Homework every night in reception

[daisiesflower]

My youngest has just started reception and as of the start of this week they've started being given homework. I was surprised to hear they'll be handed a sheet every day. She's not expected to hand it back in but is expected to do it every night (if she can) but it does seem like a lot to expect from a 4 year old. She's tired after school and is still getting used to doing full days so I wasn't planning on doing it with her every night, maybe just when she's up to it or at weekends but she was excited about having her first piece of homework and has asked to do it every night. The issue is she's exhausted and it ended in tears on both Monday and Tuesday night so I said we wouldn't do it again till this weekend. I don't think homework in reception is really necessary especially so early on in the year. It's not a long worksheet, it's mostly spelling, reading, letter tracing so I'm not sure it's just my DD who found it difficult, she's only turned 4 last month so she's one of the youngest in her class. My older children never got much homework throughout primary, it was a different school but this seems like a lot in comparison. I think I'm just going to end up with a pile of worksheets that don't get completed

It's mad. Even when my 9 year old started school homework wasn't a thing at their school. Obviously they had their reading books and words to learn but no homework. He started getting bits as he got older and now at 9 the school give him so much.

My daughter started the same school last year and I was really surprised what they give to reception she kids.

I struggle to get mine motivated for homework! Nightmare!

Ridiculous unless it’s actually about teaching the parents how e.g. cursive letters are drawn (it’s changed a bit since I learned to read...)

My son has just started reception. Feedback from school is “ask your child if they can remember the rules when they play in the bikes outside”. More like it...

We didn't have formal homework, just regular daily reading.
However I found that doing the reading was much more productive before school rather than after it.

Why do some parents want homework? It's a total ballache.

I'm glad it's just something that can be done whenever, I don't think DD realised at first that she didn't have to do them straight away

Some schools probably haven’t even got all their reception kids in full time yet and yours is already giving homework every night? This is madness. I teach year 6 in a prep school where homework is expected and wanted by parents and they don’t even get it every night. Absolute madness for reception.

If it was patterns or something fun then I’d do it. My reception child is disappointed she doesn’t have more homework because she wants to be like her sibling. Her homework is mostly quite fun though. I feel obliged to get my year 2 child to do all of it because I think he’s left a bit to his own devices at school and really needs to spend some time reading something a bit more challenging etc. If I could choose it would happen within school hours but because he’s quite capable they don’t really seem to stretch him at all. It’s difficult I don’t want to push homework but I don’t want him just cruising along below his ability.

This actually makes me want to cry (sorry if over-dramatic). But honestly! I grumbled about homework on a school trip when I was a parent helper when my dd was in Y4 or 5 and her teacher told me to just bloody well ignore it. And quite often we did.

Covid aside, I feel my dc (now 19 and 17) just about escaped the utter madness that is now primary education.

@loveisanopensore

Why do some parents want homework? It's a total ballache.

Yes.

But reading books and words are homework. So is lines and shapes to trace, which helps them write the letters.

It’s just how you are wording it. Are you seriously saying a reception child should never read at home with their parents? They will just be fine without anyone reading outside school? Or no one telling them there are 3 cars on the road, adding one more is 4.

I just don’t believe this. If seriously you expect most children to perform well without anyone reading to them or listen to them reading, then the attainment gap between supportive parents and those without won’t be so high.

After all you are all basically saying they learn everything in school and there is no need for anyone to read biff chip and kipper with them.

The OP did say the homework was read, letter tracing and spelling. I do find spelling odd for reception but read and trace isn’t.

I have seen those jolly phonics tracing sheets, it’s some shapes and colouring in Inkey that kind of thing.

Is it letter formation or spelling using a particular sound. We send home sheets daily for reception and ks1 with the sound they have learnt, just if the parents want it to reinforce the sounds they have learnt.

Reading is most important, 5-10 minutes every day!

My DS just started reception and we have had a few worksheets home to practice letter formation. We have done them with him, no pressure but when we’ve had 10 mins or something spare. He hasn’t had any reading books sent home yet but obviously I’m expecting to do reading with him soon. Anything more than that I think is too much for reception, but it’s good for us to see which letters they’re learning and reinforce the correct letter formation.

That's awful... reception kids get exhausted. Don't do it. Honestly, if you're having to nag and they're getting upset, you're not getting anything positive out of it, just don't bother. I wouldn't.

I don’t think the expectation was that you must sit down to do it every night. I just think it’s there so you know what phonics sounds they are learning. I think the other poster who said about letter forming using sounds must be right on the spelling. It’s CVC stuff.

To those to say not to worry about it. I said up thread my DC1 was behind in spring term. She couldn’t count up to 5 items consistently. Thinking back we were naive first time parents. We didn’t think everyone else would be helping their kids counting. I wished the teacher had send us homework saying they were doing counting up to 5. We would have realised that’s what we should be doing with DC1. I remember spending spring term counting cars and sweets when out and at home to catch up.

You might be already doing it all without realising this is homework. But some people like us don’t realise it. We were fine with the English because we were given biff chip and kipper books and also phonics sounds sheet. Some parents do need a bit of help.

If you read with your reception aged child regularly then homework isn't necessary.