Homework Hassles
I found the following information in an article by Alison Masemann called ‘5 Ways to End the Homework Battle for Good’. Here is a link to the full article: https://www.todaysparent.com/kids/4-ways-to-end-the-homework-battle-for-good/
Alison identifies the 5 most common ‘homework personalities’ that crop up in kids and a suggestion on how to handle each one of them.
1 The procrastinator
What to do: Insist the fun stuff can’t happen until the homework is completed.
2. The perfectionist
What to do: Set a timer to see how much you can get done in the next 10 minutes.
Christine Hawkins
Owner KMEC Hunter
3. The speed demon
What to do: Going over homework with your kids can help them understand why it’s important to be thorough
4. The rebel
What to do: Keep the emphasis on learning. Help your kids discover what new ideas, concepts or skills they can master. See if there’s a way to draw connections between their passions and the work they’re doing at school.
5. The forgetter
What to do: Start out with a lot of structure, repetition and reminders. Once their organizational skills begin to develop, it’s important to back off.
Parents monitoring homework and helping children establish good habits are important, but you don’t want to get over-involved. If a child is assigned work that they just don’t have the skills, knowledge or understanding to complete, there’s really no value in having a parent do it for them.
Children learn the best when they figure out how to overcome hurdles by themselves. Also teachers need to know when a child is having trouble with the work or just isn’t developmentally ready to tackle it. Remember, if your child is struggling every night to complete assignments, it could be that either their homework is too difficult or they are getting too much. The amount suggested by the National Education Association is 10 minutes a night multiplied by your child’s grade. If your child’s homework is causing stress in your family don’t wait; talk to their teacher about what’s going on, for the sake of everybody’s sanity.
