If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. |
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#11
|
|||
|
|||
Homework for a 5 year old - how much involvement needed.
polzovatel wrote:
Hi, I've got a question about homework for a 5 year old. My opinion is that you should encourage his independence even at this early age ,explain to the child what's needed to be done and how to do it , let him do it by himself as much as possible, leave it as it is if even it's not perfect and help him if he asks for assistance . My husband seems to think that he's got to stand behind his back all the time, point out every time when he does not form a perfect letter, rub it out and ask him to do it again and again... I think from such an experience the child might just hate the whole process in the future or alternatively expect detailed instructions and approvals from us when he's much older. Any views? Ask the teacher what he or she expects. It's a very tough line to walk. On the one hand, you don't want to get suckered into doing every bit of homework with him every time forever and ever. You want to foster some independence, and you also want the teacher to see a reasonably accurate reflection of his abilities and understanding. You also have to have a limit on how much you nag them to correct something. If they've made a reasonable effort, then back off and let it stand, even if it's not perfect. On the other hand, there is often an expectation that parents will be heavily involved in homework. My experience is that they don't really do much in the classroom ensuring that they learn to form their letters properly, and if you don't step in to some degree, they're *royally* screwed in third grade when they try to move to cursive because they're forming all their letters improperly. You do need to be aware of what's going on with the homework and make sure that there aren't areas where he's not developing the skills he'll need. Best wishes, Ericka |
#12
|
|||
|
|||
Homework for a 5 year old - how much involvement needed.
Ericka Kammerer wrote: On the other hand, there is often an expectation that parents will be heavily involved in homework. My experience is that they don't really do much in the classroom ensuring that they learn to form their letters properly, and if you don't step in to some degree, they're *royally* screwed in third grade when they try to move to cursive because they're forming all their letters improperly. I'm in complete agreement with this hand, and confess I will fall into the trap of the 'erase it and do it over' role w/r/t DD1's homework. Her penmanship is not great, and she still will write 5's and 2's backwards. This was fine, until they started having math homework (1st grade), where answering 5+7 = 15 (backwards 2) was not cool. I remember days and days of having to write circles, then vertical lines, then letter a, d, b, c, q, g and so on -- those days, AFAIK, are about as likely as kids still having a nap in 1/2 day kindergarten. So...I give her penmanship homework, big meanie that I am, and she's pleased that her teacher (who has a very hands-off approach to penmanship, except w/r/t math) has commented on her improvement. But heavens, did they run out of time to reinforce penmanship -- just for the sake of legibility, even -- in the elementary grades? Caledonia |
#13
|
|||
|
|||
Homework for a 5 year old - how much involvement needed.
Banty wrote: In article .com, Barbara says... SNIP I think homework for 5 yos is awful. So I'm not much help. Yeah - I think she should involve herself right to the school board. Banty A lot of 5 year olds are in first grade (school districts like NYC with a 12/31 cut-off; do any school districts still have a 1/31 cut-off?). No I'm referring to homework being given at such a young age. I admit I was being flippant.. Banty I knew that! It's just that when people refer to 5 year-olds, I think most people think kindergarten. But in school districts with later cut-off dates, that's not the case. NYC still has a 12/31 cut-off, so there's a lot of 5 year olds in first grade. When I was a kid in Philly, the cut-off was 1/31, so first grade was 1/2 over before I turned 6. While I don't advocate a lot of homework for first graders, I don't find it unreasonable, either. Barbara |
#14
|
|||
|
|||
Homework for a 5 year old - how much involvement needed.
Ericka Kammerer wrote:
snip You also have to have a limit on how much you nag them to correct something. If they've made a reasonable effort, then back off and let it stand, even if it's not perfect. On the other hand, there is often an expectation that parents will be heavily involved in homework. snip All of my kids' teachers have made no bones about the fact that they expect parents to correct the homework and ensure that it is done properly before it is turned in. They have told me that the reason they want us to correct the work is that if the child does it incorrectly and is not corrected, he/she will "pattern" the incorrect answer/technique and have a harder time learning the correct one. This remains the case even for my third-grader. Sigh -- Be well, Barbara |
#15
|
|||
|
|||
Homework for a 5 year old - how much involvement needed.
Caledonia wrote:
But heavens, did they run out of time to reinforce penmanship -- just for the sake of legibility, even -- in the elementary grades? Not in our school. I don't think they do the circles and lines thing (I remember that too ;-) but the teacher is upfront that she is pretty strict about getting the letters and numbers right, etc. She does not expect us to work on that at home necessarily but it is focused on at school. My son is 6yo and in first grade...and has a hard time with penmanship. -- Nikki Hunter 4/99 Luke 4/01 EDD 4/06 |
#16
|
|||
|
|||
Homework for a 5 year old - how much involvement needed.
Barbara wrote:
Banty wrote: In article .com, Barbara says... SNIP I think homework for 5 yos is awful. So I'm not much help. Yeah - I think she should involve herself right to the school board. Banty A lot of 5 year olds are in first grade (school districts like NYC with a 12/31 cut-off; do any school districts still have a 1/31 cut-off?). No I'm referring to homework being given at such a young age. I admit I was being flippant.. Banty I knew that! It's just that when people refer to 5 year-olds, I think most people think kindergarten. But in school districts with later cut-off dates, that's not the case. NYC still has a 12/31 cut-off, so there's a lot of 5 year olds in first grade. When I was a kid in Philly, the cut-off was 1/31, so first grade was 1/2 over before I turned 6. While I don't advocate a lot of homework for first graders, I don't find it unreasonable, either. I do. There's precious little evidence supporting the notion that homework for early elementary does *anything* useful. Encourage reading at home. Send home a list of spelling words for the week. But don't load them up with daily homework in first grade. It's just flat out ridiculous, and ultimately, I believe it has a lot of negative unintended consequences. Best wishes, Ericka |
#17
|
|||
|
|||
Homework for a 5 year old - how much involvement needed.
