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 We
all get it. We all have to do it. And even if it’s our most fave subject,
let’s face it - homework can just be a bit of a drag. There’s just so
much more we’d rather be doing. So what do we do to keep parents and teachers
off our back, our grades up and our fun times happening? Well, we do our homework
– but we do it smart.
Procrastination is the biggest killer. You know the scene, you get a snack to
help ‘get you through’. You stack your books neatly. You sharpen all
your pencils and fluff around putting your felts in colour co-ordinated bundles.
You
pick your background music, sit down and stand up again in two minutes to change
it because it wasn’t quite right. You do a fancy border for the title page.
Now you need a drink. Suddenly half an hour’s past and your best girlfrenz
rung for a goss. Oh well, maybe you’ll get back to it later. All
that results is the little voice nagging at the back of your mind gets a little
louder. Ditch the warm-up routine and just get on with the main event. Ten minutes
of hard slog will get more done than half an hour of fluffing. That gives you
twenty more minutes groove time. Next up is the one that goes
into the ‘too hard’ box. You know, your least fave subject. The one
you really struggle with. Bridget, a graphic designer, admits that she never paid
much attention to maths at school because she always knew she wanted to do design.
“Now I’m doing animation – and it’s all TRIGONOMETRY!!!”
She reckons it’s worth sticking at even your most hated subject: “You
don’t know what you’re going to need this stuff for… keep your
options open”. The best way to cope with this one is
to get help. Ask your folks or older bro or sis. Maybe get together with your
GF who is a whiz at it and no I don’t mean just copy her answers! You can
help her with your best subject and she can help you with yours. 
Enough
already! Too much homework = too much headache. Sometimes the mountain seems so
big you just don’t know where to start. The only way forward is planning
and bit-sized pieces. Break it into manageable chunks and tick them off as you
do them. Suddenly it doesn’t seem so bad.
Penelope, a Year 3 teacher, gives her class a homework
sheet on Monday to be handed in on Friday. It usually includes spelling, maths
and reading aloud to an adult. Each student also has to prepare a current events
presentation once a fortnight. She encourages them to get help from their parents
for these projects. “It’s a challenge they can work at together with
Mum and Dad”. Most, but not all, her students complete their homework each
week. If there is no good reason (signed by a parent!) why the homework hasn’t
been done then they might have to do it supervised at lunchtime. If they’ve
missed homework a lot, she designs a chart with rewards (such as house points)
to help motivate that student. She thinks regular homework is important for future
years at school, “you need to be in the habit of doing it”.
Brigid
teaches science to Year 9-13 students. “There’s always homework to do
even if there is no set homework. Revise what you have done in class.” She
thinks the main thing is to be organised because at this level, not only do you
have daily homework, but you have larger long term projects as well. You don’t
want to leave those to the last minute. Homework, she says, is definitely worth
doing!
Take time out. Give yourself regular (but short!) breaks
to stay fresh. If you’ve got a big assignment that requires a lot of thought,
maybe do the readings first and then break outdoors for some quality thinking
time. Go for a walk or rollerblading. You’ll be amazed what genius thoughts
percolate in the back of your brain – all ready to be written when you come
back indoors.
Reward yourself! Yes, you can have that chat with your GF
when you’ve finished that last page or exercises. Give yourself a pat on
the back when you get that big one done. Maybe get a new mag/book to read, go
to that movie you’ve been wanting to see for ages, take a long bath with
bubbles and relax or get out with your GF and see some local sites. AWESOME. So
c’mon, what are you waiting for? Go get on to your homework! Because after
all, you’re worth it.
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