My 12 year old son (7th grade) is having trouble with pre-algebra in class so we are reviewing his daily lesson at home each day. His math reasoning skills are high on testing so I think he is just not attentive as he needs to be to grasp all the information being presented in class. The problem is, homework is assigned four nights a week, as many as 20-30 complicated multipart questions at a time. The other night, I had him do half of the questions so I was sure he understood what he was doing and then I did the rest. Even after reading through the chapter myself to refresh my memory, it still took me another 45 minutes on top of the 45 I had spent with my son to get through the homework. This is in addition to homework in other classes.
His math teacher seems to be very tunnel-visioned in her teaching technique and resistant to anything that distracts her from her agenda. The kids basically sink or swim in her class. We want to have an accommodation added to my son’s 504 to limit the amout of time spent on math homework but are not sure how to word it in a way that won’t antagonize the teacher or make my son stand out from his peers. Any suggestions? Thanks!
Your rights for 504 should have the accommodations needed to make sure that homework is limited to 30 minutes. I teach LD and have students with 504’s. The teacher must meet the requirements. You have the right to ask that the accommodation in his IEP. The 504 of the Rehab Act of 1973 requires public schools to make reasonable accommodations for students. Call a meeting, ask his Case Manager to make the necessary accommodations to reduce homework or limit the homework. Its not worth the frustration for the child or the family. I know, I have an LD child who is 17 yrs old now. We would spend hours arguing and crying over homework. I finally told his teachers he was not going to be able to handle more than 30 minutes of homework. The frustration builds up to resentment and the child grows to hate school work and homework. Call a meeting! Think of your kid not the teacher! His home environment is more important in helping him grow.