How much homework for 6 year olds

Homework was once a requirement of every school but it is now the decision of the headteacher. The problem is there are some parents who really like it and think their child is not being properly educated if none is set. Teachers try to appease these parents. When I was teaching we spent a lot of time guessing which parents had done the homework themselves. If your GD is keeping up with the others I would ignore the homework and spend time doing something she enjoys.

Homework is obligatory in primary schools in N. Ireland. DGS1 aged 9 has always fought against it. His argument being that he does enough learning in school. What is the point of prolonging the agony? But then all he wants to do is play football video games and watch YouTube videos. He is only allowed to do this after: one literacy or numeracy worksheet, 10 spellings, 10 number facts and about 20 pages of reading! Sometimes also a written project. ? Often at least an hour's worth.

6 year old DGS2 has 10 spellings, basic number facts, a numeracy or literacy worksheet and about 10 pages of spelling. He is more focused and just gets on with it, unlike his brother. About half an hour.

It is a pain at the end of a school day and gets in the way of other activities. On the other hand, it does give parents, and grandparents, the opportunity to see how the children are coping with the curriculum.

When I was at primary school (1950s) we weren't allowed to do homework. If we ever had a project we wanted to finish at home our teacher had to get permission from the headmistress. I don't think the lack of it did us any harm and I had my own drawing and writing I wanted to get on with.

Apart from reading practice GS1 has only really had spellings to learn at home - not that the spellings have done any good as one of his problems is an inability to recognise the words he is writing, although he is a voracious reader. Now he is in year 4 they have a project to work on every term. They can choose which parts they want to do and involves hours of work for DD as he usually has very grandiose plans to be worked out.

Someone once said to me that play is young children's work. I agree, and after school they should be free for play of their choice. Realistically there will be television too.
In years 5 and 6 my GD had hours of Literacy and Numeracy homework every weekend, in preparation for sats, it was difficult and boring for us both. I tried very hard to make it interesting but not every child has parents or grandparents with the time to do this.
All I can think of is letting the teacher know the situation, there will be others in the class not doing the homework I imagine.

The basic flaw in all this homework for primary children is this: it is assumed that learning and play are two different things. That is wrong. Children learn by playing - play is learning.

I can remember when one DD was at secondary school she came home with some French homework which consisted of a number of words and she had to draw a picture to illustrate them - a hen, a chair etc. How extraordinarily pointless. She wanted to play with a new friend and I made the decision that this was more important for her socially and personally, so I drew the darn pictures. I do not consider it undermined her relationship with the school - she learned that sometimes grown-ups do silly things and that, whilst the teachers know their subject, they do not know what is best for her when she is at home.

She beavered her way through school totally bored to tears; and I regret the waste of her childhood. She went through the motions and got her bits of paper. What a terrible wasted opportunity to inspire her. We hope we were able to redress that a bit at home - her homework certainly played no part.

I'm not a great fan of homework at any age but certainly not for 6 year olds.

Your post at 22:39 puts it in a nutshell, lucky. The fact that education 'policy' is so different from what all educationists know full well shows, I think, that government does not take advice from actual experts in this field (or any? makes you wonder sometimes).

22:59

knew I should have double checked.

Bad for kids and yet another thing that today's hard working parents have to contend with. I sometimes think primary teachers live in a fantasy world in which every child has a stay-at-home mum who has time to do all kinds of things - lots of homework, fancy dress several times a term, staggered starts to school for 4 year olds.

Totally agree with thatbags and others expressing similar views. Home time is for undirected discovery learning, in other words, play. Most children know how to occupy their time creatively, given the right encouragement and resources, which needn't be expensive.

JessM, a lot of primary school teachers are very much against homework but are forced to give it.

why this itch to 'structure ' and 'challenge ' all the time ? can't the poor things just be let off the leash some of the time ? I know it's well-meant, but really ............!

There is too much pressure on all school pupils and teachers it will all end in tears and has already in many cases - ex HT

At the local school the p1 get;

- reading book (Chip, Biff and Kipper)
- writing (5 words they've to put into a sentence)
- numbers (Sumdog online package with 250 questions to answer). The questions are simple 5+2 sort of thing but there's just soooo many of them.

Sometimes there is another writing task (circle smallest, put in order etc)

Given out on a Wednesday, back for Monday.

And yes, I think that's far too much at that age.

I don't remember there being any problems around homework when my two were at primary school. It was just something you did. Better than switching on the TV the minute they got home for sure. But then they also had lots of hobbies and interests and sports so TV was a rare treat.

Likewise with the GC. They seem to get some homework at weekends and just get on with it. In fact one laps it up. And again they are busy with out of school activities too.

What does annoy me is when children have taken the time to do their homework and it's not marked or acknowledged or returned or discussed in any way. If children have given up time to do something then they deserve to have that work valued. But I sympathise with overworked teachers who have enough to do preparing lessons, marking, attending parents' evening, writing report all in their free time without burdening then with setting and marking homework.

