The Homework Problem

 The Homework Problem

Sophie loved school, but she had one big problem: she hated homework. Every evening, when her mom called her to sit at the dining table with her books, Sophie found a million excuses to avoid it. "I need a snack," she’d say, or "I have to feed the dog."

One Monday afternoon, her teacher, Mrs. Johnson, announced a big class project. Each student had to prepare a short presentation about their favorite animal. It was due on Friday. Sophie decided to talk about dolphins since she loved how playful and intelligent they were.

At first, Sophie was excited, but as the week went on, she kept putting off her research. On Monday night, she decided to play video games. On Tuesday, she watched her favorite TV show. By Thursday, the project wasn’t even started.

That night, as Sophie sat in her room, she felt a knot of worry in her stomach. “I’ll never finish in time,” she thought. She tried to start her research, but the information felt overwhelming, and she didn’t know how to organize it. Sophie wanted to give up.

Her older brother, James, noticed she looked upset. “What’s wrong, Soph?” he asked.

“I’m supposed to give a presentation tomorrow, but I don’t know how to do it,” Sophie confessed.

James smiled. “I can help! Let’s take it step by step.”

He showed Sophie how to break the project into smaller parts: finding three fun facts about dolphins, drawing a picture, and practicing what to say. They worked together for two hours, and Sophie felt a lot better.

The next morning, Sophie stood in front of the class, holding her poster. She was nervous, but as she spoke about dolphins, she realized she knew her stuff. Her classmates clapped when she finished, and Mrs. Johnson gave her a big smile.

That day, Sophie learned an important lesson: homework wasn’t so bad if she just started early and asked for help when she needed it.