Why Do A Lot Of Teachers Think

[Unregistered]

Why Do A Lot Of Teachers Think That Giving Kids Worksheets Out Of The Book For Homework Is A Waste Of Time?


Quote:
Originally Posted by Unregistered
Why Do A Lot Of Teachers Think That Giving Kids Worksheets Out Of The Book For Homework Is A Waste Of Time? Should I Be Worried About What My Son Is Learing In His Third Grade Class If He Never Brings Homework Home In Language And Arts, Nor Does He Bring Home Any Papers That Have Been Corrected By The Teacher, Which They Might Have Done In Class. I Have Got Some Skills Test Back Just The Other Day For The First Time, Which I Was Suprized To See They Were Not To Good. I Have Talked To His Reading Teacher, And Asked If She Could Fill Out A Weekly Report On His Work. His Home Room Teacher Assures Me That He Has Already Been Taught Those Things Or In The Next Few Weeks Or Months To Come They Will Be Covering Them In Class. I Have Even Brought This Up With The Principal To Find Out What She Thought. She Says The Books Are Just A Basic Outline Of What Sould Be Taught Tothe Kids, But Can Assure Me My Child Is Being Taught Far More Than What That Book Has In It. Then Where Is All The Work That Is Being Done At? I Asked The Teacher To Send Work Home, But He Tells Me They Do Plenty Of Work In Class, And It's A Waste Of Time To Give You A Page Out Of The Book. Why Does The Other Third Grade Teacher Work Out Of The Book And Gives Out A Page As Homework Each Night??



SO NOW AFTER A WEEK HAS GONE BY, I DO NOT FEEL LIKE ANY THING HAS CHANGED. IF ANY THING I THINK THE THEACHER FEELS LIKE I THINK HE DOESN'T KNOW HOW TO TEACH HIS CLASS. THE TEACHER IS TEACHING THE CLASS AS A WHOLE WHICH I MEAN IF THEY DO A SPELLING TEST THE WHOLE CLASS HAS TO GET A CERTAIN AMOUNT RIGHT IF THEY DON'T THEN THE WHOLE CLASS HAS TO RETAKE THE TEST UNTIL THEY PASS. HE HAS TAKEN THE SAME TEST FOUR TIMES IN TWO WEEKS. HE HAS NEVER MISSED A WORD YET HE GETS 100% EVERY TIME. BUT YET HE IS NOT BEING ABLE TO MOVE ON BECAUSE THE WHOLE CLASS HAS TO PASS, IS THAT RIGHT? SAME GOES FOR MATH THERE STILL DOING SUBTRACTION 44-54. MATH COMES NATURAL FOR MY SON HE IS CAPABLE OF DOING 5TH GRADE MATH AND HAS PROVED IT TO THE TEACHER , BUT THE TEACHER FEELS IT'S NOT A GOOD IDEA TO GET HIM AHEAD OF THE CLASS BECAUSE THEN HE WILL START GETTING BORED IN CLASS. I HAD HIM TAKE A TEST FOR CHILDREN WHO ARE GIFTED, BUT THE RESULTS WILL NOT BE IN UNTIL THE END OF MARCH. HE EXCELLS IN MATH SO MUCH THAT IF HE IS NOT BEING CHALENGED BY IT, THEN IT'S LIKE HE ALMOST DOESN'T CARE ABOUT ANY THING ELSE IN SCHOOL. SO FAR THIS YEAR I HAVE GOT 8 PAPERS BACK FROM WORK THEY DID IN CLASS IN ENGLISH, HE HAS DONE 3 ENGLISH PAPERS FOR HOMEWORK NONE RETURNED WITH GRADES COMMENTS,OR CORRECTIONS TO BE MADE. THEY DO MATH WORK EVERY NIGHT BUT IT NEVER COMES HOME GRADED OR ACTCUALLY IT NEVER REALLY MAKES IT BACK HOME AT ALL. THE TEACHER JUST TOSSES IT OUT. HOW DO YOU HANDLE A THING LIKE THIS WITHOUT CAUSING CONFLICT. THE YEAR IS ALMOST OVER AND I DON'T FEEL LIKE MY CHILD IS GETTING WHAT HE SHOULD BE OUT OF HIS CLASS. DOES ANY ONE HAVE AN IDEA, ON WHAT TO DO?

[Unregistered]

Why Do A Lot Of Teachers Think That Giving Kids Worksheets Out Of The Book For Homework Is A Waste Of Time?


{anyone,anyone, care to voice there thoughts on this.}

[Mae]

Workbook pages are often drills and do not take into consideration the context of the reading and writing you are presenting.Children need time to compose and create their responses which is not usually the purpose of a worksheet.

