Lack of sleep causes not only fatigue, but low concentration levels in the classroom. By the end of the school day, there is an impact on the homework. Children find it difficult to focus on the work or remember the lesson to apply it to completing answers correctly. The student becomes easily distracted by family, friends, phone calls or television.
A survey performed by the Brown University Medical School in 1998 found that sleep deprivation is directly related to poorer grades. The scientists discovered that students who regularly received Cs, Ds and Es went to bed 40 minutes later and had 25 minutes less sleep than those who received A and B grades. This shows that a lack of sleep affects the quality of a student's homework.
Low motivation is a symptom of sleep deprivation, as the student is lethargic and lacks the impetus to get things done. A child may push homework to one side in favor of easier tasks such as watching television, playing computer games -- or sleeping. Homework is no longer a priority. In 2006, a survey carried out by the American Sleep Association found that 22 percent of children fall asleep while doing homework at least once a week.
A lack of sleep caused by worry or stress can lead to emotional instability. Symptoms include crying, excess worry or inability to deal with everyday situations. As reported by "New York" magazine, children's brains are a "work-in-progress until the age of 21." Sleep plays a vital role in repairing a tired brain so the student can perform to his best cognitive ability. If a child is emotionally unstable, he may lack the will to complete homework and become overly anxious about it. This can only fuel the cycles of insomnia as the child worries about the work.