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Primary education

Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

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Original poster

A "Sleep Diary" as homework!

42 replies

SouthernShepherdess · 11/10/2012 22:50

Just looked in my daughter's homework book as usual to see what her teacher has set for the week..only to be somewhat taken aback that there is a "sleep diary" for this week. It say's on the same piece of paper that "we have been learning in Science this week about the importance of sleep etc" and then it has a list of the days..Thursday through to next Wednesday (when the hw is usually collected). It asks them to put down for each night incl the weekend what time they went to bed and what time they woke the following morning..that's for a whole week. Then it asks her to list what day she slept the longest! On the otherside of the same sheet of paper she has to draw a plan of her bedroom and also it asks if she has a favourite toy she takes to bed and/or a favourite story. My dh did not like the idea of this hw at all..he says it is prying and overstepping the mark. She is in Yr2 btw..her other teacher never even set homeowrk hardly at all! So this has come as a surprise! Is this the norm for some teachers? Can't help but think she is being nosey..what are your thoughts please!

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Startailoforangeandgold · 12/10/2012 10:45

Food diaries are a pain in the arse, certain to appear on very busy macD and Gregs weeks

Beanbagz · 12/10/2012 10:45

Check out Where Children Sleep. It can lead to some very interesting discussions with children about the inequalities in the world.

ByTheWay1 · 12/10/2012 10:52

We have done the sleep diaries and food diaries - I don't think these are any bloody business of the school, so we just made it up -on the Friday morning it was due - like most parents..... easy....

Houseworkprocrastinator · 12/10/2012 10:54

I would have thought children learn better when they can relate with the subject matter. The teacher could have just given them a worksheet but that wouldn't be as interesting or the child. I really don't think that is ment to be a stealth investigation into your parenting and I am also guessing that a teacher can probably spot a child who doesn't get enough sleep regularly without the need for a questionare about it.

As for the Monday morning diary I always mention something to my daughter that she could write. Hopefully to stop her writing "we stayed in our pyjamas all day, had a takeaway pizza, mummy tripped over the cat and said a naughty word"

CitrusyOne · 12/10/2012 11:38

I would expect that they are going to do some data handling on the results. Bar charts etc and say "x amount of children get x amount of hours sleep" etc. It 's not about it being no business of the school, or about teachers judging you for how much sleep your dc get- the teachers couldn't give a shit either way, it's a way of gathering information that's real for the children. Also, at my school we're encouraged not to set 'worksheet' homework- rather to set something that supports and builds on class work, which this sounds like its doing- there's a purpose behind it and the dcs can use it in class.

pizzaandpinot · 12/10/2012 12:14

I think my year 2 DD would quite enjoy doing that. Just make it up if you feel so strongly about it, then at least your DC can participate.

wordfactory · 12/10/2012 12:18

Too little sleep is a huge issue for too many DC.

Hopefully homeworks like this might get some DC and their parents thinking about it.

mrsbaffled · 12/10/2012 12:36

Sounds fine to me. We have to do food diaries occasionally, and they are far harder work!

CailinDana · 12/10/2012 12:36

Yes as Citrusy said, the teacher couldn't give a shiny shit how much sleep the children are getting - I'm very amused by the idea that he/she will actually have time to look at what's written beyond checking that it's actually done. The teacher has thousands of others of pieces of paperwork to deal with - he/she won't be making extra work, believe me!

ImaginateMum · 12/10/2012 18:42

Personally? I think it sounds just fine and that you need to think a little less hard about it.

desertgirl · 12/10/2012 18:51

am doing a food diary and a 'what I did for exercise' and 'what I did for relaxation' diary this week, (err, supposed to be. haven't really wrapped my head round the relaxation bit, that's tomorrow's task) ('fit and healthy' unit of enquiry at the moment) and really feeling about them, especially the food one (both DC are ridiculously picky eaters).

But what on earth does a 6 year old do for relaxation? reading and watching TV; is there anything else? most of the time said 6 year old is not what I would call relaxing.....

desertgirl · 12/10/2012 18:52

anyway v. glad to hear teacher won't actually be reading the food stuff!!

teacherwith2kids · 12/10/2012 19:32

I might - perhaps - set the sleep diary as a practical maths / data investigation (though I tend to use 'time for your journey to school' as it involves reading clocks to the nearest minute and can get into interesting comparisons about mode of transport and relative speed to the school gate) but I wouldn't do the 'plan of your bedroom' one. It seems to me to risk an intrusion into the lives cultures of our pupils - we have many Travellers, and as they live as a large extended family, many children may stay overnight in a number of different trailers and chalets over the course of a week rather than having their 'own bedroom'.

The housing situation of some of our other pupils is very much less than ideal, too, with lots of people in very small spaces, and many of these families might feel very uncomfortable with a homework which assumes (tacitly) that a child has a room designated as 'their bedroom' and that it's not shared with the whole family / consists of a pull out bed in another room / a single bedsitter for parent and child etc.

Not a homework I'd set, put it that way.

BlueSkySinking · 12/10/2012 21:49

I can't see the problem. I do think most kids don't get enough sleep - and that causes problems in school. It's quite good to help children see the connection and review what could be keeping them awake.

MistressIggi · 12/10/2012 22:04

I think it sounds fun.
But I think you and your dh should send a letter in to complain anyway, as it will forewarn the teacher that she has a pair of daft parents to deal with on parents evening.

CitrusyOne · 13/10/2012 08:52

at iggi!

ImaginateMum · 13/10/2012 12:26

teacherwithkids Thank you for your caring and insightful post. I hadn't even thought of it that way. Our school doesn't have any traveller children as far as I know, but two local schools do have large traveller communities, so it is a very good point. You've also made me reflect on the large number in council housing or with two homes because of divorced parents. One of my best friends, in fact, is currently sleeping the whole family in one bedroom as the other two rooms have terrible leaks which the council is not fixing as the building is soon to be demolished.

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