Homework in Kindergarten is ridiculous!!

[Anonymous]

^Confident readers share and talk about their favorite stories together. So there is a social benefit in becoming a confident reader.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Growing up in Asia, I have to laugh at these kinds of posts. 20 minutes a day of homework is nothing. This is why the US consistently ranks so low compared to other industrialized nations.

Except that it's not. Research shows homework in the early years doesn't lead to academic improvement- so why do it?

I think the studies sometimes reflect what they want to find.

A kid who knows their shapes, numbers, letters and sounds before they go into K is going to start reading and doing math sooner. The more practice they have with math facts and word recognition the easier it will be for them to learn other concepts in school.

Learning is cumulative. If they start off with a weak foundation they are going to have a harder time than a kid who has had daily practice.

Ok, well, as long as we're just making things up: informal, relaxed family learning is superior to busy-work homework. It teaches the child skills in a natural setting, which is more intellectual enriching. It improves the bond with parents and household routines, which helps the child learn more responsibility down the line. The more school disrupts the family routine, the less enriching the family routine is. In addition, since the homework doesn't actually reflect substantive learning, it inculcates a resentment and lack of respect towards formal schooling that will reduce the child's ability to learn in school over time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DC’s kindergarten and 1st grade teachers both told us that the daily 20min of reading included parents reading to children. So if you already read with your kids nightly, logging it shouldn’t be a huge burden.

"Logging" as in scribbling down on a worksheet 1/week "we read 15 books this week" is fine.

If by "logging" they want you to write down title, author, and date -- that's nuts and I would not do it.

Why? It takes 5 whole minutes to fill out a log and it gives the teacher an idea as to what your kid is interested in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Growing up in Asia, I have to laugh at these kinds of posts. 20 minutes a day of homework is nothing. This is why the US consistently ranks so low compared to other industrialized nations.

Except that it's not. Research shows homework in the early years doesn't lead to academic improvement- so why do it?

I think the studies sometimes reflect what they want to find.

A kid who knows their shapes, numbers, letters and sounds before they go into K is going to start reading and doing math sooner. The more practice they have with math facts and word recognition the easier it will be for them to learn other concepts in school.

Learning is cumulative. If they start off with a weak foundation they are going to have a harder time than a kid who has had daily practice.

Ok, well, as long as we're just making things up: informal, relaxed family learning is superior to busy-work homework. It teaches the child skills in a natural setting, which is more intellectual enriching. It improves the bond with parents and household routines, which helps the child learn more responsibility down the line. The more school disrupts the family routine, the less enriching the family routine is. In addition, since the homework doesn't actually reflect substantive learning, it inculcates a resentment and lack of respect towards formal schooling that will reduce the child's ability to learn in school over time.

I don't know about the first part but the last sentence, definitely. This poor OP's kid is actually having major panic over homework. At age 5. That's most definitely going to leave a residual hatred for/anxiety about homework and school, I would think. As long as we're just speculating here, I vote for this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Growing up in Asia, I have to laugh at these kinds of posts. 20 minutes a day of homework is nothing. This is why the US consistently ranks so low compared to other industrialized nations.

Except that it's not. Research shows homework in the early years doesn't lead to academic improvement- so why do it?

I think the studies sometimes reflect what they want to find.

A kid who knows their shapes, numbers, letters and sounds before they go into K is going to start reading and doing math sooner. The more practice they have with math facts and word recognition the easier it will be for them to learn other concepts in school.

Learning is cumulative. If they start off with a weak foundation they are going to have a harder time than a kid who has had daily practice.

Ok, well, as long as we're just making things up: informal, relaxed family learning is superior to busy-work homework. It teaches the child skills in a natural setting, which is more intellectual enriching. It improves the bond with parents and household routines, which helps the child learn more responsibility down the line. The more school disrupts the family routine, the less enriching the family routine is. In addition, since the homework doesn't actually reflect substantive learning, it inculcates a resentment and lack of respect towards formal schooling that will reduce the child's ability to learn in school over time.

