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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

Does this seem like alot of homework for yr 2 ?

37 replies

MrsMorgan · 30/11/2009 11:29

In yr 1 and up until now, ds had 1 maths sheet and 1 literacy sheet a week plus 5 spellings.

He is struggling generally at school and so it was a battle to get him to do it, but I always make sure he does. 2 sheets can take over an hour though.

They have now changed the homework (in preperation for sats [hmm), and he has the following.

A sheet with 6 circles on, labelled Who, What, Where, When, Why, and I felt. He has to write key words in the circles on whatever the topic is (this week it is a party he has been to).

Next he has another sheet with the same headings on again, but this time in each box he has to write a sentence, using his ideas from the first sheet.

Then finally, he has to use all of the previous information to write a recount about a party he went to.

This is in addition to a maths sheet and a list of words he needs to be able to read and spell by the end of term.

I think this is way too much. Even if I split it up it is still going to take ages. Last week it took him over an hour to write 4 sentences.

Does anyone else have a child in yr 2 with this much homework ??

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TeamEdward · 30/11/2009 11:33

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Original poster

MrsMorgan · 30/11/2009 11:39

Oh his teacher knows he is struggling, and yep he is struggling in class too, mainly because of his poor concentration.

He has an iep which his teacher isn't sticking to, but it is being reviewed this week hopefully.

I have nothing against him being given homework, I just think this is way too much.

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smee · 30/11/2009 11:45

Sounds absurd to me too. Even for a child who's doing well academically it seems like a lot. Why don't you just do one of the sheets (or a bit from literacy, a bit from maths) to show willing and send it in with a note saying 'DS took x amount of time to do this, so any more would have been too much for him. If you want to discuss this with me, please let me know.'

Original poster

MrsMorgan · 30/11/2009 11:49

I have done that twice before smee, and the teacher wasn't impressed. I think I wrote 'ds has only completed half of his homework because he found it very hard and ended up in tears'.

Later I spoke to her about it at parents evening and she said that it shouldn't have upset him because they had gone over it in class.

I think I am going to bring it up at his iep review. The new senco was his old reception teacher and as she also taught my other 2 dc so I feel more comfortable telling her what I think iykwim.

His current teacher has this annoying habit of, everytime I tell her he is having a problem with something, she then awards him a certificate in exactly the thing I spoke about, as if to say, 'no see he is fine'.

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GooseyLoosey · 30/11/2009 11:53

That seems a lot to me too. Ds (in yr 2) has never had that amount of work.

Would bother ds as well, as although very accademically able, no one ever invites him to parties, so it would make him feel bad and would therefore piss me off on that account as well!

Crocky · 30/11/2009 11:58

My ds is in year 3. He has maths and English homework each week.
He struggles with school and also has an IEP.
I sent a note back in with some homework saying that it has taken him two hours to complete it.
The teacher called me in to school and told me that each piece of work should only take half an hour and if it takes longer than that then he hasn't understood it and she needs to be aware of that. So now I time his work and what isn't done in that half hour gets left undone.

ihatethecold · 30/11/2009 11:58

at my kids school, they recommend that the kids only have 30 mins to do homework, after that, stop and hand in what has been achieved,

that seems far too much h/w for yr2.
try speaking to the head?

Crocky · 30/11/2009 11:59

Except he is not in year 3. He is now in year 4
Where does the time go?

smee · 30/11/2009 12:22

MrsM, she sounds more than a bit annoying. I'd stick to your guns. Tell DS you'll set the timer for half an hour and so long as he concentrates and tries that'll be it. Give him a treat once the timer pings if he's stuck to his end of the bargain. If she doesn't like it, then go to the head or SENCO.

AtheneNoctua · 30/11/2009 12:22

Everyone is different. DD is in year 2 and I would actually be quite happy with that level of homework.

We always do homework in bits and pieces. So say 30 minutes a day and not 2 hours at once.

But, as you say, if your son is not relly coping and in fact has a documented IEP, then forcing him is obviously a risky strategy because it might just make him hate school.

Actually, DD was like this with reading a couple of years ago, and I had a very negligent laid back appraoch to it. But she came along in her own time when she decided she wanted to read.

PlanetEarth · 30/11/2009 12:41

Try going over the teacher's head!

My DD was getting far too much homework at about age 8 (an hour a night and it still wasn't finished). I kept a homework diary for a week of all the tasks and how long they were taking her, then sent it in a letter to the head and teacher, saying I didn't want to undermine them but wouldn't make my child do this much homework. They called me in for a meeting, turned out the head agreed with me over the time and nature of the tasks (some too difficult, e.g. a project which needed much parental help, some rather pointless e.g. draw a picture) and the amount of homework was drastically reduced.

How do other parents feel about the homework? (Other parents agreed it was too much but none had thought to challenge it).

Original poster

MrsMorgan · 30/11/2009 12:42

Thanks

Ds just seems to get so completely overwhelemd with homework, and work in class. I break his homework up into bits, but it just takes so long as he fidgets constantly and I must end up repeating myself about 100 times.

