Homework

"So, what are you doing this summer?" I was at a picnic last Saturday night, and the person across from me was making polite conversation by asking a question about my summer plans. I'm sure he was not implying that I have nothing to do for the next nine weeks. No, his question was not phrased in the sense that I'm a teacher, therefore, in the summer, I'm a bum. Oh, wait. Give me time to hide my summer bumper sticker: "Don't hate me because I'm a teacher. " Hmmmm .... on Saturday I was just glad I didn't have to leave the picnic right after dinner in order to grade essays in the van. Actually, as I was leaving home for the picnic, I started to take my school bag. Then I remembered that I didn't have any papers to grade.

It was a typical day in the English classroom. We checked the previous night's homework. I taught a lesson on the next concept. We did some sample sentences together. I answered questions. Homework - three practice pages of sentences - was assigned. There were 12 minutes left in class. The students began working. A few came up to my desk to ask further questions. In between, I checked papers. Overall, it was quiet and pleasant. We could almost hear the clock ticking on the wall.

kristinw@herald-mail.com Kevin and Mark Sokol know when they get home from school they have 30 minutes to themselves. Then, it's homework time. For a half-hour, they can unwind by having a snack, watching TV or spending some time outdoors. But when that time is up, they know they better get back to work as studious seventh-grade students. It is the routine that the twin Sokol boys have practiced for many years under the guidance of their parents. The system works for the family with few questions about what is expected when it comes to schoolwork.

"Mom, I have homework in every subject tonight. " Each time I hear one of my kids make that statement, I inwardly groan. I know what is ahead of us ... a late night. Not that I'm complaining. I'm a teacher, after all, and I assign homework. I tell my students to try to finish as much as they can in class while I am there to help them. Any of the classwork that they don't finish in class becomes homework that they finish at home. Practicing learned concepts is key to retention.

Parents play a key role in helping their children get their homework done, teachers say. The key is helping, not doing. "Too much help from parents really teaches the student that, when the going gets rough, someone else is going to be there to pick up the pieces. Give them independence and build confidence in what they're doing," says Judi Martz, a math teacher at Springfield Middle School in Williamsport. There are plenty of things parents can do to help their kids with homework, but the line tends to get blurry when a child gets stuck.

marlob@herald-mail.com Homework is an activity that got its name because of where it always had been done. But as 21st-century education continues to evolve and adapt, more and more homework is being done at school or in some cases, not being assigned in the quantities it used to be, some Tri-State area educators said. In Berkeley County, W.Va., schools, "We have what we call a guided practice governing homework," said Frank Aliveto, deputy superintendent of schools.

The other day, an eighth-grade student sat across from me, happily swinging her feet and finger-combing her hair while fielding questions about her academic experiences of this newly minted school year. The exchange went as follows: Was she glad to be back in school? Oh, yeah! (Happy to be with her friends.) Were the classes tough? Not too, so far. Did she like her teachers? Yeah, she did. Any homework? Nooo! No homework or assignments in the first weeks? Nope, my teachers are cool.

When the smoke cleared and the deadline to file passed on Monday at 9 p.m., there were 29 candidates filed for Washington County Commissioner. It's the greatest outpouring of candidates since 1974, when 38 ran for a seat on the county board. Then as now, there were some open seats and some dissatisfaction with some of the things the incumbents had done. Planning and zoning was a new concept for this county then, and was just as controversial, in its own way, as the water-and-sewer debt problems the current board has faced.

In a column which appeared Thursday, Feb. 26, I asked readers to tell me what sort of homework the candidates for Washington County Commissioner should be doing. What, I asked, are the most important things for them to find out? For answering that question, in 100 words or less, I offered the winner two tickets to Basket Bingo, an April 3 fund-raiser for Washington County's Parent-Child Center, a non-profit agency that helps parents learn to raise their children without resorting to physical or mental abuse.

