How much Homework do Y7 get?

[WorriedRuby]

Hi,

When my DS started school I was expecting loads of homework! But that's not the case! Is it normal for year 7 children not to have homework everynight?

[kentsussexborder]

Depends on the school I think. My DS at a "super-selective" grammar gets between 10 minutes and an hour a day - time it takes depends on the subject and how interested he is! Friend's DC at an all ability school get much less - around 3 times a week.

[tiredmum]

Up until this week my dd was getting about 3 bits a night and was spending about an hour doing it - once she had organised herself!
This week she has had only about one bit a night - it may be because she has been given a few assessment essays to work on of 500 words - so the others subjects have eased a bit - im not sure. Just glad of the slight reprieve!

[Milla]

I'm finding it hard to assess how much mine is getting (and give thanks for being in an e-mailing group with 3 other parents with children in the same form - you actually learn something!) Ours seems to come in peaks and troughs. When it comes, it seems quite full on (3 tricky lots of maths / writing up a science experiment from scratch / evaluating a piece of music in terms of structure, texture, instrumentation, melody etc) but there again some days there is virtually none. Trouble is, he's taken to "doing it at lunchtime" which makes it harder to monitor and after a long morning (4 lessons of an hour each) I'd rather he had what I still pathetically call a run around.

[rosered100]

We're getting on average 2 hours a night but that's because 1. DS is being very slow - trying to be neat etc atm. 2. some big 2 - 3 week projects are in there for nights when there is only a small amount of other homework. Also we have revision for the many tests & if you dont score more than 75% there is detention!! so this week he had his first ever detention as he didnt revise the right French lesson & so only got 50%

[tiredmum]

we have revision for the many tests & if you dont score more than 75% there is detention!! so this week he had his first ever detention as he didnt revise the right French lesson & so only got 50%

Wow thats pretty tough on the dc's

[ourmaminhavana]

Thanks for starting this thread Worried Ruby. I'd love to, like Milla, know some of the other mums to get a handle on how much he should actually be doing. (I once asked DS if he had anyone of his friends' phone numbers as we live miles away from everyone else and he said no, but he had their pics on his mobilie phone )
DS's homework has slackened considerably since the first week or two and is maybe one short piece a night (10-15 mins) with the occasional lengthier piece eg planning a test essay outline for History. However, I find it quite hard to know with the more open ended tasks how much he should actually be doing so we may be in for a shock when his marks come through?!
I think some of the girls probably spend hours producing a beatifully neat, coloured in piece while he just answers the questions. (Sorry, this sounds very sexist, but when I was teaching I found this to be true).

Yes, it does seem pretty rough Rosered. Do you mind me asking which school it is?

[Milla]

do you get a sort of mingling session at your school, OMIH?? Both of my sons' GSs had these where you get to meet other parents from your child's class. Very useful.

[neurotic kent mum]

Very little homework _ mostly making models and posters so far . DC happy about this!

[familyinthevalley]

DS has a homework schedule. So he knows on a Monday what subjects he is 'likely' to get homework from that day, and knows that unless stated otherwise, it will be due in at the next lesson in that subject. Extra time might be given for a larger project.

It works well, as a family we know which nights are possible heavy homework nights. However, it's also great in terms of him organising his own time - as he doesn't do the homework always on the night he gets it - and plans around his activities etc so he isn't 'missing out' on fun

On average, he gets 2 - 3 pieces per day, and they can last between about 10 and 30 minutes - depending on the individual assignment.