From My Mailbox: How a Teacher/Parent Handles Homework

A teacher in a K-12 school in Wisconsin, who thinks homework cuts too much into her family time, asked me how to approach her son’s teachers, who are also her colleagues. I gave her a few ideas and this is what she wrote me back:

I just wanted to let you know I made it through conferences just fine. I hate to sound like a spoiled brat, but I did get ‘my way’. I simply told the teacher(s) that homework wasn’t going to interfere with our family time so when I deemed it appropriate, I would tell [my son] to close up his books and I would sign off on the remainder of the homework. A couple of teachers took issue, but I held firm. I did have to tell one teacher that her subject wasn’t the end all of the world and that she should consider teaching children and not her subject area. That was a bit ugly for a moment, but we got through it.

Stop Homework Forms an Alliance with Alliance for Childhood

My project, Stop Homework, is now affiliated with Alliance for Childhood, which “promotes policies and practices that support children’s healthy development, love of learning, and joy in living.”

In addition to this blog, I work to change homework policy and practice by, among other things, helping parents figure out how to advocate for change in their own communities, encouraging administrators and educators to think through their homework practices and helping them come up with ways to implement change, and putting together resources and people. I have been working with people around the country as well as in Canada and overseas.

If you are interested in supporting the work of Stop Homework, you can make a tax deductible donation to The Alliance for Childhood/Stop Homework and send it to: PO Box 444, College Park, MD 20741. Be sure to earmark your funds for Stop Homework.

From My Mailbox: Science Fair Project for a Second Grader

A mother from Doral, Florida sent me a copy of her second grader’s science fair project requirements. The entire project is to be done at home. The mother, a chemical engineer, thought the project was way beyond the capabilities of any second grader, so she wrote to both the teacher and the principal expressing her concern. The assistant principal wrote back:

I understand your concern as a parent. However, the decisions regarding the Science Fair projects are made as a collaboration between the administration, Science Coach, and teachers. I have looked over the science fair timeline and expectations carefully. The project is given in a way that there is enough time to complete each section.

The purpose of the project is to provde a time for inquiry and exposure to the scientific method. My suggestion is to make sure that the project that your daughter chooses is grade appropriate, keep it simple as she is in second grade, and speak to the teacher again if you are unclear about any of the components of the project. I have spoken to her teacher regarding this and I believe her expectations of the project are grade appropriate.

Please make sure that all the requirements are met as she wil be graded accordingly.

The project, replete with multiple deadlines, requires the second graders to, among other things, write an abstract and hypothesis, have a materials list and a complete bibliography (following a standard format), discuss procedures and variables, make a display board, and do an oral presentation. The school holds a workshop to teach parents what’s expected.

No Big Surprise: Study Links Drop in Test Scores to a Decline in Time Spent Reading for Pleasure

According to an article in The New York Times, the National Endowment for the Arts released a report showing that as students read less for fun, their reading test scores are declining. In addition, “performance in other academic disciplines like math and science is dipping for students whose access to books is limited, and employers are rating workers deficient in basic writing skills.”

One of the reasons kids don’t read for pleasure, according to a 2006 study by Scholastic/Yankelovich is homework.

Great News: Wyoming Elementary School Continues No-Homework Practice

I just learned from Christine Hendricks, the principal of Grant Elementary School in Glenrock, Wyoming, that her school, which implemented a no-homework practice in September, is going to continue its practice for the foreseeable future. After a trial run, and surveying the parents, Hendricks shared her findings with the School Board. Among other things, the survey found that children had more time to play, sleep, read, and eat dinner with their families and spent less time watching TV. Children also had an improved attitude towards going to school and parents found themselves in fewer conflicts with their children.

Here’s the School’s report on its no-homework practice:
Continue reading “Great News: Wyoming Elementary School Continues No-Homework Practice”

“I Hate Homework,” says Jeff Opdyke of the Wall Street Journal

So many readers have pointed me to an article in the Wall Street Journal How Homework Is Hurting Our Family by Jeff Opdyke that I’m posting it here. He begins:

I hate school!

Yes, I know that’s a bit immature for someone 41 years old. But it’s true. I hate school — so much so that my wife, Amy, and I have hired a college student to help our fifth-grade son manage his schoolwork a few times a week.

