Homework...
From third grade through graduate school, there are assignments one gets that feel, frankly, impossible. That seem so far beyond a student's abilities that he or she just wants to throw a fit, rip up their paper and refuse to come out of their room until mom makes cookies.
I know how they feel.
I start every assignment with this feeling (which is why professional writers tend to have bellies). Sadly, it is not particularly helpful in getting the work done. That demands other strategies.
I've had a lot of success in helping kids relax, come out of the room, and calmly focus on their assignments by working with them hand-in-hand, encouraging them to forget about the final result and just write. Before they know it, they have a finished draft! Then it's simply a matter of finding ways to make the paper even better (structure, grammar, etc). By the time we're done each student is so invested in the work, and so proud of it, they barely realize that they've been working.
After completing one or two assignments using this process, most kids adopt it as their own and are able to face the next "impossible" report without screaming or slamming doors... or me!
Of course, they still wouldn't turn down a cookie.
I know how they feel.
I start every assignment with this feeling (which is why professional writers tend to have bellies). Sadly, it is not particularly helpful in getting the work done. That demands other strategies.
I've had a lot of success in helping kids relax, come out of the room, and calmly focus on their assignments by working with them hand-in-hand, encouraging them to forget about the final result and just write. Before they know it, they have a finished draft! Then it's simply a matter of finding ways to make the paper even better (structure, grammar, etc). By the time we're done each student is so invested in the work, and so proud of it, they barely realize that they've been working.
After completing one or two assignments using this process, most kids adopt it as their own and are able to face the next "impossible" report without screaming or slamming doors... or me!
Of course, they still wouldn't turn down a cookie.