To tell teacher " we were having far too much fun in the garden this weekend to do homework!!!!

[stoppinattwo]

Or does the truth hurt??

They have SATS this week and again DS has been stressing about it on friday . He got very upset and worried. So i Thought bugger it... no homework this weekend and lets all play in the garden ....so we did

Im in the process of sending teach a letterr explaining that DS hasnt done his hwork and that is my fault not his, and I thought he really neede to chill out this weekend after being so upset.....and leading up to a busy week this week.

Please dont bite me about it

It is the SATs tests themselves that need looking at robina-the teaching has been done properly in the first place!
Schools need to do well because of the league tables. League tables should be abolished. Last year I was teaching in the school that came top of our district BECAUSE year 6 were a very intelligent bunch, they haven't got a hope this year-same school, same methods, same teachers but different children. The school my DCs went to will never be top because they have a lot of special needs (and high flyers), it is an excellent school.
Parents need to visit the school on a normal working day and ask questions.
Times tables are taught in schools but they need to be practised over and over again for instant recall-the teacher can't do that for the child-they need to do it at home.

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SATS ....... lies,damned lies and statistics . I cannot believe that any adult has been gullible enough to believe the spin generated by Labour over these 'tests'.

We lerant our time tables everyday in school.
It was part of the school day, have to say it has stood me in good stead I can still recite them thirty odd years later. Its this working out method of teaching maths than I find difficult to get my head round. As for SATS, every school up and down england has been pratciscing test papers since Christmas, the children are all fed up of them , if they learnt the basiscs then everything else would fall into place surely. That programme the other night was good. We had an open afternoon at my son's school today as one of his class teachers said, the SATS would be ok if it wasn't for the league tables I think a lot of teachers and parents feel the same. Leagues tables don't take in account the school environment, the setting, the facilities , gardening clubs school meals
etc etc. and as has already been written, SATS vary year on year because the children changes, how many people read theat into the equation........ Banish leagues tables first I say....

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Three cheers for you!

I clearly remember my mum taking me for a long walk in the Peak District (my favourite thing) the day before my Latin O-level. She thought I was better off having fun outside than stressing about exams, and I ended up with a PhD. So you are probably condemning your dcs to a life of academic greatness with such a healthy attitude...

Ah, all the most useful revision was done in the car on the way to school... and homework was done in the playground before the bell went. Happy days!

Totally agree with majority of posters. DS1 started a new school in yr 3 and gets hardly any homework - apparently this school doesn't put a great emphasis on h/w, tests etc

Several other parents are asking for more h/w and even moving kids to another school because they don't want them to get behind.

I'm just breathing a huge sigh of relief that I don't have to chase up work every night, do endless spellings etc. Home is for relaxing and learning things that aren't curriculum based.

Don't get me wrong, DS loves to read, for at least 30mins every night, & does Powerpoint presentations for the fun of it etc - he's a bit of a square

Teacher sets a small project once a month or so, which means he can do it when he has time/energy/inclination and enjoys it.

It sounds excellent threewisemonkey. It is much more important to have time to read for pleasure and play card games etc. I am not surprised that parents are asking for more homework or moving schools! I said in my first reply to the OP that parental pressure has caused homework to be set, it used to be very unusual in the primary school.

My DD in year 3 gets v little homework, just reading, which we hardly ever listen to because she's such a bookworm anyway, spellings and times tables which we always forget about. Her teacher says if she's not learning enough in school then she (teacher) isn't doing her job properly! She hardly noticed her year 2 sats last year at her old school, and its the same with tests this year. Seems to be no pressure at all, which imo is right - it should just be an assessment of wha they've learned so far, not an 'exam' with crammed learning to pass. She's only 7! Some schools must really get their pupils worked up, suppose they're passing on the pressure thats on themselves.

NKffff That's the sort of teacher we all need, I've always said that teaching the curriculum is the school's job - mine is to teach everything else

I went into after school to look for Y5 DSs lost jumper and there was a class of tired, hot Y6s having a 'revision class'
There is no way DS will be doing extra school after school - if they can't fit the learning into the school day - tough!
We go for a run in the forest, then do up to 30 mins homework, no more, on Sunday morning.
I have been encouraging him to do the longer holiday tasks if they fit in with family activities - Victorians in the village just needed a few photos and it was fun walking around looking for features.
Isn't "having fun in the garden" teaching children to have a healthy work/life balance?

My DS (Year 1) gets heaps of homework (far too much for my liking) - and some parents still complain that it's not enough...

My DS has just done a week of SATs as a Yr 4. Whilst he was much less stressed than last year it is still worrying for him. To add insult to injury, I have heard that our local secondary now re-tests all Year 7's anyway because they have found the SATs tests unreliable, i.e. they do not accurately reflect pupil ability as some schools "hothouse" pupils more than others. It's a complete joke.

Ever since my daughter started school (she's in Year 1), I've been feeling that there is too much emphasis on formal education at a very young age. DD's school is lovely and the kids seem very happy there, but they are already at 5/6 receiving 3 lots of homework a week: reading, spellings and a maths sheet. I often don't do it, because she's just too tired, and it puts a stress on the family. I also think it's my job as a parent to help her get balance in her life, and play. SATS are a government initiative to measure how children nationally, and schools, are performing against targets they have set. They don't affect your child's life.