Am I asking too much?

[EKS]

On MWF, my almost 12 yo son is supposed to do the following work (he does less on TTh because he goes to outside classes on those days):

 

He works with me for about an hour, doing a Sequential Spelling list, going over a Hake Grammar lesson, going over a Jacobs Algebra lesson, and then he reads his K12 Life Science lesson to me.

 

Then he is supposed to do these things independently: Latin translation (10 sentences, Latin to English), grammar exercises for one lesson, math problem set for one lesson, a worksheet and a short assessment for the science lesson, and about 30 minutes of work on an ongoing writing assignment.

 

Then I read whatever we are reading for history aloud for about 45 minutes.

 

The independent part should take about 2.5 hours but usually takes him 3 or more. Today it took 5 hours. Same amount of work, same difficulty level.

 

It isn't me is it? This is a reasonable amount of work to expect of a 6th grader, right?

[Jenny in Atl]

It does not sound like too much, sound about the same work load as my dd12 (6th grader). Is there one subject in particular he is struggling with? Or is it just a matter of going slow with all the independent work? I know my dd can have days when it takes her 2 hrs to do math and then only 30mins the next day, I chalk it up to hormones.

[Heather in VA]

That certainly seems acceptable to require to me. You aren't just turning him loose. You are working with him before hand, going over the lessons and I'm assuming you are available during his independent work should he need help. What is he doing during all of that time? Does he seem to be working the whole time? Is he staring off into space? Does he need a glass of water every five minutes? What does he say when you talk to him about how long it's taking?

 

Heather

[Beth in Central TX]

No, I don't think you are asking too much from a 6th grader. Here is the Friday schedule for my 6th grader:

 

Science Zoology II--1/2 hr

Greek (Elementary Greek III) & Flashcards--1/2 hr

Spelling Test (R&S 6)--1/4 hr

R&S Music 6,7--1/4 hr

R&S Art 6--1/2 hr

Math--1 hr

Bible Study (R&S 6)--1/2 hr

Classical Writing (Homer A)--1 hr

Free Reading Time--1/2 hr

 

This totals 5 hours of scheduled work; however, depending on Math & CW, DS#1 can get it done before lunch, but if not, it's not too long after that.

 

Focusing can be a big problem around here some days. When my boys were younger, I would adjust their workload so that they could finish in a reasonable time if they were having a hard day. However, as they have gotten older, I expect them to work through their lack of focus issues. College professors and future employers won't cut them any slack if they sit around and daydream all day. So now instead of adjusting their work load, I try to help them with coping activities; once we notice focusing is a problem, we talk about how to solve it (such as running around the cul-de-sac, switching to a new subject, etc.).

[AngieW in Texas]

The only change I might make is with the Hake Grammar. Those lessons are really long. I always gave my dd two days for each lesson. My oldest is the only one who has used Hake. It wouldn't work well for my other girls.

 

How much are you assigning in Jacobs Algebra? When I go over it with my 12yo, I walk her through the lesson and then work some of the set 2 problems with her as examples. I assign sets 1 and 3 for her to do on her own. Sometimes Jacobs has a little more work for her than is really necessary, so I cut down on it a little. For example, today she did chapter 6, lesson 1. We worked #4a-d, #5a-d, #6a-f, and #7a-d. We talked about #8. I assigned all of set 1 (#1-3) and most of set 3 (#9e-p, #10e-p, #11, #12, and #13b-e,g-h).

[mcconnellboys]

No, it's reasonable. I would just continue to let him know how much longer he's taking than he needs to and keep reminding him that he'll have more free time for fun if he stops dwaddling..... You might also check in with him every 30 minutes to remind him, "Now you should be finishing up Latin; you should be done with grammar about now, etc."

 

Regena

[Storm Bay]

It's reasonable. My older two tend to lollygag during their independent work time and working with them to overcome it is an ongoing process. Slowly there's improvement, but occasional setbacks. My eldest who is still 12 (birthday later this spring) actually works best in the library, but we can't just move in there.