middle school that takes a low/no homework approach?

[Anonymous]

Sheridan is a fantastic school. The parent community is really nice and committed and involved. My kids are super engaged in the curriculum and learning a lot. We are so happy to be there!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sheridan slowly starts with “homework” in 5th, but generally there is time during the day to finish it, so my daughter in 5th rarely has to actually bring work home. I believe it slowly ramps up each year and in 8th there is a decent amount of manageable homework. We agree that more limited homework is key to keeping her engaged in school and not overwhelmed (she also plays a couple of sports outside of school), while still getting plenty of sleep each night.

Happy to answer any further questions you have about Sheridan. We love it there.

Is Sheridan or even Burke or SSFS still taking students for fall 2025? Do they take students mid year?

Call the schools.

[Anonymous]

I’m so perplexed why excessive amounts of homework are given or desired. I really struggle with seeing the value. I hope more “elite” schools reconsider their homework load (looking at you NCS) to reduce student stress and let them enjoy more rounded teen years. Chat GPT agrees (Stanford cited)

Yes, generally, two hours of homework a night for high school students is considered a reasonable amount, but can be too much depending on individual circumstances and the type of homework assigned. Some studies suggest that homework benefits plateau at around two hours, and that over two hours can be counterproductive and lead to increased stress.

Here's a more detailed look:

General Guidelines:
The National Education Association (NEA) recommends a "10-minute rule" where students should spend about 10 minutes of homework per grade level each night. This would translate to about 1-2 hours of homework for high school students (grades 9-12).

Potential Drawbacks:
Research suggests that more than two hours of homework can lead to increased stress, sleep deprivation, and less time for extracurricular activities, hobbies, and social life.

Individual Factors:
Some students may need more or less time depending on their learning style, individual needs, and the complexity of the assigned work.

Considerations:
If a student is consistently struggling to complete two hours of homework, or if it's negatively impacting their well-being, it may be an indication that the workload needs to be adjusted.

Balance:
It's crucial to find a balance between academic demands and other aspects of a student's life. Homework should be a tool for learning and skill development, not just busy work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sheridan is a fantastic school. The parent community is really nice and committed and involved. My kids are super engaged in the curriculum and learning a lot. We are so happy to be there!

Same.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sheridan slowly starts with “homework” in 5th, but generally there is time during the day to finish it, so my daughter in 5th rarely has to actually bring work home. I believe it slowly ramps up each year and in 8th there is a decent amount of manageable homework. We agree that more limited homework is key to keeping her engaged in school and not overwhelmed (she also plays a couple of sports outside of school), while still getting plenty of sleep each night.

Happy to answer any further questions you have about Sheridan. We love it there.

Is Sheridan or even Burke or SSFS still taking students for fall 2025? Do they take students mid year?

Sheridan still has some flexibility to add students in some grades - if you call the school and ask for the Admissions person she can give you more info on the grade(s) you’re interested in. She is super nice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sheridan slowly starts with “homework” in 5th, but generally there is time during the day to finish it, so my daughter in 5th rarely has to actually bring work home. I believe it slowly ramps up each year and in 8th there is a decent amount of manageable homework. We agree that more limited homework is key to keeping her engaged in school and not overwhelmed (she also plays a couple of sports outside of school), while still getting plenty of sleep each night.

Happy to answer any further questions you have about Sheridan. We love it there.

Thanks so much for this. It’s very helpful. What else do you like about Sheridan? Does your kiddo like it as well as you do as the parent? What’s the culture like?

OP here. As others have mentioned, the community is really great and committed. My kids love it and both have great classes full of really nice kids. It is a small school with just one class per grade, but my kids know everyone in school - my youngest get daughter loves how the “cool” 8th graders know her and say hello in the hallways. And as parents it’s easy to get to know other parents and lots of the faculty and staff if you want to. They are very accessible.

This sense of community is really important for us. Sheridan has always felt like a neighborhood school with private school academics. In middle school, everyone can participate in sports, and my older daughter played several this year. During home games, so many of the kids who stay in aftercare, as well as faculty and staff, would come by to watch and cheer on games. The school musical (also for middle school) had a huge percentage of the kids participate, either in the cast, the chorus or on the crew.

Academically, kids are being taught how to be good citizens of the world in addition to the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic. In math they teach a variety of ways to tackle problems, in reading they do book club discussions on really interesting books that provoke discussions like I don’t remember having until high school. This year the 5th graders studied poetry and then wrote their own long “mini memoir” poems and performed them live for parents. 8th graders do monologues, and participate in year end debates. The school is also big on experiential education, with interesting class field trips, and multi-day trips each fall and spring to their Mountain Campus in Luray VA for outdoor learning and challenges. This year the 8th graders took a weeklong civil rights trip to Alabama.

I’m rambling a bit here, but there are just so many cool things that they do.