Despite centuries-long debate about the necessity of homework, researchers like Prof. Joyce L. Epstein of Johns Hopkins University still assert that it is an essential component of learning.

Homework can be a powerful opportunity to support your child’s growth as a reader. Practicing reading skills and applying them in real-world scenarios deepens kids’ comprehension and engagement with what they are learning in school.

But, as parents, we’ve all been there - struggling to get our kids to complete that tough reading assignment in a ‘boring’ book, feeling too busy with other family activities, and just not knowing how to help (or if we even should).

We’re here to give you some useful insights and ideas for being involved in your child’s homework experience.

In this post:

• Assigned homework’s impact on early reading development

• Making homework a priority can motivate your child

• The emergence of AI as a homework tool

To Homework or Not to Homework?

In a frequently republished blog post about homework, renowned reading researcher Timothy Shanahan encourages a small amount of nightly assigned reading practice for early elementary students to build their fluency.

Want to learn more about fluency? Discover what it is and how at-home reading practice plays a crucial role in its development on our website.

Making Homework a Priority

From setting up an optimal environment for completing homework, to helping your child through struggles, to modeling good study behavior, this guide from Nemours has lots of great tips and tricks for parents. The main takeaway? It’s up to you to make sure your child knows that homework is a priority, and it’s up to your child to do the work.

Kids in late elementary school understandably have a mixed feelings about homework, as this lighthearted TIME for Kids debate shows. But 9-year-old Jolynn makes a great point: “It’s a way to let teachers, parents, and even you know where you might need some improvement or extra help. It’s that simple.”

AI Homework ‘Help’

Today.com recently covered a study that found 7 out of 10 teens use at least one generative AI tool to complete assignments.

Contrast that number to this stat: “Nearly half of parents haven’t talked to their teenage children about AI.” To top it off, many schools don’t even tell parents about their AI use policies. There are some obvious communication gaps that need to be closed.

Read more here, then make a plan to talk to your teenager about AI use for school assignments.

Too Much, Too Little, or Just Right?

“Many districts follow the guideline of 10 minutes of homework per grade level, per day. This is a good rule of thumb.”

– Lori Ortiz, NEA Today

What do you think is the right amount of homework for your child? We’d love to hear your thoughts over in our free Raising Skilled Readers parent community. Join us today!