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Original poster

Can you help me draft an email to DS's Y2 teacher about this homework without appearing to be one of those parents

65 replies

Preminstreltension · 20/11/2015 21:32

DS is in Y2 but is the youngest in the class so only turned 6 in August. His literacy homework has repeatedly been ridiculously advanced in my opinion but this week's just tipped me over the edge. It's about idioms and the sheet explains that idioms that are overused become clichés. My six year old was Confused just by the introduction. Then the first task is to work out the meaning of the following:

  • He has given up the ghost
  • I keep putting his back up
  • She has been taken for a ride
  • Lets not beat around the bush
---and several others in the same vein.

To be fair the answers in this are multiple choice so he had a chance of guessing some of them although he has never used them and probably never heard them but then it goes on in part 2 to ask for explanations of:

  • Past her prime
  • Dawning of a new age
  • Idols of the silver screen
  • Par for the course

and then to work out where these idioms are derived from (golf, weather etc)

I would actually find any six year old who was familiar with these phrases pretty odd. I tried them on my very literate 9 year old who was baffled by most of them.

The school has form for this but I've always just sighed and helped him through it. This time I'm really annoyed and want to explain to the teacher (newish and youngish but in any case I think it's the TA who sets the homework) that this is, in my opinion, not at the right level. The problem is that I don't want them to conclude that either a) my son is an idiot who can be discounted (school is very high achieving and only cares about the hothoused kids anyway) or b) I am some hippy dippy moany mother who is trying to tell the teachers how to do their job.

Any nice, emollient suggested wordings? Or do you think this is ok for this level?

OP posts:
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SarkyMummy · 21/11/2015 22:32

I feel like I could have written this post. My DD is a summer baby in year 1 and goes to a 'pushy' state school. I'm regularly taken aback by how challenging the homework she's given is (though appreciate your example is particularly exrtreme) and spent many a weekend bribing and cajoling her to persevere with it. I didn't want to be either of the types you described. Only recently have I had a moment of clarity and decided not to put either of us through the agony - if it's too hard or our we're too busy, we don't do it. Takes some parental balls though - and immunity to competitive noise from fellow parents.

Meanwhile, I continue to be thoroughly depressed by the expectations set out in the new curriculum and get the impression it's a source of stress for teachers. There must be a pushback movement out there. Or is it just the lone voice of Michael Rosen, pleading for a curriculum that actually instills a love of learning in children?

mrz · 22/11/2015 07:51

examples.yourdictionary.com/idioms-for-kids.html
Yes it's a piece of homework that requires parents to talk to their child. Like metaphors synonyms and other grammatical features idioms can raise writing and are great for developing inference in reading.

BikeRunSki · 22/11/2015 07:59

My Y2's English homework this weekend was a list of 10 words, which he had to think of as many as possible rhymes for. He wouldn't have a scooby about the OP's homework.

DamnCommandments · 22/11/2015 08:02

DD (Y2, age 7) knows about idioms from school. When asked she suggested "sour grapes". So I think the idea of the homework is not massively wide of the mark. However, she didn't recognise any on your list. We don't generally do much homework (teacher says it's voluntary) so I'd just talk to her about these expressions, I think, and not hand anything in. In our school, I wouldn't bother raising it. Appreciate yours might be different...!

user789653241 · 22/11/2015 10:01

My Ds loves this kind of thing! Seems a bit difficult for him(YR3), but he would have a go and start using these in everyday conversation.

Mrz, thank you for the link. It's great.

BertrandRussell · 22/11/2015 18:59

Of the 8 you list, my very literate 14 year old knew and could explain 6. He knew that par for the course was golf related but thought it meant really good, not just OK. He didn't know "gave up the ghost" which surprised me- I thought he would. We're an atheist family but he goes to church on special occasions with grandparents- he must not have been listening!

mrz · 22/11/2015 20:34

I don't think it's necessary to know the origins of "give up the ghost" to be able to work out its meaning

BertrandRussell · 22/11/2015 20:47

Possibly not- but ds couldn't. Even though he has heard the gospels being read at Easter almost every year of his life. So if he couldn't with that background knowledge I'm not sure that others could...

user789653241 · 22/11/2015 20:59

Personally I think this is a great homework. Yes, I agree it's advanced for YR2, but this is kind of homework that can extend into fun learning for children.

BertrandRussell · 22/11/2015 21:13

It's ridiculous homework for 6 year olds! They couldn't possibly do it without help- many of them are idioms that most kids will never have heard.

