homework help primary school

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Ages 3 to 11

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Practise maths and english with games and quizzes.

Times tables 1-12 games, songs and quizzes

Help for KS1 and KS2 students to learn and improve the times tables.

• Attribution MATHS | AGES 5-11

Maths game - Guardians: Defenders of Mathematica

Mathematica needs you! Add, subtract, divide and multiply your way to victory.

• Attribution KS2 MATHS | AGES 7-11

Maths game - Karate Cats

Join the Karate Cats and earn the bronze, silver and gold cups in loads of maths challenges.

• Attribution KS1 MATHS | AGES 5-7

English game - Karate Cats

Meet the Karate Cats and practice spelling, grammar and punctuation as you chop, kick and smash the challenges.

• Attribution KS1 ENGLISH | AGES 5-7

English game - Crystal Explorers

Learn and practise grammar, punctuation and spelling skills by solving puzzles and collecting crystals.

• Attribution KS2 English | AGES 7-11

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Games with CBBC and CBeebies characters

Operation Ouch! It Takes Guts! - game

Test your knowledge of the digestive system from the mouth to the bum.

• Attribution KS2 SCIENCE | AGES 7-11

Horrible Histories: Raid and Trade - game

Lead your Viking settlement to victory by raiding and trading from AD750 - 1066 in this Horrible Histories game.

• Attribution KS2 HISTORY | AGES 7-11

Numberblocks: See the Amount - game

Join the Numberblocks in this maths game for Reception children all about subitising.

• Attribution EARLY YEARS MATHS | AGES 4-5

Homework tips for supporting children in primary school

Homework can be a sticking point for busy families.

After experts questioned its relevance for primary schoolers, many of you weighed in on Facebook, disagreeing on how much, if any, homework is the right amount for this age group. 

So, what is beneficial? And what are some strategies to help make it a less stressful part of the day for both parents and kids?

What's the value in homework?

Grattan Institute deputy program director Amy Haywood says there is value in homework — particularly set reading — for primary school-aged kids.

Ms Haywood, based in Naarm/Melbourne, says time spent reading independently or with an adult "is a really good use of time because it builds up the vocabulary".

In addition to reading, other key skills such as maths can be a focus.

"In classes is where they're doing a lot of the learning of new content or skills, and then outside the school might be opportunity to practise."

She says there's "clear evidence around practice leading to mastery, and then the mastery having an impact on students' engagement in school, [and] their confidence with taking on different learning tasks".

There's also a case for homework in later primary years as you might want them to build some of those study habits before they go into secondary school.

But, she says "schools need to be careful about what homework they are setting".

Communicate with the school

Ms Haywood encourages parents to speak to teachers if they have concerns about set homework.

"[Teachers] may not necessarily realise that a student is spending a lot of time or needing quite a bit of help.

"That new information is very useful for a teacher because it means that they can go back and understand what they might need to reteach and any misconceptions that they need to go over."

Find the best time for your family

Parenting expert and family counsellor Rachel Schofield says finding the best time for homework in your family's routine is important.

Based in New South Wales' Bega Valley, on traditional lands of the Yuin-Monaro Nations, she says for some families fitting it into the morning routine is easier.

It's also about when parents and caregivers are in "the best shape" to help, "because if you've got a kid that's battling homework, you're going to have to be in emotionally good shape".

"If you're really stressed at the end of the day, then that's probably not the best time."

Ms Schofield says "parents have incredibly busy lives" but if you can carve out the time "homework can become a place where you actually get to slow down and stop".

She says children below the age of 10 need a lot a supervision and shouldn't be expected to do homework independently.

Why homework straight after school might not work 

Ms Schofield says kids "need decompression time after school".

She says there's an understandable tendency among busy parents to get homework out of the way as soon as possible, but this could be working against them.

Snacks, play and time to offload are usually what primary-aged kids need, Ms Schofield says.

Some time to play and connect with a parent after school can be "really helpful".

Even 10 minutes "can make the whole trajectory of the evening go differently", she says.

Ms Schofield says kids can come home with "a lot of emotional stuff" and rough-and-tumble-play can be a good way to spend time with them and help them decompress after school.

Ms Schofield says you can also try and engage with your child 'playfully' if they are refusing to do homework.

It's tempting to be stern and serious in response, but she says treating it more "goofily" by poorly attempting to complete it yourself or asking your child for help with a task might get a better result.

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Top 10 Free Homework Help Websites

By: erin dower.

Khan Academy

Khan Academy is a nonprofit that aims to provide "a free, world-class education for anyone, anywhere." The site offers a growing library of high-quality educational videos that can help parents brush up on school subjects or guide their child through homework with evidence and visual aids , which are big concepts in the Common Core. Whether you're looking for a crash course in world history or biology , or even just basic math concepts , there are nicely paced videos on almost every topic. There are even videos to help kids learn computer programming or prepare for the SAT.

Visit Khan Academy

StudyGeek.org is a nonprofit website "where PhD experts help with math homework" — neat! The site offers detailed sections on algebra, geometry, trigonometry, calculus, and statistics. Each area provides helpful explanations and sample problems specific to all types of math. Study Geek also offers a searchable math vocabulary guide . Their Math Solver tool helps you solve any kind of math problem, and by creating a (free) account on the site, you can "unlock" the step-by-step explanation of how the problem was solved and save math problems to refer to later.

Visit Study Geek

Fact Monster

Fact Monster is part of Family Education Network and is a free reference site for children, teachers, and parents. Fact Monster's homework center offers online math flashcards for kids to practice their addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division skills, and a conversion calculator for all kinds of units of measurement. The site also offers an atlas, almanac, and encyclopedia, plus loads of writing assignment advice , including how to write an essay, biography, and bibliography. The U.S. almanac is a lifesaver when your child is writing a report on one of the 50 states!

