First Grade Homework

[mchames]

I'm curious what other people's first graders are bringing home for homework. I really like DD6's teacher. She is new to our school and has been teaching 2nd grade for five years. This is her first year teaching 1st grade. On average, it takes my DD6 1+hrs to do her homework. (This does not include 20 minutes of reading.)

Here's her homework for the week:

Monday:
Language/Spelling: Write a sentence using each spelling word. Underline the spelling word in each sentence. (11 words)
Math: Write a counting poem about animals. Be creative! Illustrate your poem.
1hr 15minutes followed by an HOUR LONG CRYING JAG!

Tuesday:
Language/Spelling: Write the names of your family members. Remember to use capital letters.. Clap out each person's name and write the number of syllables by name.
Math: We are working on number lines. Please make a number line from 0-20. For each number ending in 0 or 5, write the number in red. Write whether you see any patterns on the numberline.
Other:
Please ask your student to bring in 2 rocks to examine and experiment with in class.
Whoohoo! 30 minutes!! This is a new record. No crying.

Wednesday:
Language/Spelling: Read a book. Write a picture summary of the book. For each sentence in your summary, draw a little picture to go with that sentence.
Math: Math Book pg. 50

Thursday:
Language/Spelling: Write a story using as many of your spelling words as possible. Underline each spelling word.
Study for Spelling Test
Math: Math Book pg 52

Is this about the same? more? less? than the average first grader? I don't remember my DD8 (3rd grade) having such extensive homework in 1st grade. We are 99% sure DD6 has a processing disorder, most likely Dyslexia. (She's been screened but has not yet had the full psych eval.) I'm sure this is a big part of why her homework takes so long, but it still seems like a considerable amount for the average child.

What do you think? What kind of homework does your first grader get?

Thanks.
Mary

 

[Tigger&Belle]

In general, at our school, I think they say to allow about 10 minutes of home work her grade, plus the reading. I think my 1st graders homework might be taking a little longer than the 10 minutes, but not much longer. We have the Parent Back to School Night tomorrow night, so I will get more details then.

On Monday he had to read to me for at least 10 minutes. His book was longer than 10 minutes, so I read the rest of it to him. He then had to record the name of the book in a reading log. He had to practice reading and spelling his word wall words (very easy words), do a math worksheet, which included coloring a picture and writing about his family (the math was recording the number of letters in each name--very basic--took a little while to do the picture), and he had to do a social studies paper based on a book they read at school, but he said they didn't read the book, so I let him wait to do it.

I would talk to the teacher and ask how long the homework should take. I have one son who used to take a long time to do homework. The teachers didn't want him spending too long, so they would have him work for a set amount of time and then I would write a note on the paper. As long as they knew that he worked hard, they were fine with that. They didn't want him spending all of his after school time doing homework and they sure didn't want him getting too frustrated.

 

[NAB]

Wow are you just back to school. We just started last week so we don't get as much as you. She bring home reading last week, like the class room rules etc. This week we are practising writing letters and doing Jolly phonics. That is singing the song that goes with the sound. We have our first spelling test on Friday which are sight works like :that, in , to , at , is , etc. There are ten in all. This is usually three pages in total. She is going on 35 minutes.

 

[mickeyboat]

My first graders have not had any homework so far this year. From what I hear, the real homework doesn't start around here until 2nd grade.

Denae

 

[TinkerBess_SnowTori]

Wow - I don't know but that seems like a lot - but maybe my first grader isn't getting the education yours is - because we haven't even gotten any homework yet.

Well other than spelling words - Write a sentence with the word and underline the word on friday's to take back to school on Monday.

 

[Cindy's Mom]

WOW! DD6 just started 1st grade and her homework is nothing like that. They started school last week of August. When did yours start? I asked that because I saw on a thread yesterday with some teachers posting when they "really start to teach" and I noticed that a couple replied that they wait a solid 3-4 weeks before "full monty".