My elder dc would have coped fine with this amount of work but I still think that for year 2, it is too much.

At the moment this is just something else to add to my pro list of finding a new school.

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Original poster

MrsMorgan · 30/11/2009 12:44

Planet - From what I can tell, other parents also disagree with the amount of homework being given, even those whose children are more able.

Hopefully when ds comes home today he will have his appointment for his review. I am going to make some notes of my current concerns because I always forget what I want to say.

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tiredemma · 30/11/2009 12:47

I hate the amount of homework that they get.

Whatever happened to only getting homework when you start secondary school???

Why is it necessary to push homework at such a young age??

MollieO · 30/11/2009 12:47

Don't know about year 2 but my year 1 ds gets two reading books a night, two words to write out a number of times plus 10 spellings a week.

It doesn't sound like a huge amount of work to me but if he is taking over an hour to write 4 sentences then clearly that is too long. If his teacher isn't sticking to his IEP then you need to involve the head of year and/or head to ensure that the amount of homework he is getting is appropriate for him.

I know in ds's class children get homework according to their ability, eg some get 4 spellings and one book etc.

Original poster

MrsMorgan · 30/11/2009 12:49

God knows emma. I am sure we only started getting homework in yr6.

I am sure it does benefit some children, but it has the opposite effect on ds.

My main concern is, that if this is the amount he is getting in yr2, then what will yr 3 be like ??

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tiredemma · 30/11/2009 12:55

Well some weeks we quite simply dont do it, it depends on what is going on at home.

I did tell them at last years parents evening that homework will be done when it can be facilitated. Last week for example was a really busy week at home for us so neither boys handed any in.

They behave at school, and pay attention- I think that they should be given a break. Especially DS2 (age 6)- he cannot do homework without me there, and if im not there then it wont be done.

I feel that far to much importance is placed on homework, and for anybody especially in KS1, that is ridiculous.

clown7 · 30/11/2009 13:04

Hi I am a year 6 teacher and would say that is a surprising amount of h/w for a Y2 child, especially one who struggles with classwork. The literacy task surprises me as it is all of the steps of a piece of literacy work. For my Y6s I would send how the planning sheet or writing part of the first draft or the final write up. Never would I expect the children to do the whole task at home as if they got stuck or went off track they might not have help available. Plus it could take HOURS. I would go directly to the teacher and ask how much time she expects a child to spend on h/w each week/night and then stick to that timing exactly. Yet if your child cannot do a task without loads of help I would inform the teacher and not complete the task at all. Something is going wrong somewhere if your son needs so much help to finish a piece of work. H/w is supposed to supplement classwork and be something that a child can do independently or with only a little support. Often some children in a class get no parental help with work so the task must be at the child's level.

coppertop · 30/11/2009 13:10

That sounds like a lot of work, MrsMorgan.

I have a ds in Yr2. The only real homework he has is reading and a few spellings to learn for a test.

Mcdreamy · 30/11/2009 13:13

DD gets that much homework AND a half termly project. This half term she has to design and present a new toy FC should make for next years Xmas!!!! I feel it's way too much, we really struggle to find the time to fit it all in.

We are about to change schools (moving area) and I know the new school focuses on reading for the main part of homework.

Original poster

MrsMorgan · 30/11/2009 13:33

Blimey Mcdreamy, is your dd in yr 2 ??

I would be more than happy for him to read each night, have a few spellings and then perhaps one simple worksheet, but this is just ott imo.

Apparently, another local school does not give proper homework to their pupils until they are in yr4, which I think is far more sensible.

My plan of action for now, is to bring all of this and everything else up at his review meeting. Once we have all agreed on the way forward I am going to closely monitor wether they stick to his iep targets. If by Feb half term things haven't improved, then I am going to start viewing other schools.

As much as I hate to move ds from his friends, I just cannot shake the feeling that this school is not right for him.

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Mcdreamy · 30/11/2009 13:35

Yes she is Y2 but the classes are mixed Y1/Y2 and the amount of homework is the same for both years

LimburgseVlaai · 30/11/2009 13:47

That sound like a lot - and the teacher sounds as if she is totally focused on scores rather than on what is best for the children in her care.

At my dd's school, homework was creeping up. The Head then decided that, at such a young age, it was crazy to overburden children with so much work, and they should have time to play. Homework was then scaled right back as appropriate for each year. In year 2 she had spellings and her reading book, and that was it. I feel very lucky that we have such a great Head!

Is there a PFA at the school? If other parents feel the same, could you bring this up at their next meeting, or speak to a PFA member?

Original poster

MrsMorgan · 30/11/2009 13:56

One of the mums is a memeber of the PFA but she is also an ex teacher and I gather she thinks the homework is fine.

Mcdreamy, that is absolutly ridiculous.

Thinking about it, the homework has crept up since the new head started in Jan.

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Original poster

MrsMorgan · 30/11/2009 13:57

Oh I also meant to add, that if a pupil doesn't do the homework then they are made to do it on a Friday afternoon during what should be Goldentime.

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