Parents- do you expect your CM do complete homework with your child?

[NickNacks]

Just a general survey really after a parent has asked that I read with her year one child each evening. I have replied that I don't really feel I have the time, peace and quiet or indeed feel it's my responsibility to do this.

Each evening i care for 5 school aged children (2 are my own) plus toddler DD and a baby mindee. They all get a home cooked two course meal and stay until 6pm. We get back from school about 3,45pm, have a snack, free play for an hour, tidy up at 5pm, dinner at 5,15 plus pudding and clearing table/getting things together for home time all takes us up to 6pm. I then have my own 3dc to do homework with, bath, spend one on one time with etc.

Do you think it was reasonable of me to say that I couldn't listen to them read/ do other homework with them? I am happy to provide a space and be on hand for general questions about homework for older ones.

I don't think it's usual and tbh I think it's a bit of a cheek. It's easy enough to read a YR1 type book either before bed or at bedtime. i know my cminder wouldn't have time - it's pretty much all go collecting all the dc, organising tea, changing and feeding the babies. Then cleaning up after them all. I don't think she gets much time to do her own dc's reading. I'm not a cm but I think it's an unrealistic request.

Childminding is not just about dropping off and collecting from school or feeding children 5 times a day ..it is also teaching children from an early stage and being proud of their achievements later on.

We can see that some parents are very understanding here while others may not be.....but I don't think that parents are lazy and we should not call them that in this forum...does nothing for our professionalism

doing homework at bedtime does not set a good routine for later years at all!
the whole point of child-minders is supposed to be a home from home set up, and at home you do not do your homework in bed!

In the ideal world yes a cm should be able to do homework as they are caring for that child and tbh I find homework is better done as soon as home from school - rather then nearer 6.30 by the time they get home and have a bath etc

Obv as a nanny I supervise all homework and listen to reading and spellings

If as a cm you have lots of after school children then harder but instead of free play there needs to be homework time

I understand that some cm don't want to have the hassle of homework but I certainly don't think the mum had a nerve asking

It depends on the homework. I can provide quiet space for a child to work independently, I can get a child to read to everyone, I can get everyone doing something similar to the school art project, but I can't do concentrated 1:1 work when I have 5 other children to look after.

As I said further up, I am very happy to provide a 'quieter' space at the table with me in the background to assist with any issues but I do think it is reasonable of me to say I cannot listen to each child read each evening as with 5 this work mean around 1 hour of the three I care for them. I don't think she was rude to ask but I must point out that it's also my own children who have to wait until 6pm to do homework so they can also have my full attention, as I believe the mindees should have with their parents.

I think in that case it is something that you need to spell out very clearly before taking a child on to make sure it suits the parent thinking of using your services. Particularly if you are taking on younger school children.

I don't think its UR to assume a home from home routine, which many would assume will include HELP with homework! So spelling out that while you do provide quiet space for independant homework you do not do 1:1 reading etc

I still don't see why any of them have to wait, yours or mindees, as when I au-paired for a large family I would sit them all up and go around the table giving them each a bit of 1:1 in turn while the others worked on whatever, I listened to the little 'uns reading and music more intensly while cooking their post school food

Parents who have 5 kids can do it, if you don't want to, okay that's fine so long as you disclose this from the off, but it's not at all un-doable!

NickNacks as I said before; your business, your rules. You don't have to offer a service you don't want to.

I do think though, that if you wanted to you could reach a compromise with this mum. You could say 'I'll do my best, but can't promise anything'. Then if you do get 10 mins to listen to him read, great, but no worries if you're too busy.

'I cannot listen to each child read each evening as with 5 this work mean around 1 hour of the three I care for them'

To avoid this problem you could listen to each child read twice a week after school, which mean only 20 minutes. I'm sure the other schoolies and even the two babies/toddler can entertain themselves for 20 minutes. If I were the mum I would find this a good compromise, 'No I can't listen to him read everyday because of the other children needing their turn to read, but I will be able to listen to twice a week'.

Two of my afterschoolers come twice a week. The youngest is in year 1. His mum asked if he could do his homework with me. Most of the time it only takes 5 minutes and he does it with great ease but there are some afternoons when he is really tired and just doesn't have the concentration to get it done. He always has a go but sometimes has to complete it with his parents when he gets home.

My ds gets his homework on a Friday to be returned on a Monday so homework is always a weekend thing for us but maybe I could incorporate it into our weekly routine as I now have a couple more afterschoolers this term and it sounds like their parents would be grateful if it could be completed before hometime.

If listening to reading, would you comment in the reading diary? I listened to mindee reading yesterday as it was only him and his sister here but I didn't feel it was my place to fill in his diary.

Very much depends on the children involved. My own dc do their homework after snack time and mindee who's same age as dd does hers then too. Smaller mindee just started school and sits with the older ones and does her homework but I think that's a novelty that'll wear off pretty soon. I don't force any of them to do it, just let them get on with it tbh (and can feel a bit smug that I've taken the pressure off their parents a bit)

I think, as well, we have to be sensitive to the parents who do want to do reading with their children.
I have worked with parents who would strongly object to me taking over what they see as an important parenting job. They want to know how their child is getting on first hand. They don't want to hear from me 2nd hand - they can get a report from the teacher.

That's what I mean when I query that parents apparently don't have time to listen to their children reading - I think that's an incredibly insulting thing to assume.

Other homework shouldn't require 1:1. If it does, there's a problem with the homework set, or the child is struggling, and the teacher should be made aware.
A private school locally is requesting signed confirmation that parents have not "helped" a child with homework. The purpose of it is to check a child's understanding, not to find out whether or not the parent or carer can remember his or her lessons!