DD is doing what they finished off in Kindergarten. I read in her packet the first week of school to expect about 20 minutes homework (not counting reading).

 

[PlutosFriend]

Wow that sounds like a lot compared to what my 1st grade daughter gets. The teacher sends home a homework plan sheet for the week, on Monday's. You have til Friday to get things done. Monday is typically your spelling work sheets, Tuesday math, Wednesday reading, Thursday is study for your spelling test. Pretty simple. Never homework on weekends.

 

[golfgal]

That is TOTALLY overboard for 1st grade. What about the kids that can't read yet? How are they supposed to get this done?

When our kids were in first grade they usually had one phonics worksheet and one math worksheet, one side only, each night and reading. It took them about 10 minutes to do both worksheets and then however long they were supposed to read or be read to.

I think you need to address this with her. I would check with some other parents first to see if they are having the same amount come home. Any chance some of this was supposed to be done in school and she isn't doing it there? Either way it is TOO much to expect. I would cry too!!!!

 

[Rachie0507]

My DD's teacher told us to expect 15 minutes a night for 1st grade homework. It hasn't taken her more than 5 minutes yet. She has a two sided worksheet each night--either math or spelling/reading. The day she brings home her spelling words, she must copy them twice also. Her spelling words this week (the first week) are words like had, bad, pan, can, hat, etc. She started at a private school this year but I got the impression that this homework is harder than what the public school here is doing (definitely a lot harder than what she was doing at the end of kindergarten).

 

[mchames]

We started school on August 14th. This is her 3rd week of homework this year. They had homework M-TH in kindergarten as well. There are 12 first grade classrooms this year. I've been comparing amounts/type of homework with other parents with different teachers. Homework seems to vary greatly between the classes from: letter "e" worksheet to build a pyramid out of sugar cubes! This year all of the first grade teachers are assigning individual homework. In past years, they collaborated and assigned homework as a team, so all classes did the same assignments. That's what they did in kindergarten and my 3rd grader's homework is being handled as a team as well.

Mary

 

[wizzytoon]

hi all,

I too was wondering about this. My DS has about 1hr30mins of homework a night and he too is in the 1st grade. I just keeping thinking when do kids still get to be kids. This is also his third year of Italian( hes had it since pre-k). I thought he should get english down before we start with another lol.

 

[dzorn]

DD just started last Tuesday and has only brought home spelling words she had to write and practice.

Denise in MI

 

[allie&mattsmom]

Wow! My kids are in 4th and 6th grade so it's been while since first grade, but that seems like a heck of a lot of homework for her! I would definitely address this with the teacher. Good Luck!

 

[BibbidiBobbidiBOO]

TOO much, IMHO. (I used to teach too)
That is obviously more than 10-15 mins per day.
I think DD had spelling words OR math M-TH. And it never took her very long.
2nd grade seemed to increase a bit more.

To the poster asking about foreign languages, children really seem to absorb it better at an early age.

 

[mchames]

That is TOTALLY overboard for 1st grade. What about the kids that can't read yet? How are they supposed to get this done?

When our kids were in first grade they usually had one phonics worksheet and one math worksheet, one side only, each night and reading. It took them about 10 minutes to do both worksheets and then however long they were supposed to read or be read to.

I think you need to address this with her. I would check with some other parents first to see if they are having the same amount come home. Any chance some of this was supposed to be done in school and she isn't doing it there? Either way it is TOO much to expect. I would cry too!!!!

I plan on speaking with her, which is one of the reasons I posted this, to get an idea what other kids/teachers in different areas are doing. Though we are in a public school, it is quite competitive. Many of our parents are constantly pushing for more, more, more. We have large numbers of children in our Challenge (gifted & talented) Program and even more parents pushing for their child to get in.

