Excerpt from an article in The Sunday Times – 3rd February 2013 by Sian Griffiths
 

Noel Janis-Norton’s tips on how to do homework:

She recommends following her sacred homework rules, which are to be applied six days a week (Sunday can be a day off).
 

The rules are:

• Homework should be done at the same time every day.
• It should take an hour a night for primary school children (with a break every 15 minutes) and two hours a night if your child is at secondary school. Youngsters should not be allowed to work longer than this.
• On coming home from school, children should be allowed to have a short, active break, doing something such as playing catch or trampolining. Then they should complete their homework before being allowed to watch television, or to telephone or Facebook their friends.
• The homework area should be free of distractions, such as pets, younger siblings, TVs or computers.
   

If the rules are followed strictly, says Janis-Norton firmly, within two to three weeks they will work.
 

Once a child has settled to study, she has further suggestions. Every assignment can usefully be divided into three parts, she says.
 

First comes “the think through” — when you ask your child questions to ensure they understand the homework that has been set: how many pages should they write, should the answers be in full sentences or will one-word responses suffice, and so on.
 

Next your child should work alone to finish the task.
 

Finally comes the “improving” stage, where parent and child look through the work together.
 

Before you and your child each find two things that can be improved about the work, advises Janis-Norton, first find three things you can praise. Don’t just say vaguely: “It’s good.” Be specific about what has been written. “You might say, ‘Look, you wrote three facts about photosynthesis,’ ” she explains.
 

She’s keen on what she calls “descriptive praise”, which means biting back vague superlatives such as: “You are clever; well done.” Instead, parents should notice and mention every tiny step in the right direction. “So you might say, ‘Every letter in this word is sitting exactly on the line.’ ”
 

Calmer, Easier, Happier Homework is published by Hodder & Stoughton, £14.99