Visit Fact Monster

BJ Pinchbeck's Homework Helper

A father/son duo started this site back in 1996 when 9-year-old BJ wanted to learn how to build a website alongside his "computer nerd" dad. The site has grown and continues to serve as a great reference to families. It provides hundreds of links to helpful websites for every school subject and focus area, so you can find resources for anything from botany , to Latin grammar , to musical chords . It can also help you find free texts and books online — which is awesome if your child forgot his copy of Beowulf or Romeo and Juliet in his locker!

Visit BJ Pinchbeck's Homework Helper

Parent Toolkit

Produced by NBC News' Education Nation and sponsored by Pearson (owner of FamilyEducation.com), ParentToolkit.com gives you a grade-by-grade look at academics in preschool through high school, reflecting the Common Core Standards that are taking effect in most states. The website's grade-specific "Benchmark" guides for math and English can be helpful to review at the beginning of the school year to get a sense of what topics your child will be studying (and what you may need to brush up on in order to help with homework). Plus they offer some sample math problems and English language arts exercises, as well as some tips for parents to foster learning at home. Similar content is also available in the Parent Toolkit app.

Visit Parent Toolkit

See the Parent Toolkit app

Common Core Works

CommonCoreWorks.org, provides helpful printable "Parent Roadmaps" for Math and English for grades K-12, available in English and Spanish. The Roadmaps offer a closer look at Common Core curriculum for each grade, including sample math problems and English exercises.

CommonCore.org is another website that offers grade-specific math "tip sheets" for parents, which show the "new math" way of solving problems, such as using dots to learn how to count or "bar models" (aka "tape diagrams") to solve word problems.

Visit CommonCoreWorks.org

Visit CommonCore.org

Hippo Campus

HippoCampus.org is a free website that offers rich multimedia academic content — videos, animations, quizzes, and simulations. The site offers more than 5,700 free videos collected from various academic institutions in 13 subject areas, including algebra, geometry, calculus, earth science, biology, physics, history, and English. Math Snacks is a series of cool animated videos and games that help teach middle school math concepts using fun, visual techniques. STEMbite is a series of videos that discuss math and science in the real word, such as the math behind barcodes, and the science behind polarized sunglass lenses. Visual learning and real-world application are two important educational concepts in the Common Core Standards.

Visit Hippo Campus

Scholastic Parent & Child

This site offers subject-specific Parent Primers , which help you dust off old spelling rules, revisit the three branches of government, see different geometric shapes, and more. Plus, with their Flash Card Maker you can make your own math and vocabulary flashcards, and with their Spelling Wizard you can make a word scramble or word search that helps kids learn their spelling list in fun ways.

Visit Scholastic Parent & Child

Wonderopolis

Kids say — and ask — the darnedest things! Wonderopolis.org is a neat nonprofit website that answers all sorts of questions submitted by children with fact-filled, kid-friendly articles and fun-to-watch videos. There's the "Wonder of the Day," plus an archive of hundreds of past "wonders." The articles and videos could serve as great inspiration for school assignments, such as science projects or history or English reports. Here are some examples of "wonders" the site answers:

• "Why do skunks stink?"
• "Why is the ocean blue?"
• "What is the world's favorite food?"

Visit Wonderopolis

Ask Dr. Math

"Ask Dr. Math" is a nonprofit forum managed by Drexel University. The site may look dated, but it's still helpful and relevant. The list of math FAQs covers many popular topics, such as dividing by zero, types of fractions, learning to factor, and how to round numbers. You can also browse for answers by age group (elementary, middle, or high school) or search the archive by keyword .

Visit Ask Dr. Math

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The Best Primary Homework Help Parents Can Give Their Children

Ellie Williams

Figuring out how to help with primary homework is no mean feat. At times it can seem that your child’s school is handing out a never-ending stream of worksheets, books and tasks to tackle, and more often than not this leads to a sentence dreaded by most parents: “ Mum/Dad, I need help with my school homework! ”

Well, if just seeing that sentence written has brought back bad memories of figuring out fractions, mastering multiplication or dealing with division, you’ll be pleased to hear that we are here to help.

Research has shown that parental support can play a huge role in a child’s education, and with pressure mounting to support your child in their education it can all feel a little overwhelming for parents.

This doesn’t have to be the case though, and in this blog we will be looking at how you can help your child with their maths homework and make after school more enjoyable!

Blog Contents:

• What do parents need to know about primary school homework?
• Why is homework important for your child?

Understanding how much homework your child gets from their school

• Why parental engagement with homework is important
• Top tips to help with homework
• Reasons routine is important
• Why you should focus on the ‘can do’s’ rather than the cannot’s
• Why you shouldn’t worry if you don’t know the answers yourself!
• How you can create the perfect homework haven
• Mastering motivation for homework
• Homework hacks you can use to get the job done faster

What parents need to know about primary school homework

Before you think about how to help your child with their primary homework, it is important to understand a little more about why they have it in the first place.

How much homework they should be getting, how difficult it should be and the debate as to whether or not they should have any work to do at home in the first place are questions raised by parents everywhere, and they will all be answered here.

30 Times Tables Tests and Answers

Download this FREE resource of 30 times tables tests and answers for your year 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 children!

A debate is raging in the world of primary education: Why is homework important for your child? vs Why it may not be!

A battle that has been blazing for as long as homework has been handed out to primary school children, the question of whether or not additional after school work is beneficial to children is one without a clear answer.

Back in 2018, the homework debate rose up again amongst Twitter users – some famous, some infamous, and a few regular Joe’s – about the necessity of homework for primary school children.

Gary Lineker of Walker crisp and football fame was of the opinion that children “ should be allowed to play and enjoy home-life with their parents ”, a sentiment that was shared by headteachers also on the platform.

