My son is in 3rd grade. What that has meant so far is increased homework, from 45-60 minutes a night and weekends.
I was not happy this year when we received our first assignment for the weekend, read for 25 minutes and then write about it. Do kids ever get a break? Does non-stop school work help or hinder the learning process? When does it begin to feel like a huge chore and not an assignment?
The answers to those questions occured the Thursday immediately preceding the “Christmas” vacation. Call it whatever you like but in America, even when they decide it is too religious to put a tree in the Staten Island Ferry terminal, it is still Christmas. A menorah is usually included so I have no issue.
Christmas break, winter vacation, the name is unimportant. On that fateful Thursday we received a homework package. I was furious. Does anyone think torture is the way to educate? Because while we have a week day routine to do homework without complaint (93 % of the time), I could not defend the need to work continuously through a holiday. And, to further infuriate me the vacation homework was more than a regular nights worth of homework.
You know me to be a man of action. When I emailed the teacher she told me this homework was mandatory. All I cold think about was our friends who were already out of town, did you expect them to stop while in Disney to do book reports? I immediately wrote to the parent advocate at the NYC Board of Education. Her simple reply was that it is a school choice, but I could certainly call her the next day to discuss it. This is a helpful office and I appreciate their work.
The next days school email from a different 3rd grade teacher, representing the “team,”very carefully told us this homework was not mandatory. Great, I got my way and knew now that I would have to participate, that’s my crazy logic!
Needless to say we spent 2 different days doing some of the homework. My son perceived this to be torture and I could not disagree with him, he was not going to turn stupid if he had a break from school work for 10 days. In my humble opinion cramming education down his throat does not make it a positive experience, and that was how I perceived this.
No break from school work ever? My spouse and I go on vacations and don’t have to do office work on those weeks off. I see vacation time for adults and children as a time to refresh. I believe it is more important to give the kids a break from the ever increasing amount of school work they already receive. I seem to be in the minority with this, I await nycsinglemom’s response to this, her daughter and my son are finally in the same class!
I get it, this is the first year of testing, everyone is nervous. But I also have nieces who don’t have this issue and complete the vacation homework in the first day. That defeats the whole purpose of a week’s worth of homework, doesn’t it?
I was angry and will probably continue to be as we continue our education. Overloading the children does not seem to me to be the best way to educate them. Vacations are important, they are required at all American businesses that I know of, give the kids a chance to refresh as well!
My little sister is in 3rd grade now, but has had 20-30 minutes of homework a day everyday since starting kindergarten. She also has to read 20 minutes a day everyday at home and the “right before bed” reading doesn’t “count”…I guess because they don’t learn as much because they’re tired? So between the reading and the “real” homework its 40-60 minutes of homework a day. I remember getting homework (once – one day) in 4th grade and being EXCITED to have homework because I had watched my siblings have homework and thought it was a cool, older kid thing to have. My sister doesn’t get off the bus until 445, which leaves her 4 hours and 15 minutes before 9pm when she needs to be in bed. In that time she has an hour of homework to do, plus dinner and a bath which together probably takes at least an hour. So she ends up with less than 2 hours of “freetime” a day. and if my mom needs to run to walmart that night for milk and bread or if she has sports practice or a girlscout meeting she literally has zero time to play. I think that’s sad…8 year olds should have at least SOME time to play everyday.
I always believe that kids sgould have 10 minutes of homework per grade level a night, so a 3rd grader would have 30 minutes of homework. If a child can’t complete an assignment in that time frame, that is something to let the teacher know – either they are assigning too much or perhaps the child didn’t grasp the subject thoroughly. Homework over a vacation – not necessary or mandatory! I agree with you Mitch – there is so little family time during the weel with everyone so busy – leave vacations alone! My 1st grade granddaughter has an ongoing assignment to do 25 book reviews this year so we completed 2 of them over Christmas break, but again, not a mandatory thing – we used it as ‘together’ time.
I totally agree with you! Children should not have to do homework during vacation from school! Another issue is the amount of nightly homework! In our school district the rule is no more than one hour of homework a night. Of course the hour turn into several hours when children change classes for different subjects. Then they have 4 or more teachers giving assignments that take 30 minutes or more each to complete! My sons 3rd grade year was homework hell! He only had one teacher but she ignored the one hour rule. Almost every night was 2 hours homework! The classroom parents complained to the principal and was told that she looked into it and it wasn’t excessive. She went on to suggest that we make sure the children were managing their homework time properly! UGHHHHHH Luckily now my son is in the 8th grade and he doesn’t have a problem with homework. He does his homework when he gets home. It takes him less than an hour. Most nights he doesn’t even have homework. He is doing well and has always been a honor student and is a member of the JNHS. So I would say he manages his time pretty darn well and always has.