The "busy-work" is assigned for a reason. Usually it is meant to help kids get used to completing tasks with multi-step instructions. Ex: Color the stars blue, the circles red, the rectangles green and count how many stars, circles and rectangles there are on this page.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Growing up in Asia, I have to laugh at these kinds of posts. 20 minutes a day of homework is nothing. This is why the US consistently ranks so low compared to other industrialized nations.

Except that it's not. Research shows homework in the early years doesn't lead to academic improvement- so why do it?

I think the studies sometimes reflect what they want to find.

A kid who knows their shapes, numbers, letters and sounds before they go into K is going to start reading and doing math sooner. The more practice they have with math facts and word recognition the easier it will be for them to learn other concepts in school.

Learning is cumulative. If they start off with a weak foundation they are going to have a harder time than a kid who has had daily practice.

Ok, well, as long as we're just making things up: informal, relaxed family learning is superior to busy-work homework. It teaches the child skills in a natural setting, which is more intellectual enriching. It improves the bond with parents and household routines, which helps the child learn more responsibility down the line. The more school disrupts the family routine, the less enriching the family routine is. In addition, since the homework doesn't actually reflect substantive learning, it inculcates a resentment and lack of respect towards formal schooling that will reduce the child's ability to learn in school over time.

I don't know about the first part but the last sentence, definitely. This poor OP's kid is actually having major panic over homework. At age 5. That's most definitely going to leave a residual hatred for/anxiety about homework and school, I would think. As long as we're just speculating here, I vote for this.

Obviously if your kid is having meltdowns over doing the homework you don't do it. I would never force it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Growing up in Asia, I have to laugh at these kinds of posts. 20 minutes a day of homework is nothing. This is why the US consistently ranks so low compared to other industrialized nations.

Except that it's not. Research shows homework in the early years doesn't lead to academic improvement- so why do it?

I think the studies sometimes reflect what they want to find.

A kid who knows their shapes, numbers, letters and sounds before they go into K is going to start reading and doing math sooner. The more practice they have with math facts and word recognition the easier it will be for them to learn other concepts in school.

Learning is cumulative. If they start off with a weak foundation they are going to have a harder time than a kid who has had daily practice.

Ok, well, as long as we're just making things up: informal, relaxed family learning is superior to busy-work homework. It teaches the child skills in a natural setting, which is more intellectual enriching. It improves the bond with parents and household routines, which helps the child learn more responsibility down the line. The more school disrupts the family routine, the less enriching the family routine is. In addition, since the homework doesn't actually reflect substantive learning, it inculcates a resentment and lack of respect towards formal schooling that will reduce the child's ability to learn in school over time.

I don't know about the first part but the last sentence, definitely. This poor OP's kid is actually having major panic over homework. At age 5. That's most definitely going to leave a residual hatred for/anxiety about homework and school, I would think. As long as we're just speculating here, I vote for this.

Obviously if your kid is having meltdowns over doing the homework you don't do it. I would never force it.

Seems like this is sort of kicking the can down the road. Some kids are fairly easygoing, and don't fight doing a bit of HW. Other kids have major anxiety about it, and in general have a more anxious temperament. Wouldn't it be better to try to address the HW anxiety, rather than just avoid it? Otherwise, what happens if it's again an issue in 1st grade or 2nd grade?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Growing up in Asia, I have to laugh at these kinds of posts. 20 minutes a day of homework is nothing. This is why the US consistently ranks so low compared to other industrialized nations.

Except that it's not. Research shows homework in the early years doesn't lead to academic improvement- so why do it?

I think the studies sometimes reflect what they want to find.

A kid who knows their shapes, numbers, letters and sounds before they go into K is going to start reading and doing math sooner. The more practice they have with math facts and word recognition the easier it will be for them to learn other concepts in school.

Learning is cumulative. If they start off with a weak foundation they are going to have a harder time than a kid who has had daily practice.