On the other end of the scale, opinions brought to the fore by Piers Morgan included:

• That by removing homework from the equation altogether, the UK’s educational standards would fall further behind the likes of China; and That when homework is made to be interesting and productive, 100% of students of any age will be receptive to it
• Piers’ viewpoint, whilst not arrived at in quite the same manner, was also shared by Katherine Birbalsingh, Founding Headteacher of the Michela School so it did have some educational heft behind it as well.

With parents, teachers and many others still split on the merits of homework for primary school children, it appears that the debate will continue long into the future…

But one thing is sure: homework is here to stay for the foreseeable future.

Whilst this is a tricky topic to cover since each school has a different policy, there is one simple place to begin, and it is by answering the following question:

Is homework compulsory in primary schools?

No. Homework is not compulsory in primary schools, but it is recommended and encouraged by the government. The guidelines set out by the government state that children should be doing homework from the day they begin primary school.

This is however, not a legal requirement from the schools themselves.

The government has given schools the ability to set their own homework policy, and this means that it will vary from school to school. Some schools may choose to have no homework for their pupils, whilst other schools may choose to have daily homework.

With their being no set and fast rule for the amount of homework your child can receive, it is up to you as a parent to ensure that you understand the homework policy of your child’s school.

However, the government has set out some guidelines as to how long children should spend on their homework depending on their age:

It is worth remembering that these guidelines are simply that – and if you feel that your child is getting too much/not enough homework then there are a few things you can do:

• Visit the school’s website and find their homework policy to get a clearer understanding of how much your child should be getting
• Speak to the your child’s teacher about the amount of homework they are receiving

Parental engagement in homework is key in helping your child get the most from their education

For many parents, helping children with homework is something that they would gladly remove from their daily schedule. However, if your child does receive homework then helping them with it can be extremely beneficial to them.

Research into the effect of parental engagement in homework has found that ‘ parent’s homework involvement appears to influence student success insofar as it supports student attributes related to achievement (e.g., attitudes about homework, perceptions of personal competence, self-regulatory skills ).’

Put simply, this means that if you hear that all too familiar cry of “ I don’t know how to do question 6 on my maths homework… ” or “ I don’t understand it ” coming from the living room after school, stepping in to help is definitely the best solution, as it will benefit your child in the long run.

Just remember, a cup of tea can always be heated up…

Fortunately, there are a vast number of ways that you can help your child with maths homework, and we will delve into some of the best ones now!

How to help your child with maths homework: Top parental tips for helping with homework

Without further ado, it’s time to look at the top ways that parents can help with homework!

Ensure that routine and structure are the order of the day, everyday

We know that during the journey home from school and the subsequent rush to settle down in front of the television upon arrival, homework can be cast aside in young minds. However, one of the simplest ways you can help your child with their homework is by never giving them the chance to ‘forget’ about their homework.

By introducing a simple after-school routine, you’ll be able to eliminate the inevitable time wasting that can come during this period of the day, and homework can be completed swiftly and with relative ease.

There are of course always going to be days when your child isn’t keen to get the pen and paper out upon their return home, but by setting a (relatively) regimented and strict after how to help school routine, you will be able to make the transition from school work to homework much smoother.

Set time aside each day, or every other day depending on the amount of homework your child is given, and make sure that homework is the only thing on the agenda during this timeframe.

It is very important though, to include breaks during homework time too. Not only are concentration levels at primary school age somewhat fleeting, but research shows that taking breaks when working makes you more productive.

So although it might sound contradictory, a quick 10-minute game or snack break every half an hour or so will ensure that your child refocuses and has time to reset – meaning homework is completed faster not slower!

Routine breeds habit, and with habit comes a desire to get the work done in a quick and pain-free matter.

Fail to plan and you are planning to fail, so get your after-school routine checklist here

Having a visual representation of what you expect your child to do after school pinned to the fridge or wall is a great way to reinforce the routine you want them to get into, and it can help you both focus on the event that is supposed to be happening at one particular moment in time.

Whether it be homework, swimming or even walking the dog, if it’s on the checklist, it needs to be done.

In a nutshell: Why routine is important when helping with homework

Without a regular after-school routine in place, chances are you will be met with a whole host of objections when you mention the dreaded ‘h’ word. If however your child knows that their after school routine looks a little like this:

3.45-4.00pm: Time for homework 4.00-4.15pm: A break on their iPad or watch the tv 4.15-4.30pm: Back to their homework to finish it off 4.30pm onwards: Time to play!

You should find them to be a lot more open to completing their work as they know that there is always a break on the horizon.

It certainly isn’t a one size fits all approach, but with some tinkering you should be able to find a routine that works for your child.

• How You Can Create Amazing Before And After School Routines For your Child
• The Best Homework Hacks – 18 Tips and Tricks to Help You Get It Done Fast
• 13 Fun Homework Ideas: How to Make Homework Fun for Kids

Focus on the I can do’s rather than the I cannot’s

For many, maths was one of the more difficult subjects at school and it can still prove tricky to tackle even in adulthood.

But whilst you may still find fractions frustrating or addition arduous, it is very important for your child’s mathematical development that you avoid telling them “ I just can’t do maths. ”

This may seem a throwaway comment that busy and often overwhelmed parents make when maths homework is being completed, but it does not bode well with children.

Young minds look towards their parents for advice and guidance on everything, and this means that if they see you being negative about maths, they will often think it’s okay to react in a similar fashion.

Fortunately, the solution is simple – although it may take a bit of practice at the beginning.

Even if the thought of helping your child with an algebra worksheet fills you with dread, or assisting with long division makes you wish you’d paid more attention in your maths lessons, try to remain as positive as possible.

Chances are you know more about maths than you think you do, and you are probably using an awful lot in your everyday life without even realising.

