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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

How much 'homework' is necessary / helpful in Reception?

46 replies

Bramshott · 05/03/2008 13:38

DD1 is in Reception this year - she was 5 in January, and is fairly bright and progressing well.

They have reading books home most days, and a writing worksheet to do over the weekend, which is fine, and I do these with her, trying to keep it fairly low key, and if she's too tired, we just don't bother, or I read her the reading book instead.

However, recently we have three lists of words that the school want them to learn to "read, write and spell correctly" with the injunction to "please do some words with your child each day".

Now maybe I'm just lazy , but DD is often tired when she comes in after school, and wants to watch a bit of telly, then play for a bit (dear God, she's only 5!). Anyway, I haven't been doing these words with her - I have stuck them on the fridge, and I did get her to go through the first set a couple of weekends ago, but she soon got bored and wanted to draw Letterland characters instead so I let her.

I know I should be thinking of creative ways to work on her words, and I'm sure there are other parents who are sitting their kids down for 'homework' after school every day, but to be honest, I worry that this is going to turn her off school, and turn it into a battle.

What do you think? Is she going to be permanently disadvantaged if I don't do this sort of thing with her seriously (rather than half-heartedly as I am doing now)? Am I just lazy? How much do you expect them to have to do at home in Reception?

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paddingtonbear1 · 05/03/2008 13:46

dd gets 1 lot of literacy and 1 lot of maths homework pw (usually some letters to practice and a number game), plus her reading books. We do also have tricky words to practice, is this what you mean? Only for sight learning though, she doesn't have to write or spell them! That sounds a bit much tbh. I don't expect dd to do them every day. It sounds like what you are doing is fine!

Dandi · 05/03/2008 13:47

feeling the same with my dd (4.10). We get different reading books twice a week, action words to practise at the weekend and they have just started sending 5 spellings home on a Monday for her to be tested on the next Friday. She has recently started not wanting to look at her reading book. She will also not write out the spelling words, though will spell them out loud to us. TBH, I'm just not pressing her. I will suggest we read the book and write the spellings, but if she doesn't want to, then we don't. I hope I'm not disadvantaging her - I just don't want to turn her off school. She's progressing well, ASAIK. I don't think you're being lazy at all . if your dd is anything like me, I suspect pushing too much might have the opposite effect

Dandi · 05/03/2008 13:49

oops, like mine

Hulababy · 05/03/2008 13:50

When DD was in reception last year during the terms the only homework she had was daily reading. In the holidays she had some very simple written homework to do that would take her about 20 minutes in total.

coppertop · 05/03/2008 13:51

It sounds too much to expect them to do spellings in Reception.

Ds2 is in Reception and has no written homework at all. They have their reading books and sometimes a short list of words to look at. Definitely no spellings.

FAQ · 05/03/2008 13:52

in reception DS1 had his reading book home (came home daily) which we were encouraged to read with them. And also he got his sight word "bookmarks" (bookmarks with list of sight words they had to learn to read - first few only had 4/5 on, the later ones had about 10). Again we were encouraged to help them practice them.

And that was it!

Even now in YR2 "homework" consists of

Reading book brought home (again encouraged to read it with them)

Weekly spellings (were told not to "push" it and suggested perhaps 2/3 times a week if they're particularly reluctant)

Sometimes along with the spellings they'll get a sheet to help them learn them - either one with the words mixed up (anagrams) which they have to unscramble, a wordsearch, or this week they have to look up the words in a dictioinary - the spellings are all tied into their phonics work so we're killing 2 birds with one stone when we do them.

We were also told we may get occasional maths homework.........I think we've had ONE lot since September.

They're very laid back about homework at DS1's school and are more concerned that the children enjoy learning than being bogged under with masses of HW at this stage.

cba · 05/03/2008 13:53

ds2 in reception and gets a reading book every night in addition to a writing sheet and weekly spellings to learn

paddingtonbear1 · 05/03/2008 13:53

spelling tests?!! in reception? dear lord I hope dd doesn't get any.

chloesmumtoo · 05/03/2008 13:53

Hi Bramshott, sounds to much to me. My dd in reception just done sounds followed by word cards to help her recongnise them in her reading books. Had some phonic actions also to learn but it was all pretty relaxed. She is in yr 1 now and certainly doesnt get spellings or have to spell things correctly that she can read. I remember her being tired and wanting her own time, like you said, so it just didnt work doing things after school. No, I dont think your dd will be disadvantaged. I think having to learn to read is hard enough without having to learn the spellings aswell. Importantly I feel the reading side of things is the most important, we do everyday before bed usually. My dd is doing very well and yet she can read but spells most things wrong. Said is eg 'sed' but its good as she knows in her head thats how it sounds and I am well happy with her progress and so is school. Hope this helps

Hulababy · 05/03/2008 13:54

I cna't understand spellings in reception. Surely some children are only just getting to grips with letter sounds and basic reading? Spelling tests for those children on top of this must be so stressful!

Hulababy · 05/03/2008 13:55

I am suprised at how much some Reception children seemto be getting! DD is at a fairly academic private school and even now in Y1 doesn't get as much as some of these listed here.

FairyMum · 05/03/2008 13:56

I don't agree with homework in the first years of primary at all except for reading with your child.
My children are too tired when they get home from school and need to recharge their batteries.
With 3 children we also struggle with allocating time to do homework set for the weekend with them and resent
that the school is dictating what I should spend my time with my children on. I much rather be running around with them
in the park or just hanging out than standing over them trying to get them to do their homework. Often ends in argument too.

