy for my lot not to do it.

Just tell them you are not doing it and explain why. School can suck it up.

SummerNights1986 · 21/12/2015 18:41

I also think that your (general your) attitude as a parent towards homework will be pretty influential towards your own dc's attitudes later on.

If your 8 year old is set homework and you're happy to send it back undone with a note...at what point will you stop doing that for them? 9? 10? Only when they're doing GCSE's?

Because at some point you'll have to back the school/teachers and encourage/make them do it. And if precious 11 year old Peter has always had his mummy behind him telling him not to bother, there's going to be one hell of a shock for him when he starts getting detentions in Year 7 if he carries on doing what he's been taught is acceptable.

jay55 · 21/12/2015 18:43

Christmas holidays are not the time for school projects. People are away or have visitors and so houses are overcrowded and chaotic.

TheOriginalMerylStrop · 21/12/2015 18:49

No Summer, my kids are intelligent enough grasp that when they get to secondary - when they are mature enough to manage it, and it will be beneficial to them - it will be a requirement.

SuburbanRhonda · 21/12/2015 18:49

What does your DS think about doing the project?

You say he's currently working on it while you say you'd prefer to watch a film with him, so I'm wondering if this is more about what you want rather than what he wants?

HPsauciness · 21/12/2015 18:50

Summer I completely disagree, my children on occasion have been sent in with notes when the work was completely beyond their level, or very lengthy. A handful of times over the many years of primary. I think this is entirely reasonable, it's different at secondary, they are older, have more stamina and don't require you to help them! My eldest is now in a top school and doing fantastically- precisely because she still loves learning but also because her secondary teachers are very good at setting doable and useful homework, something sadly most of the primary teachers weren't very good at doing.

A five year old or even eight year old needs parents to facilitate homework such as providing a report. The people saying 'fill it with big pictures' are assuming the child has access to a computer and a printer and can search etc. If not, they need newspapers, sticky glue, etc. This all requires the parents to facilitate it, very few children are total self-starters at this age. They also need peace and quiet.

If it were something genuinely educational I wouldn't mind, but 'do a project' is simply the laziest homework setting possible, and it is an utter waste of time to produce 10 pages of copied crap out into a 'project' and I see the results at university later on when those students grow up to think cutting and pasting facts is actual learning.

winterswan · 21/12/2015 18:53

I do teach secondary, and I still think homework is mostly a waste of time.

BarbarianMum · 21/12/2015 18:54

Summer I think work-life balance is something we need to teach our kids. Personally I don't want to bring up some stressed exec who won't take holiday and spends half their time checking their emails on Christmas Day. Who ends up off sick with stress and burnt out.
Term time is work time, homework included. Holidays are not.

starry0ne · 21/12/2015 18:56

My Ds ..Year 4 was set homework by his teacher...

If you get toys on Christmas day to play with them...

He has a fantastic teacher..

I can tell you he wouldn't do a 10 page project.. He is over tired/ over excited so consequently not sleeping well...

Is this 10 pages of writing Op ? I would think my Ds doesn't do that in a week at school.

Mistigri · 21/12/2015 18:59

I set limits on primary homework (max 20 mins per night). My children, who are now in years 9 and 11, have absolutely no issue doing their homework now it matters.

A 10 page project sounds like a lot for a 9 year old - how do parents without a computer and printer manage this?

I wouldn't stop them doing it but I wouldn't insist either, and I wouldn't do it for them - the teacher would get whatever they could manage. Both my kids are reasonable bright and academic, DD might have produced 10 pages of drawings and writing at that age (with a following wind and assuming we weren't too busy) but Ds would only have done it under extreme duress. As a working parent there is no way I would spend my limited holiday tim twisting his arm to produce pages of unnecessary work.

SummerNights1986 · 21/12/2015 18:59

'do a project' is simply the laziest homework setting possible, and it is an utter waste of time

Couldn't disagree more with this. THIS is what I mean about parents attitude rubbing off on their kids. If you asked your dc, I assume they would be (or would have been) of the same opinion which is a shame.