Making sure the total amount on the supermarket receipt is right? That’s maths. Budgeting for the month after payday? That’s maths. Measuring weights when preparing the family dinner? That’s maths.

The list above could go on and on forever, but the point is that even when you find yourself staring at a homework sheet your child has been given and thinking “ I can’t do maths ”, the best thing you can do to help your child with their maths homework is to turn around and announce that you can both do maths and are going to work it out together!

But how can I do this if I’m not sure of the answer to the question?

There will of course always be occasions when you just don’t know how to answer one of the questions on a piece of homework.

As a parent your child will expect you to know everything from who was the third person to climb Everest (Ernst Schmied for anyone who is wondering) through to the answer to question 15 on their maths homework, but you’ll be pleased to hear that being stumped by a question may actually be helpful when your child is learning .

Children respond well to the opportunity to work together with their parents, (and even better to the opportunity to show up mum or dad when they know something you don’t) and when you are supporting each other to work out the answer to a particularly tricky question, you may find that they retain this piece of knowledge better than they otherwise would.

In a nutshell: Why you should avoid saying that you can’t do maths around your child

Something popular amongst educators is the theory of a growth mindset. This theory advocates the idea that both intelligence and ability are not fixed, and that through hard work and determination, brains and talent are just the starting point for educational development.

This is a fantastic approach to take with your child, so when helping them with their maths homework replace “I can’t do maths” with “I’m not sure how to answer that question, let’s work it out together” and you will soon see the results.

Take the time to create the perfect environment for studying

With toys, pets, televisions and 1001 other distractions to keep a young mind away from their homework, the average house is often not the best place to get work done.

For a child looking for an excuse not to do their homework, all of the above can be the reason they give as to why it’s 5.30pm and they have only answered a quarter of the maths questions they were supposed to.

Fortunately, it is very easy to create an environment for your child that is conducive to learning, and all it takes is a little preparation on your behalf.

How parents can create a homework haven for their child

Step 1: Find the most secluded and quiet area of your home.

Step 2: Remove televisions, pets, annoying siblings and even computers (unless they are needed for research) from the newfound homework hideaway.

Step 3: This is a fantastic chance for you to bring your child in on the design of their homework haven. Use your combined design skills to make this an area that really stands out from the rest of the house, and one that your child is going to want to do their work in.

If your son or daughter feels that fairy lights will help them think then get them up on the wall.

If they would prefer to sit on a bean bag rather than that infamously uncomfortable desk chair that’s in the spare room, see if you can source one from somewhere. (Gumtree is a great place to start!)

The idea here is not to create a generic work environment for your child with a desk, chair and pen pot. The idea is to create something that will work for them and act as an incentive for them to go and do their work.

If you are however struggling for design ideas, take a look at Pinterest for some inspiration. Just make sure you don’t get drawn in by the overambitious and unrealistic cool creations on there.

Nobody’s asking you to create a life size mural of an elephant on the wall to help with science homework, or to write the 12 times tables out with a calligraphy pen. Fairy lights and a comfy seat are a good enough place to start….

Step 4: Make sure that all of the equipment your child will need is within arms reach. This is a quick win when helping children with homework as it means that rather than spending 10 minutes ‘looking’ for their ruler, it is already there and ready to use.

Step 5: Make sure you are never too far away from any potential calls for help. If your homework hideaway is upstairs and you’ve popped downstairs to get to work on the dinner, ensure you can still hear any homework help requests that come your way. Ignore these at your peril as an unanswered cry for help can quickly turn into an incomplete piece of homework…

By creating a special space within which homework can be completed, you will remove both the distractions and stress that can come with it.

In a nutshell: Why a space specifically for homework is important

It can be difficult to remember back to being a 7, 8, 9, 10 or 11-year-old student, but trust us when we say that at that this age, distractions can be found everywhere. That is why is is crucial to create a space for your child, free from any disturbances or interruptions, that will help them get on with their maths homework.

How to help your child with homework: Make sure you motivate your child by ensuring that maths homework is fun

If you were someone who disliked homework when you were at school, then ‘making homework fun’ may sound like something of an oxymoron. Years ago, a worksheet full of sums and numbers would have been the only thing that made it from the classroom to your home, but nowadays, things are thankfully very different.

Primary school homework may not always come in the form of a worksheet or a page from a textbook. Many teachers like to give their class more abstract tasks such as “work on your times tables” or “test yourself on the addition work we did today in class”.

It is with these types of homework tasks that you really have a chance to shine and motivate your child by making maths fun!

There are a whole host of ways you can bring maths to life at home, and they include:

• Making up your own songs and rhymes about numbers and times tables in particular
• Sitting down together to work out household budgets (perhaps including an increase in pocket money if the dishes are washed on a regular basis)
• Getting help with the weekly food shop and the amounts food will cost
• Using car journeys to test maths skills

These are of course just some of the things you can do to improve your child’s maths skills at home, whilst making things more fun than simply sitting down and writing. If you want to find out other top tips and tricks for fun homework help, take a look at our blog about 5 ways to encourage real life maths.

Or if you’re looking for specific activities, try our list of home learning resources , all free to download and use!

Maths outside can be fun as well!

Another great way parents can help with homework is by taking learning outside. If you have an active child then times tables hopscotch can be an effective method of helping them master multiplication.

In a similar vein, if you have a child who loves to explore and immerse themselves in the great outdoors, then outdoor addition and subtraction may be the way to go.

Motivating children to do work when at home can be difficult after a long day at school, but with a little perseverance and creativity on your part it is certainly achievable.

In a nutshell: Motivation and fun are key when it is time for homework

Put simply, if your child isn’t motivated to do the work in front of them then you are facing an almighty uphill battle from the offset. Try bringing a bit of fun into maths, and as well as your child enjoying their work a lot more, you’ll also see that helping kids with homework can be fun for you too!

