Homework Help

Seven Secrets to Making the Most of Homework Time

1. Secure a quiet space.

It is very hard for most students to focus in a noisy environment. Secure a room for homework that is separated from the common areas.

2. Keep everyone quiet.

Encourage students to stay quiet so that others can concentrate. If a student starts talking, quickly ask them to stop to prevent the noise level from building.

3. Keep everyone busy.

Provide books or busywork packets for those who finish their homework early. If you have a pile of books for students to choose from, allow them to exchange books without asking. This will help keep the room quiet and allow you to focus on those students who need help.

4. Solve easy problems first.

The number one excuse from students at homework time is, “I forgot my pencil”.

Solve this in advance by passing out pencils as students walk in the door. Collect the pencils before they leave. Next, start any students who don’t have homework, onto another quiet activity. Then ask for students who have questions. Survey what their questions are and start with those you can answer quickly. Encourage those who need lots of help to work on what they can until you get there.

5. Hire an expert.

Find someone, like a credentialed teacher, who is willing to come in and help. If you run an afterschool program, you can have one teacher help up to 60 students at once. Divide the students between three classrooms. Keep each group’s leader in the room with them and have the teacher rotate through. The teacher handles the tougher problems and the group leaders take the easy ones. Older students usually have tougher homework, so avoid scheduling all the older students for homework at the same time. Providing a teacher to help with homework makes parents happy, too.

6. Get kids who finish out!

If at all possible, have another activity going somewhere else for students who finish their homework. One way is to schedule groups together. The teacher and one group leader rotate while the other group leader takes the kids who are done outside to play or to participate in another activity. This keeps the students in the room quiet and focused.

7. Don’t spend all day on homework.

Set a limit for homework time. Aside from special projects, 45 – 60 minutes should be enough time for most elementary students to finish their homework, especially if they have help! Let students and parents know there will be a set amount of time for homework and move on. Get students finished and on to other more exciting activities and enjoy the day.