Homework Tips for Parents and Guardians

 

       GENERAL HOMEWORK TIPS FOR PARENTS (from www.ed.gov. and the U.S. 
Department of Education)
 ✪ Make sure your child has a quiet, well-lit place to do homework. Avoid 
having your child do homework with the television on or in places with other 
distractions, such as people coming and going.
 
 ✪ Make sure the materials your child needs, such as paper, pencils and a 
dictionary, are available. Ask your child if special materials will be needed 
for some projects and get them in advance.

 ✪ Help your child with time management. Establish a set time each day for 
doing homework. Don‘t let your child leave homework until just before 
bedtime. Think about using a weekend morning or afternoon for working on big 
projects,especially if the project involves getting together with classmates.
 
✪ Be positive about homework. Tell your child how important school is. The 
attitude you express about homework will be the attitude your child acquires.

✪ When your child does homework, you do homework.  Show your child that the 
skills they are learning are related to things you do as an adult. If your 
child is reading, you read too. If your child is doing math, balance your 
checkbook.

✪ When your child asks for help, provide guidance, not answers. Giving 
answers means your child will not learn the material. Too much help teaches 
your child that when the going gets rough, someone will do the work for him 
or her.
 
✪ When the teacher asks that you play a role in homework, do it. Cooperate 
with the teacher. It shows your child that the school and home are a team. 
Follow the directions given by the teacher.

✪ If homework is meant to be done by your child alone, stay away. Too much 
parent involvement can prevent homework from having some positive effects.  
Homework is a great way for kids to develop independent, lifelong learning 
skills.
 
✪ Stay informed. Talk with your child‘s teacher. Make sure you know the 
purpose of homework and what your child‘s class rules are.
 
✪ Help your child figure out what is hard homework and what is easy homework.
Have your child do the hard work first. This will mean he will be most alert 
when facing the biggest challenges. Easy material will seem to go fast when 
fatigue begins to set in.