It’s not that we can’t do the work with him, or that we don’t want to. Just this evening we helped him study for a reading test, and over the weekend I was quizzing him on customary and metric units of measurement one day and biological definitions the next.
Continue reading ““I Hate Homework,” says Jeff Opdyke of the Wall Street Journal”

Mothers Organize Against Homework in Santiago, Chile

I recently heard from Viviana Izzo, a mother of 4 from Santiago, Chile, who, with her friend, Teresa Castro, met with their children’s small school to express their concerns about homework. Since then, a Santiago newspaper ran an article about their attempts to change homework policy, they were interviewed on TV, and they have started a blog, colegio sin tareas. If you can read Spanish, take a look at the blog. There’s a very nice summary of the problems with homework and more than 70 comments, almost all by people who don’t like homework.

Step 2 in San Marino, California

In my previous blog entry, I wrote about Tracy Mason, of San Marino, California, who is organizing parents to challenge homework policies in her District. Here’s her follow-up email to parents who have expressed interest, urging them to come to the meeting, sign an online petition, and vote in the School Board election. (In The Case Against Homework you can find other samples of follow-up emails.)

SMUSD HOMEWORK REFORM NEWS
from Tracy Mason

I continued to be excited about the overwhelming response to my efforts toward homework reform. I shouldn’t be surprised, however, because intuitively I knew that many parents in San Marino shared my concerns. While I recognize that we have various personal opinions and experiences related to the “homework experience”, I think we can all agree that we believe it’s time for SMUSD to evaluate the current homework policy and practices. We parents have been loyal partners with the district in the effort to provide our children with a quality education, and SMUSD owes us the respect of addressing our concerns.

The online petition is ready to sign!

Don’t forget about the meeting:

It’s very important that you make a statement by attending this meeting! My email distribution list continues to grow daily, but your presence at the meeting will really help make our point. We may have coverage by both the San Marino Tribune and the Pasadena Star News, so this is your chance to be heard! I do not anticipate meeting on a regular basis, but instead using technology to form an online advocacy group which will share information and work together toward common educational goals.

VOTE VOTE VOTE! Don’t forget, today is an important school board election. The current board members have been very receptive to listening to my concerns, and I hope that we can continue this dialog.

LINKS:

“In The News” – Have you seen this article “Schools Turn Down the Heat on Homework?” Originally published Jan. 19th, 2007 in The Wall Street Journal, Author Nancy Keates discusses homework policy changes that some elite schools in affluent areas are making. It’s A must read!

What the Research Says:
For a very simple but thorough discussion of current research findings related to the value of homework

What can parents do? To find out what other parents are doing to ease the homework burden: stophomework.com

Okay, more to come! Don’t forget to forward this email to other parents who may be interested!

Mother of Three Begins to Organize in San Marino, California

Less than a month ago, I heard from Tracy Mason, a mother of 3 from San Marino, California, who had

experienced (one of many) long afternoons helping my 11 year old daughter battle the mound of homework she had been assigned. After “we” were finished, I decided to go online to see what I could learn about the educational value of homework. I just didn’t “get it” and was sure that I must be missing something. What an eye-opening evening that turned out to be!

Tracy told me that she was reading everything she could about homework and then was going to start discussions with her local school district.

Tracy works fast. Over the past few weeks, she’s called all of the members of her School Board (and heard back from many of them) and organized a meeting for this coming week. Her local newspaper ran a front-page article on the meeting she’s organizing.

In the next months, this dynamic stay-at-home mom (and former certified public accountant) will keep us informed of her progress.

What follows is the email Tracy sent to parents, friends, and colleagues announcing her meeting. (In The Case Against Homework you can find a sample of a much shorter organizing email and tips for how to run a meeting like the one Tracy is planning.)

Dear Friends,

I am sending this email out to all San Marino parents that I know, with the hope that I may find some of you share a concern that I have that affects the well being of our children and families. The issue is:

HOMEWORK

I know that many of you can identify with the “negatives” of homework:

Continue reading “Mother of Three Begins to Organize in San Marino, California”

Forums

There are some really interesting conversations going on in the forums, so don’t forget to visit them and participate. I love receiving emails from you, but it’d be better if you wrote to everyone, not just me. You can do that by posting a comment on a recent blog entry or writing in the forums.

If you haven’t registered, it’s really easy. Just follow the simple steps under the heading “Register.” Although you have to register in order to participate, you can register anonymously if you want and your profile information remains private to everyone, including me. Of course, if you just want to read the posts and not chime in, you don’t have to register at all.