Why not try downloading some fun topical maths activities and games from the internet for free to spice up learning at home, like this one? Plus, if you sign up to our newsletter we send fun resources every week that will help keep your child engaged in maths and mean you don’t have to go searching the internet for any!

Where you can find out more about ways to make maths fun

For the adventurous parent and child duo, take a look at our top 13 outdoor maths activities .

If you’re looking for a fun and easy way to help your child work on their number facts, then our post on 10 minute maths at home: number facts paper flip is the blog for you!

Use homework hacks to get the work done faster

Most parents know that when a good parenting hack appears they would be wise to grab it with both hands as they can prove to be as rare as a dragon riding a unicorn.

It is the same for homework hacks.

With so many of them available on the internet it can be hard to know which ones are right for you, and more importantly which ones will work for your child.

Let’s face it, the “you can stay up 15 minutes later tomorrow” trick doesn’t work on kids anymore as they are catching onto the fact that tomorrow never comes…

It can be the small but simple things that you may never think of as a busy parent that can make the difference when your child is doing their homework. Examples include:

• Getting some outside help with your child’s maths
• Boost brain power with healthy snacks – dried fruit and nuts are a winner!
• Take advantage of something that is often not common knowledge in a school…The homework club

In a nutshell: Anything that can speed up the process should be used!

We know that the words ‘homework hacks’ can bring up the same tired clichés in your head, and that they you probably feel that you have seen them all before.

Rewarding your child after they have completed their homework is something that is very obvious and probably in every list of homework hacks (ours included), but that is because it is an important thing to do after every good homework session.

However, for every ‘rewarding your child’ homework hack, there will be one that you’ll never have heard before, and who knows, it could be the one that revolutionised homework time in your household!

Where you can find out some top homework hacks

Bring the things your child loves into the world of maths homework

Laptops, computers, iPads and phones. These are all things that we recommended putting away earlier in this post. However, when the times is right they can be extremely powerful tools in the battle to help your child with their homework.

Nowadays, for every shoot’em up and sports-based game that can be found online, there are an equal number of educational apps, websites and games that you can use to motivate your child to do homework.

A session on Primary Games Arena after completing their homework, or some time spent on Times Tables Rockstars as a reward for finishing some maths revision are both fantastic ways to channel child’s desire to enter the online world after school.

With so many incredible education sites and apps out there, you are bound to find one that you can use to help your child cement whichever topic they have been working on in their homework.

In a nutshell: Don’t be scared of online games, they can be a useful tool

Don’t be afraid to say yes when your child asks if they can play a game after they have completed their homework. As long as you keep control over which site they are visiting and which games are being played, you will be able to use them to truly cement what they have just been going over in their homework.

There is nothing wrong with a game or two of Fortnite every now and again too, and this gives you another amazing chance to bring some real-life maths into the equation…

Where you can find a list of the best free maths homework help sites

With such an abundance of websites out there, it can be a little tricky to know which ones are worth your time. Fortunately, we have done all of the research for you and created a list of the 10 best free maths homework help websites and apps for you to peruse at your leisure.

You now have an arsenal full of educational weapons, ready to help you win the homework war

We know that it can feel like an uphill battle to get your child to do their homework after a long day at school. They’re often tired and on the lookout for something more interesting to do, but with the tips, tricks and advice discussed in this blog, you should have more of an idea of how to help your child with homework meaning things should begin to feel a little easier come 3.15pm.

It will take some time to find out what works best for your child when it comes to helping them with homework, so don’t be disheartened if the first thing you try doesn’t work as we promise that things will eventually fall into place.

It is always worth remembering that one of the most important things you can do as a parent to help turn the tide in the homework war is to spend time helping your child with their homework, however you choose to do it, as one-to-one interaction is one of the best ways to learn.

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Does homework really work?

by: Leslie Crawford | Updated: December 12, 2023

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You know the drill. It’s 10:15 p.m., and the cardboard-and-toothpick Golden Gate Bridge is collapsing. The pages of polynomials have been abandoned. The paper on the Battle of Waterloo seems to have frozen in time with Napoleon lingering eternally over his breakfast at Le Caillou. Then come the tears and tantrums — while we parents wonder, Does the gain merit all this pain? Is this just too much homework?

However the drama unfolds night after night, year after year, most parents hold on to the hope that homework (after soccer games, dinner, flute practice, and, oh yes, that childhood pastime of yore known as playing) advances their children academically.

But what does homework really do for kids? Is the forest’s worth of book reports and math and spelling sheets the average American student completes in their 12 years of primary schooling making a difference? Or is it just busywork?

Homework haterz

Whether or not homework helps, or even hurts, depends on who you ask. If you ask my 12-year-old son, Sam, he’ll say, “Homework doesn’t help anything. It makes kids stressed-out and tired and makes them hate school more.”

Nothing more than common kid bellyaching?

Maybe, but in the fractious field of homework studies, it’s worth noting that Sam’s sentiments nicely synopsize one side of the ivory tower debate. Books like The End of Homework , The Homework Myth , and The Case Against Homework the film Race to Nowhere , and the anguished parent essay “ My Daughter’s Homework is Killing Me ” make the case that homework, by taking away precious family time and putting kids under unneeded pressure, is an ineffective way to help children become better learners and thinkers.

One Canadian couple took their homework apostasy all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada. After arguing that there was no evidence that it improved academic performance, they won a ruling that exempted their two children from all homework.

So what’s the real relationship between homework and academic achievement?

How much is too much?

To answer this question, researchers have been doing their homework on homework, conducting and examining hundreds of studies. Chris Drew Ph.D., founder and editor at The Helpful Professor recently compiled multiple statistics revealing the folly of today’s after-school busy work. Does any of the data he listed below ring true for you?

