AIBU to expect my Y7 to study at home?

[StrawberryShortbread2001]

I'm just wondering how much homework or self directed study your Y7 does after school?

My DD had Long Covid during Y5 and 6. Although the only subject she got behind on was Maths, she also wasn't really fulfilling her potential either. She's not highly academic but is bright and very creative. When I say homework/study I don't just mean academic subjects but creative ones too - they are both important, imo.

I want DD to do well at school and fulfill her potential. But equally I don't want to push her too hard and I want her to have a balance of school work and leisure time after school. Her school suggests they should be spending up to an hour per night on homework. But she only gets 2 or 3 pieces of homework per week. I'd like her to spend some time going over her Maths or practicing the languages she is studying.

AIBU to expect her to do extra study beyond homework?

Thank you. And yes, I definitely don't want to put too many demands on her. High school has been a steep learning curve for her and she's still transitioning. I teach her Maths using the up to date CGP books so I'm teaching the right techniques! Thanks for the tip about the books. I always buy the books for DD and I read them myself so we can discuss them. I know that sounds like a lot of activities but violin is at school, horse riding is a monthly SEN session, swimming after school on Friday and badminton on a Sunday.

@StrawberryShortbread2001 it sounds lik a great range of activities for her to be really rounded 😄, it sounds like you actually probably do the hour a day it's just not formally named 'Homework'. My DD did similar in year 7 but progressively found the demands too much so we had to start cutting down and now she just does her sport twice a week but if your DD is able to keep up that's great.

My DD does love Duolingo, garage band for music and Seneca learning. You can have a private account on Seneca or she may already have one through school.

I suppose we probably do! 😂 Yes, I'll definitely keep an eye on her activities. They are just for fun!

I personally don’t like home work.. but I only have primary school aged children.

As a former secondary teacher, the amount of homework we had to set was incredible! Every subject setting 2 lots of hw a week and to mark was just impossible! Now with online self marking etc it's still time a lot of pressure. I used to have to give detentions etc but came to realise how difficult this is for students, especially those with no support or anywhere to do it! When I became a Mum i realised the school day is pretty tiring for the kids too, rushed breaks etc, and a lot of schools start early so first lesson at 8.25am in winter is an effort!
Extra learning at home is always beneficial but not to the point it becomes stressful. Xx

I'm guessing as she's at a selective grammar school?? We had this, complete nightmare.

Politely I say get off her back. Stop expecting and start encouraging. Get her to be interested in something else providing different friends etc. Scouts is a fantastic opportunity for example.

It's a hard one. I agree you don't want to push too much in year 7. But do you trust the school? Do you think the school knows what it's doing? What are their results like?

My DD was always asked to study if a test was coming up (and she did so). I limited screen time and expected her to read for pleasure of an evening. But I didn't have a hard and fast rule about studying.

In year 7 what they do at school plus homework is enough - there is as much benefit in downtime as there is in learning. It sound like she is doing a lot of clubs/socialising too.

We watched films with them (like someone else said) that were classics! and encouraged them to carry on reading - I never cared whether it was a comic, book whatever and that was it. Let her transition into year 7, find friendships and settle. You push too hard now and they will be totally bored by year 11 when they need to study.

I have a bright year 7 child. I think you are pushing too hard. Let her relax at home after the homework is done. Mine does a bit of Duolingo and we encourage reading. No more.

I’ve always stepped back completely in year 7. It’s more than enough for them to get settled into school.

i see how they are getting on at the end of year 7 and get tutors for maths / English or both for a year.

year 9 I find that all of mine have become quite self sufficient by that point and start to really get their heads down and choose to do a bit extra. I try not to tutor in year 9 although one of mine did have some maths help for a bit

year 10 and 11 is when I really like them to have their heads down. It’s at this point they need to really doing the extra reading and study. I also had tutors for 2 of my 3 at this point. One had maths and science, one had English and science. One didn’t want and managed to teach themselves,

i find keeping year 7 & 9 fairly pressure free means they’re not disillusioned and are not burnt out by the time GCSE start.

I think in Y7 it's perfectly reasonable that they don't, but do show an interest in what she's learning and offer to help if needed. But do start to encourage it gradually after that but don't have too high expectations. DD put in work, doing extra questions to test herself, etc. DS is very diligent in doing homework but almost impossible to get him to do anything else - we kept thinking "he needs to learn for himself, we can't force him" but in the end we pretty much forced him to in Y11 by setting him work, testing him, etc, so he had some chance to meet his potential at GCSEs (and he did well, but took huge amount of effort from us) but he's now in Y12 and feels like we're back to square one!

Our school were setting homework for each subject but got so many complaints from parents saying their children couldn’t cope they cut it all the way down to English, Maths and Science with optional extra.
My children are expected to do the extra if they want extra video game time, they always do so work that little bit harder (probably 1 hour a day) and will hopefully absolutely smash their GCSEs with the natural routine of study already implemented into their schedule.

At 11 she is doing enough!!! Violin, swimming badminton horse riding , school and keeping on top of homework. Also reads?? When is she allowed to be a kid. Stop being so regimented. My daughter is 16 with straight As so it’s not like I’m not an advocate of children applying themselves and studying hard but you need to let them live a little as well!!!

That's more than enough to keep her fully occupied in addition to homework. At most, encourage her to read a bit more.

I know that sounds like a lot of activities but violin is at school

Does she practise every day at home? If not, she should.

Yes YABU to expect extra study beyond homework after school.

She spends all day at school, it's too much for an 11/12 year old kid. If she does her homework then that's fine!

Other aspects of life are just as important for developing as a well rounded person.

I left it to school to set and mark homework and my kids did it. I would never have suggested they go above and beyond what the school had set.

There is so much work and pressure later on with GCSEs and A levels. I would support the workload being pretty low in year seven and eight, as the later years are so full on and tough. My kids left with all A stars etc. I see zero need to push kids extra in years seven and eight, unless there is a specific academic issue to address.

How does she decompress from a day of masking and over-stimulation all day at school? I'd far rather see her develop healthy techniques for this and spend some time after school doing that, then extra learning activities.

Year 7 is in some ways a lot like reception, they are the babies of the school and the most important thing in that first year is to settle in. It’s quite hard really. In year 6 they’re happily playing without a care in the world, then by the end of the first term they usually stop their playground games and tend to either get rid of their toys or play very quietly in secret! It’s a lot really. Adjustment, settling in, having a good attitude about school is the most important thing in year 7.
I’d worry more about getting into the habit of studying the year before GCSE’s start, so year 8 or 9 depending on if they start in year 9 or 10 at her school. I’d introduce it as a ‘study hour’, she can use khan academy, whatever resources school offers etc. But I wouldn’t worry about it yet.

I teach at secondary school. If she is completing her homework I wouldn’t be giving her anymore. When the school said they’re expectations of an hour homework per day, does this include reading? Our school expects children to complete at a minimum of 20mins per day. So if she finishes her homework get her to read a book. Literacy is one of the most important skills to continue to improve on as it affects all aspects of schooling, and has a massive impact in the long run of attainment. You would be surprised just how low reading ages children have in school, nowadays it’s not unusual for children to enter secondary school with reading ages of only 5-6 years old.

You are expecting too much, as long as she is doing her homework thats enough

I agree there is little point at Primary. My DD's school only had homework in Y6 where they were practicing for their SATs.

That sounds good. We did a lot of BBC Bitesize during Lockdown.