Ok, well, as long as we're just making things up: informal, relaxed family learning is superior to busy-work homework. It teaches the child skills in a natural setting, which is more intellectual enriching. It improves the bond with parents and household routines, which helps the child learn more responsibility down the line. The more school disrupts the family routine, the less enriching the family routine is. In addition, since the homework doesn't actually reflect substantive learning, it inculcates a resentment and lack of respect towards formal schooling that will reduce the child's ability to learn in school over time.

I don't know about the first part but the last sentence, definitely. This poor OP's kid is actually having major panic over homework. At age 5. That's most definitely going to leave a residual hatred for/anxiety about homework and school, I would think. As long as we're just speculating here, I vote for this.

Obviously if your kid is having meltdowns over doing the homework you don't do it. I would never force it.

Seems like this is sort of kicking the can down the road. Some kids are fairly easygoing, and don't fight doing a bit of HW. Other kids have major anxiety about it, and in general have a more anxious temperament. Wouldn't it be better to try to address the HW anxiety, rather than just avoid it? Otherwise, what happens if it's again an issue in 1st grade or 2nd grade?

Exposure (small doses, working up tolerance) not avoidance is the standard treatment for anxiety.

I would talk to the teacher and try to get to a once a week due date, and work on it when the child is more relaxed -- weekends perhaps.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Growing up in Asia, I have to laugh at these kinds of posts. 20 minutes a day of homework is nothing. This is why the US consistently ranks so low compared to other industrialized nations.

Except that it's not. Research shows homework in the early years doesn't lead to academic improvement- so why do it?

I think the studies sometimes reflect what they want to find.

A kid who knows their shapes, numbers, letters and sounds before they go into K is going to start reading and doing math sooner. The more practice they have with math facts and word recognition the easier it will be for them to learn other concepts in school.

Learning is cumulative. If they start off with a weak foundation they are going to have a harder time than a kid who has had daily practice.

Ok, well, as long as we're just making things up: informal, relaxed family learning is superior to busy-work homework. It teaches the child skills in a natural setting, which is more intellectual enriching. It improves the bond with parents and household routines, which helps the child learn more responsibility down the line. The more school disrupts the family routine, the less enriching the family routine is. In addition, since the homework doesn't actually reflect substantive learning, it inculcates a resentment and lack of respect towards formal schooling that will reduce the child's ability to learn in school over time.

I don't know about the first part but the last sentence, definitely. This poor OP's kid is actually having major panic over homework. At age 5. That's most definitely going to leave a residual hatred for/anxiety about homework and school, I would think. As long as we're just speculating here, I vote for this.

Obviously if your kid is having meltdowns over doing the homework you don't do it. I would never force it.

Seems like this is sort of kicking the can down the road. Some kids are fairly easygoing, and don't fight doing a bit of HW. Other kids have major anxiety about it, and in general have a more anxious temperament. Wouldn't it be better to try to address the HW anxiety, rather than just avoid it? Otherwise, what happens if it's again an issue in 1st grade or 2nd grade?

Personally, I would try to work with my kid to find a level of home practice that he/she was comfortable with. If 20 minutes is too much, maybe try 10 or even 5 minutes. Focus on what the kid can do successfully and build from there.

I would not sit a 5 year old down and say "You must complete this worksheet or there will be no t.v.!" Homework at this age should be low stress and actually sort of fun. If you are really butting heads with your kid it is not worth it. Let the teacher know that you've tried but your kid isn't interested at the moment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Some kids in K are 4 years old. No, they don't need homework in K. I'm almost 60, and we didn't have regular homework until we were in third grade. That was a fine model. It's ludicrous to say that you have to start homework in K to get them ready for middle school. A 5 year old is not the same as an 11 year old.

We did reading time at bedtime in K, and counted that on the damn reading logs. The indecipherable math homework of "real math" math word problems I threw in the trash. None of us understood it.


When you get to high school, you realize all that K stuff was hooey.

This, people. This is why we're falling behind other countries in our math performance.

I'm not much of a math fan, but it's my Ivy-league educated husband who threw it in the trash. So there goes that theory.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DC’s kindergarten and 1st grade teachers both told us that the daily 20min of reading included parents reading to children. So if you already read with your kids nightly, logging it shouldn’t be a huge burden.

