I don’t think it’s necessary, but we’re a middle class family, both parents with advanced degrees, so my kids are likely to do well academically no matter what. (They read on their own, we go to the library weekly.)

Agree that if you’re going to assign it, keep it minimal and flexible, to be completed over the week.

Wasn't there some study recently that showed that homework wsa effectively useless at the elementary level?

I don't support pointless make-work excercises. I would support it if it can be shown to have some value.

Ugh, at our dcps the homework is excessive in 6th grade. Much more than my 9th grader gets! It’s a challenge to stay on top of the assignments. A couple of teachers are the worst, piling on mountains of homework and assigning them on different platforms— and then somehow the homework goes missing after my kid has turned it in!

I think homework in kindergarten is absurd and all of the family projects were painful because I have twins so I had to do all of those projects twice in the same week. It drove me nuts that the teacher would hand out the week’s homework assignments on Mondays and then they were due on Fridays. Especially when a project required us to decorate something as creatively as possible, it sure would have been nice to have the weekend to buy art supplies and get started.

Obviously, most kids don’t achieve fluency with math facts without some practice, and repetition is a key way to master new math concepts, but outside of math homework, there is no homework assignment that will help a child advance academically as much as daily reading. Encouraging intellectual curiosity and providing a constant fresh supply of interesting reading materials does so much to help kids with reading fluency, comprehension, vocabulary, and can help a lot of kids with spelling, plus there’s the benefit of acquiring lots of background knowledge that will serve them in other subjects.

In 4tha bd 5th hw is appropriate to solidify things learned in class and of course reading for content. Classrooms beed to have books or easy access to media center so kids can take books home. A 4th grader reading at home for 30 min a night does not need much additional support from parents.

In 4th I want reading homework beyond just read a book. Most useful was read a chapter underline words you don’t know look them up in a dictionary and write them down with the definition. Kids have a composition notebook full of words and definitions they learned. In class they have to choose a couple words they learned while reading and write them in a sentence. At end of each book have to write a summary using words from unknown word list.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a policy matter, homework is just one more way for the rich to get richer. On this forum with a bunch of rich people, people are going to be pro homework. It totally disadvantages kids who don’t have someone home after school or in the early evening to help them. I don’t support homework generally.

Nah, the rich kids are with private tutors or at the math schools. My kids do their homework without my support. Some things need repitition that isn’t feasible to accomplish soley during class time. I’m pro homework but with flexibility… if a kid doesn’t need it, don’t require it.

I agree. The argument that homework benefits the rich is nonsensical. It's lack of homework that benefits the rich because rich people can supply it themselves.

Anonymous wrote:As a policy matter, homework is just one more way for the rich to get richer. On this forum with a bunch of rich people, people are going to be pro homework. It totally disadvantages kids who don’t have someone home after school or in the early evening to help them. I don’t support homework generally.

If this is true, why do schools in poor countries assign homework?

Both my parents worked long hours and were rarely around to help me with my homework when I was growing up. I still completed my homework. I didn't always get them perfect but the practice and reinforcement were invaluable. It helped me form good study habits.

ASSIGN THE HOMEWORK...
GIVE THEM SOMETHING TO DO.

I've made up homework for my kids since preschool. Early on, it was math, board games, and reading. My oldest did Beast Academy and some Word Roots books from Critical Thinking Company in elementary school. It was rarely more than 30 minutes a day, and we did it together and tried to make it fun. I just wanted them to have study skills going into middle and high school when the homework piles on.

If I were OP, I would opt for no homework and choose curriculum that is tarted at your kids' needs.

Anonymous wrote:I am a teacher. Our county/school allows us the decision to assign homework or not. I would love to know what other parents think as far as their child being assigned homework or not. For what it is worth, I teach 4th grade Reading only.

If you don't assign anything, nor even supply parents with optional homework that isnt graded, then many non-lazy parents will create or buy homework and worksheets, assign reading, send to a tutor, etc. This will only make the achievement gap between students wider. Lazy parents eventually notice what's going on and then complain their kids are behind. This is what happened one year in my DD's class. If it doesnt bother you, fine. Just giving you fair warning.

I like my kids having to practice math via worksheets. I know some people consider it busy work, but I want them to remember how to do, for example, two digit multiplication or long division or a problem where you add and simplify fractions next year long after the unit is over. They won't remember well without practice, even if they get it right this second.

I'm more meh on reading homework, to include the whole "read 20 minutes whatever you want" thing. My kids are pretty good readers without that, so it's no impact.

I would jump for joy if there were grammar assignments or graded written paragraphs that had to make an actual logical argument in upper elementary.

I think it’s good to assign homework kids can finish in 20-30 minutes, and let parents know it’s optional.

Anonymous wrote:As a policy matter, homework is just one more way for the rich to get richer. On this forum with a bunch of rich people, people are going to be pro homework. It totally disadvantages kids who don’t have someone home after school or in the early evening to help them. I don’t support homework generally.

Nah, the rich kids are with private tutors or at the math schools. My kids do their homework without my support. Some things need repitition that isn’t feasible to accomplish soley during class time. I’m pro homework but with flexibility… if a kid doesn’t need it, don’t require it.

No, but my kid doesn’t need it.