APS BTS Night - Shocked

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What grade is your child in OP?

First kid in APS. Going into 2nd.

Glad to hear homework will start in 3rd, thank you!

Why do you want your kid to have homework? That is super weird and out of step with educational best practices.

+1. I do not understand why parents want homework, or think something is deficient if they don't have it. It honestly makes things super stressful by older elementary when the kids have various after-school sports or activities, and you have to also find time to fit in homework and make sure they go to bed on time.

It's to get them ready for HW in middle school. Quite a shock for those who never had it.

There is no homework in MS in APS.

is this true now in ALL APS middle schools? if there's no HW in any APS middle schools then it's a very recent change. mine are in high school now and they had a lot of homework in middle school, including 6th

Mine have homework at HB and TJ.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What grade is your child in OP?

First kid in APS. Going into 2nd.

Glad to hear homework will start in 3rd, thank you!

Why do you want your kid to have homework? That is super weird and out of step with educational best practices.

+1. I do not understand why parents want homework, or think something is deficient if they don't have it. It honestly makes things super stressful by older elementary when the kids have various after-school sports or activities, and you have to also find time to fit in homework and make sure they go to bed on time.

It's to get them ready for HW in middle school. Quite a shock for those who never had it.

There is no homework in MS in APS.

is this true now in ALL APS middle schools? if there's no HW in any APS middle schools then it's a very recent change. mine are in high school now and they had a lot of homework in middle school, including 6th

DHMS has homework. PP probably doesn’t even have kids in APS.

I have a 9th and 7th. My 9th had hw maybe 5 times in 3 years not including studying for tests of course. HW is what they don’t finish in class, and most kids who use their time wisely end up completing it at school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What grade is your child in OP?

First kid in APS. Going into 2nd.

Glad to hear homework will start in 3rd, thank you!

Why do you want your kid to have homework? That is super weird and out of step with educational best practices.

+1. I do not understand why parents want homework, or think something is deficient if they don't have it. It honestly makes things super stressful by older elementary when the kids have various after-school sports or activities, and you have to also find time to fit in homework and make sure they go to bed on time.

It's to get them ready for HW in middle school. Quite a shock for those who never had it.

There is no homework in MS in APS.

is this true now in ALL APS middle schools? if there's no HW in any APS middle schools then it's a very recent change. mine are in high school now and they had a lot of homework in middle school, including 6th

DHMS has homework. PP probably doesn’t even have kids in APS.

I have a 9th and 7th. My 9th had hw maybe 5 times in 3 years not including studying for tests of course. HW is what they don’t finish in class, and most kids who use their time wisely end up completing it at school.

Which schools?

[Anonymous]

If you want to give homework to a 7yr, do it.

I didn’t want my kid doing homework. Either repeats what they know & wastes their time. It frustrates them alone.

Just have your kid read.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A 2nd grader doesn't need homework. Limit their electronics, let them run around outside with friends, and make sure they read, read, read.

Exactly! They’re already at school for a full day. Why do you need your 7-year old to have homework?

It’s to reinforce the day lesson, and demonstrate competence and understanding independence of the classroom.

It also builds executive function to track, plan, and turn in homework, projects etc. if everything is just pop and do what is told in class, there is no independence required.

This does not need to be done in 2nd grade. These skills can be started in 4th and still be successful. The difference between 2nd and 4th grade is HUGE. The leap in 3rd from "little kid" to "big kid" is insane. Don't rush it.

I think that is kid dependent — ours would have benefited from an earlier start.

You can do all of this at home, without homework. Build in structure, routine and organization to your life early on. Put in place as much as needed. Start with chores. I have one teen who always does hw but can’t seem to do any laundry or find any clothes. That’s my parenting fail.

That's not a substitute for homework.

[Anonymous]

This is very specific to each school - we moved from one school to another in the same district and the first school had a no homework policy, the second one has homework every night for 2nd and 4th grades.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is very specific to each school - we moved from one school to another in the same district and the first school had a no homework policy, the second one has homework every night for 2nd and 4th grades.

Yes; but APS has a districtwide policy now. It's supposed to be the same.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is very specific to each school - we moved from one school to another in the same district and the first school had a no homework policy, the second one has homework every night for 2nd and 4th grades.

Yes; but APS has a districtwide policy now. It's supposed to be the same.

What exactly is that policy?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A 2nd grader doesn't need homework. Limit their electronics, let them run around outside with friends, and make sure they read, read, read.

Exactly! They’re already at school for a full day. Why do you need your 7-year old to have homework?

It’s to reinforce the day lesson, and demonstrate competence and understanding independence of the classroom.

It also builds executive function to track, plan, and turn in homework, projects etc. if everything is just pop and do what is told in class, there is no independence required.

This does not need to be done in 2nd grade. These skills can be started in 4th and still be successful. The difference between 2nd and 4th grade is HUGE. The leap in 3rd from "little kid" to "big kid" is insane. Don't rush it.

I think that is kid dependent — ours would have benefited from an earlier start.

You can do all of this at home, without homework. Build in structure, routine and organization to your life early on. Put in place as much as needed. Start with chores. I have one teen who always does hw but can’t seem to do any laundry or find any clothes. That’s my parenting fail.

That's not a substitute for homework.

You don't need a "substitute for homework"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is very specific to each school - we moved from one school to another in the same district and the first school had a no homework policy, the second one has homework every night for 2nd and 4th grades.

Yes; but APS has a districtwide policy now. It's supposed to be the same.

