My wife’s chums son has been set this homework for the weekend.

Euan’s homework….plan, design and build a model, demonstrating the use of open/closed electric circuit and use magnetism or show forces in action. He’s 10!!!

Too much?

Well, that’s a simple electric motor with a switch – at 10 I was building robots. But I was a bit of a genius at that age.

At 10 I was building Skynet but then I was an evil genius at that age.

So take the motor out of the Hoover?

its presumably an extension of his class work. I was making electrical circuits in my class work in primary school – I made a UFO out of paper plates, a light inside and a bit bit of clear plastic sprue from a air fix fit to act a a fibre optic so that it had a sort of illuminated periscope. Not an evil genius, it was just primary school science lessons.

For the kids homework – bit of wire wound round a nail, connect a battery. Lay it on a sheet of paper, sprinkle with iron filings

i could do that at 10 and had a city and guilds (amatuer radio) to prove it.

probably was not normal though!

Nah – there’s loads of kids science books and ideas on t’interweb – getting to stop looking at porn and search for some.

Iron filings!?! Pah! Make a rail gun:

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdZo_keUoEs[/video]

Just needs a battery, a torch bulb and some wire, maybe a switch if you can’t diy one from a paperclip. Simple circuit to the bulb incorporating a coil of a dozen loops of the wire. Sit a compass or just magnetise a needle next to the coil to show deflection when the circuit closes or opens. All pinned down on a little plank or board. Surely everyone has all this stuff to hand in their well stocked man-cave?

I’m a teacher but not that age group

Home work is a classic no winners isn’t it some times

The teacher could have asked him to do something really crap like fill in something about circuits on a piece of paper. It ticks the home work box and if it’s really easy then everyone is happy? Well except no one leant anything

I’d say this homework is a good example of what kids should be doing at home. But the problem is resources. Probably the kids who have the stuff lying around will have already done, those without still won’t get to do it. But I’d still rather see teachers trying to engage kids in this way. I certainly could have done tis at that age and I’m fairly sure my kids would have done something like this at home at that age.

i do think that the task description is crap. A few hints wouldn’t have gone a miss either

I’m sorry for your friends that their kids’ education has turned out to be inconvenient for them

PS i teach A-level physics. The advantage that kids who have had this sort of play at home is huge. Its nearly as simple as the kid who have had this play get A and b grades, those without fail or get an E or D. As this thread shows loads kids do get this play and it helps. I’d certainly have built an electric motor by that age. Your friends should be grateful that the school has given their sprog this opportunity

Sorry

exit rant mode

sounds completely reasonable to me – if it’s an extension of what they’ve been doing at school I don’t see the problem..

why would you want to dumb them down..?

Crap idea for homework. What about the kids who dont have the stuff/ help at home to do it. Things like that boil my piss.

Crap idea for homework. What about the kids who dont have the stuff/ help at home to do it. Things like that boil my piss.

I’m very close to agreeing. But then its catch 22. The kids without are still without but the kids with the stuff in say a kit are already ahead

Find me a kid who lives in a house with out.

a battery

some wire

2 steel objects

I think the teacher could have done a video on how to do it

Many kids live in houses with much less. Many kids live in houses without dads to help them. Many kids live in houses where the patents dont give a flying ****. Fair enough give kids inspiring homework but also give the kids without help another option.

I didn’t get howework at age 10 – I didn’t get homework till secondary school. We fitted everything we needed to do into the normal day and then played games on the last day of term. I managed to get 10 “O” levels on the back of that.

My kids have had homework from the first day of reception, whether it is practising writing letters or books to read and then building up. Now I can accept that the syllabus and the system has changed, but I wonder why they have so much homework, but whenever we suggest watching a film they reply with “We’ve already watched it at school” and they seem to start playing games two weeks before the end of term.

This is not a pop at teachers, just I wonder if the right hand can see what the left hand is doing. Especially as there appears to be no sanctions for kids/parents who do not bother to do the homework.

As for the electrics,my 6 year old was making circuits at school before Xmas, but didn’t have to bring any of that home, but she did get 6 weeks to do a project about a job she wants to do when she grows up. Cos all 6 year olds can relate to and plan having 6 weeks to do a 2 hour project……

Many kids live in houses with much less. Many kids live in houses without dads to help them. Many kids live in houses where the patents dont give a flying ****. Fair enough give kids inspiring homework but also give the kids without help another option.

Without knowing the socio-economic background of the school in question, it’s simply awesome that you’ve managed to ride atop your high horse through sexism, and and straight through onto poverty stricken broken homes with feckless parents. I hope the view was good from up there!

I think this sort of level of homework is actually just what is needed in education, teaching kids problem solving and practical skills. Time and time again I see kids that can’t wire a plug, handle basic tools, or think outside of a text book and come up with their own ideas. They are products of a system designed to pass exams, not actually learn anything. Anyone trying to teach kids “around” the syllabus gets a thumbs up from me.

In every school i have worked in from very poor to very affluent the socio econmics have always had ends to the spectrum but obviously you appear to know better.

I can’t remember how old I was when I started making circuits, but it was pretty young. 10 feels about right, probably a lot younger if you include things like Lego light bricks and motors.

Stuff like this though:

… was readily available at places like Tandy. I suppose the modern-day version would be Maplin but they’re not exactly on every street corner.

Thinking about it,

Is his homework actually to design and build something, or does he just have to design it at home ready to build it during a Practical lesson next week? That would seem to make infinitely more sense to me.

my ten yr old says they did this ”in year two or three i m not really bothered i know all about that..”

doing her homework in yr 5 we ve just had a discussion about what rape is…

Many kids live in houses with much less. Many kids live in houses without dads to help them. Many kids live in houses where the patents dont give a flying ****. Fair enough give kids inspiring homework but also give the kids without help another option.
Without knowing the socio-economic background of the school in question, it’s simply awesome that you’ve managed to ride atop your high horse through sexism, and and straight through onto poverty stricken broken homes with feckless parents. I hope the view was good from up there!

My daughter teaches in an area where the majority of pupils are in this category 🙄 She feels more like a social worker than a teacher, spending more time accessing specialist help for quite a few kids and their families where needed.

Her son goes to the supposedly “best” school in town. She is having her doubts about that!!

It`s a long time since I was at school 🙄 2 teacher country school where the toffs kids got all the attention and kids like me, farm workers son, got left behind(ish) No science in them days, just natural science..
Forward to secondary school. The class of 32 boys I was in got banned from science due to the destruction caused by some of my class mates 😳

anagallis_arvensis – Member
In every school i have worked in from very poor to very affluent the socio econmics have always had ends to the spectrum but obviously you appear to know better.

+1….Having spent a good number of years “in school” as a volunteer parent when my kids were at school and coming from a working class/peasant background I agree.

The school gate chatter has and probably will never end re setting homework at a level the kids can do and more importantly that their parents are capable of helping them with. Many an hour spent debating this!!!

i use to play with circuits from a young age, I’d make all sorts of mashed up rubbish. I was lucky though I grew up in the grounds of an old mental hospital. There was a workshop on site, they’d chuck all the old TVs and other electrical things in piles outside. We’d strip them down for the components and play with them.

My 9 year old daughter is learning about them at the moment in DT she seems to enjoy it, I may have an electrical science kit tucked away I bought her ages ago but never got used. Might have to try and find it.

we had a tv rental shop on main road, so I’d go up the night they’d get thrown out and the circuit boards out of them. did radio licence when I was 16