• 45 percent of parents think homework is too easy for their child, primarily because it is geared to the lowest standard under the Common Core State Standards .

• 74 percent of students say homework is a source of stress , defined as headaches, exhaustion, sleep deprivation, weight loss, and stomach problems.

• Students in high-performing high schools spend an average of 3.1 hours a night on homework , even though 1 to 2 hours is the optimal duration, according to a peer-reviewed study .

Not included in the list above is the fact many kids have to abandon activities they love — like sports and clubs — because homework deprives them of the needed time to enjoy themselves with other pursuits.

Conversely, The Helpful Professor does list a few pros of homework, noting it teaches discipline and time management, and helps parents know what’s being taught in the class.

The oft-bandied rule on homework quantity — 10 minutes a night per grade (starting from between 10 to 20 minutes in first grade) — is listed on the National Education Association’s website and the National Parent Teacher Association’s website , but few schools follow this rule.

Do you think your child is doing excessive homework? Harris Cooper Ph.D., author of a meta-study on homework , recommends talking with the teacher. “Often there is a miscommunication about the goals of homework assignments,” he says. “What appears to be problematic for kids, why they are doing an assignment, can be cleared up with a conversation.” Also, Cooper suggests taking a careful look at how your child is doing the assignments. It may seem like they’re taking two hours, but maybe your child is wandering off frequently to get a snack or getting distracted.

Less is often more

If your child is dutifully doing their work but still burning the midnight oil, it’s worth intervening to make sure your child gets enough sleep. A 2012 study of 535 high school students found that proper sleep may be far more essential to brain and body development.

For elementary school-age children, Cooper’s research at Duke University shows there is no measurable academic advantage to homework. For middle-schoolers, Cooper found there is a direct correlation between homework and achievement if assignments last between one to two hours per night. After two hours, however, achievement doesn’t improve. For high schoolers, Cooper’s research suggests that two hours per night is optimal. If teens have more than two hours of homework a night, their academic success flatlines. But less is not better. The average high school student doing homework outperformed 69 percent of the students in a class with no homework.

Many schools are starting to act on this research. A Florida superintendent abolished homework in her 42,000 student district, replacing it with 20 minutes of nightly reading. She attributed her decision to “ solid research about what works best in improving academic achievement in students .”

More family time

A 2020 survey by Crayola Experience reports 82 percent of children complain they don’t have enough quality time with their parents. Homework deserves much of the blame. “Kids should have a chance to just be kids and do things they enjoy, particularly after spending six hours a day in school,” says Alfie Kohn, author of The Homework Myth . “It’s absurd to insist that children must be engaged in constructive activities right up until their heads hit the pillow.”

By far, the best replacement for homework — for both parents and children — is bonding, relaxing time together.

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Should Kids Get Homework?

Homework gives elementary students a way to practice concepts, but too much can be harmful, experts say.

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Effective homework reinforces math, reading, writing or spelling skills, but in a way that's meaningful.

How much homework students should get has long been a source of debate among parents and educators. In recent years, some districts have even implemented no-homework policies, as students juggle sports, music and other activities after school.

Parents of elementary school students, in particular, have argued that after-school hours should be spent with family or playing outside rather than completing assignments. And there is little research to show that homework improves academic achievement for elementary students.

But some experts say there's value in homework, even for younger students. When done well, it can help students practice core concepts and develop study habits and time management skills. The key to effective homework, they say, is keeping assignments related to classroom learning, and tailoring the amount by age: Many experts suggest no homework for kindergartners, and little to none in first and second grade.

Value of Homework

Homework provides a chance to solidify what is being taught in the classroom that day, week or unit. Practice matters, says Janine Bempechat, clinical professor at Boston University 's Wheelock College of Education & Human Development.

"There really is no other domain of human ability where anybody would say you don't need to practice," she adds. "We have children practicing piano and we have children going to sports practice several days a week after school. You name the domain of ability and practice is in there."

Homework is also the place where schools and families most frequently intersect.

"The children are bringing things from the school into the home," says Paula S. Fass, professor emerita of history at the University of California—Berkeley and the author of "The End of American Childhood." "Before the pandemic, (homework) was the only real sense that parents had to what was going on in schools."

Harris Cooper, professor emeritus of psychology and neuroscience at Duke University and author of "The Battle Over Homework," examined more than 60 research studies on homework between 1987 and 2003 and found that — when designed properly — homework can lead to greater student success. Too much, however, is harmful. And homework has a greater positive effect on students in secondary school (grades 7-12) than those in elementary.

"Every child should be doing homework, but the amount and type that they're doing should be appropriate for their developmental level," he says. "For teachers, it's a balancing act. Doing away with homework completely is not in the best interest of children and families. But overburdening families with homework is also not in the child's or a family's best interest."

Negative Homework Assignments

Not all homework for elementary students involves completing a worksheet. Assignments can be fun, says Cooper, like having students visit educational locations, keep statistics on their favorite sports teams, read for pleasure or even help their parents grocery shop. The point is to show students that activities done outside of school can relate to subjects learned in the classroom.

But assignments that are just busy work, that force students to learn new concepts at home, or that are overly time-consuming can be counterproductive, experts say.

Homework that's just busy work.

Effective homework reinforces math, reading, writing or spelling skills, but in a way that's meaningful, experts say. Assignments that look more like busy work – projects or worksheets that don't require teacher feedback and aren't related to topics learned in the classroom – can be frustrating for students and create burdens for families.

"The mental health piece has definitely played a role here over the last couple of years during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the last thing we want to do is frustrate students with busy work or homework that makes no sense," says Dave Steckler, principal of Red Trail Elementary School in Mandan, North Dakota.

Homework on material that kids haven't learned yet.

With the pressure to cover all topics on standardized tests and limited time during the school day, some teachers assign homework that has not yet been taught in the classroom.

