transitions

               I have thought so much about that transition for students from elementary to intermediate/middle school. Having two totally different experiences so far with my first two, even though it's the same schools, taught me a lot about how different the experience can be for students depending on the student. That transition was just plain awful for Jacob. We had elementary all worked out, but once he entered 5th grade at the intermediate, his anxiety went through the roof and he shut down. This past year Luke went through that same transition pretty much unphased.
              Jacob's needs are different anyway, and there were other factors at play that I had no control over. But a few things that I think most parents can focus on in order to make those transitions easier would be time management and organizational skills. When Luke was in 3rd grade I started to see a need for some time management as far as homework was concerned. This really picked up in 4th grade though. One of his teachers was especially strict and fairly demanding and this became difficult for Luke to handle at first. We ended up figuring out a system that I set up with him, then helped him use at first to work out any kinks, and after a while he was able to use it himself. By the end of 4th grade he didn't even really need it anymore. I'm not sure I'll remember the exact details, but we took some tongue depressors and wrote on each one the activity and a time. I think we had something like: Practice Piano 15min, Homework (which we may have divided into two parts, so he could do some, then take a break to do another 'stick' and come back after), Read 15min, Math facts 10min, etc. We put all of the sticks into a little cup and when Luke got home from school he would lay them all out in the order in which he wanted to do them. As he finished each task, he put the stick back in the cup. This helped him keep track of all of the things he needed to get accomplished in a simple way that also taught him time management.
           The other thing we did, and pretty much the only thing I've had to do for him in 5th grade, is kind of a "homework check in". I've also started this with Ryan in 2nd grade. We picked a couple days of the week that made sense for us (like Sunday am, not late Sunday pm so we have to panic), and then again on Monday pm (when they have an idea of what the homework assignments are for the week) and Thurs pm (the night before everything is usually due). We have a dry erase Mon-Sun board that I keep filled out for Jacob as far as what we have going on that week (practices, Dr appts, etc), and I write HWcheck on those days. Monday is usually the time that I look through everything they have, and together we make a plan that makes sense. We divide up the packets, choosing so many pages/questions per night, depending on how many there are and how many nights we have to complete everything. For Math and Reading logs, I help them decide what book/apps/math activities they would like to do that week. One trick we have found is that books can be read and math apps can be done on the way to practices in the evenings. Luke usually finishes any homework or reads for his reading log on the bus on the way home so it's done before he even gets home. I know this sounds like a lot, but really, once implemented and everyone gets used to it, it only takes a week or two before they pretty much do it on their own and I just have to check in. I hear parents complaining all the time about homework, but I really have found that if you make a plan then it really doesn't disrupt too much. Now I'm sure that will change once I have high schoolers, but for now this works for us. We don't always follow this exactly, but just having a basic outline gives everyone something to work on. Ryan ended up doing all of his homework last night, for example, except math/reading log stuff, just because Tues is the only night no one has any activities, and he was on a roll.
           Organizational skills is something that comes more naturally to some, but not so much to others. Jacob has none, lol. Luke can be pretty organized, but may need some guidance on where to start and then how to maintain it. Ryan, we shall see, but at this point, I'm thinking he may struggle in this area a bit. That being said, we as parents can do our best to work on these skills and it will serve our kids well. A big part of the jump to intermediate is the ability to keep track of 'stuff'. They get lockers, and change teachers and class periods multiple times a day. The beginning of the year starts off totally crazy, but within a few weeks most of them get it. Some will continue to struggle though. My suggestion here is to also check in with their organization, especially if you are seeing issues with their grades as far as late work/zeroes. Not every student can be organized in the same way either, so tweaking the process accordingly can be very helpful. Working with SPED kids, we have all kinds of options to meet their needs. Again, starting early, like 2nd or 3rd grade can sort of start that process so that by the time they reach 5th, some of that stuff comes more easily to them.
   Here is an article written by a teacher for teachers about assigning homework that I thought was insightful: http://teach4theheart.com/2014/04/07/how-to-manage-homework-without-going-crazy/
I know there are some teachers that read my blog occasionally, and I found some great ideas from this lady on giving/grading homework.


          On a totally other, unrelated and sad note, our district lost a 20 year old (he was a 2013 graduate home from college) and a 16 year old boy this week. :-( The 20 year old was hit  by a hit and run driver early Sun morning, and the 16 year old was hit while riding his bike home from a Boy Scouts meeting Mon night. His mom is donating his organs. It just makes us all pause and hug our loved ones a little tighter. I cannot imagine the pain, so we have to remember that life is short and we only get one, so we gotta live it to the fullest!!