Summer Homework Blues?

I recently received an email from an old friend, who now has middle school-aged children.

"Hi Kerry, I just had to touch base with you this morning because I was organizing my “favorites” on the computer and came across a bookmark for your blog. Your latest entry about what you learned with your kids was EXACTLY what I needed today. We have two kids ages 13 and 11. Academics comes easily for our older one, but the younger struggles. We have had tutors, screaming matches, etc. This summer my daughter has math homework as well as writing a report on books that she has read. She hates to read, which is such a shame because I feel she is missing out. We have been fighting all summer so far about her getting her work done.

I actually read the books she need to read and practically wrote one of the reports for her when hers was so awful. I feel horrible about it. After reading your blog, I have a renewed perspective! My husband has a healthier attitude about it—“it is their life, you have to let them live it”. I don’t know why stay-at-home mom’s feel so much pressure for their kids to “succeed” at everything. It truly is their life and they need their relationship with us far more than they need the academics. I know they will be fine because they are great human beings.

Thank you again for your words. They have really touched me today. My daughter will thank you too because you may have helped reduce the stress in our summer!"

What do you think about this? Do your kids have summer homework? How do you and they deal with it?

Do you think stay-at-home moms feel extra pressure for their kids to succeed at everything?

Summer Homework and More Summer Options

Today is the last day of school for our district. As far as I know, neither of my kids has been assigned homework over the summer. But, I suspect there are plenty of students who have been assigned work during the summer break in our district and many others across the state.

Sara Bennett from Stop Homework just posted about this recently. See: http://stophomework.com/abolish-summer-homework/2558

In her post she recommends that you call the State Dept of Ed to find out what the guidelines are for summer homework for your state. So, I called the Cal Dept of Ed and was pleased to find out that each school district decides its own guidelines regarding summer homework in California. The Cal State Dept of Ed does not have its own recommendation or guideline on this topic. I was pleased because this gives each school district its own autonomy in this matter.

Our own district’s (SRVUSD) homework policy (which I helped write two years ago as part of a task force of 19 members) doesn’t mention summer homework, but does say, “Assigning homework over holidays is highly discouraged.”

If you are in my district and find your son or daughter coming home with summer homework, please write an email, a letter, or make a phone call to the district superintendent (Steven Enoch - senoch@srvusd.net) and/or the Board members and kindly remind them of the phrase from our homework policy, “Assigning homework over holidays is highly discouraged.”

Instead of doing summer homework, encourage your child to read for fun. Here is an article from Donalyn Miller from "Teacher Magazine" with middle school reading recommendations from her students from the past year.

And there are so many other things to do this summer with your child: relax, cook together, clean together, exercise together, make a video project together, swim, run, plant a garden, be outside, play a game, make music, make art, skateboard, walk the dog, do a puzzle, catch up on sleep, hike, chill out, etc, etc, etc!

Reflect on the Dalai Lama’s advice about:

The Paradox of our Age

We have bigger houses but smaller families;



More conveniences, but less time;



We have more degrees, but less sense;



More knowledge, but less judgment;



More experts, but more problems;



More medicines, but less healthiness;



We’ve been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet the new neighbor.



We build more computers to hold more information to produce more copies than ever but have less communication.



We have become long on quantity, but short on quality.



These are times of fast foods but slow digestion;



Tall man but short character;



Steep profits but shallow relationships.



It’s a time when there is much in the window, but nothing in the room.

I found this on Playborhood.com.

What are your favorite things to do with your family during the summer?