Not only does this create stress, but it also causes equity challenges. Some parents speak languages other than English or work several jobs, and they aren't able to help teach their children new concepts.

" It just becomes agony for both parents and the kids to get through this worksheet, and the goal becomes getting to the bottom of (the) worksheet with answers filled in without any understanding of what any of it matters for," says professor Susan R. Goldman, co-director of the Learning Sciences Research Institute at the University of Illinois—Chicago .

Homework that's overly time-consuming.

The standard homework guideline recommended by the National Parent Teacher Association and the National Education Association is the "10-minute rule" – 10 minutes of nightly homework per grade level. A fourth grader, for instance, would receive a total of 40 minutes of homework per night.

But this does not always happen, especially since not every student learns the same. A 2015 study published in the American Journal of Family Therapy found that primary school children actually received three times the recommended amount of homework — and that family stress increased along with the homework load.

Young children can only remain attentive for short periods, so large amounts of homework, especially lengthy projects, can negatively affect students' views on school. Some individual long-term projects – like having to build a replica city, for example – typically become an assignment for parents rather than students, Fass says.

"It's one thing to assign a project like that in which several kids are working on it together," she adds. "In (that) case, the kids do normally work on it. It's another to send it home to the families, where it becomes a burden and doesn't really accomplish very much."

Private vs. Public Schools

Do private schools assign more homework than public schools? There's little research on the issue, but experts say private school parents may be more accepting of homework, seeing it as a sign of academic rigor.

Of course, not all private schools are the same – some focus on college preparation and traditional academics, while others stress alternative approaches to education.

"I think in the academically oriented private schools, there's more support for homework from parents," says Gerald K. LeTendre, chair of educational administration at Pennsylvania State University—University Park . "I don't know if there's any research to show there's more homework, but it's less of a contentious issue."

How to Address Homework Overload

First, assess if the workload takes as long as it appears. Sometimes children may start working on a homework assignment, wander away and come back later, Cooper says.

"Parents don't see it, but they know that their child has started doing their homework four hours ago and still not done it," he adds. "They don't see that there are those four hours where their child was doing lots of other things. So the homework assignment itself actually is not four hours long. It's the way the child is approaching it."

But if homework is becoming stressful or workload is excessive, experts suggest parents first approach the teacher, followed by a school administrator.

"Many times, we can solve a lot of issues by having conversations," Steckler says, including by "sitting down, talking about the amount of homework, and what's appropriate and not appropriate."

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Russia is the largest nation in the world, with land in both Europe and Asia. The capital of Russia is Moscow and the national language is Russian.

One of the world's richest and most powerful countries , Russia has undergone huge change in the last century.

Russian landscapes vary hugely, ranging from polar conditions, mountains and forests in the north to enormous grasslands called steppes and warm beaches in the south of the country. Russia is known for being a very cold country and has a high snowfall.

Top 10 facts

1. Russia is the largest country in the world. Over 142 million people live in Russia.

2. Russia borders 14 different countries on two continents and has the longest coastline in the world.

3. Most Russian people live in cities. The largest, the capital Moscow, has 12 million inhabitants. St Petersburg is the second-largest city.

4. Russia has lots of natural resources ; it sells more gas than any other country and is the second-largest exporter of oil.

5. Russia is home to the longest river in Europe, the Volga (3690km long), and the deepest lake in the world, Lake Baikal (over 1km deep in places) .

6. Russian is the official language, spoken by the majority of Russians. Russian is a Slavic language and uses an alphabet called Cyrillic. The main religion is Orthodox Christianity.

7. The currency of Russia is the Russian ruble.

8. Brown bears live in forests across Russia and are considered the country's national animal. 

9. Chess, ballet and gymnastics are very popular hobbies in Russia and lots of children take classes in them from a very young age.

10. The Russian space program was very successful. In 1961, Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin was the first person to travel into space. The first woman in space was also Russian, Valentina Tereshkova.

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Russia is so large that it has 11 different time zones , more than any other country in the world!

The Winter Palace in St Petersburg used to be the home of the Russian royal family (it is now a museum). There are 1500 rooms and 117 staircases in the palace! There are so many works of art on display that it's been estimated that it would take 11 years to see them all!

People who have seven or more children in Russia are awarded an Order of Parental Glory.

At Christmas Russian children receive gifts not from Father Christmas but from Grandfather Frost and the Snow Maiden.

Only a third of Russian people own a car and most people travel by train.

It takes six days to travel the length of the Trans-Siberian railway (9288km)!

Russia has the largest number of forests in the world and is also home to over 40 national parks and 100 wildlife reserves .

White Nights is the name of the summer evenings in St Petersburg; from mid June to July it is light all day and all night in the city.

Russian people love to grow some of their own food: two thirds of people who live in cities have an allotment.

The Metro (Underground) in Moscow is filled with paintings, chandeliers and statues and was built to be a 'palace for the people'. It is the busiest underground railway system in Europe, carrying 2.4 billion passengers every year.

Yakutsk in the north of Russia is the coldest city on Earth, with average winter temperatures of -40°C. The city is built on stilts because the ground it sits on is frozen all year round and can be very unstable.

Look through the gallery and see if you can spot the following:

• Moscow at night
• The Russian flag
• The Ural mountains
• A dacha , a traditional Russian country house
• The Russian winter landscape
• Traditional decorated bread
• A Russian Orthodox church
• Red Square in Moscow
• Matruschka stacking dolls
• St Petersburg
• Singers wearing traditional costumes
• Blini, Russian pancakes served with sour cream and caviar
• The Winter Palace in St Petersburg, the official residence of the Russian monarchs from 1732 to 1917
• Peterhof Palace
• Pelmeni dumplings
• The Russian currency is the ruble
• Moscow's GUM, the largest department store in Russia

Russia is the largest country in the world and in its entirety occupies about one-ninth of the total land on earth. Russia spans two continents, Europe and Asia.

