To resent DCs homework

[letsgoflyakite123]

Reading - of course. Maybe even some spellings and timestables. But DC seem to be set things like writing up a science experiment complete with diagram, oak academy lessons. I just think it is too much and really resent the time it intrudes on family life.
Dc1 (11) struggles with school work so needs lots of help and it takes ages. DC2 (7) excels with her school work and is so keen to do well it takes ages. So it's hard to do after school and ends up taking over the weekend.
Does anyone else feel the same? And if it is just me how do you fit it all in alongside seeing family and friends, DCs activities and just relaxing.

I guess my issue with too much homework is it really limits the knowledge your child could have - the National Curriculum only covers certain topic and most of them not very deeply - where your child gets to explore those wider topics and interests is in their spare time and if that is taken up with HW for the National Curriculum then it just does not happen.

We Home Educate and always have done and the one thing that stands out when previously schooled children come into the home ed world is their comparative lack of general knowledge. They can answer the specific questions required to pass their SATS and nothing more.

Just because it is not school work does not mean it is not educational.

@SpikyJugs

It doesn't take that long. Are you basically saying you can't be arsed helping your DCs with their homework?

It doesn't take that long? Sorry but I didn't realise you knew exactly how long it takes OP's children to do their homework.

Who on earth are you to judge her?

@waterrat

Why should a family value or respect homework above other ways children could spend their time like reading for pleasure ..playing with friends or at home...relaxing...going for bike rides.. playing sport .?

This generation of teenagers and children are hugely unhappy. Every measure of statistics shows depression sadness and general unhappiness are rising and the UK is particularly bad on a global scale.

Our children need joy and fun as wrll as the grind of school work. Teenagers have a very sedentary day at school..even more so than primary children even though there is no reason they should be less active

I'm all in favour of doing appropriate homework in primary school but I do also remember several half terms or Easter breaks being absolutely ruined by one child or another having been set a ridiculous "project", like building a model Roman fort or writing about a village life in an obscure part of the world that was only mentioned as a case study in a book we couldn't access and no where else. The dread of having the stupid project hanging over us all week if we took them on a day out. It turned out that the Roman fort was so the school could show off on open day. Primary school holidays should be just that, time for a break, different activities, family time.

"Don't pick fights with the bullies or the cads,
'Cos I'm not much cop at punching other people's dads.
And if the homework brings you down,
We'll just throw it on the fire and take the car downtown."

...as the poet has it.