Managing School Work at Home – Some Tips from Ms. D

 

Hello Parents!

Before I post details of our first project together, I would like to talk about how and when projects can be worked on at home.

You may have noticed blue binders and journals are not going home every day. They eventually will go home, but I really want students to focus on using their time well in class and on being independent with their work.

I want to see what they can do on their own during the given class time.

If students need catch up time, then that is why I have asked everyone to make sure there are 30-40 minutes set aside for catch up at home.

So, before I hand out the first project, here are some tips to follow:

  • Students are to work on assignments and projects mainly at school.
  • If they do a project ALL at home on the first night it is assigned, this leads to boredom in school, as time will be given to work on the project. As a result of boredom, unexpected behaviours that impact our classroom community can occur. It can also lead to you pulling your hair out at home as they do the entire assignment, as they will be over tired. It is the end of the day — time to rest, not time to do a whole project.
  • If they need catch up time for a project beyond class time, or they are doing some extra research at home, we will put this in their planner so you know.
  • Limit catch up time at home to the 30-40 minutes you have put aside in the schedule for each night.
  • Set a visual timer if necessary to limit the time, as many students at this age do not have a good sense of time and need to get a sense of how long they are spending on things.
  • The only reason to use more than 40 minutes would be if your child was absent, is not using their class time well, or is having fun researching something on their own. If they want to look something up, that’s great! BUT, I encourage you to limit the total time on a computer to no more than one hour because otherwise it can become obsessive (or they end up taking breaks playing games….)
  • When the time is up, ask them to pack their things in a backpack. Check to make sure they have everything they brought home – planner, journal, binder. They need help sometimes doing this as they begin the intermediate grades. The time spent on building a routine now will help them be more independent later on.
  • For students who want to work longer, as they often do, ask them what would Ms. D say about that? What do the body systems need as INPUTS to work correctly? SLEEP, REST, BALANCE, and PLAY! Have a calm discussion about what they know about how these things are important to the body.
  • When possible, encourage your child to do calm things the hour before bed. Avoid technology, listen to music, play with lego or hands-on things just for fun, have a conversation together, or read something quietly.
  • If they are worried about the next day, try some breathing activities together, or read them something funny to distract them. This can lead to better sleep and better learning for your child the next day.
  • If your child has a question about their work while at home, or had a conflict with another student in a group project that is troubling them, try not to engage in answering it, fixing it, or writing me an email explaining the whole situation. Try as hard as you can not to react too much. Say, “I hear you, that is a great question. Maybe ask Ms. D tomorrow about that.” Or, “I hear you, that sounds frustrating. I know you can be a good communicator to Ms. D tomorrow to explain what you need. Ms. D helps people in class, right? I bet she will also help you with this.” Be calm, acknowledge the emotion they are feeling, and then offer the solution to ask the question tomorrow. Then continue your bedtime routine.
  • Encourage your child to do their own communicating and fixing as much as you can, even though it is sometimes out of their comfort zone. Doing the work in class allows for them to seek me out as a guide for their questions, rather than perseverating on things at home in unhealthy ways.
  • Of course offer help to your child if they ask you questions about spelling, grammar, or facts. But, encourage them to do the looking for information rather than you giving the information to them.
  • Encourage them to do the writing and editing themselves. Avoid sitting down and editing the whole writing with them. Say instead, “I encourage you to go back and edit for capitalization and punctuation.” Or, “Here is a dictionary or technology tool to check spelling if you need it.” Get them to fix their own writing — try not to fix it for them or they will come to rely on that help and not really process their own writing errors.
  • When they finish a project or assignment, they will get feedback. Encourage then to self-reflect on how it went. Ask, “So, what do you think went well?” and then, “What do you think is one thing you would really like to work on for the next project?” You will see these reflections in e-port entries and on the rubrics marking their projects. Have a calm discussion and get them to do most of the talking. 🙂

No, the process won’t be smooth. It is normal for grade four and five students to have difficulty with organization and time management — even more normal for advanced learners to have difficulty with this!

As parents and teachers, all we can do is just keep gently guiding them forward. Try to stay calm, because none of it is worth the stress. Remember, in these early grades we are practicing these skills. Marks at this grade level are not going to be visible on the transcript they submit to university.

As someone who has seen all of this as a teacher for 22 years, and as the parent of two older children, it is very likely our efforts as a team will pay off in higher grades and help them have the tools to manage school and activities in healthy ways.

I wish you all a healthy year as we manage the balance of school and home life. 🙂

Thanks,

Ms. D