Millions of Spanish children have been called out on strike this weekend, with families and teachers asked by a national parents’ association to say no to homework.

Spain’s confederation of parents’ associations (CEAPA) has asked teachers not to set homework and told families to ignore any exercises programmed on weekends during November as part of a campaign against what many see as an excessive workload on the country’s young minds.

“My family will be on strike as a way of making more visible the view that the current system of homework in Spain is appallingly inefficient and socially divisive,” said Gracia Escalante, a social worker and the mother of two boys in state schools in Madrid, arguing that as well as being mind-numbing, homework deepens the gap between wealthy and disadvantaged households.