My child most likely has a learning disability, so it is very hard to compare the amount of time it takes for her to do an assignment as compared to one of her friends who is in "Challenge". I guess what I'm wondering is are these assignments too advanced for the average 6yo? If so, when I speak to her I'm thinking of asking to have DD6's homework assignments modified to something that would be more beneficial to her and not so over her head and frustrating, especially if she does wind up with a Dyslexia (or other) diagnosis.

I copied these assignments from the Weekly Homework Sheet verbatim, so this is not work she is not completing at school.

Mary

 

[Snoopymom]

Ds is in first grade in Gwinnett and your daughter has a lot more than he has, and honestly, I think they both have way too much....

A little book to read each night and record, with date, title author, which takes anywhere from 10-20 minutes. We're "encouraged" and it's "mandatory" ??? to read an additional 10 minutes a night to fill up the 100 minutes of reading on these sheets.

On Mondays (sure wish it wasn't Mondays) a book report where he has to read a book, fill in the title, author, illustrator, characters, where the story takes place, what happens in the middle, what happens in the end, and did you like it.

We choose a book we've already read and it still takes 30 minutes to an hour.


The rest of the week he has 1 easy work sheet a night on either math, science, social studies or spelling. They usually only take 5-10 minutes, whew, LOL.

He also has one book report a month to do, similar to the Monday one but more detailed and he has to present it to the class.

Hope this helps.

 

[GJM]

Wow - I can't beleive this is for lst. grade. My DS did Kindergarteen in his daycare, it was only 1/2 day in our town.

His homework for tonight was do 1 sheet with the letter "C", 2 pages of math, and bring in a leaf. He keeps telling me it is too easy -

I'm hoping his homework will stay about the same. I never heard of a lst. grader doing a book report. My DS can't really read, certain words but that is it.

The thing I can't understand in my school is why do they have 2 days of Spanish and only 1 day of Physical Education? I agree - let him get English down with reading and writing and then a language.

 

[shellbelle11]

Oh my goodness!! That's more than I give all year! That is more on par with what I gave my 3rd graders. This is my 5th year in first. We started last Tuesday and I haven't given my first graders homework yet. That starts up next week. We use Everyday Math and there is a "homelink" that goes along with each lesson. It takes about 10-15 minutes a night, and occasionally has a parent involvement piece. Some nights the paper is something like counting coins or telling time, other nights it is going on a scavenger hunt in your house for thermometers or calendars... it goes along with each lesson. So once we get into the swing of things we give a math paper 4 nights a week, M-TH, and ask them to read 15 minutes a night, which is recorded in their reading logs that are passed in on Friday. Once our spelling lists start up in January I also send home a worksheet on Monday and that's due on Thursday. My district's policy for first is 15-20 minutes 4 nights a week.

In the district that I taught in before we sent home a worksheet of some type 2 or 3 nights a week.

On a side note, I'm shocked about all the sentence writing- I'm still trying to get my munchkins to understand what sentences are... (great, now in my head I now am hearing me chant with my class "a sentence has a capital at the beginning, punctuation at the end and you SPACE THOSE WORDS" complete with the hand motions....

Michelle

 

[CEDmom]

I like the creativity of the teacher's assignments. I think most should be given to do over several days in class. 1st graders are getting used to the more academic pace of school and shouldn't be overwhelmed with work. Honestly, homework should be a reinforcement of what they're doing in the classroom not new concepts.

Last year when DD was in 1st grade she had about 2 pages of math work and 1-2 pages of language arts work each night. At most it took 30 min. but usually about 20. Story writing was done in class not as homework.

 

[pigletz]

I would talk to the teacher about it. You said that this is her first year teaching first grade. I'm thinking that she hasn't adjusted to a lower grade level. I teach eighth grade and I know a few teachers in our building who just made the switch from high school to middle are having a hard time adjusting their expectations. She might be so used to giving that amount of homework to older kids that she doesn't realize it's too much for first graders. I'm not trying to make excuses for her but it might be something you want to bring up with her.