Every afternoon the kids get home from school around 2:00pm. They eat lunch right away and by 2:30pm, everyone is expected to be seated with their books and materials, ready to work. Each group of children has a specified area to do homework. They spread out with books open, pencils and erasers in hand, and colored pencils, glue and scissors within reach.
All of the adults in the house help out, sitting down with one or two children to get them started, help them focus and cheer them on. If the kids finish their homework quickly, they engage in academic reinforcement or other activities provided by our caregivers until 4:00pm.
Some of the older children have also worked out a “contract” with our social worker; when they finish their own homework, they go to work helping the younger children with homework. The results have been great so far. The little ones love the attention and have been working great with their older counterparts. The older kids are also thrilled that their work contract designates Friday as their payday!