This is a great article, filled with good points. John T. Spencer lays out 10 reasons why homework is bad or not effective. Each point he makes I agree with. I love his points of children are busy and children need to play. There is so much pressure for children to be involved in activities, yet we still expect them to do more school work after school. They do need time for themselves, time to play and learn on their own with out even knowing it. Growing up I felt homework was usually busy work. I support study guides, and the freedom to work on what you want, but the busy work I usually would just cram in and rush through...making it a waste of time. We should be teaching enough in class for the students to understand and work on more if they feel they need too.
I liked how John explained his points, and got to the point. My ideas of 5 Alternatives to Homework:
1. Instead of worksheets, ask the students to get in groups and creatively show what they learned. Act out a skit, make art, short story, as long as they can reexplain the concept.
2. Have students grocery shop with their parents and encourage them to count money and pay where they go. Even can ask parents to ask their child about discounts that show up.
3. Use the outside surroundings and resources for the students to explore, keep them wanting to learn!
4. Don't put so much pressure on homework, scaring them away. Make optional if they feel they need more help.
5. GAMES! A great alternative to homework. They can play with the family, and in class, with friends, and be learning while having fun and not feeling forced. You can make a game with them in class to go play with others.
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