It's About Numbers by Robin Gorman Newman
Tax season is upon us, and I’m not a happy camper.
My husband, a CPA, burns the midnight oil, including Saturdays, this time of year, and it’s not easy for any of us.
I feel for him. And, for us. Seth and I miss him when he’s not home, and don’t like to see him stressed and over extended.
We have much on our personal plates now, with my father in rehab (for a stroke), and Marc and I both getting PT (me for my injured knee), and Marc for his hips (in an effort to postpone the need for hip replacement).
What is it about numbers that can be so challenging?
My husband is great at them, though it often consumes his life.
My son, who is in third grade, is hugely challenged by mathematics. And, when I spoke to a potential math tutor the other day, she commented how kids are introduced to math at a younger age, and really it's in fourth grade that kids are expected to do it.
I don't recall when I learned math as a kid, but it pains me to see Seth have such a hard time with it. And, it impacts our home life by causing added stress.
The teacher claims he does okay in the classroom, but when it comes to homework, he says it's too hard. She commented that kids often act differently with their parents. No doubt that is true, but still, he knows he needs to do the homework, and that if he wants computer play time and television time, it has to get done.
The homework battle is one many parents experience. My friend Debbie and I were discussing it one day. Her son is older, and she said she's sick of getting sick about his lack of motivation when it comes to homework. She's read him the riot act, including explaining how he needs to step up to the plate if he wants to do well in school and get into a good college. He acts indifferent.
I'd hate for this to become a pattern with Seth.
What's a parent to do?
Should we hire a math tutor? My concern is that it might feel like more pressure to Seth.
Kids do deserve downtime.
Is the homework just too much?
Children can't excel at everything even though it's expected of them.
Math wasn't my forte in school. In fact, there were some mathematical subjects I despised.
To this day, I don't love even having to balance the check book. In that sense, comes in handy that I married an accountant. Though I wish there was some alternative to tax season.
There's gotta be a better way for him...and for my numbers-challenged son!
What is it about numbers that can be so challenging?
My husband is great at them, though it often consumes his life.
My son, who is in third grade, is hugely challenged by mathematics. And, when I spoke to a potential math tutor the other day, she commented how kids are introduced to math at a younger age, and really it's in fourth grade that kids are expected to do it.
I don't recall when I learned math as a kid, but it pains me to see Seth have such a hard time with it. And, it impacts our home life by causing added stress.
The teacher claims he does okay in the classroom, but when it comes to homework, he says it's too hard. She commented that kids often act differently with their parents. No doubt that is true, but still, he knows he needs to do the homework, and that if he wants computer play time and television time, it has to get done.
The homework battle is one many parents experience. My friend Debbie and I were discussing it one day. Her son is older, and she said she's sick of getting sick about his lack of motivation when it comes to homework. She's read him the riot act, including explaining how he needs to step up to the plate if he wants to do well in school and get into a good college. He acts indifferent.
I'd hate for this to become a pattern with Seth.
What's a parent to do?
Should we hire a math tutor? My concern is that it might feel like more pressure to Seth.
Kids do deserve downtime.
Is the homework just too much?
Children can't excel at everything even though it's expected of them.
Math wasn't my forte in school. In fact, there were some mathematical subjects I despised.
To this day, I don't love even having to balance the check book. In that sense, comes in handy that I married an accountant. Though I wish there was some alternative to tax season.
There's gotta be a better way for him...and for my numbers-challenged son!
Labels: homework, later moms, midlife parenting, raising children, robin gorman newman, tax season
posted by Robin Gorman Newman at
3:00 AM
1 Comments:
Why not have the school evaluate him, especially since he will be taking the ELAs this year? Then, perhaps, they can either provide your son with intervention services or at least give you feedback as to whether you should look into tutoring or not.
My consequence for not doing homework, which the school social worker advised, was to put the unfinished work in my son's backpack and have him explain to his teacher why it was not done. We tried that, but the teacher came to us to tell us that he just doesn't care whether the homework was completed or not…no embarrassment, no remorse, nothing. So taking away priviledges is our tactic now. And if that doesn't work, an e-mail to the teacher goes out and our son is made to do it in class.
I think the only blessing is that our son's teacher last year gave so much homework that compared to last year, this year is almost like a piece of cake.
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