I can completely agree with you! My son is in 4th grade and they are really starting to overload him with homework. Is it not bad enough that he already HATES homework? He started hating homework last year in 3rd grade. It wasn’t too bad then. The 3rd grade “team” of teachers came up with a weekly homework chart that included several different activities that were each worth different points depending on the amount of work involved to complete it. Each student was asked to do any combination of the activities that would add up to a certain point value. This was okay because it gave them choices and they had a week to get it all done. Then summer break came and the teachers sent them home with a 3 month calendar and each day had one little activity that mostly involved math, with some reading and writing thrown in. My son was completely against doing it. It wasn’t mandatory, but they gave an incentive of a pizza party for students that completed it and returned it to their teachers the beginning of the next school year. My son didn’t do any of it and I didn’t pressure him to do it. Isn’t one of the perks of summer break to get away from school work and homework? Then this year for 4th grade, we got a similar calendar with daily activities to do over the Christmas break. Again, my son didn’t do it and I didn’t pressure him to do it. I sent it back to school with my son, with a note attached saying that I didn’t pressure him to do it, he didn’t want to do it and our Christmas break was supposed to be time to spend with family…not the school. When my son returns from the Christmas break, he comes home with a STACK of homework. Some of it was due the next day, some was due the next week and some was due the next month. REALLY!!?? In 4th grade!? No wonder my son hates homework. I thought this was just overboard and contacted the teacher. Of course, I had to make an appointment so that I could have a “conference” with the teacher. At this conference, the teacher said that the homework thy gave during the summer and Christmas break were not mandatory and wouldn’t count against his grade. The daily, weekly and monthly homework WOULD count against his grade if he didn’t do it. It would be okay if he got the answers wrong though. They were just to be given a completion grade for it. WHAT!? I was also told that the school couldn’t teach all the material that NEEDED to be taught throughout the school year and that is one reason homework is given. Another WHAT!? And I was also told that the other reason homework is given and in the amount it is given, is to prepare the student for middle (jr. high) school. I thought that’s what 5th and some 6th grades where for. I have never been a big fan of homework. I think one reason we send our kids to school is so they can learn what they need there…math, reading, etc. Home should be were they learn about life and living. I’m seriously considering homeschooling for next year.
You know what? No college is going to look at you son’s grades from when he was in elementary school to determine whether he should be accepted or not. When this kind of crap came up, I’d email the teacher, as you did, then just let it go. So what if my kid gets an “F” in ‘doing a ton of homework on Christmas vacation’?
I can’t help but wonder what happens to the kids who never have anyone make sure they do their homework? I am sure that a large percent of them are smart and understand what is being taught. They’re probably learning what they need to know during the day and don’t even need the extra work. Yet, as their grades go down merely due to lack of turning in homework (while probably still getting great grades in schoolwork and tests), these same kids start feeling that they must be stupid. They slowly stop trying in class. That’s when the trouble begins and we see delinquency & drop out rates rise.
LOL – I could go on for hours about this. As for your particular case, use your parental judgment here. Do you know your son is learning what he needs to learn? Does he need a break? Grades really aren’t as important as teachers and schools may tell you – at least not until high school.
Goodness, even children need a break! Vacation is family bonding time, and to bombard the kids with assignments like that seems excessive and unfair. Maybe one small assignment but not to that extent. Sheesh! Good for you for speaking up. The squeaky wheel always gets the grease!
That’s interesting…our teachers told us it was not mandatory when they handed it out. Interesting….
heidi C
My boys are young still, but I am dreading the whole homework issue because I too believe there can be too much homework!
My son is in 3rd grade & has just as much homework a night as a High School student…he gets discouraged so easily & it is so challenging for me to get him to do his homework…I have lost my head over the thought of the amount of homework he has to do each night….but according to the teacher it is required… 🙁 I feel your pain…& your son’s….
My son is in Kindergarten. He has homework. They get it on Mon and have to turn it in on Fri. One of my friends was like, “He won’t have homework! He’ll be in Kindergarten.” Wrong! Luckily my husband does most of it with him. He drops him off in the morning, so homework it is. That way our 3 year old isn’t around to bother them.
Yes I do think it’s silly to have homework over breaks and such.
The short bus, huh? Perfect.Reply by on August 25th, 2009 at Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 10:57 am@Finn, it’s ptetry fitting, eh?
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I agree here too. I somehow felt that the teacher’s were trying to “dump” their workload on the parents (especially during the holidays) – which became excessive and time-constraining – not only for the child but for the family as well.
Our boys are young still, but I believe there can be too much homework.
There’s way too much pressure on kids these days thanks to the “No child left behind” act. Luckily, my son’s school doesn’t do weekend or vacation homework (at least not yet. He’s in 4th grade and we haven’t had any since he started school), but I know there are schools across the nation that have removed recess so that the kids have more time to learn, and they’ve increased homework levels dramatically. I believe education is important, but so is having a childhood.
I think it’s crazy giving 3rd graders so much homework.
My eldest daughter is in 3rd grade. I have spoken with her teacher about homework and her teacher has said that all she wants out of the homework she sends home, is to get the kids and parents talking about what is going on at school. Homework doesn’t have to be done and doesn’t have to go back to school.
She also said that if the kids are quite ‘getting it’ after being taught for 5 hours a day then maybe there is something wrong with her teaching!
Needless to say we LOVE our 3rd grade teacher.
Rebecca