[jgray]

Homework at Foust Elementary, my home, is not a practice that we beleive to effective. The poopulation is 96% free lunch and students have very little support at home. Two reasons I do not approve of homework: 1. Most of the time, it is not used for instruction once it is returned. Oh, it will get a grade but how much instructioanl time is really spent and the work that is returned. 2. As prinicipal, it is my expectation that kids will work hard all day long and if they do, they should be allowed to be "kids" when they get home from school. Since I have implemented this policy, we have a much better relationship with parents and students undertand the significance of working hard during the work day. We have enough battles to fight to waste time bickering and fussing at kids about the work that they don't bring back to school. It also stands true that teachers must be engaging in meaningful work throughout the day that will most prepare kids for the future.

[Unregistered]

Homework at Foust Elementary, my home, is not a practice that we beleive to effective. The poopulation is 96% free lunch and students have very little support at home. Two reasons I do not approve of homework: 1. Most of the time, it is not used for instruction once it is returned. Oh, it will get a grade but how much instructioanl time is really spent and the work that is returned. 2. As prinicipal, it is my expectation that kids will work hard all day long and if they do, they should be allowed to be "kids" when they get home from school. Since I have implemented this policy, we have a much better relationship with parents and students undertand the significance of working hard during the work day. We have enough battles to fight to waste time bickering and fussing at kids about the work that they don't bring back to school. It also stands true that teachers must be engaging in meaningful work throughout the day that will most prepare kids for the future.


FIRST, LET ME JUST SAY THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR INPUT. It also stands true that teachers must be engaging in meaningful work throughout the day that will most prepare kids for the future. WHAT IF THAT WASN'T TRUE? HOW WOULD YOU EVER KNOW WHATS GOING ON WITH YOUR CHILD?

[Unregistered]

Tips For Parents

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To Do or Not To Do Homework?

Homework can have many benefits for young children. It can improve remembering and understanding of schoolwork. Homework can help students develop study skills that will be of value even after they leave school. It can teach them that learning takes place anywhere, not just in the classroom. Homework can benefit children in more general ways as well. It can foster positive character traits such as independence and responsibility. Homework can teach children how to manage time.

Homework, if not properly assigned and monitored, can also have negative effects on children. Educators and parents worry that students will grow bored if they are required to spend too much time on schoolwork. Homework can prevent children from taking part in leisure-time and community activities that also teach important life skills. Homework can lead to undesirable character traits if it promotes cheating, either through the copying of assignments or help with homework that goes beyond tutoring.



Is It Enough Homework?

Many national groups of teachers and parents, including the National Parent Teacher Association (PTA), suggest that homework for children in kindergarten through second grade is most effective when it does not exceed 10-20 minutes each day. In third through sixth grade, children can benefit from 30-60 minutes of homework per day. Junior high and high school students can benefit from more time on homework, and the amount may vary from night to night.

Reading at home is especially important for young children. High-interest reading assignments might push the time on homework a bit beyond the minutes suggested above.


Types of Homework

Homework assignments typically have one or more purposes. The most common purpose is to have students practice material already presented in class. Practice homework is meant to reinforce learning and help the student master specific skills. Preparation homework introduces material that will be presented in future lessons. These assignments aim to help students learn new material better when it is covered in class. Extension homework asks students to apply skills they already have to new situations. Integration homework requires the student to apply many different skills to a single task, such as book reports, science projects or creative writing.

In particular, math homework has been shown to be more important in the middle to high school grades and less important in the elementary grades. It starts to become important in the fourth grade and is increasingly important in the upper grades.

How Parents Can Help with Homework

Research also shows that parent involvement can have either a positive or negative impact on the value of homework. Parent involvement can be used to speed up a child's learning. Homework can involve parents in the school process. It can enhance parents' appreciation of education. It can give them an opportunity to express positive attitudes about the value of success in school.



When mothers and fathers get involved with their children's homework, communication between the school and family can improve. It can clarify for parents what is expected of students. It can give parents a firsthand idea of what students are learning and how well their child is doing in school.

Research shows that if a child is having difficulty with homework, parents should become involved by paying close attention. They should expect more requests from teachers for their help. If a child is doing well in school, parents should consider shifting their efforts to providing support for their child's own choices about how to do homework. Parents should avoid interfering in the independent completion of assignments.

As this brief introduction suggests, homework can be an effective way for students to improve their learning and for parents to communicate their appreciation of schooling. Because a great many things influence the impact of homework achievement, expectations for homework's effects, especially in the earlier grades, must be realistic.

Homework policies and practices should give teachers and parents the flexibility to take into account the unique needs and circumstances of their students. That way, they can maximize the positive effects of homework and minimize the negative ones.



