NYDailyNews.com / A Touch of Rosemary (Blog)

September 25, 2007

Rosemary Black

Homework advice - for parents

By the end of my daughter Madeline's first week of high school, I was so tired from helping her with social studies homework that I had to step up my caffeine consumption in order to stay awake in the office. (My editors couldn't care less that I can now identify Tutankhamen, Osiris and Amon-Re.)

So I asked around about how to help your kid with homework, and how much a parent should get involved.

Sharon Marshall Lockett, the author of "Home Sweet Homework" (Adams Media, $14.95 softcover) feels that one of the biggest mistakes parents make is doing too much for the child. Let your child do the work, she advises. Rather than saying, "You need a comma here," say, "You left out a punctuation mark between here and there, can you find it?" And instead of telling your child you'll make flash cards for him, say, "This is how you make yourself a set of flash cards."

And be flexible, Lockett says. "There is usually more than one way to do things," she explains. "Maybe you study more effectively with background music but they need total silence. So create options for them, and let them decide which option they find most effective."

Jennifer Brout, a school psychologist and the mother of 13-year-old triplets, argues for letting the child make some decisions about when to do the homework. "Sit down with your child and figure out a time they feel like doing homework, and get them to commit to a regular time," she advises. "If they want to run around for awhile after school that is fine, but they need to honor the time you've both decided upon."

Just make sure that the time you agree upon isn't from 10 p.m. to midnight - having a fried brain the next day just isn't worth it, even if you could ace the next ninth grade exam on ancient Egyptian civilization.

Want more info on homework help? Read up on online tutoring in NYDailyNews.com's Education section.