Apart from a requirement to set homework there is a demand from parents. For every parent who wants less or none, there is one who wants more!

Totally agree pollyparrot schools find it difficult enough to get respect from pupils, in primary up to year 5 the most they would get is about 20 minutes a few times a week the problem is homework does need a bit of encouragement and supervision and a lot of parents find this difficult .

I don't agree with homework maybe slowly introduce it in the last year at primary to prepare for secondary. Time children get home from school it's around 3:45 they've been up since 7 ish, they may then have an after school club,my GD has Kung Fu twice a week then parents might not get home from work till 6. If a school can't teach them in school time then they arnt up to much in my opinion. Young children are learning every day. My GD does her homework when she gets it with my support but when in year one it was a difficult task I'm sure because she was over tired at 5/6 yrs old there's too much pressure on youngsters these days and families as well

In my years of higher ecucation I was told the purpose of homework was to teach older children how to do school work on there own and to learn how to do their own research. This is all in preparation for college, university or in the workplace.
My daughter is a primary school teacher (years 1 & 2) and she says that her class still learn through play and often being together.
I think forcing a 6 year old to do what they don't want to do could have an adverse affect. How many of us were forced to eats sprouts at that age - yuk.

The trouble with set homework is that some children enjoy doing it, yes really, and others hate it. A 20 minute task will take some less than 10 minutes to complete whereas others will still be struggling miserably an hour later. It sounds like most GNs here have the sense to realise when enough is enough, and when to allow the child to go and play.

However, I don't think all homework should be dismissed as pointless - and even drawing a picture of a chair next to the French "la chaise" is designed for the pupil to visually associate the object with the word, (multi-sensory skills). Just like learning 20 spellings a week will help the child in writing activities, and the benefits of practising addition/subtraction are great at an early age. It all needs to be put into practice. I hate to hear Anya that teachers don't praise children for the homework they have completed - where are the reward stickers and certificates? Children need to feel proud of their work outside the classroom. Parents/grandparents can have fun too sitting alongside the child and supporting their learning, and even trying different ways to explain things.

The English are very child-centred, and sometimes over generous in the amount of free time they give their children.The school day is pretty short, 9am-3.15pm, 21 teaching hours per week. Compare this with say, for example, the French school day 8.30am-4.30 pm, 28 teaching hours, and it is evident English children are getting off lightly - especially as French children than do an hour's homework on top! Somewhere along the line there has to be some compulsory time for homework, even for younger children in order to install self-discipline later on.

I am lucky enough to have my 6yr old GS every day after school and do his homework with him. The homework pattern is the same as Alidoll's but given out on Tuesday and back in on the following Monday (Monday is our favourite day!!). GS loves doing his homework and is very excited when he gets a new Wordwall and reading book. I also feel that the books are a bit boring and get different ones at the same level in our local library. I do think that he is benefitting from have "granny time" as he would struggle to do this at home with three older brothers around. One thing I have a slight problem with is the amount of time spent in school on things that he did in nursery - concerts, making models, "play stations" (where they play with different toys). I understand the school day shouldn't be all work, work, work but after two years at school nursery I feel he should be doing more of the "homework" at school. Also tiredness is a big factor - up at 7.30 and walks to school and enjoys morning break and lunch break running about in the playground.

It's interesting to read these posts. In retrospect and now through my own granddaughter's year 1 homework I see schools are still setting age inappropriate tasks that require adult input.

Good point TerriBull. If homework is given it should either be to check what has been taught that day has been understood, or to discover something interesting. Does anyone remember a parent helping with our homework?

Lillie -- I love you xxxx. I thought I was a lone voice in that I consider homework can be good for some children when it is properly managed and something the child can become interested in.
And, yes, there must be an incentive by way of a reward. Our GS's school has a variety of reward charts in the class room. From what I have seen they reward improvement rather than achievement, so children at both ends of the spectrum will get rewards. They also have stickers that he brings home and puts on a chart at home (his parents reward these stickers with a small toy when a set number are achieved). Our Gs appears well motivated by the schools system.

Also as Luckygirl stated, the occasional pointless exercise. Ones that I remember, for one son's food technology bring in the contents of a Ceasar Salad to lay out on a plate Chocolate Mousse with two ingredients, one being a large slab of chocolate which in many cases got eaten on the way to school and mass detentions ensued. I do remember my own Domestic Science lessons where we made proper meals from scratch with a fair number of ingredients.

Other time wasters, farting about with sewing when both my sons knew by age 13/14, textiles wouldn't be one of their options. I got several diary notes requesting that I ensured certain tasks be completed at home, and I think I refused to co-operate on that. Pointless! By all means offer this subject to those who want to pursue it, but I think children should be allowed to drop a subject such as this a lot earlier when they have no interest in it and spend more time on the core subjects.