Teachers may create their own list of activities to accompany the tips. Teachers can post the tips in the classroom, use them in meetings with parents, design workshops around them and use them to guide parents in developing homework plans for their children. Tips can be sent home along with a list of objectives to be covered for the year, as a means to include parents in and out of the classroom.

GENERAL HOMEWORK TIPS FOR PARENTS

getting together with classmates.

Be positive about homework.
Tell your child how important school is. The attitude you express about homework will be the attitude your child acquires.

When your child does homework, you do homework.
Show your child that the skills they are learning are related to things you do as an adult. If your child is reading, you read too. If your child is doing math, balance your checkbook.

When your child asks for help, provide guidance, not answers.
Giving answers means your child will not learn the material. Too much help teaches your child that when the going gets rough, someone will do the work for him or her.

When the teacher asks that you play a role in homework, do it.
Cooperate with the teacher. It shows your child that the school and home are a team. Follow the directions given by the teacher.

If homework is meant to be done by your child alone, stay away.
Too much parent involvement can prevent homework from having some positive effects. Homework is a great way for kids to develop independent, lifelong learning skills.

Stay informed.
Talk with your child's teacher. Make sure you know the purpose of homework and what your child's class rules are.

Help your child figure out what is hard homework and what is easy homework.
Have your child do the hard work first. This will mean he will be most alert when facing the biggest challenges. Easy material will seem to go fast when fatigue begins to set in.

Watch your child for signs of failure and frustration.
Let your child take a short break if she is having trouble keeping her mind on an assignment.

Reward progress in homework.
If your child has been successful in homework completion and is working hard, celebrate that success with a special event (e.g., pizza, a walk, a trip to the park) to reinforce the positive effort.

[Unregistered]

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THIS WAS THE LETTER I SENT TO THE PRINCAPAL.
I AM THE ONE WHO WHO HAS POSTED
1. WHY DO TEACHERS THINK?????
2. ? FOR BIG DADDY
3. TIPS FOR PARENTS
4. AM I DOING THE RIGHT THING?
5.WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SWP & TAS SCHOOLS?
6. POSTED MANY THREADS IN HOMEWORK ISSUES.

GOOD SCHOOLS ENCOURAGE PARENTS TO ASK QUESTIONS, TO SEEK CLARIFICATION OF PROCEDURES USED, AND TO DETERMINE THE IMPACT OF A GIVEN TEST ON THEIR CHILD’S FUTURE.

GOOD SCHOOLS USE A VARITY OF TYPES OF TEST AND ASSESSMENTS TO MEET THE NEEDS OF THE STUDENTS.

THE CRRICLUM IS GUIDED BY THESE CAREFULLY CONSTRUCTED INSTRUCTIONAL GOALS, WITH TEXTS, RESOURCE MATERIALS.

WELL BECAUSE YOU ARE TO BUSY TO SEE ME,
YOU LEAVE ME NO OTHER CHOICE BUT TO
EXPRESS MY CONCERNS WITH THE SCHOOLS
DISTRICT OFFICE SUPERATANDENT.
“I AM NOT DOING THIS BECAUSE I WANT TO,
I’M DOING IT BECAUSE I HAVE TO.”

1. I HVE ASKED YOU TO GIVE MY CHILD AN ASSESSMENT TEST.
2. I ASKED YOU TO TALK TO A COUPLE OF KIDS IN THE CLASS ABOUT A TIME WHEN YOU HAD CAME TO VIST THE CLASS, AND WHAT TOOK PLACE AFTER YOU GOT THERE.
3. I ASKED YOU TO TALK TO MY SON ABOUT THE WAY MRS. QRST SPOKE TO HIM.
4. I ASKED YOU TO PLEASE SEND ME COPIES OF ALL MY SONS ASSESSMENT TESTS HE HAS TAKEN THIS YEAR UP TO DATE.
5. I HAVE ASKED MR. LMNOP TO PLEASE FILL OUT SOME FORMS FOR ME, ON MY SON.
6. I ASKED MR. LMNOP FOR COPIES OF ALL MY SONS WORK HE HAS IN LANGUAGE AND ARTS.

THERE IS NO REASON, WHY MR. LMNOP CAN’T FILL OUT THE FORMS. I ALSO ASKED MRS. ABCD TO FILL OUT SOME FORMS EACH WEEK FOR A MONTH.
SHE HAD NO PROBLEM DOING IT FOR ME.
IF YOU WOULD LIKE ANOTHER WEEK TO PROPERLY ASSES MY SON BEFORE I SPEAK WITH THE DISTRICT OFFICE, THEN I WILL DO THAT. IF NOTHING STILL IS DONE THEN I MUST BRING IT TO THE ATTENTION OF SOMEONE HIGHER.

