About Homework in Kindergarten

We have recently had some questions about how homework fits into our kindergarten grading.  It doesn't! 

We place grade level homework every Monday in the blue folder with the class Newsletter and the Principal's communique. If you do not receive the homework or a note that there is no homework for a particular week, please ask.  It is always possible that your child did not remove his blue folder from his backpack or that he forgot his folder at home or that we simply missed putting it in!  The homework is designed for the student to do with an adult and is usually a review of skills that have been practiced in class.  The homework should take no longer than 20 minutes a night and can be doubled up or skipped for a single night, depending on your family’s needs and routine.  Reading  and logging a book every night (Monday –Thursday) is an additional daily expectation and will continue to be an expectation for your child’s entire time at Chets Creek, so make sure to have a routine set for that now.  The skills on the homework are the ones that are generally assessed on Fridays' skill tests and are the same ones that all kindergartners are held accountable for across Chets Creek.  Families send the homework back in the blue folder on Fridays.  We scan the homework to make sure it is done and remind students that do not do homework routinely how important it can be for families to know what is happening in school.  We have noted over the years that students that do the best in class are the same students that generally complete their homework and make sure that it is ready to return on Friday! We also occasionally give a small treat to everyone that has remembered to bring their homework in on Friday – just as an additional incentive!  We do not give a grade for homework in Kindergarten.  Nor do we give a grade for completion of the homework in Kindergarten.  That will happen in first grade when we begin to keep meticulous records and give a grade of completion at the end of each nine weeks.  The purpose of homework in kindergarten is to get parents used to the expectation and to give families a chance to set up a routine for homework in their home (a place and time in their busy family life), because, let’s face it, homework will be a part of your child’s expectation for the rest of his/her school career.  We hope that the homework gives you a place to initiate conversation with your child about what is going on in school and a way to get a quick check on progress.  Please let us know when you have questions about homework.