Russia shares land borders with 14 other countries. Some of them used to belong to the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), a communist state from 1922 to 1991. The USSR was also known as the Soviet Union.

From the 1400s Russia was ruled by emperors called tsars , but in 1917 the Russian Revolution abolished the monarchy and in 1922 the world's first communist state, the USSR, was established . The communist government aimed to create a fair way of life for everyone, not just the rich ruling class. By 1929, however, a general called Joseph Stalin had seized power and imposed lots of new rules on the people, causing huge suffering. In World War II the Russians fought against Nazi Germany and millions of Russians were killed in the fighting.

In 1945 the USSR became one of the world's superpowers. In the following decades the USSR and the United States of America were on opposite sides in many conflicts; this is known as the Cold War.

In 1989 the communist regime fell; two years later the USSR split into 15 independent countries (the Russian Federation).

Under communism religion was banned, but the Church is now very popular, and around 75 per cent of Russians are Orthodox Christians . Around 10-15 per cent of the population are Muslim.

The Kremlin in Moscow is Russia's centre of government and the home of the Russian president. Vladimir Putin has been president of Russia since 2012; he was also president from 1999 to 2008 and was the country’s prime minister from 2008 to 2012.

The country's second-largest city, St Petersburg, was renamed Leningrad in 1924 to honour the Russian Revolution leader, Lenin. The city's name was changed back to St Petersburg in 1991.

Russia has a growing economy. The country is a manufacturer of machines, transport equipment and chemicals, and also has huge resources of oil, gas and minerals like coal, metals and diamonds. Oil, gas and minerals make up 80 per cent of what Russia exports to other countries. Fishing and farming are important industries, and Russia also produces lots of wood products like paper.

The massive region of Siberia, known as the Asian part of Russia, occupies three quarters of Russian land but only a quarter of the Russian population live there. It is very, very cold with average winter temperatures of -25°C. Siberian tigers, who live in the forests of Siberia, are one of the world's most endangered species. It's estimated that there are only 500 Siberian tigers left in the world.

Summers can be very hot in Russian cities, and lots of people have a small house in the country (called a dacha ) where they go at weekends and grow fruit and vegetables. Picking mushrooms and berries are old Russian traditions.

Lots of traditional Russian foods are made from ingredients that grow well in the cold Russian climate, like beetroot, cabbage and potato. Pirogi is a type of pastry with sweet fillings like fruit and honey and savoury fillings like mushrooms, rice and salmon. Soup, rye bread and porridge are often on the menu.

Russians love tea, but they don't use a kettle to make it! Instead they have a very large metal hot water boiler called a samovar . Russians traditionally add sugar, lemon or jam to their tea!

New Year is Russia's biggest festival, celebrated with a special dinner and fireworks. Before Lent (the 40 days before Easter), Russians celebrate Maslenitsa (Pancake Week). During the festival they eat thin pancakes ( blini ) with sour cream, jam or caviar (fish eggs) and make large straw dolls which are burnt on a bonfire.

Russian nesting dolls,  Matryoshka , are famous around the world. They are wooden figures that open and contain smaller and smaller dolls inside, painted as if they are wearing traditional Russian dress.

Russia has been a world leader in sport, space exploration and culture, renowned for its music, arts and literature. Some of the most famous composers in the world are Russian, including Tchaikovsky, the composer of The Nutcracker. Famous writers include Leo Tolstoy, author of War and Peace , and playwright Anton Chekhov. Ballet is a hugely popular art form and the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow and the Mariinsky Ballet in St Petersburg are two of the best ballet companies in the world.

Russian athletes and sportspeople are incredibly successful, especially at the Olympic Games. One of the most popular sports in Russia is ice hockey; there are lots of ski resorts, too, and some people swim in ice-cold waters, making a hole in the ice to jump in! Football is the most popular spectator sport.

Story-telling is a big part of Russian cultural tradition. One of the most famous traditional characters is Baba Yaga, a wise but scary witch who lives in a house with chicken legs.

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Just for fun...

Read some Russian folk tales , including the stories of Baba Yaga and the story of the Crimson Flower   Have a go at some Russian-themed craft activities , including decorating a Faberge-style egg and making Matryoshka Dolls out of different materials

Make paper Matryoshka Dolls

A step-by-step guide to making a Russian clay bird, a  dymkovskaya toy

Download some Russian colouring pages

Make your own Kandinksy art

Try making piroshki ,  small Russian dumplings filled with finely chopped meat or vegetables

Learn to say some basic Russian phrases

Read about some of the traditional games children play in Russia

Listen to songs and rhymes in Russian

See pictures of traditional clothing for Russian children

Make your own paper model of Saint Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow

Best books about Russia for children

Find out more

Facts about Russia from National Geographic Kids

The Kiddle encyclopedia guide to Russia

Find out about the native peoples of the Russian North

Read  CBBC's Newsround guide to the Russian Revolution

The Trans-Siberian Express is the longest train journey in the world, stretching from Moscow to Vladivostok across 6 time zones and landscapes ranging from forest to mountain to desert to steppe

Find out more about the Space Race and Russian achievements in space exploration

A guide to Russian food and drink

Steam baths, or banya , are a traditional place to visit in Russia

See behind the scenes in Saint Petersburg's world-famous Mariinsky Ballet Theatre

See pictures of Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula , one of the most volcanologically active regions on Earth

Information about festivals and holidays in Russia

See for yourself

See pictures and guides to Russian attractions in the Lonely Planet guide to the country

Facts and advice about visiting Russia

A guide to Baikal Lake , the deepest lake in the world

Read about Moscow's most famous tourist attractions

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