“Sisters, we need to talk about homework!”

There is a busy job in the day of a mom and all parents, a moment that we all dread, you like me, I’m sure you know what I’m talking about. That moment when we’re already exhausted but when we’re going to have to manage the 2nd day that’s starting… You know, the thing after school comes back, once the snack has been devoured and the crumbs and sachets are still lying around the table and which obviously you have to manage like 10,000 other things. I’m obviously talking about pu… school homework!!! A direct nervous allergy! It’s necessary plunge back into the conjugation of the pluperfect, remembering all the grammar rules learned at school and which are far, very far, too far in our heads. But in front of the apple of your eye which is growing, you pretend to be Miss Bescherelle so as not to disconcert her and offer her the best help with what you have left of neurons and energy. However, we can tell each other girls, there are times when we are totally nervous and not ready to manage students!!! We just want to hug our babies and take a shower to put on a pilou pilou!!!

Well yes, I am not an expert in mathematical theorems, my modern language lessons are already well forgotten, English I understand it well, but from there to remember each irregular verb or the capital of Wales… it there is La Manche! And then sometimes (well ok: every night), the children just don’t want to get started, want to stay in front of the TV and you’re already struggling just to turn off Netflix! And frankly, to fight for them to do what is written in the textbook is the total hassle at the end of the day. But I’m starting to get used to it with my treasures, I’ve developed little routines in cool mom mode and I’ve found tips to make it all go as well as possible… after 3 nervous breakdowns!

The homework, we make a whole mountain of it…

And then especially the girls, we have to say something: we are not the mistress ! We have already suffered a lot during confinement! So we immediately lower the pressure and we assume directly that we cannot manage everything as if we were starting a 2nd day of work! Our role is not to teach, to make them sit quietly and attentively behind a table, but to accompany them and we do the best we can, it’s already huge! And they too are super tired of their day and would just like to have fun in front of a tablet!!! More than teaching them by making them forceps the table of 8 into their heads, we must help them, guide them, make sure they understand for themselves, that they learn to organize themselves, allow them to set a framework so that they can feel proud to move forward. We develop a routine, we set limits, we support them, we accompany them and we explain their mistakes, but we don’t blame ourselves if everything isn’t perfect and they don’t understand when you explained 5 times that “always always takes a s”.

It’s normal that we don’t know how to go about it, a teacher is a job and it’s not ours… Everyone has their own missions! Me, personally, already managing my kids who are not attentive, it drives me crazy but managing 30 kids who are not mine and whom I don’t love more than my own life, forget it! And it’s our children who do the homework, not us, we’re there to monitor, check and help. And if we don’t know, that we’re tired of seeing them play with their feet trying to write their first name or draw a glittery dragon in their civics notebook, we can always turn to their daddy, ask grandma for help, or leave them without feeling guilty at evening study, call on online tutoring (personally: it changed my life as a mom, I worship you!). In short, you are not weak to confess to being at the end of your tether, just honest and you have just diverted the center of your world from your navel to that of your children and you are honest rather than playing the mother who assures but who endures in silence…

Read also : Elodie Gossuin’s column on birthday parties

“You’re not weak to confess to being on edge, just honest”

In fact, homework is quite a mountain, but above all, we have to set a cool framework (me homework in the sofa and the hugs alternate with the hysterics !!!) and that we accompany our beloved children towards independence. My big ones are in high school, it’s high time they managed themselves (for them and for my mental health!)! So if you have tips to share to help us, ideas that have borne fruit, brilliant methods, frankly, we are all takers. Go my sisters, we are going to tear everything apart!!!

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