Imagine his chagrin when he discovered that he still has to do homework, in one way or another, every day while school is out.In order that students not forget all that had been learned over the course of the school year, his teacher sent home a summer workbook filled with math problems, word games and Turkish and English grammar questions to puzzle through. By no means as exhaustive as the homework assignments brought home during the school term, the homework has caused Ali Adem great consternation. Even though he is allowed to have fun and relax while on his summer break, he knows that the dreaded homework awaits him.
His days, and mine too for that matter, are now filled with trips to the park, the swimming pool, gymnastics and nearby art classes. When we are out and about, be it on our way to or from an activity or just running errands, I try to get him to continue to use the skills he learned at school. Together we see who can add up costs for food in our heads fastest. I have him explain parts of Turkish grammar to me as we are walking along. This is something he actually enjoys because he realizes that when it comes to the Turkish language he has the definite edge over me. By me asking him questions, he is given the chance to turn the tables on me and become my personal tutor.
Reading, both in Turkish and English, is another of his skills that I try to keep sharpened. Since his one desire at the moment is to be free of schoolwork during the summer, I have to come up with creative ways to get him to read while not making it seem like it is homework. To him, his textbooks reek of the injustice of homework over the holidays, so I have been finding other ways to have him read that do not seem like work. I ask him about signs we pass on the street, making obvious mistakes in my reading of them so that he has the chance to correct me. It gives him a sense of accomplishment to be able to be able to point out and explain my errors in Turkish. We try to work together each day on his homework book, with me struggling along behind him to check his answers. Even though he considers it to be a bit of an ordeal to have to cope with schoolwork when he would rather be playing, by working on it alongside each other it gives us a little more time to spend together before he runs off to yet another summer activity. It is important to find fun ways to keep children occupied during the school breaks. By finding ways to bring what they have learned at school into their everyday lives they can discover on their own how what they have been taught in school relates to their own personal lives. By bringing learning into the personal realm they can better understand why the lessons they go through in school are so important.
Even though he is not too pleased with the homework notebook sent home by his school, I think it is a great addition to his summer holidays. Before the book arrived, tucked away in his backpack on the last day of school, I was already thinking of ways to keep him occupied and enthusiastic about learning while away from the set schedules of his school. This notebook has made my job much easier.
For all children, keeping up with their lessons is essential. Moreover, when there is a second or third language involved in the child's life, it is critical that the practice of the languages continues even when away from school. Since we almost always speak English at home, I have to make sure that his Turkish skills do not suffer while he is out of school. Reading, even if just signs on the street and comic books, is a key part of keeping language skills honed. When out at the parks he usually plays with children who only speak Turkish, so the speaking skills stay at a high level, but if not encouraged at home, reading skills can have a tendency to slip when away from school.
So, in spite of the fact that Ali Adem feels that homework during the summer break is a grave injustice, we work together to keep him current in terms of his progress in school. When the next school term begins I am hoping that because we have continued his studies throughout the summer he will be ready to face the next grade a little easier and not find that he has forgotten too much of what he had learned over the holiday break. As he is finding, learning never stops.
Send comments and questions to k.hamilton@todayszaman.com
