homework

Work from Home: Learning Spaces

| Mary Stoffel, MOT, OTR/L

By the time kids hit fourth grade, school suddenly demands more from their home setup. My son now spends real time at his desk: homework, online assignments, supplemental workbooks, you name it.

The problem is that his desk has slowly transformed into a geological dig site of papers, half-finished personal projects, and an ever-growing collection of knick‑knacks and doodads. Every time I remind him to tidy it up, the clutter returns like it has a life of its own. The result is that he abandons his desk altogether and completes his written tasks and assignments at the dinner table instead. What is happening?

Which brings me to this thought: What do kids actually need for learning at home? While it may sound like a question with an obvious answer, it becomes surprisingly relevant once we look at how and where the academic work actually gets done.

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Go with the Flow: The Just-Right Challenge

| Mary Stoffel, MOT, OTR/L

Kids can seem allergic to focus when it’s something we need them to do: homework, chores, anything that feels like a requirement rather than a choice. And yet, that very same child who can’t stay with a worksheet for five minutes will suddenly spend an entire afternoon perfecting a dance routine, building an elaborate Lego world, painting with total intensity, or disappearing into a book.

In those moments, we unintentionally play the “bad guy,” interrupting the very focus we wish they had during everything else. That kind of deep, effortless engagement is the beginning of what psychologists call flow.

The term flow was coined by psychologist Mihály Csíkszentmihályi (Me-high Cheek-sent-me-high-ee), who introduced it in 1975 through his research on artists, athletes, and other deeply absorbed performers. He wanted to understand why people feel their best when they’re fully immersed in something. Through thousands of interviews and years of experience sampling studies, he found a clear pattern: people felt their greatest focus, enjoyment, and meaning when the challenge of a task matched their skill. Ergo, flow.

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You’re On Your Own, Kid: Navigating the 3rd Grade Transition

| Mary Stoffel, MOT, OTR/L

The jump from 2nd to 3rd grade is considered the first big “Academic Transition”. The other two academic transitions are the jump from elementary to middle school, and the jump from middle to high school. These academic transitions are so aptly named because of the increased workload and subject matter difficulty, as well as the higher expectations of emotional maturity, personal responsibility, and independence.

Think about it. Kids aren’t doing circle time anymore to start their day. They aren’t reminded to use the bathroom or hold hands with their partners on a field trip. Kids are actually graded by the quality of work they submit, not just a check or check plus for completion.

My son is in third grade this year, and I can feel the pressure. Each week brings homework and a steady stream of graded material—whether it’s a practice sheet, a quiz, or a formal test. On top of that, he’ll be taking the Georgia Measurement Assessment System (GMAS) for the first time. It’s hard not to feel like everything rides on this one year.

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Smart Summer: Reducing Summer Slide

| Mary Stoffel, MOT, OTR/L

It’s the last week of school!!! We’ve been making plans all season to make it an enjoyable and fun summer, but we’re also plotting ways to reduce that summer slide. So here’s a collection of books, apps, and activities to keep kiddos (ages 3-10) sharp for the next school year.

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