"After much research this summer, I am trying something new. Homework will only consist of work that your student did not finish during the school day. There will be no formally assigned homework this year," she announced in the letter.RELATED: A first grade teacher surprises her students on the last day of school by wearing something extra special It probably comes as no shock that the students were all in favor of this new approach. But Brandy's reasoning behind the policy had the parents onboard, too.
"Research has been unable to prove that homework improves student performance," she explains in the letter. "Rather, I ask that you spend your evenings doing things that are proven to correlate with student success. Eat dinner as a family, read together, play outside, and get your child to bed early."
“We’re happy that at the end of a long school day she’ll get to come home and unwind and be a kid... go outside to play, make new friends, spend more time as a family,” Samantha said.Having full support from the school administration and all of the parents from her class already thrilled Brandy. But the overwhelmingly positive reaction her letter has received online truly blew her away.
“[Students] work hard all day. When they go home they have other things they need to learn there,” Brandy explained. “I’m trying to develop their whole person; it’s not beneficial to go home and do pencil and paper work.”Brandy with her student, Brooke Credit: People Magazine And, as a mom herself, Brandy is hoping her letter will help other teachers and schools take a closer look at their own policies.
"Any homework that's given just needs to be meaningful. The kids are so busy and they work hard days, and when they go home, they don't need busy work, let's just make sure we're not giving busy work," she said.RELATED: A fed up teacher tells parents to stop spoiling their kids