Barbara wrote:
It's just that when people refer to 5 year-olds, I think most people think kindergarten. But in school districts with later cut-off dates, that's not the case. NYC still has a 12/31 cut-off, so there's a lot of 5 year olds in first grade. When I was a kid in Philly, the cut-off was 1/31, so first grade was 1/2 over before I turned 6. While I don't advocate a lot of homework for first graders, I don't find it unreasonable, either. The cut-off date in Wyoming is 9/15, so most of our kindergarteners are six here. And Kirk's mother (a school counselor) says that unless the kids are six by -March- (the previous March), she strongly discourages them from sending them to school until the following year. Of course, now the kindergarten programs are full-day, not half-day, and the curriculum is probably half-way through what I did in first grade or so when I was in school. It was kind of a funny moment, really. We homeschool, which my MIL abhors, and I had commented negatively on the local school going to all-day kindergarten. "Our kindergarteners have had full days for several years, and they do just FINE. Most of them are reading by the end of the year!" I didn't, and haven't, pointed out to her that's because she -redefined- a kindergartener to nearly first grade age. Michelle Flutist |
#18
|
|||
|
|||
Homework for a 5 year old - how much involvement needed.
In article . com, Barbara
says... Banty wrote: In article .com, Barbara says... SNIP I think homework for 5 yos is awful. So I'm not much help. Yeah - I think she should involve herself right to the school board. Banty A lot of 5 year olds are in first grade (school districts like NYC with a 12/31 cut-off; do any school districts still have a 1/31 cut-off?). No I'm referring to homework being given at such a young age. I admit I was being flippant.. Banty I knew that! It's just that when people refer to 5 year-olds, I think most people think kindergarten. But in school districts with later cut-off dates, that's not the case. NYC still has a 12/31 cut-off, so there's a lot of 5 year olds in first grade. When I was a kid in Philly, the cut-off was 1/31, so first grade was 1/2 over before I turned 6. While I don't advocate a lot of homework for first graders, I don't find it unreasonable, either. I don't think it's reasonable or necessary in 1st grade. Banty |
#19
|
|||
|
|||
Homework for a 5 year old - how much involvement needed.
"Barbara" wrote in message ups.com... It's just that when people refer to 5 year-olds, I think most people think kindergarten. But in school districts with later cut-off dates, that's not the case. NYC still has a 12/31 cut-off, so there's a lot of 5 year olds in first grade. When I was a kid in Philly, the cut-off was 1/31, so first grade was 1/2 over before I turned 6. While I don't advocate a lot of homework for first graders, I don't find it unreasonable, either. My children go to school in a small district where the cutoff is 12/2. There is no homework in kindergarten at all, or in first grade until after the 1st of the year. And then homework is limited through junior high. Despite this the district tests extremely well, some say best in the state of California. So at least you know they aren't starting homework young to improve their standardized test scores. |
#20
|
|||
|
|||
Homework for a 5 year old - how much involvement needed.
"Ericka Kammerer" wrote in message ... Barbara wrote: Banty wrote: In article .com, Barbara says... SNIP I think homework for 5 yos is awful. So I'm not much help. Yeah - I think she should involve herself right to the school board. Banty A lot of 5 year olds are in first grade (school districts like NYC with a 12/31 cut-off; do any school districts still have a 1/31 cut-off?). No I'm referring to homework being given at such a young age. I admit I was being flippant.. Banty I knew that! It's just that when people refer to 5 year-olds, I think most people think kindergarten. But in school districts with later cut-off dates, that's not the case. NYC still has a 12/31 cut-off, so there's a lot of 5 year olds in first grade. When I was a kid in Philly, the cut-off was 1/31, so first grade was 1/2 over before I turned 6. While I don't advocate a lot of homework for first graders, I don't find it unreasonable, either. I do. There's precious little evidence supporting the notion that homework for early elementary does *anything* useful. Encourage reading at home. Send home a list of spelling words for the week. But don't load them up with daily homework in first grade. It's just flat out ridiculous, and ultimately, I believe it has a lot of negative unintended consequences. Best wishes, Ericka I don't understand the concept of getting ready for 3rd and 4th grade homework in kindy and 1st grade. But that's just me. (Or then it isn't since I've seen such articles on the 'net). |
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Child Support Guidelines are UNFAIR! Lets join together to fight them! | S Myers | Child Support | 115 | September 12th 05 12:37 AM |
misc.kids FAQ on Breastfeeding Past the First Year | [email protected] | Info and FAQ's | 0 | June 30th 05 05:28 AM |
Private child welfare group making strides after one year | wexwimpy | Foster Parents | 0 | March 12th 05 11:48 PM |
Time Article - What Teachers Hate about Parents (x-posted) | Rosalie B. | General | 528 | March 4th 05 03:46 AM |
misc.kids FAQ on Breastfeeding Past the First Year | [email protected] | Info and FAQ's | 0 | July 29th 04 05:16 AM |