What exactly is that policy?

https://go.boarddocs.com/vsba/arlington/Board.nsf/files/CFGKGR51D2C5/$file/C-6-%20I-11.2%20PIP-1%20Homework%20MARKED%20UP%205_15_22.pdf

Of note. “Equitable” is in the mission statement. Not rigorous or challenging.

Essentially they said “we used to require 30 mins a DAY of reading/homework, now let’s set a max of 30 mins a WEEK” — across all grades with varying original specified times

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A 2nd grader doesn't need homework. Limit their electronics, let them run around outside with friends, and make sure they read, read, read.

Exactly! They’re already at school for a full day. Why do you need your 7-year old to have homework?

It’s to reinforce the day lesson, and demonstrate competence and understanding independence of the classroom.

It also builds executive function to track, plan, and turn in homework, projects etc. if everything is just pop and do what is told in class, there is no independence required.

This does not need to be done in 2nd grade. These skills can be started in 4th and still be successful. The difference between 2nd and 4th grade is HUGE. The leap in 3rd from "little kid" to "big kid" is insane. Don't rush it.

I think that is kid dependent — ours would have benefited from an earlier start.

You can do all of this at home, without homework. Build in structure, routine and organization to your life early on. Put in place as much as needed. Start with chores. I have one teen who always does hw but can’t seem to do any laundry or find any clothes. That’s my parenting fail.

That's not a substitute for homework.

You don't need a "substitute for homework"

We have covered this. It's not tenable to go from zero homework to sudden homework in middle school. It's much easier and better to learn the executive functioning skills associated with homework when you have one teacher in elem rather than 6 in middle school all assigning different homework assignment. And when the student is adjusting to middle school which is already a big adjustment. I'm a big believer in giving kids the tools they need to succeed - not just sink or swim. I don't think HW in lower elem is good at all but I definitely support some in 4th and 5th for this reason.

Also - HW gives parents a window into how their kids are doing. If kid struggles with math HW parent can then do something about it. Too many schools just push kids along who are struggling and parents have no idea. Standards based grading doesn't help this at all. Sometimes seeing a kid come home and not know how to do the homework is a really big clue that something is off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is very specific to each school - we moved from one school to another in the same district and the first school had a no homework policy, the second one has homework every night for 2nd and 4th grades.

Yes; but APS has a districtwide policy now. It's supposed to be the same.

What exactly is that policy?

https://go.boarddocs.com/vsba/arlington/Board.nsf/files/CFGKGR51D2C5/$file/C-6-%20I-11.2%20PIP-1%20Homework%20MARKED%20UP%205_15_22.pdf

Of note. “Equitable” is in the mission statement. Not rigorous or challenging.

Essentially they said “we used to require 30 mins a DAY of reading/homework, now let’s set a max of 30 mins a WEEK” — across all grades with varying original specified times

That's not what this policy says. I don't understand at all where you're getting that. It says 30 minutes per day max in K-2 grade, 45 minutes per day in grade 3, 60 minutes in grades 4 and 5, plus instrument practice. 60 minutes per day plus instrument is significant, I think. There's nothing wrong with this policy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A 2nd grader doesn't need homework. Limit their electronics, let them run around outside with friends, and make sure they read, read, read.

Exactly! They’re already at school for a full day. Why do you need your 7-year old to have homework?

It’s to reinforce the day lesson, and demonstrate competence and understanding independence of the classroom.

It also builds executive function to track, plan, and turn in homework, projects etc. if everything is just pop and do what is told in class, there is no independence required.

This does not need to be done in 2nd grade. These skills can be started in 4th and still be successful. The difference between 2nd and 4th grade is HUGE. The leap in 3rd from "little kid" to "big kid" is insane. Don't rush it.

I think that is kid dependent — ours would have benefited from an earlier start.

You can do all of this at home, without homework. Build in structure, routine and organization to your life early on. Put in place as much as needed. Start with chores. I have one teen who always does hw but can’t seem to do any laundry or find any clothes. That’s my parenting fail.

That's not a substitute for homework.

You don't need a "substitute for homework"

We have covered this. It's not tenable to go from zero homework to sudden homework in middle school. It's much easier and better to learn the executive functioning skills associated with homework when you have one teacher in elem rather than 6 in middle school all assigning different homework assignment. And when the student is adjusting to middle school which is already a big adjustment. I'm a big believer in giving kids the tools they need to succeed - not just sink or swim. I don't think HW in lower elem is good at all but I definitely support some in 4th and 5th for this reason.

Also - HW gives parents a window into how their kids are doing. If kid struggles with math HW parent can then do something about it. Too many schools just push kids along who are struggling and parents have no idea. Standards based grading doesn't help this at all. Sometimes seeing a kid come home and not know how to do the homework is a really big clue that something is off.

My kid has had at least 4 core teachers per grade since 2nd, plus specials teachers. They rotate classes most of elementary school, with different teachers for language arts (sometimes split writing/reading), math, social studies, science and homeroom. They get homework from different classes (including specials) and turn it in with different teachers and on different days. It's a fiction to pretend that kids don't have more than one teacher until MS.

[Anonymous]

It’s been like this for yea and getting worse. I never saw any homework come from WMS and still don’t see any at Yorktown. My youngest is in private and it’s a night and day difference. She gets homework consistently.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s been like this for yea and getting worse. I never saw any homework come from WMS and still don’t see any at Yorktown. My youngest is in private and it’s a night and day difference. She gets homework consistently.

+1