You remember homework, how much you hated doing it. A lot of things have changed over the years, but not that! Kids still hate doing homework, but it’s a fact of life that we as parents must cope with.
A mom wrote in, asking for advice on how to make the nightly homework battle she experiences with her kindergartner less of a drain on her mental and emotional resources. Writer and mom-of-two Samantha Cooper weighs in with some advice on the topic.
A Mamas Uncut fan asks:
“My kindergartner hates doing homework. Every night is a constant battle. What can I do to help make it an easier process?”
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Advice from Samantha Cooper
The homework battle can be a tough one for any child, especially one who is not used to this routine. We have found that providing reward systems for homework and other tasks has really kept our kids goal-oriented. You can set it up such a system on a weekly, bi-weekly, or even monthly basis to keep your child on track with homework but also to know that a reward is coming for great homework behavior. We also incorporate fun with learning. So for instance, if our now-first grader doesn’t want to do his work, we speak about allowing him to read longer that evening which is something he loves. Adding in something that is meaningful to a child will bring more joy and less struggle typically.
We like to make sure that our boys are entertained while doing their homework and sometimes allow music to prevent the idea that they are sitting there with no background noise and forced to just push through. Adding a type of entertainment has been beneficial in so many ways, because it keeps the mood bright, especially around the holidays when we are all experiencing burn out from either work or school.
We also make sure that our boys aren’t too tired from their day to do their extra work. I find that getting to the homework or extra work early in the evening, often before dinner, is a great experience. I get them started with something I know they can independently do and then I can focus on cooking or tidying up and when they need help they just ask. Often allowing independence is something that a child craves. They can be “in charge” and feel they are making their own terms, while in the end getting the same end result: finished homework.
[Images via Envato Elements.]
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