The Colorado Advisory Network

There are some important things to remember when dealing with children and homework.  If your child has special needs, and has difficulty completing homework, heed to these guidelines, and things should go much smoother this year.

1.  Make sure the homework given is at your child's ability level.  Many children with special needs bring home work that is given to the whole class, however, many of these children are not able to complete the work at grade level.  Talk to your child's teacher about modifying the homework to either reduce the number of problems, or to lower the skill level on the homework. This can be addressed in a 504 plan as well.

2.  Set up reasonable expectations for your children at home.  Have your child do 20-30 minutes of homework (depending upon his/her ability level), then play a fun game, go outside and play with friends, have a snack, etc., for another 30-40 minutes.  It is important to remember that, as children, they all need fresh air and playtime.

3.  Don't  let your child's inability to complete homework reflect upon you.  What I mean is, many of us parents (myself included) feel that we have failed if our child does not complete required tasks.  This can affect our emotions toward our children, and ultimately affect the loving relationship between a parent and child.  So, stay neutral, and encourage only what you know your child can do.

4.  If you know your child can complete the work, but has difficulty completing tasks in a given time period, don't let the homework drag on throughout the night.  Call it quits before frustration sets in, so that feelings of inadequacy won't compound.

5.  Review the homework with your child before s/he starts.  You can then get a good feel for how appropriate the work is for him/her.  If the work seems much too difficult, try to modify it yourself.  Change some of the questions, shorten some of the problems, etc.  Then jot a note to the teacher explaining what you did.  You may, ultimately, help the teacher with future homework modifications.

6.  Have a specific time for homework.  Set up a schedule, so that your child knows exactly what is expected of him/her at home after school.  Many children feel more secure when they know exactly what is expected of him/her at a specific time of day.  Then, when you say, "Time for Homework,"  You won't get that shocked, "What?!!!!"

7.  If your child brings home many different assignments, put them in order of importance.  What is due first, what is most pertinent, etc.  You can then help with the overwhelming feeling of "there is so much to do, and I don't know where to start!"

8.  If your child has great difficulty reading, try putting a lot of the reading material on tape.  The more sensory input the child has, the more s/he will retain the material, and the faster the learning process.

9.  Know your child's signals.  If your child is showing extreme fatigue, frustration, inattention, quit the homework session early, and try later after a break.

10.  Do not finish your child's work for him/her.  This can foster feelings of inadequacy.  If your child cannot complete the work, write an explanation note to the teacher.

11. Check your child's work upon completion, or whenever the homework time is over.  Praise for completion of individual items.  This can be a special time where your child can receive extra attention from you, and feel a sense of accomplishment.  For children who need more immediate rewards, check each problem when completed.

12.  Try to avoid sitting right next to your child when s/he is working.  This can create difficulty at school, as many children do not have that type of assistance in the class.  Consider yourself the "resource person,"  who your child can come to and ask questions as needed.

Written by Mary Anne Fleury, M.A., 1997.

These are just a few ideas for help with homework.  If you have a strategy that you use that is successful, send it to us, and we'll add it here with your name.  Send us your state as well, and we can see how people handle homework all over the country!

Here are some great suggestions you have sent in:

One thing that my ADD son and I have learned is, that when doing homework, we set a kitchen timer to an agreed upon time (usually 10-20 minutes) for him to complete a specific task.   He will then try to "beat the clock", and the clock becomes the bad guy. We've found this to work in the shower and time-outs as well.                      Edie Strickland, VA.

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