Let’s normalize no homework

Some schools are crushing kids and parents

Why do second graders have homework?

It crushes the kids and the parents. If you can’t get it done during the regular school day, too bad; put it away and get back at it the next day.

Sometimes,it feels like we’re training our elementary school students in America to take work home with them from their 9-to-5 jobs when they grow up.

In our old school district, they didn’t give any homework in elementary school, and I personally thanked the superintendent for this. I’m ready for this trend to go viral. Seven-year-olds don’t need homework.

I’m more ok with the kids having as they get older, like in middle and high school. However, it’s clear to me that no one is monitoring the big picture in many schools, so you can end up with five or six teachers all assigning 30–60 minutes worth of homework on the same night, or with two or three of them scheduling tests for the same day.

At the same time, kids are hearing that they need to be well-rounded to get into college and that they should have sports, hobbies and volunteer activities to list on applications.

So after a six-or-so hour day in the school building, they should do at least two to three hours of homework, and also go to practice for their sports or extracurricular activity for a couple of hours too?

Has everyone realized what this looks like?

• Get up at 6 a.m.
• Catch a bus by 7 a.m.
• Get done school around 3 p.m.
• Go to sports until 5 or 6 p.m.
• Eat dinner by 6:30 or 7 p.m.
• Do three hours of homework until 10 p.m.
• Have no time with your family.
• Do a lot more than three hours of homework some days.
• Go to sleep by 10:30 or 11 p.m.
• Wake up less than 8 hours later to do it all again.

It sometimes feels like no one is thinking about what this does to a kid’s life when they have all this on their plate for nine straight months.

Also, learn to drive!

Get a job and somehow fit that into the schedule above.

Apply to these colleges!

Volunteer!

Study for the SAT, etc. etc. etc.

I’m all for hard work. I’m also in favor of not training humans to burn out.

We can do a little better.