By JOANNE BRIANA-GARTNER
Homework is a fact of life for most school-age children. Kids as young as 1st grade bring home spelling words, math worksheets, and longer assignments, such as making personal time lines, book projects, and interviewing older family members.
Besides reinforcing concepts children learned at school, homework serves other purposes and teaches lifelong skills some children (and grownups) unfortunately, never acquire.
Homework may only be a part of their lives for the next 12, or more, years but being organized and mastering time management are both lifelong skills, and young adults who master them will have an advantage over those who don’t.
At the beginning of a school year the most important thing is to develop homework habits that work for you and your children. The best time to do homework varies from child to child. Some children want to get homework out of the way and are willing to do the work as soon as they get home. Other children need to run around outside and play, and generally burn off some steam after sitting still and concentrating for six-and-a-half hours at school.
Most children will benefit from coming home and having a snack before launching into their homework routine.
The fact is obvious, but bears repeating: all children are different. What works for one may not work for another.
“There are three parts to homework,” said retired elementary school educator Kathy Bourque of West Falmouth. “First there’s bringing the assignment home; then there’s doing it at home, and finally there’s returning the assignment back to school.”
Involving children in the process of choosing items for the homework space goes a long way toward a successful venture. If kids feel that they have a say, they are less likely to resist.
Often parents find, to their dismay, that doing the assignment is the easy part for children while being organized about remembering to bring the work back to school by packing up their own backpack or remembering to return math homework to its designated math folder can be the part that trips kids up.
A designated space where homework consistently is done is one way to help children build their routine as it applies to after-school work.
Young students may be presented with a desk but may prefer to work at the kitchen or dining room table with other family members as company rather than in the seclusion of their own rooms.
This setup may prove ideal if the child needs the occasional help or explanation and being in the kitchen means having mom or dad close by.
Even if your child prefers the dining room table, having a desk, even if work isn’t always being done on it, provides a space where homework assignments can be kept. It also becomes a designated place for school supplies. Elementary school students will need a supply of pencils, erasers, glue sticks, scissors, crayons, markers, rulers, and a sharpener. Other items may include index cards, hundreds and multiplication tables, a dictionary, and a calculator. Backpacks should consistently be put in the same place.
When my oldest son reached homework age, we purchased a small desk at IKEA. It was assembled and put in our downstairs guest room. I figured it would be quiet in there but that he wouldn’t feel excluded from the rest of the family as he would working upstairs in this room while we were all downstairs. In reality, the guest bedroom turned out to be a little too quiet and the desk was moved into our office room, which sees a lot more action since computers and reference books are all there.
Karen Karson, the interim principal at the North Falmouth Elementary School, solved the problem of where to keep homework supplies for her two sons, ages 10 and 11, with a homework box. The box, an oversized Rubbermaid container, contains the aforementioned supplies her boys need and getting out the homework box, whether it is put on the kitchen counter or other space in the house, means that “it’s homework time.”
Ms. Karson said that her sons usually do their homework in close proximity to the rest of their family, often in the kitchen. Having her sons do their homework nearby eliminates the need for them to get up, thus helping them maintain concentration. Ms. Karson, who has worked as an educator for close to 20 years, reinforces homework time in her house by sitting down at the same time as her boys to do her own work. Even if you are just balancing your checkbook, explained Ms. Karson, “you’re modeling the behavior. Plus you’re available, if they need you.”
Homework areas should be well lighted and free from the distraction of televisions, computer games, cellphones, and other electronic devices. Some children work well with background music on, others don’t. Again, every child is different.
“You need a quiet spot,” said Ms. Bourque. “Not all homes can achieve that.”
Both Ms. Karson and Ms. Bourque stressed that the key to a successful homework time is being consistent and predictable. “When you set up your homework schedule, try to stick with it as best you can,” said Ms. Karson.
If you have to break from your routine, Ms. Bourque suggested explaining to your children why you are breaking from the schedule in order to enforce the idea that there is a schedule and that they will be expected to get back to it.
“The biggest challenge for most families is overscheduling” said Ms. Karson.
Reminding me of a tactic that also works well at our house, Ms. Karson touted the benefits of list making. “Lists work well for us,” she said. Creating lists and putting them in the same spot, tacked to a bulletin board or written on a dry erase, or chalk, board, is helpful not only for days when the routine is interrupted by an after-school activity, but it also cuts down on parents constantly having to nag and remind kids about what needs to be done.
In our house, in addition to shopping lists, we have lists of things to do that day, things to do before bed (brush teeth, feed pets), things to do before going to school (brush teeth, get backpack). The morning and evening lists, the ones that don’t change, are 8.5-by-11-sheets of paper put inside plastic sleeves so my kids can check off the boxes and then wipe away their checks from week to week, a technique I lifted from “Family Fun” magazine.
For parents who feel that they aren’t all that organized themselves, the schools are there to help. “They are teaching the kids organizational skills in school by using colored folders, planners, and other techniques, said Ms. Karson. Elementary schoolchildren are being taught to use student planners. Middle school kids use organizers and calendars to keep track of assignments upcoming in the next week or month. Scheduling their time is something children have to learn. “It has to be explicitly taught,” said Ms. Karson.
At home children can use the same techniques, making their own schedules based on when assignments are due and working backward.
Ms. Karson’s routine, because she usually arrives home after her boys, is to sit down herself and have her boys bring their work folders to her, one at a time. “We go through everything and figure out what needs to be done, what I need to sign, what needs to go back to school the next day. It helps me as well,” she said.
Involving children in the process always goes a long way toward a successful venture. If kids feel that they have a say, they are less likely to resist. If they make some of the decisions themselves, there’s more of a chance of success, said Ms. Karson. They will also know what’s expected of them, she added.
Bring them along as you shop for desk lights, bulletin boards, and storage bins. Ask them outright for ideas on how they might make their nightly homework routine more enjoyable. “I involve them as much as I can,” said Ms. Karson of her two boys, adding that eventually they will have to learn to schedule their time on their own.
Ideally her boys let her know when their work is done, and “we pack up everything before we go to bed,” which avoids the stress of having to look for things in the morning at the last minute.
Folders, bins, and files can all help students stay organized and reduce clutter.
Around middle school children will start needing computers more often in order to complete their homework assignments. In addition to simply using the computer to type out their work, reading assignments and books may be posted on a teacher’s school website, where students can read and retrieve them. Computers should be placed in areas of the house common to everyone, instead of in a child’s bedroom. When her oldest son began needing access to the computer Ms. Karson hired a carpenter to build a computer station in their kitchen.
A timer is one of the more unusual items Ms. Karson suggested as a homework helper. To make homework a little less of a chore she lets her boys pick out their own timers in fun shapes and colors. “We use timers a ton in our house,” said Ms. Karson. Timers can help a child get focused. It can give them a goal, for example: “See what you can get done in 20 minutes, then take a break.”
It’s helpful to remember that the process will change over the course of the child’s school career. Just as they will need different supplies and space to work in as they get older, what works now may not work later as they transition from elementary to middle school and then to high school. “It’s always changing,” said Ms. Karson.