Kindergartener HATES homework- what can I do?

[Anonymous]

OP again. I should add that DS is usually resistant to a lot of things so I'm not surprised about the HW battle.

[Anonymous]

It's K-- still, don't make him do it and hate HW now. You are setting yourself up for HW battles the rest of elementary school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kindergartener (6 in April) really fights doing homework like it's his job. I realize homework in K is controversial, but I don't think it's particularly onerous. He gets a packet at the beginning of the week which consists of a short repetitive poem and a couple of handwriting worksheets. Plus, he does take-home reading and is getting two short easy books a night to read.

You'd think I was asking him to cut his arm off each night. How can I deal with this kind of push-back?

Send DC to Waldorf or Montessori school. Try some privates such as Avalon.
I wouldn't make him do it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Wow, I didn't think it was a lot, truly. When my older child was in K, they had a lot more homework, but the K team has revamped HW and it's much less than it used to be.

Seriously, the short story takes 30 seconds to read, plus 1 two-sided handwriting sheet. That's it for the week. Is that really a lot? I usually have him do one side on one day and then next side on another day.

To be honest, his handwriting is not good. He's in OT for fine motor skills deficiencies, but should I push back on having him do the worksheets at home?

To answer some questions:

1. He's 5 and will be 6 in mid-April.

2. No aftercare.

3. His complaints- some of them don't make sense. He gets mad that his sister is done with her HW before he is, but that's because she sits down and gets it done, instead of complaining, which just drags it out. He also says it's boring; that's fair. He's able to do the take home reading easily, as the books are DRA 2 and he's reading at a DRA 5. The reading specialist wants them to start at a lower level to make reading enjoyable, which makes sense.

If he already knows that homework is stupid and he's only in K he's probably a future genius.
Let him be. If his teachers ask him he can explain himself at school.

After one fight with my DD when she was in K I completely stopped managing or monitoring her homework AT ALL.
Nothing. She was in s no public school that had less homework in grade school but eventually asked to be sent to a ramped up school by 5th grade - all her idea. She is very much in control of her life and studies now as a high schooler at a private school. She still doesn't much like the homework sometimes but she has her own motivations for completing her assignments as she does. She is a top student.

I would send your son to a school that has less homework for now if that's possible. He sounds like an interesting character that has a good sense of self already and if let him be (no homework battles). If the school calls you in just explain that he doesn't want to and you aren't going to battle it out with him.
But really his own motivations of wanting to do well compared to his peers might kick in sooner than later.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Wow, I didn't think it was a lot, truly. When my older child was in K, they had a lot more homework, but the K team has revamped HW and it's much less than it used to be.

Seriously, the short story takes 30 seconds to read, plus 1 two-sided handwriting sheet. That's it for the week. Is that really a lot? I usually have him do one side on one day and then next side on another day.

To be honest, his handwriting is not good. He's in OT for fine motor skills deficiencies, but should I push back on having him do the worksheets at home?

To answer some questions:

1. He's 5 and will be 6 in mid-April.

2. No aftercare.

3. His complaints- some of them don't make sense. He gets mad that his sister is done with her HW before he is, but that's because she sits down and gets it done, instead of complaining, which just drags it out. He also says it's boring; that's fair. He's able to do the take home reading easily, as the books are DRA 2 and he's reading at a DRA 5. The reading specialist wants them to start at a lower level to make reading enjoyable, which makes sense.

If he already knows that homework is stupid and he's only in K he's probably a future genius.
Let him be. If his teachers ask him he can explain himself at school.

After one fight with my DD when she was in K I completely stopped managing or monitoring her homework AT ALL.
Nothing. She was in s no public school that had less homework in grade school but eventually asked to be sent to a ramped up school by 5th grade - all her idea. She is very much in control of her life and studies now as a high schooler at a private school. She still doesn't much like the homework sometimes but she has her own motivations for completing her assignments as she does. She is a top student.

I would send your son to a school that has less homework for now if that's possible. He sounds like an interesting character that has a good sense of self already and if let him be (no homework battles). If the school calls you in just explain that he doesn't want to and you aren't going to battle it out with him.
But really his own motivations of wanting to do well compared to his peers might kick in sooner than later.

That's 'non public school'

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Wow, I didn't think it was a lot, truly. When my older child was in K, they had a lot more homework, but the K team has revamped HW and it's much less than it used to be.

Seriously, the short story takes 30 seconds to read, plus 1 two-sided handwriting sheet. That's it for the week. Is that really a lot? I usually have him do one side on one day and then next side on another day.

