DCPS Homework Sound Off

[Anonymous]

Ward 6 elementary 2nd grade -- 15 minutes of homework plus 20 minutes reading practice nightly.

However homework will almost certainly be done at aftercare most days. The aftercare teachers are amazing with this and encourage the kids to spend 10-20 minutes on homework or reading before going to play or join an activity. Usually I just look it over when she gets home and ask any questions as needed (this is as much for my benefit as hers as it's just for me to keep pace with what she's learning).

Reading practice has never been an issue and I generally don't even push it. We still read to her nightly for around 30 minutes because we enjoy it. Then after we read she'll read a book of her choice before going to sleep. She reads well above grade level and at this point in the day has often already done 30 minutes or more of solo reading so I barely pay attention to it.

So I guess we spend almost no time with her on homework but that doesn't mean she doesn't have any or that we aren't involved or keeping up with it.

[Anonymous]

There are some early elementary teachers who give out a lot of material/recommendations but it is all essentially optional. Lots of families do not do it; no one mentions it or really cares. While supplementation at home is useful, I do not know how good only sometimes doing the homework really is for the development of long-term habits.

[Anonymous]

My child had none at all in 4th grade. DCPS.

[Anonymous]

My kid had to do 210 min of reading, some math sheets, and an essay every week in 4th grade. I didn't spend any time helping -- he did it on his own.

[Anonymous]

Third grade Ward 3 DCPS. 10 minutes of math, if she stays focused, and I don’t push attention to reading because she reads plenty on her own.

[Anonymous]

Oldest in 3rd grade DCPS - been told no homework until the second month of school (and has had none prior to now)

[Anonymous]

Ward 4 kindergarten- homework will be Monday through Thursday 10-15 minutes

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oh goody, another thread where we can be lectured that Larla's time is wasted on homework and her creativity is stifled by this outmoded practice.

Most people seem to want more homework, actually.

Which I don't understand at all.

[Anonymous]

Walls 10th grade - had next to nothing last year, got hit with a ton of bricks this year

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oh goody, another thread where we can be lectured that Larla's time is wasted on homework and her creativity is stifled by this outmoded practice.

I think until 3rd grade the amount of homework was appropriate- weekly about 40 mins and 20 mins reading nightly. 4th and 5th are a little too lackadaisical - still just 40 min/week. The bigger issue is zero feedback on HW.

Homework isn’t for feedback, it’s to check understanding.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oh goody, another thread where we can be lectured that Larla's time is wasted on homework and her creativity is stifled by this outmoded practice.

I think until 3rd grade the amount of homework was appropriate- weekly about 40 mins and 20 mins reading nightly. 4th and 5th are a little too lackadaisical - still just 40 min/week. The bigger issue is zero feedback on HW.

Homework isn’t for feedback, it’s to check understanding.

In early grades it's also just to get practice reps in. When kids are learning foundational math facts and phonics they often need to just keep repeating these things until they are innate. There's no point in feedback -- it's basically memorization. Kids will get both understanding checks and feedback during small groups and after the midyear assessment as these are the best ways for teachers to really understand where individual kids are at on the material. A homework set isn't that helpful because you have no idea under what circumstance the kid did it (maybe the parent already provided feedback and the kid corrected answers) and a lot of kids don't finish homework at all. And some of the ones who don't do homework actually do understand the concepts -- their parents just don't prioritize homework. Perhaps because they know the kids understand the concepts!

Homework that is to be graded and get feedback doesn't start until late elementary at the earliest. Teachers will provide feedback during class when they can better see how kids working and what the results are.

[Anonymous]

OP,

Processing speed and attention vary wildly among children. They are not necessarily commensurate with intelligence.

My ADHD/ASD kid with low processing speed took hours in elementary, middle and high school, to finish the simplest of tasks. He also has a high IQ.

My quick-witted, hyper-functional kid never brought work home until 9th grade - she finished everything at school, during class, while the teacher was talking. Straight As.

So know your kid, and if you are worried about inattention or processing speed, maybe have your child evaluated by a psychologist. ADHD can be treated with meds, and low processing speed can be mitigated somewhat by explicitly teaching study skills, close reading, and writing strategies.