Is not being assigned homework a reasonable IEP accommodation?

[Anonymous]

Agree that this would likely not work for your child. The only real homework my kids get is what they don’t finish in school. So no homework would put your child behind. Reduced homework was available in ES but not in MS or HS.

[Anonymous]

This is another post that is impossible to answer without an age.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It kind of depends on the age/grade of the student. If the work is required in order to participate (e.g., completing an outline to prepare for a discussion) then it would be hard for the student to receive the accommodation. But if the student is asked to complete 20 math problems just for the sake of doing math problems then that seems to be an easy thing to excuse because it causes stress. Or at least ask the student to just do 5 problems.

Math teacher and a parent of a child with SN. I don’t agree with this. Maybe it could work if it’s being assigned as busy work at a young age and then there is no value anyway. Once your child is in middle or high school, hw should only be about practice to master concepts. It’s hurting your kid to not get the practice. If the child can master the concept with 5 problems instead of 20 then it’s okay. Often they will need additional practice, reteaching and remediating instead of reducing work. Maybe the level of class is not appropriate.

All of these conversations depend on the age of the child. A 6 year old should not be bringing home math homework. It would be appropriate for a 16 year old trying to get through Alg 2.

[Anonymous]

No.

[Anonymous]

In elementary school I think it’s reasonable. My DS with LD and difficulty writing was not required to complete homework. It was quite a few years ago so I can’t remember if it was a formal accommodation. He did do nightly reading and worked on essays (my choice as I could see the relevance) but I did not have him do busy work. He was exhausted at the end of the school day and needed a break. By 5th grade, he wanted to do all of it so he did. For him, not forcing homework had no negative impact in later years.

[Anonymous]

If the child is middle or high school maybe instead the accommodation is that there's no grade penalty if homework isn't fully completed? That way if they need to do only 5 problems instead of 20, the teacher can evaluate based on those 5. Same with flashcards for foreign language class or something like that.

You do still run into the problem of your child not getting the reinforcement that extra practice brings but can ease up on the anxiety of not being able to complete everything because it takes them longer as a result of their disability.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If the child is middle or high school maybe instead the accommodation is that there's no grade penalty if homework isn't fully completed? That way if they need to do only 5 problems instead of 20, the teacher can evaluate based on those 5. Same with flashcards for foreign language class or something like that.

You do still run into the problem of your child not getting the reinforcement that extra practice brings but can ease up on the anxiety of not being able to complete everything because it takes them longer as a result of their disability.

This might work for math, but I don't see how it could work for a social studies of English class. Should the kid just read half the book or write half the essay? I think in HS, it is not a reasonable accommodation.

[Anonymous]

I think most school districts have special ed resource periods that work like study hall where the students can complete work (and ideally have some assistance in tracking assignments, supporting kids in communication with their teachers about assignments, and other executive function tasks. That way the work can be completed at school as much as possible.

I would also limit electives to ones without a lot of homework unless the kid really wants to take it.

[Anonymous]

There are two purposes for homework—extra independent practice of new skills and assessment. You can really just skip over independent practice and informal assessment without there being consequences to learning.

The truth is that kids with learning differences often need *more* practice than typical kids. Such an accommodation would be a really bad idea, even as it would reduce friction at home in the short term.

[Anonymous]

Isn’t homework stressful for everybody?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Isn’t homework stressful for everybody?

Not to the same degree.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If the child is middle or high school maybe instead the accommodation is that there's no grade penalty if homework isn't fully completed? That way if they need to do only 5 problems instead of 20, the teacher can evaluate based on those 5. Same with flashcards for foreign language class or something like that.

You do still run into the problem of your child not getting the reinforcement that extra practice brings but can ease up on the anxiety of not being able to complete everything because it takes them longer as a result of their disability.

This might work for math, but I don't see how it could work for a social studies of English class. Should the kid just read half the book or write half the essay? I think in HS, it is not a reasonable accommodation.

In HS, a reasonable accommodation might be to take 6 classes and a resource period where they get HW help, plus on level rather than honors classes, and electives without HW, so the workload is manageable. Maybe a pacing calendar so they can use weekends to get ahead on assignments if it's easier for them work during the day time when they have meds on board. Schools also sometimes connect kids with NHS tutors who can help with HW right after school in the school library.

So, not "no HW", but strategies that reduce the amount of work after school during hte week a lot.

[Anonymous]

Why don't you just ask if your child can have an accommodation to not go to school or do anything. There are some subjects and grades at a certain point that there is a bare minimum of homework that needs to be done in order to meet educational standards...... If you don't think a high school degree is in your child's future, then just pull them out and help them get a GED online

[Anonymous]

So you want no stress at all for your child?..... That's not really setting them up to handle situations in the world after high school is it? I mean what if they're at a job and their boss needs them to finish a report? Do they just say well? That's too stressful so do it yourself? I truly don't understand not working through and finding reasonable accommodations to help your child handle these things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If the child is middle or high school maybe instead the accommodation is that there's no grade penalty if homework isn't fully completed? That way if they need to do only 5 problems instead of 20, the teacher can evaluate based on those 5. Same with flashcards for foreign language class or something like that.

You do still run into the problem of your child not getting the reinforcement that extra practice brings but can ease up on the anxiety of not being able to complete everything because it takes them longer as a result of their disability.

This might work for math, but I don't see how it could work for a social studies of English class. Should the kid just read half the book or write half the essay? I think in HS, it is not a reasonable accommodation.

"Shorter essays" is a common accomodation, yes.