Homework for Kindergarteners... Why?

OOPS - correction - you are not putting your daughter in K at 4.
Our school district (CVUSD) also gives K homework and I find the whole thing absurd and inappropriate. All it does it provide pressure and kills their desire to learn. They spend a good part of the day doing worksheet after worksheet... only to come home to do - what? another worksheet. By the time they get home, they aren't too burned out/tired/annoyed. Their reasoning is that the research they cite (which I can't find right now) says that when children are given homework early, it becomes a "good habit." Meanwhile, years ago homework started in later grades (5 and up?) where is was developmentally appropriate. My friend's progressive school in upstate NY does that.
When my son was 5 he was given homework, but it was so stressful for him (he wasn't ready/interested) we stopped to it altogether. (The homework was practicing letters or words.) He was in a developmental-play-based K (the way it used to be) since I refused to put him in the local elementary school for K (which was boring worksheet after worksheet work.) We did practice reading certain words and that was fine. (He did great in 1st grade BTW.) First grade he wasn't that thrilled with homework either, so many times I let it slide and followed his lead. (Again my thoughts were that this was "too much too young." Thankfully the teacher didn't make a big deal about it. He is now is 2nd grade and homework is much easier and he generally whizzes through it.

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Being an educator, I feel homework for kindergartners is age appropriate and necessary. The homework given is not difficult. It usually requires using coloring and cutting skills, learning nursery rhymes and letters of the alphabet or numbers. The homework should not take more than 20 minutes for the child to complete. Some teachers like to give packets of homework so work is not lost. One or two pages should be done daily...not the entire packet in one sitting!

LAUSD uses Open Court as their reading series. It requires the children to learn the phonetic sound of each word so they will be able to look at a word and sound it out. This series starts in Kinder.

Besides improving a child's fine motor skills, helping to learn required curriculum, etc. homeworks let YOU know what your child is learning in school. Learning does not stop at school. Parents must become involved with their child's education. We see such a difference in the children who have parents that are involved and children who do not have any involvement with their child's education. Do not fret! It will be easier than you think.

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My Youngest child completed kinder last year. She had homework on a weekly basis. The packet included some practice writing sheets as well as math and a reading log. It took about 20 minutes to complete. This is not a long time. Considering that she was only in class for 3 and 1/2 hours, and in a class of 19 other kids who are at all different learning levels, 20 minutes is not alot to ask a parent to supervise. The primary care and instruction SHOULD come from home. It is not the sole responsibility of the teacher to make sure that YOUR child is at the level he or she should be at. Think of it as your way of contributing to your childs success in school. Good habits begin at a very young age. When they get to middle school and high school, I gurantee that the homework will increase and there will be no way for your child to "leave school at school". That is almost comical. The learning standards are so much higher than when you or I were in kinder. This is a good thing. If we want our children to do well in life, then we as mom's have to make sure we are doing our part in getting them prepared. Don't try and leave it for the teachers at school. Spending time with your child, doing homework, reading to them, is a joy.

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I have a daughter age 5 going in to Kindergarten in 4 months, and I think that this homework for kindergartenders is BS... Kids that age learn most by PLAYING and in my mind all that time at school spent confined to their seats then they come home and have to sit down with homework??? Its crazy. Especially since they have largely done away with art, gym, and music classes. Because of the so-called No Child Left Behind act, it has become all about the standardized testing. And so children are given gobs of boring worksheets to complete each day that look essentially like standardized tests. How exciting! That should definitely promote a love of learning...

Speak up and speak up loudly. We can't let public schools go down this ugly road.

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I feel that a child's new experience of learning stems directly from those closest to them, which would be you. It is extremely important that you don't transfer that anxiety about your child's new beginning to them. This new experiences will give your child an opportunity to learn how to enjoy and appreciate the learning experience! Teach your child at a early age that learning is fun, not a chore. I understand how you feel, coming from a unfamiliar place, and not knowing what is going to be the outcome. That is what you as a concern parent should want to know.

Today, children are doing poorly in school because some parents seem to feel that they are not getting an education. When children are provided with the basic knowledge early along with social skills, they excel. The homework gives them the practice, which improves that child's ability to do well. this then lends that child the opportunity to improve many skills that can be over looked. Remember at one time cell phones and CD players had not exsited. You said yourself that it's been so long for you, since being in kindergarten. The children have advanced and need to be prepared. Changes are why children need to move forward to improve the quality of their education.

Your attitude will determine how your child will do in school. You must change your perspective. I am speaking from experience. I was a kindergarten teacher, and the problem started with the parent. When you are afraid, you are teaching your child to fear. Be courageous, for that will bring out the very best in you, your child and that teacher. Help your child's teacher by being, an asset to your child's education.