To the editor: I am responding to Dr. Becker's letter to the editor encouraging teachers to give more homework to school children. It's fine to say that teachers should give homework to students. However, one might look at the reasons why they don't. I have a wide circle of friends who are public school teachers. I have heard from some of them that they are extremely discouraged. Some are even at the point of finding another profession. They have to "teach to test," rather than teaching for the love of children and the love of teaching.

It was a typical day in the English classroom. We checked the previous night's homework. I taught a lesson on the next concept. We did some sample sentences together. I answered questions. Homework - three practice pages of sentences - was assigned. There were 12 minutes left in class. The students began working. A few came up to my desk to ask further questions. In between, I checked papers. Overall, it was quiet and pleasant. We could almost hear the clock ticking on the wall.

The Hagerstown Housing Authority will work with the city to continue two afterschool programs that were previously part of CSAFE. The Hagerstown City Council Tuesday agreed to collaborate with the authority to continue the afterschool homework and dance programs started by CSAFE, which stands for Collaborative Supervision and Focused Enforcement. Hagerstown Police Chief Arthur Smith approached the council in August about finding new partners for the youth programs after Carolyn Brooks left her post this month as CSAFE's coordinator for 13 years.

"Mom, I have homework in every subject tonight. " Each time I hear one of my kids make that statement, I inwardly groan. I know what is ahead of us ... a late night. Not that I'm complaining. I'm a teacher, after all, and I assign homework. I tell my students to try to finish as much as they can in class while I am there to help them. Any of the classwork that they don't finish in class becomes homework that they finish at home. Practicing learned concepts is key to retention.

When Kostadinka “Kay” Papeskov picks up her daughters from Bester Elementary School she asks them how their school day went. Then she often asks them more specific questions about school. “If you just ask 'How was your day at school?' then you're probably not going to get a good answer,” said Papeskov, of Hagerstown. So she asks what they wrote about, what they did in math, and gets them to talk about their favorite part of the day. Going beyond the general question about their school day - to what was the best thing they did, the most important thing they learned, or what they did in science, English or math - lets children know that parents think school is important and reinforces their learning, said Clyde Harrell, director for curriculum and instruction for Washington County Public Schools.

Washington County Public Schools officials offered the following advice for ways parents can be involved in their children's education: • Make sure the child arrives at school ready to learn. That includes getting them to school, unless the child is sick. Students should be well-rested and ready to learn. A hungry child won't pay attention in class. If parents cannot provide breakfast before school, breakfast is available at every school except for Barbara Ingram School for the Arts.

“To the caller whining about what the Bible does and doesn't say about the rich and heaven: If you check your Bible, Matthew 19:24, you'd see it reads, 'And again I say unto you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.' Please note, Jesus didn't say 'greedy rich man,' he said simply, 'rich man.' Amen.” - Waynesboro, Pa. “Wednesday's paper, Aug. 3, when...

"So, what are you doing this summer?" I was at a picnic last Saturday night, and the person across from me was making polite conversation by asking a question about my summer plans. I'm sure he was not implying that I have nothing to do for the next nine weeks. No, his question was not phrased in the sense that I'm a teacher, therefore, in the summer, I'm a bum. Oh, wait. Give me time to hide my summer bumper sticker: "Don't hate me because I'm a teacher. " Hmmmm .... on Saturday I was just glad I didn't have to leave the picnic right after dinner in order to grade essays in the van. Actually, as I was leaving home for the picnic, I started to take my school bag. Then I remembered that I didn't have any papers to grade.

Alexis Feketis, left, and Erik Besecker take advantage of Monday's warm, late-summer weather to compare homework notes at Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, W.Va.

Public needs to do its homework on candidates To the editor: My experience in Washington County politics and observing beyond the borders of Washington County has taught me several things when it comes to elected officials. One thing that stands out is at least 50 percent of elected officials possess no more character than the average citizen. Thankfully, there are some men and women who can be labeled statesmen. As we move toward an election in September and another in November, the public has an obligation to do its homework and select officials whose prior deeds indicate they are a notch above the rest.