FAQ · 05/03/2008 13:56

meant to say - DS1's sight words in reception were just to learn to read, not to write or spell.

I love DS1's school

Original poster

Bramshott · 05/03/2008 14:03

Thanks all - glad that most of you seem to feel the same!

They are not tested on these words as far as I know, and I guess they're learning them in school too, but it's words like and, the, look, like, went etc. At parents evening the teacher said something like "national targets are for all children to be able to read these words, but of course all our children can do that, so want them to be able to write and spell them too"!

I think I will just use the sheet to be aware of the sort of words they are learning, and see if I can introduce them into other stuff we are doing - pointing them out in books we're reading etc.

I agree that after school time is primarily for 'fun' - I'd much rather be playing Dora the Explorer with her than going through words!

Glad no-one thinks she will be disadvantaged by me opting out of doing this at home! I don't want to turn her off learning - as far as I am concerned, year R is all about settling down into school, making friends, getting used to the concept of learning etc, rather than making great strides in spelling!

OP posts:

FAQ · 05/03/2008 14:04

Another thing - can't remember what they said about HW in Reception - but at the YR2 parents evening at the start of the year it was stressed that 5-10 minutes was all we should aim to spend with them (ie don't sit there and drum this stuff into your DC so they start hating learning).

Original poster

Bramshott · 05/03/2008 14:05

That's interesting Hulababy - I wonder whether it's the dreaded Yr 2 SATs pressure on state schools?

I am very happy with the school in lots of ways, I'm just trying to strike a balance between DD realising that school is about learning, with turning her off school altogether - already she would rather stay at home and play, but then, hey, wouldn't we all. I am striking this balance by 'opting out' of these types of homework!

OP posts:

VanillaPumpkin · 05/03/2008 14:08

How ridiculous! Spellings???
I am shocked how many worksheets we get home, but they see, to be optional and don't need to be returned so some weeks we do them and others we don't. Like your dd my dd1 is sometimes just too tired.
We have a reading book home and look through that most days and imo that is enough for reception.
They should be learning about school imo, how to listen and share and co-operate in class, queue for lunch and handle a tray, try to go to the toilet during breaks, blow their own nose, get changed for PE, sit through assembly etc etc.
My dd is fairly bright and enjoying all the academic stuff to be honest, but if she wasn't all these worksheets and pressure would make me feel like crap and probably make her feel that way too. It is not necessary.
I am lucky I have a mother who is a primary school teacher and an Aunt who is an Early Years advisor at County level. Her words in particular to this would be Bollocks!
HTH

feetheart · 05/03/2008 14:08

DD is just 5 and initially got one 'sharing' book a week. She then started to get a few phonics a week. Now she gets some words (to read not write or spell!), a reading book and a 'sharing' book.
I too have worried about putting her off and have gone for the laid back approach and tried to make it as fun as possible. We sometimes do a bit when she gets home but not regularly as she is often too tired. We have played rhyming games at mealtimes, used our whiteboard, tried to make sentences using the words (the sillier the better) and done stuff on the computer. Writing on the frost on the car was good too!! Might sound a bit "creative" but its to keep me from being bored to death by it as much as her.

I think doing anything seriously at this age is very likely to put them off and that must be a bad thing. My attitude is that she is 5 and has at least 11 more years of formal education left, if we are all to survive that intact then it has GOT to be fun

VanillaPumpkin · 05/03/2008 14:09

that should be seem not see,

Hulababy · 05/03/2008 14:10

Possibly Bramshot. I don't know. I think some teachers/schools just sem to think that homework is necessary regardless of anything else. Which sis sad.

DD's class all managed to be doing really well by the end of the year without doing spelling tests and homework. So not sure if homework actually makes any academic improvements.

At DD's school they don't do SATs so no Y2 tess to endure. they do there own internal exams from prep 1, which is Y3, but still quite informal in first couple of years.

Madsometimes · 05/03/2008 14:43

dd2 gets a new reading book each night which takes about 2 minutes to read. She never gets any written homework or spellings. Written homework started in year 2 for dd1.

Dandi · 05/03/2008 14:59

I was a bit shocked with the spellings. DS now Yr2 at the same school didn't used to get spellings in reception. We have just got a new teacher. The words are all the phonic type words - lock, call, pick etc. They seem quite hard, but I think they're related to the phonic sounds they've done that week - they seem to be very into this synthetic phonics thing with regular sessions where they all chant the sounds

VirginiaWoolf · 05/03/2008 15:32

Well, DD is in Reception, part-time - starts fulltime after Easter as she's not 5 until the end of July. She has termly targets (6) which we are expected to work on at home, at least 1 reading book every evening and 15 spellings to learn a week (5 are high frequency words, 10 are a CVC pattern, hit pit bit etc) which are tested individually. We are rather shocked that she has this much (and I work in education!). I'd expected that in YR 'homework' would be regular reading with maybe 1 fun mini-project each week - go around your house with a grown up and list all the things with switches, that sort of thing.
This is a small village school, btw.

VirginiaWoolf · 05/03/2008 15:33

Oh, to be fair I should add that children are only given spellings to learn when the school feel they are ready, it's not the sme pattern for all pupils.

VanillaPumpkin · 05/03/2008 17:07

Blimey Virginia, that sounds a bit much . Are they trying to hothouse them?
How old is the teacher?

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