To be honest, his handwriting is not good. He's in OT for fine motor skills deficiencies, but should I push back on having him do the worksheets at home?

To answer some questions:

1. He's 5 and will be 6 in mid-April.

2. No aftercare.

3. His complaints- some of them don't make sense. He gets mad that his sister is done with her HW before he is, but that's because she sits down and gets it done, instead of complaining, which just drags it out. He also says it's boring; that's fair. He's able to do the take home reading easily, as the books are DRA 2 and he's reading at a DRA 5. The reading specialist wants them to start at a lower level to make reading enjoyable, which makes sense.

Oh - if you already have your kindergartener in OT for handwriting you are really far gone already. Really? Handwriting without tears worksheets for s kindergartener boy?! You need to drink some more wine at night and get a hobby that isn't managing your kids' lives, sorry to say.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Wow, I didn't think it was a lot, truly. When my older child was in K, they had a lot more homework, but the K team has revamped HW and it's much less than it used to be.

Seriously, the short story takes 30 seconds to read, plus 1 two-sided handwriting sheet. That's it for the week. Is that really a lot? I usually have him do one side on one day and then next side on another day.

To be honest, his handwriting is not good. He's in OT for fine motor skills deficiencies, but should I push back on having him do the worksheets at home?

To answer some questions:

1. He's 5 and will be 6 in mid-April.

2. No aftercare.

3. His complaints- some of them don't make sense. He gets mad that his sister is done with her HW before he is, but that's because she sits down and gets it done, instead of complaining, which just drags it out. He also says it's boring; that's fair. He's able to do the take home reading easily, as the books are DRA 2 and he's reading at a DRA 5. The reading specialist wants them to start at a lower level to make reading enjoyable, which makes sense.

If he's on OT for fine motor skills deficiencies, the handwriting homework is probably pure torture for him. Talk to his OT about the best way to improve his handwriting - I almost guarantee it's not through handwriting worksheets. If you really want homework, get it from the OT and do fun stuff that strengthens his hands - water pouring, bean sorting, polishing, etc (Montessori activities are fantastic for this and can easily be done at home) And even if actual handwriting is the best practice, a stupid worksheet is a horrid way to teach it. Have him write a story or a letter to grandmom or the grocery list - something actually meaningful.

And the way to make reading enjoyable is to read enjoyable things! A short story that takes 30 seconds to read is probably mind-numbingly boring. Much better to get some actual quality books and read for 10 minutes.

The actual quantity of the homework may not be a lot (although I think anything in K is useless) but the quality is such that it sure sounds miserable to me.

[Anonymous]

I was always one to give options - when, where, with what. But, from day one, homework was not optional. I'm glad that's the approach I took early on because it became a non-issue. Everyone knew homework was not optional. If one of his problems is that your daughter finishes first and that frustrates him, I would have them do it at different times so he doesn't know he's taking longer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Wow, I didn't think it was a lot, truly. When my older child was in K, they had a lot more homework, but the K team has revamped HW and it's much less than it used to be.

Seriously, the short story takes 30 seconds to read, plus 1 two-sided handwriting sheet. That's it for the week. Is that really a lot? I usually have him do one side on one day and then next side on another day.

To be honest, his handwriting is not good. He's in OT for fine motor skills deficiencies, but should I push back on having him do the worksheets at home?

To answer some questions:

1. He's 5 and will be 6 in mid-April.

2. No aftercare.

3. His complaints- some of them don't make sense. He gets mad that his sister is done with her HW before he is, but that's because she sits down and gets it done, instead of complaining, which just drags it out. He also says it's boring; that's fair. He's able to do the take home reading easily, as the books are DRA 2 and he's reading at a DRA 5. The reading specialist wants them to start at a lower level to make reading enjoyable, which makes sense.

Oh - if you already have your kindergartener in OT for handwriting you are really far gone already. Really? Handwriting without tears worksheets for s kindergartener boy?! You need to drink some more wine at night and get a hobby that isn't managing your kids' lives, sorry to say.

OP here. He's in it for other reasons too, many of which are way more of an issue for him than handwriting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Wow, I didn't think it was a lot, truly. When my older child was in K, they had a lot more homework, but the K team has revamped HW and it's much less than it used to be.

Seriously, the short story takes 30 seconds to read, plus 1 two-sided handwriting sheet. That's it for the week. Is that really a lot? I usually have him do one side on one day and then next side on another day.

To be honest, his handwriting is not good. He's in OT for fine motor skills deficiencies, but should I push back on having him do the worksheets at home?

