Homework, homework, gimme a break!

My seven-year old (in second grade) had 14 pages of math assigned tonight. He was supposed to read all of this for tomorrow -- ooops, I just remembered, we were supposed to play a game on one of the pages. For his reading log, I told him to write "Math Book" for his entry today. I am sure he will find something else to read, because he does enjoy reading. But the idea that I have to log and monitor and quiz him on his comprehension annoys me. He has twice as much homework as his older brother (in third grade). Both boys have a test tomorrow -- one on butterflies and one on astronomy. I am not concerned about my oldest, he is self motivated. My middle son, however, is overwhelmed. I had to corner him in the bathtub to start reading his math pages to him, and we finished at the dinner table, so in essence the homework permeates our family time. Additionally, he has weekend homework this weekend. He is supposed to create a "spiderarium" -- bring in a spider in a jar to class. I asked him how many kids in his class, and he said "24." So, uhmmm, his teacher wants 24 spiders in the class? We have an awesome spider on our side porch -- it has created a great environment for itself right near the light, where all the bugs are. No way am I going to move this spider. It is happy where it is.

I am not sure what I am going to do about this homework and in general. Sometimes we all pitch in and help. There was one cutting, sorting, gluing and coloring project that the whole family worked on. I cut it, he sorted it, matching sentences to pictures, I glued it, and we ALL took a turn coloring. I am not worried that he is going to fail cutting, gluing, or coloring. The comprehension part is what was important to me. The kid is incredibly artistic and he creates "active drawings," unlike anything I have ever seen.

Now, the kicker is, my son is supposed to "loop" with this teacher, meaning he will have her for third grade as well. He has already told me he wants to opt out.