Coping strategies for year seven

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Glos_Mum
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Coping strategies for year seven

Post by Glos_Mum »

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Last edited by Glos_Mum on Sat Aug 22, 2015 1:09 am, edited 2 times in total.
Ed's mum
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Location: Warwickshire.

Post by Ed's mum »

I can totally empathise. I feel certain that it won't always be like this.

Last year it wasn't just stressful for Ed, when he first started in year 7, it actually impacted upon the whole family. His prep took ALL evening and it was normal for him to still be up way past ten o'clock still doing it. He had absolutely nothing in his life other than school. He was cross, tired and stressed.

It does get better. Ed certainly became more used to the workload and did speed up eventually. It can still be a nightmare sometimes as he still errs on the side of disorganisation; but it is manageable for him.

In fact, the other evening, he said that he was really enjoying having prep to do and that he was taking his time as he had missed having something more cerebral (might be my word rather than his) to focus on!

I hope that things settle down soon for your son.
Sally-Anne
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Location: Buckinghamshire

Post by Sally-Anne »

Hi Glos Mum

I do sympathise! DS2 is spending at least 3 times as long as he needs on homework from his new school, because he wanders off onto another cloud. He has always done that, but now that the volume of work has increased so much, he is going to run into trouble before long.

Experience with DS1 suggests that you should agree how long the homework should take for each subject and then set a visible timer - one of those kitchen countdown types.

You can choose to set rewards for completing it within the agreed time, or penalties for not doing so. I find that rewards work best, but occasionally penalties have a role to play.

You can also help him by discussing the shape that the piece of homework should take before he starts to write. What do you need to cover? How much do you need to write? What are the key points that you need to deal with? In what order are you going to make them? I am sure that you are doing all of that, but a fairly rigid approach to it - the same questions every time - helps as well.

S-A
zorro
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Location: Barnet, Herts

Post by zorro »

My DS started last year exactly same previous homework scenario.I agree with Ed's Mum - don't worry , they get the hang of it by the first half-term. You will have some fraught evenings (and early mornings when you have to wake them up) but they have to learn the hard way. :roll:
Hang on in there!
katel
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Post by katel »

I will add my controversial tuppence worth. When dd was in year 7 - and in year 8 a couple of times - if her homework was taking too long (in my book that means taking up the whole evening with no time for fun or hobbies or friends or activities or family time or sleep ) I wrote her a note asking for an extension. And there was never ever a problem with this. It's school - not a labour camp!
Milla
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Joined: Mon Nov 24, 2008 2:25 pm

Post by Milla »

Since I know which school you are referring to (!), I'd say that the homework spreads seem quite different from class to class. A mother I know whose boy is now in Y9 said her son was inundated with it in Y7 and then got very little in Y8. I was primed, and dreading it and then ... my boy didn't seem to get much at all last year when he went into Y7, whereas his friend in another form did - you'd think it would even out over the teachers but it didn't seem to.

My advice would be to have a chat with either his form teacher or the head of Y7. They're trying to up their pastoral stuff so should take it seriously. If it's any consolation, my boy gets more this year, but is sort of "enjoying" (he might quibble with this word but it's how it seems) it more AND the autumn term did seem the worst last year. My friend's boy had the most in maths, whereas my DS1 got no maths ever since the partic teacher didn't believe in it. Bless him!
stevew61
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Location: caversham

Post by stevew61 »

I have a friend :wink: who had a similar problem which peaked on a Saturday morning with ten pieces of work outstanding. :shock:

Sometimes you have to give a bit of help, the pace of lessons and a class of 30 means sometimes they have not grasped the concepts in class and so the homework appears much harder. :roll: A quick look at the textbook or another source (web or CGP) and it all makes sense!


steve
Freya
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Post by Freya »

Most evenings DS does his homework (prep) at school where one hour is allocated for (on average) 3 subjects per night. When at primary school DS was just like many here, taking hours over really quite small pieces so I was worried that in year 7 he would not have time to complete it all. However, the school have been brilliant in organising the children and getting them to focus in stretches of 20 mins, giving them a time check halfway.

When DS has to do his prep at home due to sporting commitments we have followed this approach and are amazed that he has settled into this routine so quickly. I think they find it easier when it is broken down into smaller periods of focused concentration, sometimes, as Sally-Anne says, with a brief chat about the approach at the start. I have found in the past that when DS goes "off into the clouds" (we call it La-La Land) it is usually because he is unclear about the approach and can't see an end in sight.

Hope this helps. I'm sure things will improve for your DS! :D
Tolstoy
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Post by Tolstoy »

Read your post and thought mmm what's going on here now having read Milla's mind set at rest.

Ds1, same school different form, is definately not being weighed down by homework at the moment. He is getting maths but really enjoying it and getting good marks but that is the only one he mentions. He must be doing it as there have been no detentions yet but is pretty much free in the evenings.

It does seem a little unfair if some classes are getting so much more than others. So I would take Milla's advice and have a chat with the head of year.
Chelmsford mum
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Joined: Sat Feb 21, 2009 7:16 pm

Post by Chelmsford mum »

We were told on the induction day that if the homework is taking them more than the allocated time for that subject , to draw a line under it(literally) and in pencil write a parental comment such as :

"Chardonnay :wink: has done as much as she could in the allocated time".


Obviously a little flexibility with this as a week or so more might change
this situation .However if it continued I would contact the Head or yr 7 and clarify that your school allows a similar policy as described above.
I did this once with my eldest.It was art homework and she had already spent an hour and a half.She was tired and it was past 10.So I forbade her to continue and wrote a comment.She was worried about this but her teacher was lovely about it saying something like
"oh no an hour and a half is far too much.You don't want to get tired and ill"

I would give it a little while but be prepared to intervene if it continues.
Best wishes - Hope it gets easier for him. :(
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