Homework year 2

[dantdmistedious]

How much do yours get?

Since going back in September we are getting 15 spellings a week, 3 mental maths sheets a night, handwriting practice each night and a writing exercise each night. More at the weekends.

Plus reading every day.

Is this excessive? It's a battle. I don't want it to be a battle. Dts are late august birthday and were actually do in the October so they are effectively a year up on where they should be. Dh wants to complain and I don't know what to do!

Any advice?

My Y2 (at an independent school) gets-

• 10 spellings (tested on Fridays) and has to write them out twice during the week, and
• daily reading - supposed to be at least 4 pages but DD finishes the book every day and has it changed the following day.

That sounds quite a lot. My son is in Y2 and so far has had about 10 spellings and a few minute maths strips a week, plus they are expected to read for 25 minutes five times a week.

Sounds like a lot to me.

Since going back my yr2 DD has had

• one handwriting sheet
• one basic making thing that was to encourage her to follow instructions
• reading book comes home every night - sometimes she reads a lot, sometimes nothing - I don't make her do it.

That is a lot! Where is the fun time or down time after school?

My Y2 is in a so-called "academic" indie and gets:

• mental maths (so far just had times tables) and 10-12 spellings to be tested the following week
• 1 maths sheet, which is very straightforward and finished in

My DS in yr 2 reads each night for about 10 mins (school ask for 5 times a week). Each term we are given a sheet of topic based home challenges to chose from. I think they suggest doing 5 per term but they are not compulsory. No maths or spellings.......yet.

That sounds excessive! My DD is in an independent school which has a reputation (albeit not really justified) for being pushy and we get reading, weekly spellings which haven't appeared yet and half-termly topic homework for which they have some choice and it can be done over several weeks.

Apparently the maths is because they are following Singapore maths so they have to repeat what they didn't during the day at home.

Which is all well and good but if they didn't understand it in school they're not going to understand it at home!

When I taught year 2 I asked for 10 minutes an evening reading. I sent a short consolidation worksheet home on a Friday. That was it.

That amount of homework is absolutely ridiculous.

I am from one of those countries that think revision is the key to learning. So from start of school(6/7 years old), children gets revision homework everyday. It may not be a bad thing.
But I can see a quite big difference in parents' stance in primary education in western and eastern countries, so I can see there would be a problem arising. I think parents involvement required in my country and England is miles apart.

I would just let dcs do what they can. If it's too much, talk to the teacher.
I thought it was excessive at first, but if I remember my childhood, I did have few pages of worksheet every night, and it wasn't a big deal. But I can understand many English parents think it's too much.
I think it's the problem when they try to follow something from totally different culture.

Reading every night. Online spelling and maths if they wish.

10 spellings a week
Reading book changed three times weekly
One sheet of homework on a Fri.

Yours sounds excessive and it would cause a lot of stress in this house!

I had the equivalent of year one previously, and I think I gave them:

English spelling workbook activities (two tasks from a book - about half a page)
Reading every night
Mental maths or tables - about half an a4 page
Handwriting, very simple English task or Mathletics

But that was at the end of the year. I think yours is getting is a bit much this early in!

Wow, way too much!
Mine brings home a reading book, and is supposed to bring home a homework sheet every week, but I don't think she's had it every week so far.

As a deputy head in an infant school I would definitely say that's far too much - poor children! We do reading, spelling (10 words a week in Y2) and a fun maths game. There is also suggested mental maths practice. I'd go in and say your child isn't doing it. Do the reading as this is important and the spelling (16 words is also mad) and practise some maths skills -eg counting in the car, number bonds etc. That's enough - they are only 6 or 7 and that much work will just switch them off learning.

Wow, that's a scary amount.

DS has just started year 2 and gets:

• 10 spellings on Monday, tested on a Friday.
• 3 reading books a week. We used to get through these when they were short but have averaged reading 2 a week now they are longer. We don't read with him every night but he reads to himself before bed after I've read stories.
• Maths homework given out on a Friday to be returned for the following Friday. So far that has varied between 1 and 2 sheets and takes about 10 minutes.

How long does the school expect the work they've given to take? If your child goes to after school club how do they expect you to fit that it?

Good luck. I hope they see sense and change it.