The question of why your second-grader seems to have so much homework is, in many ways, a question that only your teacher can fully answer. Having said that, it is not at all uncommon for parents to feel as though their second-grader, or any child that is school-aged for that matter, has a larger amount of homework than the parent did when the parent was a second-grader. In addition, there may be specific reasons that your second-grader is not doing homework very fast, making it seem as though he has a lot of homework.

Over time, the amount of homework that is given to second-graders, and to most levels of the school years, has indeed increased. In the 1970s, for example, a second-grader might have somewhere around a half of an hours worth of homework in an entire week. Today, the average amount of homework for a child that is either a first-grader or a second-grader, or even a third-grader, is around 20 minutes per day, or near 100 minutes per week. This is more than three times the amount of homework that a parent may have had when they were a second-grader, so it definitely may seem like there is much more homework.

For some second-grade children, however, the issue isn’t just an issue of how the parents are perceiving the amount of homework that the second-grader has. It may be, for example, that the second-grader is struggling with some of the material, and it is taking much longer than expected for the second grade child to complete the homework. In some cases, it may be that the second-grader is not finishing work inside of the classroom setting, and so has to take the homework home, which of course adds to the overall amount of homework that the second-grader has to complete.

If you are concerned that your second-grader has too much homework, you should speak with the second-grade teacher. If your child is struggling to complete the homework, you may have a variety of options to seek help or to perhaps reduce the amount of homework that your child is required to complete.

In general, your second grader will probably have a little bit higher expectations than she did when she was a first grader. Having said that, what will be expected of your second grader can vary greatly from one second grade teacher to the next. In terms of both academics and behavior, however, there are certain things that are likely to be expected of your second grader, regardless of the particular school that she is in, or the particular teacher that she has.

Your second grader will very likely be expected to be able to read, at least in a remedial fashion. In the first grade, the most important thing that a student learns is to read. Reading is one of the most important building blocks of education. Without the ability to read, your second grader will fall behind fast and he will fall behind far. In terms of mathematics, your first grader will be expected to be able to add and subtract single digits, at least by the end of the year. Also by the end of second grade, your second grader will be expected to do double-digit addition, and possibly even some other mathematical tasks, depending on the particular mathematics curriculum that is being used. In other academic areas, such as history, civics, music, art, and physical education, the expectations will vary greatly not only between teachers, but between schools, districts, and even states.

In terms of behavior, there are certain standards that your second grader will be expected to follow. She will be expected to follow teacher instructions. She will be expected to keep her hands to herself. She will be expected to not be disruptive. She will be expected to be attentive. While it is true that not every second grader lives up to all of these expectations, and while no second grader lives up to all of them all of the time, it is expected that your second grader will behave with a relative degree of self-control. The specific sorts of behavioral expectations will, just as academic expectations do, vary from one class to another.

The expectations that a particular teacher has of your first grader will vary, of course, from one school to the next, as well as from one first grade teacher to the next. Still, there are certain skills and tasks that your first grader will be expected to be able to perform.

At the beginning of the first grade, your first grader will be expected to recognize and to write the letters of the alphabet, in both their lower and uppercase forms. She should be able to write her first name as well as her last name. She should be able to read some sight words, and probably color words. She should be able to retell a story in her own words. She should be able to follow spoken directions, and to focus on the teacher when she is teaching. Your first grader should be able to recognize numbers up to 100, and count to 100. She should be able to do simple addition and subtraction, count money, and tell time to the half hour.

During first grade, your first grader will be expected to expand his sight word vocabulary. He should be able to talk about elements in stories like plot and setting. He should be able to print. He should be able to write in complete sentences, and will probably be able to spell about 140 words. He should recognize shapes, and be able to add or subtract up to 20. He should be able to count money using coins.

By the end of first grade, your first grader will be expected to be reading. She will be expected to be able to tell her own stories. She should be able to use a ruler, a magnifying glass, and scales. She should have a solid grasp on all of the academic skills described above, plus she should be becoming more and more prepared for second grade.

Expectations can, of course, vary a great deal. To know what is expected from your first grader, you should talk with your childs teacher about specific expectations.

An important part of your child’s school years is the relationship that you establish with her teachers. The fact of the matter is that the more involved you are with your child’s school, and even with your child’s teacher, the more likely that your child is to succeed in the long run. A part of establishing this positive relationship begins with the questions that you ask your child’s second grade teacher at or before the beginning of the second grade school year.

A good question to ask your child’s second grade teacher is what her approach to reading is. By the time a child reaches the second grade, he should be reading. Of course, he won’t be reading all that well just yet, and it is important to know how your child’s second grade teacher intends to help students who may be behind in terms of reading, as well as what she hopes to do with students that may be more advanced. While it is important to ask your child’s second grade teacher these questions in terms of reading, it may also be worth while to ask your child’s second grade teacher a similar question in regards to other subjects, such as math.

Very likely, you will want to ask your child’s second grade teacher about homework. You will want to know what to expect. For example, should you expect your child’s second grade teacher to send homework home every night? You should also ask your child’s second grade teacher about how long homework should take your second grade child on the average.

Finally, when talking to your child’s second grade teacher, you may want to ask her about discipline. You might ask your child’s second grade teacher what procedures she uses for discipline, as well as what the classroom rules are, and what it is that she is going to expect from your second grade child in terms of behavior. You will want to ask your child’s second grade teacher specifically about what sorts of rewards or sanctions may go along with her discipline plan, as well as how her classroom fits into the school’s overall discipline policies.

First grade is a very significant time in the education of your child. In many ways, you are trusting much of your child’s future to your child’s first grade teacher. For example, it is during first grade that most children will learn the basic skills that they will need for further educational experiences. Reading, in particular, is perhaps the most important skill to future learning, and your child’s first grade teacher will, largely, be responsible for helping your first grade child to become a reader. Because of the importance of first grade to your child, it is important that you have confidence in your child’s first grade teacher. Part of this process is by asking your child’s first grade teacher certain questions.

The first thing that you need to ask your child’s first grade teacher is about reading. You will need to ask your child’s first grade teacher to describe the reading program. You will want to ask your child’s first grade teacher what you can do at home to help your first grade child while she is learning to read. You should also ask what you can do to encourage your first grade child to read.

You will probably also want to ask your child’s first grade teacher about classroom discipline. You will want to know what the classroom rules are, so that you can reinforce these rules for your child at home. You will want to know what the discipline procedures are, as well, to be certain that they are in relative agreement with your philosophy of parenting.

You may want to ask your child’s first grade teacher about homework. You might ask your child’s first grade teacher about how often you should expect your child to have homework, and about how long the homework should take to complete, on the average.

Making a list of questions to ask your child’s first grade teacher is the first step in making sure that you have confidence in your child’s first grade teacher.