Ask my 7 year old about [thinks of past few projects]...a Peregrine Falcon, a Pterodactyl, China, household appliances over the last 100 years...and he could talk your ear off for ten minutes on each. He's learnt loads about each subject he's done. And other than the subject matter, he's gradually taking more charge and i'm having less input in each one he does. The last one he did, in October, he did almost entirely himself. It teaches organisation, research skills, filtering and manipulation of information into a user friendly format, artistic skills to make it look good and a load of other things I can't think of now.

Projects still require a lot of parental input at this age, I agree. And a 7 year old will find homework as much fun or as much of a chore as you make it.

TheHiphopopotamus · 21/12/2015 19:06

YANBU

I can't stand homework for primary aged kids. Neither of mine were interested in doing it and they were always sent home with projects that required a ton of parental input which I found pointless.

Now ds is at senior school, he's mature and bright enough to do the homework on his own and surprisingly, it's get done.

SummerNights1986 · 21/12/2015 19:07

My 5 year old had his first project to do in Reception and he loved it.

I got google images up and he spent ten minutes choosing his favourite pictures of an elephant. Then we talked about what sort of information he needed, which he decided himself. I did most of the research for him (ten basic bullet points) and we read through them together, with him then cutting out the captions and pasting them onto a poster, and colouring in the border to make it pretty.

It was a thoroughly enjoyable hour or so on a Saturday, for both of us. Cutting and sticking and colouring in and talking about his favourite animal. Seriously, it can be fun if you even give it a chance. I'm pretty sure I could have refused to let him do it though and left him with the impression it was pointless, a waste of time, 'too difficult' and all the rest. But why would you?

Sparklingbrook · 21/12/2015 19:07

That was and is my experience TheHip.

The hours and ££s spent in Hobbycraft then bringing it all home and trying to produce something. Angry

DinoSnores · 21/12/2015 19:23

My 5yo was sent home with 4 sheets of homework for him to do over the Christmas holidays.

One sheet has a huge list of sounds on it. For example, "ay". He then is supposed to write a real word (the example was 'play' and then an 'alien' (pretend) word, except their example was 'splay' which is definitely a real word.

If he wants to do them, he can, but I won't be making him do it.

As it is, he has spent his first few days of holidays reading chapter books quietly to himself for the first time and can often be found sitting down writing a rather convoluted story about a gecko.

He will likely decide to investigate something on his own, but it will be of far more worth, him pursuing his own interests and desire for learning, than me Googling pictures and sticking them on a bit of a paper.

SummerNights1986 · 21/12/2015 19:27

If he wants to do them, he can, but I won't be making him do it

If at age 5 his reading skills are as advanced as that then the work will take him a few minutes - so it's hardly arduous. I still don't understand the absolute objection on principle to refuse to encourage a child towards a particular activity.

It also depends on your 5 year old I suppose - the majority of 5 year olds I know would be much happier cutting and sticking pictures onto a poster than quietly reading chapter books in a corner - but there you go, it takes all sorts I suppose.

Roseformeplease · 21/12/2015 19:34

I can't get het up about primary homework one way or another as I agree with PP, it depends on the child and what is being asked for by the teacher.

However, I have to take issue with the view expressed that "we can't take them on holiday in term time, so why should the teacher set them homework in holiday time".

You do realise that the holiday thing is coming from DfE, not teachers. And that teachers are setting work to improve the learning of YOUR child - not as some attempt to ruin your holiday.

I set reading and only written work that is due at least 3 days after their return (secondary) so that they have a choice whether or not to do it in the holidays.

But it seems to me that so many people on Mumsnet lose sight of the fact that homework, reading, PE, Christmas shows or whatever the hell you are moaning about now is arranged by teachers as a part of your child's educational experience.

Sorry - I am an unthanked Secondary teacher, term is not over (or mine isn't) and already Mumsnet is sniping at teachers.