I gave my kindergarten students homework. Most completed the packet at their own pace. I had parents that taught their child to be afraid, that made my job twice as difficult. I now had to use my parent skills teaching that child appreciation and trust, of themselves and me... the teacher. I worked diligently and courageously and I was very successful. My scholars became the leaders, at the elementary school. Every, teacher beginning from the 1st grade through the 5th grade wanted the student that I taught. My student were prepared and disciplined, and more importantly, so happy about learning. After three years of providing a platform for success. I was given the teacher award. The parents were extremely satisfied that they register their other children, the following year so that I could teach them as well.

What I taught children and parents is to enjoy seriously taken responsibility about their education. Children are still children but, remember responsibility begins way before kindergarten. It's not just all fun and games.

I am a single parent with two independent sons. Entrepreneur.
Background: Masters In Educational Counseling

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Hi! What a relief to hear your anxiety around this issue! More parents need to be concerned about this. There is now so much pressure on kids to perform. Overloading kids with homework is having the lovely effect of turning kids off to the fun of learning. It squeezes it right out of them. Parents seem to be afraid of upsetting the school administrators rather than fighting for the sake of their children's life long relationship with learning. Let's start demanding change! I have been vocalizing this for years! I talked to my kids teachers every year and told them how I feel about homework. It should be very minimal if at all. Home time is for family and family related chores - or sports, dance etc. . . Not for continuing to cram more memorization etc. . .
I was a teacher for a year at a charter school here in long beach where homework was not given. See - we are not alone. Keep voicing your feelings about these issues - we can change things!!

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Can see why you are interested and concerned, and YES there may be SOME that churn out worksheets n other stuff that's sometimes not even relevant for the child's level BUT they are few and far between.
We hope!
You can always talk with the teacher - you need to be a 'team'.

;-)

Mostly the teacher will be giving them

1. follow up to consolidate ideas

2. tasks for a sense of responsibility

3. you to enjoy seeing their progress

4. have info about what letters / colors / themes / numbers etc they are focusing on and how

and so that helps you

5. encourage learning on the topics at hand and draw comparisons where you can

6. foster consistency of approach / level

7. avoid confusion with school/learning - by being a bit more on the wavelength of with the teacher.

The most important thing is that you do h/w things with your child at this age and let them show off to you what they are learning. It's vital. It's another chance to praise them. 2 easy pages a night is usually max?

Although you are correct that PLAY is in many ways like children's WORK (by which they improve their brains and skills etc) I do not think you are right to see school as a child's JOB, at this age anyway.
It really is just a part of their on going experience of life.

It's much better that a child feels it's "across the board" and doesn't see 'school work' as just for school - as they get older these are the children that drop out, if they don't see the relevance or application of it. You can avoid this by deliberately putting what she learns into practice in 'real life' like shopping etc ... outside school!

Learning should be fun, for young children, and if it's not you will have problems. So, feel free to request adjustments or to opt out of h/w tasks sometimes (or always) and ask questions and give feedback about it.

What was your experience with the teens like?
I do sometimes wonder if some schools aren't churning out paper just to make certain parents happy... You might find she loves it! If not, let them know it is no help, or set your own! It should be fun and short.

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Hi J. -

I whole-heartedly agree with you; but there's not much you can do about it, short of putting your daughter in a school that doesn't give homework until higher grades. It seemed completely age-inappropriate to me and I was very upset about it when my daughter started Kindergarten.

However --- that packet you've heard about? Yes, it's about 2 pages a day, plus some reading (they "read" these little books with mostly pictures, plus of course you read to your child as well). The homework itself will actually be some very simple and even fun little activity pages. The work they send home with the kids is age appropriate. And most kindergarten teachers realize the kids that age aren't so ready to be accountable for homework. I think the point behind it is to reinforce what they learned during the day, help them build confidence as they accomplish, and get them used to the idea of homework.

All that said, we often had a terrible time getting our daughter to do it. Her K teacher (and even the 1st & 2nd grade teachers in the subsequent years) would tell us and the other parents in the class, to just aim for spending a certain amount of time on it (for K, I think it might have been 10 or 15 min). And if it didn't get done, just write a note saying you tried. Though our daughter resisted, I knew other parents who said their kids enjoyed doing it and would blast through it. You can imagine how happy I was to hear that ;-} She's in 3rd grade now and sails through it -- I have no idea what caused the shift, but I'm relieved!

My point I guess is that as horrifying as it sounds, it's workable, because the teachers don't truly expect to see these perfectly filled out packets of homework. You try, you do what you can, and that's a way for the teacher to know where your kid is developmentally and academically.

By the way - your school experience sounds great! I'm 52 and that's not how it was at my school. We didn't have much homework in 1st or 2nd, but it was quite a lot as the grades got higher (parochial Catholic school). I remember how much I hated it and wondered what the point was. I still do, but I can't let that on to my child!

Hope that helps. All the best to you and your family,
C.

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