9 Ways to Make Homework More Liveable

Even as a teacher there are days when I dread delving into homework. With everyone’s busy schedules and activities the very thought of going home and spending my evening looking at the lattice method of multiplication (didn’t even know what that was when I went to school) or the process of mitosis can be pretty daunting. Luckily over time my children and I have have learned some great tricks that can make the process as painless as possible…and even a little fun.

 

1) Plan ahead. Most assignments, especially larger projects and middle school lesson plans, are available to you ahead of time. Renweb has lesson plans and homework listed for the week. I have my students look at this every Monday and plan their week. If they know they have sports practice on Tuesday they can do more on Monday evening to get ahead. Also, reading assignments are often given far in advance. Use your weekend time to get the reading done. That will free up precious weekday evenings when everyone is on the go.

2) Write it down. It is a must to write all assignments on agendas or on electronic devices. As adults we do this constantly. It’s not reasonable to expect students to remember what they are supposed to do without writing it down. Renweb can be printed for the week and updated as needed for an easy check.

3) Use your tools. I tell my students to use that technology to make their lives easier. Take a picture of the board at the end of class so you can compare it to your written notes and make sure that they are correct. Set a reminder to do something. Have the computer remind you get that paper signed by a parent or to review a certain lesson. Often when we leave class we have completely forgotten that last thing the teacher said because we are thinking about where we are going next. Don’t forget sticky notes. Write important information down and place it on the page so when you open your book the sticker is there to jog your memory.

4) Getting it home. It’s impossible to do the homework if it doesn’t come home. This has resulted in many an argument at my home. I suggest to my students to either highlight the assignment on their agenda if it needs to go home, or have a separate list on the bottom of anything that should go home. In middle school I tell them as they come back from class if they have homework in that class to place all that needs to go home immediately in their bottom locker. That way at the end of the day even if they can’t recall exactly what the assignment is they know if it’s in the bottom locker to take it home and double check. Better to be safe than sorry.

5) Maximizing travel time. We spend way more time in the car than we could ever imagine. Use this time to review those spelling words or quiz those math facts. This can be a painless way to get in some review. When my kids were younger they loved to watch movies in the car. My kids knew their math facts like nobody’s business and they learned them from watching School House Rock in my car. Snuck it right in and they loved it. Win-win!

6) Get up and learn. Yes, after a long day at school kids need to move. There is no reason why you can’t move and learn. Practice spelling words while tossing a ball back and forth. Jump, run, or dance while reciting math facts. My students love when I pull out the sand or shaving cream to practice their words in. I’ve even given an entire quiz in shaving cream. Cleaned the desks and my room smelled great. There are obviously times that sitting is necessary, but breaks for movement and fidget toys can be a great way to add a kinestethic dimension to learning that is often really helpful.

7) Music vs no music. For some kids I find that they must have complete silence. Others do well with classical music, and still others can focus on work and listen to their favorite song at the same time. I completely respect that we all learn differently. For me it’s about output. If they are spending time listening to music and it takes them an hour to do ten math problems correctly then it isn’t working. It’s not a fight with my students because I let them have music as long as they produce quality work. As soon as they don’t, they lose it. I find that they quickly learn what does and doesn’t work for them, and I didn’t have to argue about it.

8) What are they really doing? In this day and age of rampant technology it is nearly impossible to catch them sending every text message or posting every selfie. Heck, my 16-year-old can go on her tiny iPhone keyboard, not even look at her fingers, and type a perfectly punctuated paragraph before I can even open my text screen. I find that when my kids go in their rooms and complain they are taking hours to do assignments there are often a lot of other things going on. Sometimes it’s okay to have everyone work at the kitchen table. You won’t catch every time they have sent a message complaining to friends about having to work there rather then in their rooms, but you will have a much better idea of how their time is really spent. If you still see them spending hours to do work I encourage you to contact their teacher. Hours of homework is never our goal. A better plan can be worked out.

9) Have a set place to put homework that needs to be turned in. The only thing worse than not bringing it home is to spend time doing it and not turning it in. Have a homework turn-in folder in the binder. If you have a different folder for each class use the front pocket as the place that homework goes. Place a bright sticky note on the cover of the folder with a note to remind yourself to check what needs to be turned in at the beginning of class. Once it becomes a habit it won’t be such an issue. This makes it a student’s responsibility to check, but with some extra prompts to get them to remember.

 

Homework sometimes feels like a dreaded chore, but there are ways to make the process easier. As adults, we all have work to do after work hours, and homework can help students to develop these life skills. Though homework is a necessity, it isn’t something we need to stress over. I tell my students that we can stress and freak out over getting Taylor Swift tickets or what we are wearing for free dress day, but never homework. It is something we can work through. When students learn to break homework down into workable pieces they will realize they are capable and gain confidence. That is the most important lesson of all.

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Today’s blog post is written by ESK Learning Center director Erika Letsinger.