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Last year, I volunteered at my daughter Emma’s school
as a math tutor to a little boy in the third grade. Each
week I would show up for his tutoring session and I’d find
that he had not done work that his teacher had assigned.
Oftentimes I would arrive and his teacher would hand me a
worksheet and say, “This was his homework last night. Can
you use your session today to be sure it gets done so he
won’t get a zero?”
Then we’d go and find our quiet place to begin the
tutoring session, and he’d complete the homework that was
assigned the night before.
One day I asked the teacher, “Why isn’t his homework
ever done at home?” And she answered me, “His parents
don’t check his binder to see what work needs to be done
and he doesn’t tell them. They aren’t nearly as involved as
they should be,” she said. “I guess they’re too busy.”
She did say she had tried many times to set up conferences
and, sadly, they were unresponsive. So this boy was basically
on his own as far as his school work goes. If he did it, he
did it; and if he didn’t, he didn’t. It was as though he, at
nine years old, was left to be in charge of himself for a lot of
things.
This year, Emma is in the third grade herself. For me, this
stage of motherhood is particularly challenging. As a baby
and a toddler, Emma was an unusually easy child, and I
believe it spoiled me into thinking motherhood is a breeze.
Changing diapers and middle-of-the-night feedings were
a piece of cake. I can do the “baby days” with my eyes
closed.
Raising a “tween” (eight to 12 years old), however, is a
totally different story. Most moms say this is the time that is
a piece of cake. I hear things like, “They’re so much more
independent,” and “They can dress themselves now.” This
may be true, but the level of commitment of brainpower on
my part as a mother is so much greater.
No matter how busy I am, I always make it a point to
check Emma’s homework before she packs her book bag
for the following day. And oftentimes, there are things that
need attention. As every young student notices, there is
a big jump in the math skill from second to third grades,
because of things like memorizing multiplication tables,
learning long division, and learning to work with fractions.
Many times I need to sit with her while she reworks problems
she’s answered incorrectly, or I need to explain or clarify how
to do something so she can proceed. And it’s quite a time
commitment. By the end of this year, I will have passed third
grade math three times.
I hope all of you enjoy
this Mother’s Day issue
of H2O. If you happen
to be a mom, I hope you
have the opportunity
to take some time for
yourself, so that you
can be the best you
possible – for yourself
and for your family.
In good health,
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to see in a future issue? Whether you have feedback, comments, suggestions, or just want
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