1St Grade Homework - Chicago,IL

I teach first grade, and the amount of homework you describe is ridiculous. You need to talk to the teacher about it using a non-threatening approach. Good luck!

Hi,
My first question for you is the teacher new? My son had a first grade teacher who did the same exact thing and it was her first year teaching. I even thought she would fail my son for his handwriting! My suggestion to you is to talk to the teacher and if this doesn't help or change anything then you may need to go to the principal. I do hope that things get better for you and that this helps.
B.

Seems like too much. What are they doing in school all day that they can't complete this there? And 60 words written? What if he already knew the words? He still had to write them? At his age, I think family time is important and they should be able to complete their work in school, maybe with a take-home sheet or two to show mom and dad how they are doing at home. Our school had a no-homework policy until 3rd grade. It might be tough to fight the teacher/school on this if that's just what they normally do. Good luck!

That does seem like a lot because that is what I give my fourth graders they go home with math every night. They have three times each on Mondays. Also, sometimes they go home with three things and are required to read twenty minutes a night. So to have the same standards in first grade they must be an advanced school.

Hi C., When my daughters first grade teacher was asked this question at the meet and greet, she said first graders should NOT have more than 20 minutes of homework a night. Now I am not sure how much homework that entails. It might take some children 5 minutes to do a worksheet and it might take others 20 minutes to do the same sheet. I'm not sure how a teacher decides how much to assign a night. My daughter does not receive homework nightly. She gets a homework folder every Friday and it needs to be returned the following Wednesday. So far she has gotten maybe 6 sheets each week and it takes her about 30-40 minutes to complete all the work. She has had math problems, but nothing with 50 problems on one sheet that does sound a bit excessive. You should try talking to your sons teacher and let her/him know that it is too much, especially the first month of school and after a long hard day at school. I hope it gets better, because you're right it does sound like too much.

I see you have a lot of replies so I will just chime in and say our schools seem to also follow the 10 min. per grade for homework. My 2nd grader spends 15-20 min on homework, not including reading or practicitng spelling or math flash cards. Please get with other parents and speak with the teacher/

That does sound like a lot for first grade. My daughter is also in first grade and she gets a packet every Monday with 15 math problems on it, but it isn't due until the next Monday. She has a short story to read every night which takes less than 5 minutes. She also gets a book to read for AR but she gets as long as she needs to read it. She also has a spelling test every Friday but gets the whole week to study for it.

Setting a limit of 20 minutes for homework is pathetic. This is why the U.S. public school students has fallen so far behind in terms of math, science, and reading. This is a fact. Please research this and see for yourself. The U.S. school system is dumbing down our children and parents are going along with it. Sad.

Oh wow, C.. I feel for you!! And I applaud you for questioning this practice at your son's school!!

You may get some opposing views on this from other mamas, but I am solidly in the camp that any homework in the form of worksheets at this age is not helpful to kids and that taking time away from motor play, rest, chores, family time and socializing with friends in the afternoon and evening is actually detrimental to growing children!! 6 hours in class is more than enough.

I just had a conversation yesterday at 4 pm yesterday with two parents as our kids were racing around happily on a soccer field and a few more were playing Lego's nearby under a tree together that how fortunate we were to be at a school that honored kids for being active, curious little people who need to be out moving and getting sunshine and playtime after a long 6-hour day at school!

Our kids get homework on Mondays: an individual list of spelling words (things that have stumped them during the past week) that they can learn through different interactive means and then one activity related to their topic of study (i.e. make a word-search of Native American words, bake a traditional Mexican treat, find 5 different types of leaves and identify them, learn a song about Fall.) Those items are due on Friday. The kids take a spelling test with their teacher, and are given the chance to correct their mistakes. Then, they use their new words in their writings.

Alfie Kohn came to this area in 2007 to speak at the midwest Progressive Education Conference held at The Children's School in Berwyn and he addressed this topic!

Here is his website.
http://www.alfiekohn.org/index.php

I have read a couple of his books. I love "Unconditional Parenting" as well as The Myth about Homework.

Send me a note privately if you want to chat more. But, 90 minutes a day is WAY too much and this type of activity (worksheets, computer drills) doesn't help kids learn to be life-long learners!! It is especially tough on kids who need to MOVE or learn in other ways, by touching, feeling, doing and seeing!

Good luck

Both of my sons had a lot of homework as a first grader. The homework should only take about 20-30 minutes. I remember that they had Math homelinks, which are two Math worksheets, read 15-20 minutes a day, Spelling words, and writing homework. My oldest had a tough time with first grade, but he is doing well in 3rd grade now.

My youngest is a 2nd grader now, and still gets homework, but not as much as my oldest child did when he was a second grader. I believe each teacher is different. It seems now that third grade gets less homework than my second grader. Hang in there, after 1st grade, it gets better.