To answer some questions:

1. He's 5 and will be 6 in mid-April.

2. No aftercare.

3. His complaints- some of them don't make sense. He gets mad that his sister is done with her HW before he is, but that's because she sits down and gets it done, instead of complaining, which just drags it out. He also says it's boring; that's fair. He's able to do the take home reading easily, as the books are DRA 2 and he's reading at a DRA 5. The reading specialist wants them to start at a lower level to make reading enjoyable, which makes sense.

Oh - if you already have your kindergartener in OT for handwriting you are really far gone already. Really? Handwriting without tears worksheets for s kindergartener boy?! You need to drink some more wine at night and get a hobby that isn't managing your kids' lives, sorry to say.

OP here. He's in it for other reasons too, many of which are way more of an issue for him than handwriting.

Waldorf school or outdoor Montessori

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Wow, I didn't think it was a lot, truly. When my older child was in K, they had a lot more homework, but the K team has revamped HW and it's much less than it used to be.

Seriously, the short story takes 30 seconds to read, plus 1 two-sided handwriting sheet. That's it for the week. Is that really a lot? I usually have him do one side on one day and then next side on another day.

To be honest, his handwriting is not good. He's in OT for fine motor skills deficiencies, but should I push back on having him do the worksheets at home?

To answer some questions:

1. He's 5 and will be 6 in mid-April.

2. No aftercare.

3. His complaints- some of them don't make sense. He gets mad that his sister is done with her HW before he is, but that's because she sits down and gets it done, instead of complaining, which just drags it out. He also says it's boring; that's fair. He's able to do the take home reading easily, as the books are DRA 2 and he's reading at a DRA 5. The reading specialist wants them to start at a lower level to make reading enjoyable, which makes sense.

Oh - if you already have your kindergartener in OT for handwriting you are really far gone already. Really? Handwriting without tears worksheets for s kindergartener boy?! You need to drink some more wine at night and get a hobby that isn't managing your kids' lives, sorry to say.

OP here. He's in it for other reasons too, many of which are way more of an issue for him than handwriting.

Yes, OP that's a lot of homework for a kindergartner. Yes, it sounds boring, even for my kindergartner with excellent fine motor and reading at a 2nd grade level. No, I wouldn't make him do it.

Ask the OT what homework he should be doing from him/her, and find interesting books for your DS to read or to read to your DS. Make the start of his school career interesting and fun, not stupid and boring.

[Anonymous]

You have to turn this into a positive and not a negative. Do not take anything away but get a chart with encouragement and a reward at the end.

[Anonymous]

How are YOU approaching this? HW at the K level is interactive, not solitary. So, if YOU seem enthused, he's more likely to want to take a look and see what he has.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Wow, I didn't think it was a lot, truly. When my older child was in K, they had a lot more homework, but the K team has revamped HW and it's much less than it used to be.

Seriously, the short story takes 30 seconds to read, plus 1 two-sided handwriting sheet. That's it for the week. Is that really a lot? I usually have him do one side on one day and then next side on another day.

To be honest, his handwriting is not good. He's in OT for fine motor skills deficiencies, but should I push back on having him do the worksheets at home?

To answer some questions:

1. He's 5 and will be 6 in mid-April.

2. No aftercare.

3. His complaints- some of them don't make sense. He gets mad that his sister is done with her HW before he is, but that's because she sits down and gets it done, instead of complaining, which just drags it out. He also says it's boring; that's fair. He's able to do the take home reading easily, as the books are DRA 2 and he's reading at a DRA 5. The reading specialist wants them to start at a lower level to make reading enjoyable, which makes sense.

He's in OT for fine motor - and that tells you right there, for HIM, writing on those worksheets IS HARD. It's easy for you, but you are an adult... he's a little boy who has worked all 6 hours to sit still, listen, write alot (which is harder for him than others) and then he sits some more, has to listen to others, oh, and not go outside. Sigh. When he gets home he needs to go outside, run, play hard, get exercise and rest his brain which has been working hard. I honest to god wouldn't worry about this - but I'd make sure to have him work on the things his OT wants him to work on - which might be writing his name, but also might be hand strengthening exercises to build the ability to hold the pencil for longer periods of time, might be making things out of clay (which is much harder to manipulate than playdough), might be.... whatever the OT suggests. Just know that for him, it's hard hard hard.

[Anonymous]

I'm another who says skip the HW. Changing schools is pretty drastic - if the teacher asks about it just have a conversation with them saying that it's hampering rather than helping his learning.