It depends a bit on the age I think. We lived in Sydney when my oldest two went to primary school and they had quite a bit of home work. We used to sit at the kitchen table together an hour or so each day after school, after they had first done some relaxing. Once they became a bit older we more and more backed off. My kids were quite responsible and we didn’t feel we even had to check on them if they did their homework. Once they had the age they were allowed to work, we totally gave them the responsibility how to divide their time between school, study, work and friends.

I really wish I had a set routine imposed on me as a kid to get in the good habit of taking education more seriously. Everyone is different and thrives under different circumstances, but my husband grew up with a more rigours routine and he’s now a double degree doctor. I certainly know what direction I’ll be going towards with our kids. Nothing militant, but definitely encouraging a healthy and positive attitude towards making time for schoolwork