Home work.

I just helped Art with one of his first homework assignments.  Yes, he had to finish tracing some 2's last week, and work on coloring in a picture with lots of small parts, but today was the first time I really had to do the parent/child "Don't want to do my homework" struggle.

The assignment was to finish a picture that he started at school.  He told me that his teacher, Gloria, said he was supposed to add "more details" to the picture.  I think it's a fine motor/writing readiness activity.  He said he was not supposed to use crayons and asked if I had colored pencils and colored pencils with "no color", aka regular pencils.  The paper was only about 6x6 inches square.  Fine motor, indeed!

Since he was totally intimidated by trying to decide what to draw and because i thought the purpose was not artistic authenticity but rather just practice using a pencil I drew some small things on a separate piece of paper for him to imitate in his drawing; a bunk bed and a stick man.  He also added a window and an egg.  Go figure.  

I had a great time problem solving his initial resistance to doing his homework and also trying help him get through it while still making sure he was getting the right lesson out of the work.  At least I hope I was right!  All it took to get him to do the assignment was to kindly say, "Ok, Art.  I hear you.  You don't want to do it.  Well, then I'll visit school tomorrow and talk to Gloria."  This was totally not a punitive threat.  I really thought that a veteran teacher like Gloria must have encountered this a million times and would have some great way of getting thorugh the resistance.  But we didn't have to visit.  He acquiesced immediately and got to work with me.  

I love doing homework with my kid.