Spending time with homework

At Staples we buy the baddest notebook we see.

"I think this is smaller than last year's.  It might fit into my bookbag."
"Good choice, Wes.  I know you had issues fitting it inside."

His L.L.Bean blue initialed book bag was a great buy, since I knew it would last.  I had made it a tradition to buy one for each child since my eldest, 30 years ago, and it lasted her through high school and past college.

"I need some pens.  The other ones did not work.  I like the erasable ones."

When we get home, with three large slushees from Speedway, we are ready to get to work.

"First, flatten out these hand outs and put them in the folders. "

"I'll put labels on the file folder, should I do it by periods?  Yes, first period, first."

There are a lot of mixed up, crunched up, undone papers.  It is disheartening....to me...he seems obliviously engrossed in the busy work.  We are setting up a pattern to be successful, which we have done SO many times before, WHY do I still have to start it up?  It is NOT self-starting. After eight years of  setting up the school year, I am still required to start it off.

I check the internet to see what is due tomorrow.  He has missed at least two weeks of assignments.  Some are those crumpled papers, not handed in.  Many have no names, and will forever be NO NAMES in the teacher's pile.  I spot a subject, "I HATE Social Studies!!!!", and decide to work on that.

"Get some paper."
I read the questions, discuss the work, point to the pictures.
"What's your middle name?"
"James."
"What was the name of the first settlement in the New World?"
"hummmmm..."
"JJJJ......."
"Jamestown?"
"Named after..."
"King George of England?"
"WESLEE!!!"
"HAHA... King James."
And we go through and entire set of word definitions, questions and another set of questions.  A week's worth of assignments in a little over an hour.  We use discussion, looking at the charts and pictures, discuss the Triangular trade, the forms of agriculture, indenture, I HOPE at least Wes has an idea of what he is missing by dismissing Social Studies as "not interesting"!

He completes his math assignments, and we make sure his reading assignment is done.  We have done nothing but homework this evening.

Far from being caught up, we have barely scratched the surface of what should be done!
As he rushes out the door, Mom has to add the final "Words of Wisedom":
   "All the work you did last night?  You have all the papers in your file folder?  Now it is up to you to HAND IT TO THE TEACHER!"

Chances are, some of these papers will never make it to their destination.
Like a fine piece of leather luggage on a flight to Hawaii, the tourists will arrive for the trip they planned, but the luggage is lost and never found.