The pendulum began to swing back to homework drills in the mid-1980s though, as schools started implementing high-stakes testing and Common Core standards. Toward the middle of the century, progressive educators began to value learning experiences, eliminating homework at the elementary level.

Yep, my daughter is now getting homework literal years before our generation did.īack in the early 1900s, homework prioritized memorization and facts. But I also remember receiving my first homework assignment–in third grade. I loved getting As and stars and check-pluses. I loved making my parents and teachers proud. But it takes time to find the right pencil, sharpen it to precisely the right length, steal an LOL doll from her sister, find a pair of socks that are “less itchy,” use the potty, set up her stuffies so they can do their own homework, beg to play Uno, go to the potty again, ask Alexa to play the “strong girl” song from Encanto, find a safe hiding spot for the stolen LOL doll, lose the pencil in the process and find a new pencil that is sharpened to precisely the right length.īy this point, I am slouched over the kitchen table with my head in my hands wondering how on earth I can get her to finish this one measly assignment without vomiting mom rage all over the place. If she just sat down and did the darn thing, it would be over in two seconds flat. Since that blissful start, it has taken anywhere from 20 to 90 minutes of refocusing, nagging and pleading to complete homework assignments. And I was thrilled to see her excited about school.

She was happy to sit down like a big kid to complete the ten-minute assignment in her designated black-and-white composition book. It was pretty darn adorable the first time my Kindergartner showed me her homework.

Homework for kindergarten