Un petite rant.

[shadesong]

Elayna's homework.

They started giving them homework yesterday. Her homework includes 19 spelling words and a math worksheet with 20 problems - addition and subtraction of four-digit numbers, with carrying and borrowing.

So. The math work *and* she has to write her spelling words 5 times each.

They want a seven-year-old to write 95 words and do 20 difficult math problems after school? Is this normal? I honestly do not remember if this is normal. But she got to bed a full hour late last night because of it. And she saved the math for this morning.

Sheesh.

Comments

[mfree.livejournal.com]

Seems like what I remember. Seems I remember weaseling out of my homework quite a lot too (don't let that happen)...

[yendi]

To be fair, it was fifteen math problems, and only six had carrying or borrowing.

But the spelling was ludicrous. And what really pissed me off is that the words were below her level. I'd rather she'd been forced to practice ten words she hasn't encountered, instead of days of the bloody week.

[shadesong.livejournal.com]

I couldn't remember precisely; I just tried to visualize the math worksheet from memory. :)

[technomom]

Now? Yes, it's fairly normal. Stupid, but normal.

I remember little to no homework in first or second grade, and what I had in later grades (until high school) certainly didn't take much time at all.

However, assigning 30 minutes or so of homework per grade level is a fairly common thing now. It's a political move that's supposed to show how very academically rigorous the schools are. Not that it translates to that, of course. So 2nd graders would have an hour of work each afternoon.

[amberfox.livejournal.com]

30 minutes per grade? But by 12th, that's 6 hours!

[technomom]

I didn't say I agreed with it, just that it's fairly normal.

I homeschool my daughter. The state of Georgia only requires 720 hours of instruction a year for homeschoolers to meet their guidelines. Geoorgia schools, however, require that kids stay in school far more than that and then need more time with homework. Plenty of time for standing in line, doing "character education" and similar politically mandated indoctrination, and lots of paperwork and standardized testing.

Re:

[amberfox.livejournal.com]

Bah.

(Yes, I know that's not a useful comment, but that's about all they deserve.)

Re: IMHO

[voltbang.livejournal.com]

At age seven, an hour of homework is about right. Two is excessive but tolerable occasionally. Anything more is excessive. The teachers already have how many hours in the day? If we wanted the kids to be holding down a full time job we'd get them a spot in a coal mine. They are already going back to school while it's still summer to get a head start on the standardized tests. If the schools want to try to push the test schools higher still, they can try not sucking.

Re: IMHO

[shadesong.livejournal.com]

This homework took her two hours. :(

[jet-li-wannabe.livejournal.com]

What bothers me about all this is that of the 34 or so problems (If I read right), is that only 15 of them were math. :(

[shadesong.livejournal.com]

Bitch. :)

[gev.livejournal.com]

A day without math is like a day without sunshine.
-Mr. Disher, my 7th or 8th grade Algebra teacher

[skylion.livejournal.com]

This is about normal for schools in this day and age. It's not like they want them to take the LSAT straight out of kindergarten, but it seems like that sometimes. Alex had at least, total, about 1 hour of homework per week in kindergarten. In Fayette Co., they actually gave them alot of schoowork at a 1st grade level. And it passed him up, he fell behind. Now, since they moved, Shelby Co. teaches them 1st grade at 1st grade. So he has some reference and can catch up. But a boy with Alex's problems, I just want him to adjust well, and be able to make friends. Best to Miss Kid, and the whole parental units.

[aurora-lamour.livejournal.com]

My daughter has about 2 hours of homework on the weekends and 1 hour of homework about 2 times per week during the week and she is in kindergarten!