https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Sun, 28 Jun 2026 00:00:50 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/if-you-have-a-1st2nd3rd-grader#post-2844416 Mon, 10 Sep 2018 07:33:31 +0000 looch 2844416@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@2littlepumpkins: It was important to me that my son felt the repercussions from the teacher for not doing the reading log (it turned out there weren't any). I talked to the teacher about it during the conference and I specifically told her this is what was happening and if she had concerns, we should discuss it with my son and she agreed to do this if the need arose. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/if-you-have-a-1st2nd3rd-grader#post-2844379 Sun, 09 Sep 2018 22:43:36 +0000 2littlepumpkins 2844379@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Ajsmommy: Yeah I'm not a fan of it either, but I have a hard time also not having her try her best in whatever it is she's doing. So I definitely feel at odds with myself! A lot of the time this week was spent messing around and/or complaining.. which probably has to do with the fact that she already knows this stuff and she's already spent all day in school. But then at some point I figure it'll get harder? Sorry for the novel! </p> <p>@PinkElephant: Ok I haven't been hands on with phonics at all. I wish they could show their work *either* way rather than just the common core way. Neither my husband nor myself had trouble learning the elementary stuff the old way and we don't think our lo would either. But I think we both also had teachers that also used number lines and various types of counters and all of that stuff, taking it slowly, and I don't know if that was the norm when we were kids or we happened to get lucky.</p> <p>@808love: Thank you!! In some ways I already add and subtract that way in my head, so hopefully it won't be TOO bad. I wonder if we can anticipate any guidance from the teachers as to what to do with the kids. So far we have had a math packet but only very basic adding and subtracting ("2 more" and "1 less" and numbers were only 0-5) and that's what got my thinking.. like am I explaining "less" and "more" right? LOL, this sounds crazy but I don't want to screw up her very foundations! </p> <p>@looch: I definitely see this as setting the groundwork for planning out time and that sort of thing, but then I also don't know when/how to make her more responsible for it. I tell her "put x in your backpack" and "we need to work on your packet," etc., but at some point I know she will need to remember things on her own. I don't know that I would have been able to relinquish control over the reading log completely! I would feel the judgment coming home with the school folder, lol. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/if-you-have-a-1st2nd3rd-grader#post-2844258 Sat, 08 Sep 2018 18:16:47 +0000 looch 2844258@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My son is in 2nd and the school has moved away from homework. In K, it was a homework packet and I estimate it took about 10 minutes per day for 4 days to complete. We found doing the homework in the morning was a lot easier, since it needed to be turned in on Friday.</p> <p>In first grade, we had a reading log. I put it completely up to my son to manage, and most weeks, nothing was handed in. My view on it shocked a lot of the parents in my circle, because I didn't want to make it into a battle and I was satisfied with my son's reading progress. Had he shown signs that he was struggling, I would have made it mandatory.</p> <p>The main thing for me is that my son needs to learn how to set himself up to do the homework. He needs to understand he needs a space to work, materials and time. At this point in time, it's not about the work that is produced, it's about preparing the ground IMO. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/if-you-have-a-1st2nd3rd-grader#post-2844255 Sat, 08 Sep 2018 16:57:26 +0000 808love 2844255@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Our school generally follows the rule 10 mins per grade level plus 20 mins of reading each day. (4th grade has 40 minutes + reading) It really depends on the teacher. You usually can get adjustments for your LO's needs if you discuss it with them. DD is in second and is currently getting from 10-30 mins a night.</p> <p>This youtube gives good K-2 (Kinder through Second grade) math things you can do with kids. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8A-5nqqz_4w" rel="nofollow">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8A-5nqqz_4w</a></p> <p>Common Core is actually easier and slower than the curriculum I was teaching before but it is more complicated because it is taught in a different way than when we were kids. Kind of like if we learned Singapore math after doing it 'our' way for 25+ years. It still works, just hard to teach an old dog new tricks....but not impossible.</p> <p>Here's another on second grade subtraction. I bet there are more parent friendly videos but this is what you got for now. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2b6w2PlMT3w" rel="nofollow">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2b6w2PlMT3w</a> </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/if-you-have-a-1st2nd3rd-grader#post-2844249 Sat, 08 Sep 2018 15:39:09 +0000 PinkElephant 2844249@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>In K, our “homework” was a set of 3 books sent home Monday that the kids were to practice reading til Friday, plus one book for reading group that came home midweek with a small, simple (like, 5-10 min) assignment related to the book. We had maybe three larger projects (one was drawing a map of the student’s bedroom) throughout the year.