How to create a homework timetable

As your teen heads back to the classroom in the new academic year, they're going to get their new timetable. This will shape their days and weeks in the year ahead. In addition to what they do in the school (or college) day, they’ll need to do work in their own time. This best way to organise this is to create a “homework timetable”. Let’s take a look at what’s involved, why getting it right can improve their quality of life and chances of success, and how you can help them.

Homework timetables

Whether they’re studying for GCSE or sixth form, your teen will receive homework (or assignments) that they’ll need to complete in their own time. For GCSE students, this is usually regulated to a set amount each week. Typically, they’ll receive homework on a certain day and will be given a few days before they need to hand it in. In most cases, this will follow the same pattern each week. For example, if they have English lessons every Tuesday and Friday, they might get English homework set on Fridays to be handed in on Tuesday. It’s similar for sixth form students – they’ll just get more!

Your teen needs to prepare their own homework timetable. This means looking ahead to what they do each week, and planning when they'll do their homework over evenings and weekends, fitting it in with other things they do, such as after school activities or friends and family time. Don’t let them kid you they can do their homework “as and when”, or they can’t plan because they don’t know when they’ll get homework. This is not true!

Planning their homework timetable is an activity they should do themselves. Once they’ve done it, take some time together to review it and see if it’s realistic. If it isn’t, help them make adjustments. If you are really concerned, speak to the school.

If your teen doesn’t know where to start, we’ve outlined the steps below in “how to plan a homework timetable”.

Why homework timetables produce good results

Little and often is the key to success, which is why it’s so important to set a routine. In most cases, it is good habits that produce results, not short-term spurts of activity. Planning their time carefully now will avoid a last-minute panic or feeling overwhelmed because they’ve got behind and don’t know how to catch up. It also means they’ll create a balance between what they have to do and what they want to do. Understanding and mastering work/life balance will be a skill that sets them up well for the future and will improve their life once they enter the world of work.

How to plan a homework timetable

Start by excluding the time they spend at school and the time it takes to get there and back. None of this time can be used
Blank out any times they spend on after (or before!) school activities – such as clubs, sports, music lessons, practise times etc
Blank out family time, such as dinner each evening
Blank out a little leisure time. They should always have something to look forward to
Blank out at least half-an-hour, preferably an hour, before bed to allow wind-down time so they’re more likely to get a good night’s sleep. This is about creating lifelong healthy habits – adults and children alike can struggle with getting to sleep because they don’t wind down before bed
Adjust bedtime to fit in with the time they need to get up the next day. For example, if they usually get up at 07.00 to get to school by 09.00, but on Wednesday they go to school early for a pre-school activity and need to get up at 06.00 to arrive at 08.00, they won’t have as much time on Tuesday evenings as they will need to go to bed earlier
This should leave a few hours each weekday evening (or possibly in the morning, if they are early risers) and time over the weekend that they can allocate to homework. It’s better to spread the work over the week, rather than doing the minimum on weekdays and spending the whole weekend catching up
Don’t forget to factor in 30 minutes each day to go over the work they’ve done, tidy and organize their notes, and identify any things they haven’t quite understood (which they can then ask about and resolve). This is revision time. Most students won’t think about revision at the beginning of the year (as exams seem far away). If they do this now, they will be in a much stronger position when exams loom in the spring and summer terms

GCSE timetables

Once they’ve completed steps 1-8, that will leave them with “windows” where they can complete homework.

One-and-half to two hours on weekdays (perhaps with Friday off), with three to four hours spread across Saturday and Sunday, should be enough. This will allow leftover time for them to do things they enjoy – like watching their favourite programmes or enjoying phone time.

Split this homework time into 30 minute chunks – 25 minutes of work followed by a 5 minute break. Phones should be silent during work time! They need to fit their homework into these windows, planning carefully so they match which subjects they’ll cover to the times it’s been assigned and when it’s due in. They should also allow “catch up” time for study/revision (as in point 8).

Sixth form timetables

For sixth formers, the process is the same, except they will need to dedicate more time to homework, study and research. Two to three hours on weekdays (perhaps with Friday off), with five to six hours spread across Saturday and Sunday, should be enough.

This might sound intense, but all those gorgeous "free periods" during their school timetabled day are meant for study. They may be taking fewer subjects, but they'll be going into them in much more depth. Less timetabled classroom time gives them the space to master independent study (essential for both university and work later in life). Sure, they can use the time to exercise, catch up with friends, do something they enjoy, but they'll have to make up the time during the evenings or weekends, otherwise they won't have covered enough ground to do well, whether it's coursework or exams. Using their study (free) periods wisely during the school day will give them much more free time when school’s out.

With this in mind, they should complete steps 1-8, adjusting step 1 so they include some of the study periods they have during the school day. This will leave them with “windows” where they can complete homework and research.

As with GCSE, they need to fit their homework into these windows, planning carefully so they match which subjects they’ll cover to the times it’s been assigned and when it’s due in. Unlike GCSE, where homework assignments are very specific, they will be expected to do lots of their own research in order to complete the tasks set.

Keeping a balance

Teens need to do extra work outside the school day if they want to get the best outcomes. This should be planned bearing in mind commitments they cannot change (school day, big events) and allowing some time to do other things they enjoy. Breaking study into manageable chunks (a short amount of time each day), with an end goal in sight (free time without guilt), will feel achievable. This means they will be much more likely to stick to their plan and stay focused, helping them feel good about themselves and putting them on the path to success.