In keeping with the back to school theme this week, I wanted to share ways to make homework time fun… er, easier. One or the other depending on what grade your child is in and how much homework they have!

It amazes me now days. Growing up, I don’t recall having homework until like 5th grade.

Buggy didn’t have homework in Kindergarten, but in 1st grade she brought home spelling words that we had to work on three days a week, one homework assignment a day and read for 15 minutes.

Now in 2nd grade, she has to read 15-30 minutes, vocabulary words, spelling words, math fact sheets and a homework assignment every night.

Buddy in Kindergarten doesn’t have homework, but his best friend (also in kindergarten) has homework every night! It’s craziness to me!

Trying to keep homework time fun and easy flowing is hard.

Buggy tends to get frustrated, I tend to get frustrated. If there isn’t the right kind of flow, homework time can become disastrous before you know it!

Here are some of the tips we use:

Have a designated homework space.

Our homework space is the dining room table.

Remove distractions.

Because we use the dining room table, it means brother has to have quiet time (usually I allow him to have snack while we work or he has to play quietly in the living room or his bedroom). The TV is in the next room where she can hear and see it so the TV is not allowed on while we are working.

Before starting, make sure you have all your tools.

We make sure we have all the papers we need, pencils, scissors if needed, books, etc.

Quiet time before homework time.

Initially, we would make Buggy come home from school and start her homework right away. We found that would not work well – she needed time to unwind from her day just like you or I need to unwind from our day at work. Now, she comes home, plays with the baby for a bit, and has a snack before we start working.

Make it fun.

You can’t be a drill sergeant. You’ll both be miserable. Try different ways to keep it active and fun. Buggy has to do timed reading and timed math facts every night. We turn it into a game and make a big deal out of her times. It keeps her motivated to keep working.

Break it up.

If its a long night of homework, break it up. Do one subject and then take a break – a quick walk around the block, 15 minutes of television time, etc. Then do the next subject and take another break. I don’t know about you, but I can’t work non-stop for hours without a break. I don’t expect my 2nd grader to either.

All in all, just

remain calm

. If you’re not calm, they aren’t calm and that will go no where quick!

If you have older kids, Mindless Mommy shared a tip on how
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What tips do you have for homework time? What works for your little that I didn’t suggest? Leave me a comment, I’m always looking for more tips to enhance our homework time!