</p> <p>In first grade, we will have weekly spelling homework and a reading log, all assigned Monday and due Friday. I’ve heard the spelling is kind of intense for parents bc students choose what they want to do from a list and some of it is kind of....involved. Like writing the words in glue and glitter, or sprinkles, or other messy things, haha.</p> <p>Our teachers distribute packets on the printing/handwriting methods, phonetic sound cues, and math methods the school uses (and also makes these available online). I found these massively helpful in K - Without them I feel like I was telling her phonetic cues for sounding out words that were not accurate to what she was learning in school, which was probably very confusing for her!</p> <p>I also really worry about common core math - I’ve done a little reading and it just feels so counterintuitive to how I learned math. I memorize easily, as does my daughter, so she does well with single digit “math facts” - ie she just “knows” that 5+1 is 6. But I am afraid she’ll struggle to demonstrate that she’s come to solutions the “right” way as she moves on to double digit adding/subtracting according to common core. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/if-you-have-a-1st2nd3rd-grader#post-2844246 Sat, 08 Sep 2018 13:45:10 +0000 Ajsmommy 2844246@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>DD starts kinder next year and I believe our School went to a no homework policy ...</p> <p>Which I hope is true. I'm sorry but I think homework for kids under 4th grade is unnecessary and.I'll have a hard time enforcing it </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/if-you-have-a-1st2nd3rd-grader#post-2844240 Sat, 08 Sep 2018 11:50:34 +0000 2littlepumpkins 2844240@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@lamariniere: @KT326: @MamaCate: thanks all! I guess I should mention only about 1 of those hours is on worksheets, maybe a bit more... 7 pages back and front for the week. But we could have zipped through it much quicker if we had to. She does more than the required reading because at this moment in time she loves to read independently (maybe only 5 or so mins with us then 10-20 on her own nightly.) But a lot of the worksheet time was already spent complaining about worksheets and messing around this week, which is unlike lo. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/if-you-have-a-1st2nd3rd-grader#post-2844233 Sat, 08 Sep 2018 10:44:04 +0000 MamaCate 2844233@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@2littlepumpkins: I think a lot of this depends on your school. Our school has really de-emphasized homework. So last year in K we had no homework. Now DD is in 1st. She has no worksheet/take home work but is supposed to read with us 20 minutes a day. There is no reading log or anything, just the expectation. I am curious to see when the work gets more intense but so far DD is learning a lot and we are not having homework battles. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/if-you-have-a-1st2nd3rd-grader#post-2844232 Sat, 08 Sep 2018 10:39:10 +0000 KT326 2844232@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We had homework Monday-Thursday in kinder. It was usually just a couple worksheets that took about 20 minutes and reading for 15 minutes. </p> <p>We are now in first grade and got our first homework packet. There are 8 pages. It was sent home Friday and is due back on Thursday. Plus we are supposed to read for 15 minutes every night. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/if-you-have-a-1st2nd3rd-grader#post-2844212 Sat, 08 Sep 2018 04:19:54 +0000 lamariniere 2844212@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I have a 2nd grader and he’s had homework every year since he started K. It’s slightly more than K now, but usually 20 min or less per day, plus leisure reading. Although, he spent 45 min writing something this week that it turns out he didn’t have to write! So far, all homework has been reinforcement. I haven’t seen anything yet that would require me “teaching” my LO, and frankly, I would be very surprised if that situation occurred. </p> <p>As for the curriculum, he’s in the French system, so it’s quite different from my US public education. I already see that math is taught differently from how I learned it. And there are basically no sight words, everything is phonics. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/if-you-have-a-1st2nd3rd-grader#post-2844210 Sat, 08 Sep 2018 00:26:27 +0000 2littlepumpkins 2844210@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>...when did school get more intense/become more of a time commitment in terms of homework? I'd say total with K including reading log we maybe spend 3 hours/week doing homework? That's with easy stuff that she pretty much already knew, but I know it won't always be that way.</p> <p>Also, if you aren't familiar with concepts they are learning, have you had to go out of your way to learn it, or learn how to teach it? I'm thinking of common core.</p> <p>I'm just throwing this on "your LO" because I don't see one for school...and I'm not going to sit her checking and double checking that loooooong list of boards. </p>