I dont recall my older daughters ever getting that much homework in 1st grade (they are 13 & 15 now) my (now 2nd grader) got a packet each monday. They had spelling, word wall, a math sheet and a writing sheet. Each day, one sheet plus spelling and a short rerading book had to be completed, and the packet was due friday. It never took her more than 10-15 minutes tops.
the only time she ever had more was when she was not staying on task in school and didnt get something finished. even then, the teacher always sent a note, saying please finish at home.
here we are in second grade and she again has no more than 15 minutes of any homework...most of it is study spelling, word wall words, and a little math sometimes. she is required to read 15 minutes, though our home rule is 20-30.
talk with the teacher...1.5 hours is WAY too much for a 1st grader to deal with.

The only homework my first grader has had to date is reading every night. It seems like an awful lot of work on top of a full day of school!

My daughter is in 1st grade. The teachers don't want the kids to have to spend more than 10 minutes on homework per night. They get homework on Mon, Tues, & Wed and a spelling test on fridays (so thurs is for studying the words). We are D181 in Dupage County.

That is more than my kids have now in 5th grade. I could see my kids stuck in the house if they had to do all of that. I am surprised at the 50+ math problems and the 20 words also. My kids have always had 10 or 12 words each week. When my kids were in 1st and 2nd grade, they started out slowly and then built up to more homework later. I am guessing Kid College is a computer programed since you say he has to go onto it. What if you didn't have a computer? I know it is assumed that everyone has a computer but there are a lot that don't and cannot get to a library to use one.

A few years ago there was a big "how much homework" discussion going on. It was covered in special reports onthe news and in papers. It pretty much covered how much homework was the right amount so that kids can still be kids. I believe the final verdict was 15 to 30 minutes per grade. I remember being glad I didn't have that much homework in 8th grade. I would talk to the other parents and see how they fared. You may find that most are in th esame boat.

Does he attend a private school with high academic standers or does he attend public school? Our son attended a private Christian School Pre-K - 6th and that is the amount of homework he got on a regular basis plus reading and comprehension work every night. Once he got use to it he just flew through the work.
We home school 7th and 8th grade. My husband I were a little more one on one hands on type of work.
But he went to public high school later to play sports and he fit in very well and I do think it was because he started from Pre-K age with some homework every night.
If you feel it is just to much consider home school the first few years of school. Working one on one is great for both your relationship as well has his education.

S.

I was a teacher and now a stay at home mom. Teachers should not be giving that type of homework to 1st graders. It should be less than 20 min a night. I have seen 1st grade teachers give spelling practice, a set amount of time for reading each week, and maybe a handful of math problems for homework. I would definitely talk with the teacher and other parents. If the teacher won't listen talk with the principal. There is no reason a 1st grader should be writing 20 words 3 times each, I gave that kind of work to my 3rd graders, even 2nd grade but it was spelling and in class work not homework. Good luck, and remember you know what your child can handle, if you push them to far early, they will end up not liking school, and no one wants that! I am sure if the teacher is good, they will re-evaluate what they are giving and compromise.

I agree with previous posters that 10-15 minutes a night (plus reading) should be the maximum for a 1st grader. However, you might ask the teacher if any of the work brought home was work that should have been completed in school. As a former fifth grade teacher, I would often have students that did not work in school and had to bring a lot home.

The attention span of a first grader is much different than a fifth grader, but if he is having difficulty focusing on his "in school" work, that is something you and the teacher can work on together so that he can be successful as he gets older.

The nice thing about approaching the teacher in this way it that it seems like you want to work together for the good of your son, not that you are questioning her techniques. (A nuance, I know, but one that might help make things easier on everyone as the year progresses.)

That seems like a lot to me. My first grader just started getting homework last week and it takes him about 10-15 minutes to complete it. Maybe we're just getting off to a slower start though and it will eventually become more intense, I don't know.

K.

That's a lot of homework. My 4th grader's homework is a lot lighter than that.

wow, that is a lot of writing for one night, for any kid. My first grader has homework 4 nights a week. It's usually 1-2 very quick worksheets and then we have to read together 10-15 minutes. His worksheets take no more than a couple of minutes to complete in total.

I think I would question the teacher on why so much writing for one night. I can see picking 3-4 from the list and writing them a few times. Even writing all 20 one time is less, but still a lot for a 6 year old.

I would definitely discuss this with the teacher. I teach fourth grade, and the general rule I've heard and used is that for each grade your child is in school, he should be completing no more than ten minutes of homework each night. So, a first grade has ten minutes, a second grader has twenty, third grader has thirty, and so on. I don't assign anywhere near this amount. The teacher may not realize how long this takes, so be sure to discuss this. There are times I think homework is taking my students about twenty minutes a night, but it turns out to be significantly more. The only way I know is if a parent contacts me. Remember, you are your child's advocate!!

Sounds like everyone is on the same page regarding homework taking no more than 20 minutes to complete. The teachers in our school request that parents let them know if homework exceeds the time guideline, and in 1st/2nd grade, the teachers instructed us to have the children stop working on their homework once the time limit was reached. This ensured the teachers were in the loop, from everyone, about how long the work was taking and if adjustments needed to be made. I agree your son's teacher needs to be made aware.