I have found that the best way to handle homework, is to let the teacher know. If they don't hear from us, they have no idea that it may be too difficult or taking too long. Basically a child should have about 10 minutes of homework per grade level. This can obviously vary a bit, and does depend on the child, but for first grade, it really shouldn't take more than 10 minutes, 20 minutes tops. If my child is struggling or it is taking too long, I simply have them stop and I put a sticky not on it to let the teacher know how long it took to get to the point that he was at. With some of the 1st grade journal entries, I write what my child dictates because I feel that his thoughts are the most important at this point, and not him struggling to write. The teachers want the kids to do well and sometimes they just don't realize how long assignments are taking. My older sons 4th grade teacher last year made a point of specifically letting us know that she did not want parents to help with the homework. She needed to know what the kids knew and see the incorrect answers. That is the only way the teacher can gauge how the students are understanding what is taught.
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