A homework timer for children

Children can concentrate well for a short time. Ask for that short time, make it visible, and let them move in between.

Shorter rounds for younger children

Twenty-five minutes is an adult's round. A child in the early classes will do better with much less. As a starting point from everyday experience, try these and adjust to your own child:

These are not rules, and children differ a great deal. If your child is restless before the bell every time, shorten the round. A short round finished with a smile is worth more than a long one ended in tears. You can set any length in the settings of the timer.

Let the child see the time

"Ten more minutes" means little to a young child. A timer they can see, a ring that shrinks or a kitchen timer on the table, makes time real. Let the child press Start. A round that the child has started feels like their own, not like an order.

One small job per round

Before the round, agree on what will be done: "these five sums", "this page of handwriting", "learn these four spellings". Keep it small enough to finish. Finishing is what builds the feeling "I can do this", and that feeling matters more than the page itself.

Breaks with movement

A child's break should use the body: run to the gate and back, ten jumps, a quick game of catch, a drink of water, feeding the pet. Avoid the phone and the television in short breaks. A cartoon cannot be stopped in five minutes without a fight, and the homework will then feel like a punishment. Keep screen time for after the work is done.

The parent's part

• Sit nearby for the first rounds, doing your own quiet work: reading, accounts, shelling peas. A parent who is on the phone is hard to imitate.
• Hold your comments until the bell. Correcting every line during the round breaks the child's attention as surely as a phone would.
• Praise the effort and name it. "You kept at that sum even when it was hard" teaches more than "clever girl".
• Stop when you said you would. If the bell rings, the break comes, even if two sums remain. Trust in the timer depends on it.

A simple record

Children like to see progress. Draw a row of circles on paper and let the child colour one for each finished round, or put a star on a chart. At the end of the week, count them together. Avoid turning it into a payment system; the coloured circles and your notice are reward enough for most children.

A homework hour for a Class 4 child

1. Snack and ten minutes of play after school.
2. Round 1 (15 minutes): maths homework.
3. Break: run around the courtyard.
4. Round 2 (15 minutes): Hindi writing.
5. Break: water and a stretch.
6. Round 3 (15 minutes): reading aloud or spellings.
7. Bag packed for tomorrow, and free time.

When it is still a struggle

If homework is a daily battle whatever you try, look for the cause before blaming effort. Is the work too hard or the basics missing? Is the child tired or hungry at that hour? Is there too much homework for the age? Speak to the class teacher. If you have wider concerns about attention, learning or behaviour, a paediatrician is the right person to ask. A timer supports good habits; it does not diagnose or treat anything.

Older children preparing for examinations can move on to the student guide.

Questions people ask

Open the timer

More guides

An independent site. The method described here was created by Francesco Cirillo, and Pomodoro Technique is his registered trademark. This site is not connected with him or his company. The timer is free, needs no login and keeps your settings and counts only in your own browser.