DD's English homework...opinions please

[TheFirstLady]

So DD comes home today with her first English homework so far this year.
It went like this:
Write 10 simple sentences (subject, object, verb)
Join 10 pairs of simple sentences using the connectives and, but or or.

and (optional extensiion section)
add an extra clause to five simple sentences using a connective such as despite, whilst, however, since etc.

My question is - from this homework what year group do you think DD is in?

All replies gratefully received, but those from English teachers are particularly welcome .

ok, fair enough

This was my ds3's exact homework last night,except that he had specific words to be included in each sentence eg comfortable ,wonderful etc and every sentence had to include a connective and this should include a variety not just and or but .

He has just started year 4 ,admittedly he is bright but this was a whole class homework.

scooby doo?! I actually did LOL on first reading that (the post, not scooby doo books) but now... argh!

no advice OP but absolute sympathy - my DSDs' school (where DSS has just finished too) is really poor with this kind of thing. and they are now so used to being unchallenged that they see no reason to bother with anything. I could rant for hours about it. :(

To the posters who say the OP and DC should do stuff at home: what is the point of DC spending 6 hours per day being bored when they could be doing the "at home" stuff in that time?

Also, why is it acceptable to pay for a service (through taxes) and then have to do it yourself because the service is not delivering?

Your dd sounds very bright, she'll probably feel more at home once she gets to Oxford or something! I did well at school but didn't really care about the homework I did, just found it all pretty boring and an obstacle to going out with friends!

I agree, SDeuchars. I have accepted that I am going to have to do some heavy duty mopping up regarding the dc's education. It's not ideal but unfortunately necessary.

Sadly it seems that if you make a stand against dumbing down you might as well wear a hat emblazoned with "Farty Old Snob".

Seeker, I don't know for sure what level she is working at as hardly any work got marked last year, but the impression I got was that she was around level 7. But the school's reporting system is very vague so I can't be sure. She is bright, self-motivated, enjoys doing homework and comes home bubbling with enthusiasm for her "really fun" Maths, Science and History lessons. I just think it is a pity that all the "really fun" English has to be done at home. In my opinion if a school can't rise to the challenge of making English something that inspires pupils and encourages them to use their imaginations and enjoy the world of literature then they are failing those children badly.
But obviously that is too much to ask.

It's such a shame for your DD. There's nothing worse than a crap teacher for destroying a subject for you. I had a horrendous English teacher who killed 'Romeo and Juliet' for me at school. Luckily, my teacher for KS4 was amazing. So amazing, that I became an English teacher myself!

I really hope she gets a good one next year. It sounds as though the whole department needs an overhaul....

Year 7