Geraniumred · 22/11/2015 21:27

It would be appropriate homework for adult students learning English as a second language, not for six-year olds. Also, some of the examples given are not often heard. Looking at fun ones such as 'raining cats and dogs' or 'He's driving me up the wall' might be better.

user789653241 · 22/11/2015 21:33

That's the point! If it's meant to be done independently by a child, it's ridiculous, I agree. But finding out meanings and talking about how it's used, coming up with a sentence could be fun thing to do, at least for me and my ds.

Maybe because I'm not English, and I don't get these easily myself, so learning new phrases, idioms and words etc. has always been a fun activity for us.

Bubbletree4 · 22/11/2015 21:45

I wouldn't write to the school. IME every time you fuss, you get a smack in the face for it. FWIW, work surrounding idioms (if that's what they are called) has been done in school with Y2/3 in our school. Although not sent home.

I can see the work is too difficult for your DC and too difficult for many Y2s to complete alone. I'm sure you could guide your 6yo through it. I have a 7yo in Y3 and I could easily guide her through it or she could search on the iPad "beating around the bush meaning" or whatever. I also have a 9yo with ASD who can easily do this. With the aid of an iPad obv!

I would just do it and forget about it.

BertrandRussell · 22/11/2015 21:51

"That's the point! If it's meant to be done independently by a child, it's ridiculous, I agree"

You cannot assume that children have someone at home ready,willing and able to help with homework. That is just hugely unfair.

user789653241 · 22/11/2015 22:10

Sorry, I understand what you are saying.
But At my ds's school, there is homework club which any child can pop in at lunch time every week, run by a each year group teacher, if they need any help.

Geraniumred · 22/11/2015 22:13

Your ds's school sounds great, irvine.

BertrandRussell · 22/11/2015 22:18

And you're seriously expecting a 6 year old to decide that they are going to forgo playtime for homework help? And that it's a good idea that they should??

user789653241 · 22/11/2015 22:28

I really don't know what to say, Bert.

I just think how you do your homework is up to you, I think. If you think it's pointless, just don't do it. I personally enjoy doing it with ds, and our school encourage parental support, and providing help in case it's not possible.

If there is homework beyond my help, and I suggested my son to go, he would have, last year, when he was 6.

mrz · 23/11/2015 06:34

You don't need to know their meaning but you can infer their meaning that's why it's a useful exercise and definitely one that would benefit from discussion.

Original poster
Preminstreltension · 23/11/2015 09:58

Just a bit of background - I am a single parent who works FT and has another child so the children need to be fairly self-starting with their homework as I just don't have two hours to spare on this at the weekend given that there was another hour or two of maths homework at least plus reading plus spelling plus times tables plus my 9 year old's homework (example of hers from a couple of weeks ago was 10 philosophical questions about beauty including "Can a picture of flower ever be more beautiful than a flower?" so that also needs a fair bit of parental support).

I know that some other parents have basically done it for their DCs - the DCs having no idea what the answers were. My son understands the concept and he knew one or two of them (under the weather for example, and was able to have a guess at some of the others) so I'm not worried about the underlying literacy principle which he grasps. We can and do talk about use of language but this seemed to be clunky and poorly thought through.

Just to give you all the full picture, the last bit of the exercise is to write this out in plain English:

Ladies and Gentlemen, I speak from the bottom of my heart. When I saw the bomb damage I could hardly believe my eyes. We will leave no stone unturned. We will go to the ends of the earth to find the villain of the piece. We will protect the innocent victim. There is light at the end of the tunnel. This government will stay by your side through thick and thin until we have weathered this storm.

DS could write this out if I dictated a new version to him but what the hell would be the point of that? The majority of children in our class do not have a native English speaking parent so although the parents might have enjoyed looking up what these all mean, that's not usually the point of homework!

OP posts:
user789653241 · 23/11/2015 10:13

I agreed with what you are saying until I read last sentence, OP.

Top 4 children in literacy in my ds's class are children of non native English speaker...

user789653241 · 23/11/2015 10:39

And I wouldn't spend 2 hours on this either. I will give him some guidance (and give him some links like MRZ's) and let him get on with it, while I'm doing something else. Once he has done his bits, then I would sit down with him and help him, talk with him etc.

For the last exercise, I would ask him if he understood, if not, talk about it, and let him write down his version. It doesn't have to be perfect.

SoDiana · 23/11/2015 10:57

I am a previously church going, semi literate, avid reading, native English speaker and I don't know what 'give up the ghost' means.

Without Google, teacher would knowthat not only my cchild is thick but also the mammy!

Keeptrudging · 23/11/2015 11:06

I'm a teacher. I agree with a PP, this homework is bonkers! Perhaps you should suggest to the teacher that they need to do a lot more work on this in class before it's set as homework. Homework should be familiar to the child and used as reinforcement, not a randomly photocopied/inappropriate page.