\THANK YOU,





IF MY MEMORY IS CORRECT, WASN’T IT YOU WHO TOLD ME, THAT I SHOULDN’T JUST BASE WHAT MY CHILD KNOWS ON THE STATE STANDARDS TEST {CST}.

{QUOTE, BY YOU} THESE TESTS ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO OUR SCHOOL COMMUNITY- THEY WILL GIVE STUDENTS THE OPPORTUNITY TO DEMONSTRATE THE INCREDIBLE AMOUNT OF KNOWLEDGE THEY HAVE GAINED THIS YEAR.
SO IF MY CHILD DOESN’T REACH PROFIENT LEVEL THIS YEAR WHAT WOULD THAT MEAN?

I BASE WHAT MY CHILD HAS LEARNED

FROM THE WORK THAT IS DONE IN CLASS, TO THE HOMEWORK THAT IS SENT HOME, AND TO THE SKILLS TEST HE TAKES AT SCHOOL, TO THE HOME TESTS THAT I GIVE HIM. WITH ALL OF THIS I CAN TELL YOU IF MY CHILD HAS GAINED ANY KNOWLEDGE THIS YEAR.

AT THIS TIME I AM ALSO REQUESTING THAT MY CHILD NOT BE GIVEN ANY OF THE STATE TESTS. I HAVE THE RIGHT NOT TO HAVE HIM TAKE THE TESTS.


THANK YOU ,


Thursday, March 24, 2005


MY SON HAD HIS FISRT DAY YESTERDAY MONDAY THE THIRD OF APRIL. HE LIKES HIS CLASS A LOT MORE. I'M AM VERY SUPRIZED TO SEE WHY THESE HAS NEVER BEEN BROUGHT TO ANYONES ATTENTION BEFORE. HOW CAN THE SAME SCHOOL HAVE TWO TEACHERS TEACHING THE SAME GRADE LEVEL AND ONE NOT KNOW WHAT THE OTHER ONE IS TEACHING IN THERE CLASSROOM. IT BRINGS ME BACK TO MY SAME QUESTION WHY DO SOME TEACHERS THINK THAT WORKBOOK PAGES ARE A WASTE OF TIME? IN MY SONS OLD CLASS IN HIS WORK BOOK FOR READING AND LANG. ARTS THERE WERE 235 PAGES IN THR BOOK THEY ONLY DID 32 PAGES. MATH WORK BOOK THEY DID 0 PAGES. IN HIS NEW CLASS THEY DID THE WHOLE LANG. ARTS BOOK, AND ARE ALMOST DONE WITH THE MATH BOOK. DOCUMENTATION IS IMPORTANT TO HAVE TO SEE HOW YOUR CHILD IS DOING IN SCHOOL. IF I START TO SEE THAT MY THIRD GRADE CHILDS BINDER THAT I MAKE FOR HIM IS TWICE AS SMALL AS MY FIRST GRADERS BINDER, I HAVE TO WONDER WHATS GOING ON HERE.

MY SON IS HAPPY MY WIFE AND I ARE HAPPY, SO I THINK IT'S OVER FOR THIS YEAR. LETS HOPE NEXT YEAR IS BETTER. THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH BIG DADDY FOR YOUR INPUT AND ALL YOU WROTE, IT MENT A LOT TO US. MY PROBLEMS WERE A LITTLE TO MUCH FOR EVERY BODY ELSE, BUT NOT YOU. THANK YOU AGAIN. I JUST NEEDED TO KNOW IF WHAT I DID WAS RIGHT? WHEN MY SON SAID HE LIKED THIS CLASS BETTER THAN HIS OLD ONE. THATS ALL I NEED TO KNOW. ANSWER IS "YES".

[Unregistered]

The only worksheets that are considered "busy work" are those that do not require a child to use critical thinking skills. If they are completing multiple choice questions, or solving a page of many math problems that are all alike, then they can be a little redundant. If the children are assigned a math worksheet where there are multiple ways to solve a problem and a variety of skills are adressed, or they are assigned a series of open-ended questions related to a story from reading, this would be a much better use of time.

[Unregistered]

I'm a first grade teacher. Worksheets are not necessarily a bad thing. But if it is your only means of teaching, it is. Worksheets should reinforce what has already been taught for extra practice. But if worksheets are given just to keep the kids busy and quiet all the time, that is a problem. Kids need to be able to communicate with the other students, have hands on real life experiences, and also have more critical thinking lessons.

I DO NOT approve of teachers who have a page number written on the board and the students come in and do that the whole hour. That's a lazy teacher in my opinion and doesn't challenge his/her class enough.