Topic : 03/23 Homework Hell

It sounds like time for a conference between you, the teacher, the principal, and the school counselor.  Express your concerns in a positive way, and ask the teacher for his/her help in resolving this matter.  If your son gets burned out at this young age, you're right, he will hate school.  Perhaps the teacher of the gifted classes should consider letting the kids be eight-year-olds...smart kids still need time just to be kids...and to know that they are NOT better than everybody else...time to spend with the other kids.

Perhaps less pressure on the pre-algebra...it won't hurt him to wait a year or two, when he is mature enough emotionally to handle the work load.  Granted, it is a special thing to be so intelligent, but temper your ego, and let him be a kid.

My eight year old reads at a 7.5 grade reading level, but he still enjoys the third grade picture books, along with the more difficult books.  He is also way ahead in math, but he is in the regular class, and he enjoys helping his classmates with their math...too much pressure to succeed early will emotionally crush a child...think about it.

Again, ask the teacher for help...she/he will be flattered by your asking, and will be much more willing to listen than if you tell her what you told us...negativity breeds negativity.

I know first-hand about burn-out.  I went all-out in high school...making straight A's, taking extra classes, excelling in everything including music.  When I graduated from high school, I was so burned out that I never went to college...I am a stay at home mom, by choice and I make sure that my kids have balance in their lives...overload is BAD at any age.  I wish I had gone to college, but I am no way a loser...I have made something of my life.  I still enjoy my music...playing trumpet, guitar, and singing, plus writing songs.

The WASL has hijacked the entire Washington State school curriculum.  The teachers now have to teach to the test, abandoning the old ways that have worked for years and years.  There is no more art, music, and PE is once a week!!  The state is creating a generation of stressed-out kids who won't know what to do with their free time, besides computer games!!

It is a graduation requirement that 10th grade students pass all portions of the WASL...almost half of the kids who took it last year DID NOT pass the test, so not only will we have stressed out kids, we will have kids who can't get higher education because they won't have a high school diploma, in spite of passing their classes!!

I agree that kids do need to know how to read and write and  do math in order to function in life, but what is life after WASL??  The kids are being prepared for the WASL from kindergarten on up.  My third grader has to take a math WASL this year, and, although he is gifted in math and scored 100% on the practice test, he is really stressed-out about THE TEST!!

I have written the legislators...I think I will contact Tim Eiman...he has written a lot of bills that have appeared on the ballot (I didn't vote for all of them, but he's good).  Maybe he can get a bill on the ballot to abolish the WASL.

School funding should be based on the income level of the community...the less the income, the more money the school gets from federal and state resources.  The reason for this is that if the income is less, the local schools receive less money from local sales and property taxes, becasue the people don't have enough money to buy a lot of things.  School funding should NOT be based on the kids scoring well on a stupid test!!

And to you and your son as well :)

We also have confrences (all teachers involved, me and principle, asst. principle) every 2 months to discuss the progress of my daughter's achievements as well as the areas she needs help in still . So far she is progressing well, but still having a time in math. But we are still working together to make it more understandable for her(Even I didnt have this kind of help in school and very GLAD she has the help they provide).  She even teaches me some math skills!! Surprising, YOU BET IT IS!! At one point she has even told me "Mom you know it all, ALL moms do!! That is when she gets a shock of her life is that she taught mommy something new in math! The look on her face is priceless when she teaches ME!! HER OWN MOM, a new math trick! I also remind her mommies makes mistakes too and CAN learn math even at the ripe age of 33. One day your son will shock you like that( and the look on his face will be more then money can buy, if he already hasnt, be patient he will and you will be in utter AMAZEMENT!)  Thought you could use a bit of smiling today as well as others on here:)

he amazed me just last night, he was reading a post over my shoulder and informed me of my SPELLING mistakes, I thought that was pretty cool, especially because these words were more than five letters long ( in grade nine he was tested at a fifth grade spelling level, well that was just in September, so the progress has been wonderful).

We have the conferences with ALL his teachers, and he is getting involved as well, he's fourteen now and we thought it would be good to get his imput on this stuff.

You sound like a very positive person, and THAT goes a long way in helping your child, along with patience and we all know a sense of HUMOR, so thanks for the smile and I send one to you.

You have the WASL, we have the FCAT, South Carolina has the PACT, ad infinitum...

Alas, we are now seeing the unintended consequences of the "school accountability reform" movement that blossomed in the late 1990s or so (thanks in large part to 2 brothers who were governors at that time, but I'll leave the political commentary at that). THE TEST has "hijacked the...curriculum" to beyond ridiculous (I have often referred to our curriculum as a "Kaplan course" for Florida's FCAT). I mean, test prep starting in kindergarten/first grade!!???

We may even have it a little more stringent than many: In addition to high-schoolers needing to pass their FCATs (some states had exit exams even before this), third graders here have to get a minimum score on the reading FCAT, or they are not promoted. They mean business, too; one of my daughter's friends was held back for failing it. Granted, the "miminum" is one grade level below the norm, so if a child can't do that much by mid-third grade, perhaps they really do need major remediation. Nevertheless, it makes for tremendous pressure on teachers to maintain/raise test scores from year to year to keep that all-important state rating.

mustbecrazy, I think both you & I have touched on similar topics (homework, the bane of standardized tests) on the "School Issues" board at this site?

I don't for one instance BELIEVE that you have NEVER put your son down.

I am the mother of a disabled child. I get very frustrated at times. As much as I want to be a wonderful, patient, loving, caring, compassionate mother, I don't always do that. I feel that I MAY need some help in this area with my disabled child. She needs constant attention and constant teaching and I don't always want to do that.

You need to get real. You will never be able to change until you acknowlegde that you have things that need to be changed. Your defense with this on the show only made me believe more that you are doing things that you want no one to know.

You don't defend things and don't need defending.