"Logging" as in scribbling down on a worksheet 1/week "we read 15 books this week" is fine.

If by "logging" they want you to write down title, author, and date -- that's nuts and I would not do it.

Why? It takes 5 whole minutes to fill out a log and it gives the teacher an idea as to what your kid is interested in.

Because it's meaningless busywork for me. And would be much more than 5 minutes to write down every book I read in a week. Mental load, don't need more of it!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Growing up in Asia, I have to laugh at these kinds of posts. 20 minutes a day of homework is nothing. This is why the US consistently ranks so low compared to other industrialized nations.

Except that it's not. Research shows homework in the early years doesn't lead to academic improvement- so why do it?

I think the studies sometimes reflect what they want to find.

A kid who knows their shapes, numbers, letters and sounds before they go into K is going to start reading and doing math sooner. The more practice they have with math facts and word recognition the easier it will be for them to learn other concepts in school.

Learning is cumulative. If they start off with a weak foundation they are going to have a harder time than a kid who has had daily practice.

Ok, well, as long as we're just making things up: informal, relaxed family learning is superior to busy-work homework. It teaches the child skills in a natural setting, which is more intellectual enriching. It improves the bond with parents and household routines, which helps the child learn more responsibility down the line. The more school disrupts the family routine, the less enriching the family routine is. In addition, since the homework doesn't actually reflect substantive learning, it inculcates a resentment and lack of respect towards formal schooling that will reduce the child's ability to learn in school over time.

The "busy-work" is assigned for a reason. Usually it is meant to help kids get used to completing tasks with multi-step instructions. Ex: Color the stars blue, the circles red, the rectangles green and count how many stars, circles and rectangles there are on this page.

There's a reason for everything - doesn't mean it's a good reason.

[Anonymous]

Sorry, only read the first 4 pages.

My kids were in a private pre-school that also had homework due once/week. It was supposed to be on Fridays. Some weeks we go to it Thursday evening, some weeks we didn't. I spoke with the K teacher at the start of the year and let her know that we would try to turn in on Friday, but we might have to do the homework on the weekends in which case we would turn it in on Mondays. If we didn't get to it by Thursday evening, then we did it either Saturday or Sunday morning and turned in on Monday. She was perfectly fine with that.

I suggest talking to your teacher about turning the homework in on Mondays and doing it on the weekend. We found doing the homework on weekend mornings to be a lot easier on everyone, but we still tried to do it Thursday night if we could.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Some kids in K are 4 years old. No, they don't need homework in K. I'm almost 60, and we didn't have regular homework until we were in third grade. That was a fine model. It's ludicrous to say that you have to start homework in K to get them ready for middle school. A 5 year old is not the same as an 11 year old.

We did reading time at bedtime in K, and counted that on the damn reading logs. The indecipherable math homework of "real math" math word problems I threw in the trash. None of us understood it.


When you get to high school, you realize all that K stuff was hooey.

This, people. This is why we're falling behind other countries in our math performance.

I'm not much of a math fan, but it's my Ivy-league educated husband who threw it in the trash. So there goes that theory.

We didn't get any bizarre math homework in K, that started in 3rd grade from what I recall. Hated it.

In K we got: Count how many smiley faces are on this page -


and eventually worked up to - + = ?

It's basic stuff that they really do need to know.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DC’s kindergarten and 1st grade teachers both told us that the daily 20min of reading included parents reading to children. So if you already read with your kids nightly, logging it shouldn’t be a huge burden.

"Logging" as in scribbling down on a worksheet 1/week "we read 15 books this week" is fine.

If by "logging" they want you to write down title, author, and date -- that's nuts and I would not do it.

Why? It takes 5 whole minutes to fill out a log and it gives the teacher an idea as to what your kid is interested in.

Because it's meaningless busywork for me. And would be much more than 5 minutes to write down every book I read in a week. Mental load, don't need more of it!

Then don't do it. Seriously.