Pregnancy
Common Questions about the Second Grade
by Vito Perrone
Here are the answers to parents' most frequently-asked questions about second grade.
Q: How much time should my child spend on homework each night? Q: Should my child be using a computer? What's the right size for my child's class? Parents of primary school children often ask how large or small the class should be. Class size is important. Optimally, a second grade classroom should have no more than 18 to 22 children. Because children's levels of learning vary widely throughout the early years of school, the more individual attention teachers can provide, and the more experiences they can facilitate for each child, the better. But as class size goes beyond 22, the potential for individual interaction decreases. My experience is that as class size reaches 24, 28, or 30 children -- which is too often the norm -- the classroom becomes a less rich environment for each child. Teachers and parents need to become more vocal about the importance of class size in these early, most formative years. How much time should my child spend on homework each night? Most teachers do not assign much homework during the early years, but some homework could be useful, especially if it is interesting, if it goes beyond the daily school activities, and if can be done with a parent. Homework assignments in the second grade might include: Tell a story to your mother or father. Measure the doors or windows in your house. Read for 20 minutes on your own. Think about "fairy tale" words. Write a story. Watch a particular program on television and time the commercials. A second grader might also be expected to do some computational exercises and collect leaves for a science experiment. But second grade children should not have homework that takes more than 30 minutes. If their homework assignments exceed this limit, parents should inquire about it. And if there is no homework, that too is worth an inquiry. Should my child be using a computer? I am also often asked whether children should be using computers in the second grade. Many children are using computers at home at age five or six, and many schools have computers in second grade classrooms. Much can be done with computers, especially in the areas of word processing and mathematics, but I do not view them as essential at this level. There is so much language to hear and use, so much to observe in the natural world, so much concrete experience to gain. Waiting until third grade for active computer use would not be a handicap to your child. Reprinted from 101 Educational Conversations with Your 2nd Grader by Vito Perrone, published by Chelsea House Publishers. More on: Your Second Grader
Q: What's the right size for my child's class?
Copyright 1994 by Chelsea House Publishers, a division of Main Line Book Co. All rights reserved.
