As a homeschooling mom myself, I have fallen into the trap of thinking I needed a fancy, Pinterest worthy homeschool room. Well, I’m here to tell you that you absolutely do NOT need to have that! You don’t even need to have a designated homeschool room! We homeschool at our kitchen table and it works perfectly. In this blog post, I’ll show you how to set up a homeschool space that is inviting and organized – even if it’s small!
First of all, let me make one thing clear…
Neither the size of your homeschooling space, nor the décor you choose for it will determine whether or not you have a successful school year.
Your homeschooling success comes solely from your commitment to the process, not how pretty your space is. However, having a dedicated homeschool space does help with consistency and organization. (Notice I said “space” not “room”!)
Another thing to consider is that an effective homeschool space is an area that is comfortable to work in, with few distractions. For example, if you have young children, trying to homeschool them right in the middle of their play area will make it very hard for them to focus. If possible, try to keep your homeschool space separate from their play space.
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Basic Things To Consider
When deciding how to set up a homeschool space within your home, there are a few important things to consider. It’s a good idea to take a little walk through your home with this checklist to see which areas might work best.
- Natural light: Look for a space that has at least one window, more if possible. Having access to natural light affects humans in many positive ways. Aim to have as much of it in your homeschool space as you can. (Also, aim to get outside as much as possible!)
- Storage space: Look for an area of your home that has enough storage space for the many homeschool materials you will use. These are things like math manipulatives, art supplies, homeschool curriculum, finished school work, etc. Your homeschool space doesn’t have to be big in order to be organized, but it does need to be organized in order to be functional. This could simply mean room for a large bookshelf, or some storage bins. It doesn’t have to be fancy, but you do need to have an accessible place to store your learning materials.
- Comfort: Wherever you choose to homeschool, make sure your space is comfortable for both you and your kids. The couch in your living room might be comfy, but learning to print neatly while sitting on a couch isn’t exactly easy! You don’t necessarily need desks, but a “school table” of sorts does make things easier. Look for comfort but also practicality. In my opinion, a great place to homeschool is at your kitchen or dining room table.
What Not To Do
Once you’ve walked through your home and decided on the perfect homeschool space for your family, the next step is getting it set up! This can (and should be) really fun! But one of the most common mistakes new homeschoolers make is trying to create a learning environment that mimics traditional school.
Whether you have a separate room that is now your dedicated homeschool room, or like us, you are homeschooling at your kitchen table…you do NOT need to make it look like a public school classroom!
Things like educational posters, a bulletin board, or even school desks simply aren’t needed. I’m not saying you CAN’T have these items in your homeschool space, I’m just saying you don’t NEED them. If something serves you well, then go ahead and use it! But don’t feel like you have to spend a lot of money to create a homeschool classroom setup that looks exactly like a traditional classroom.
Your children will have an amazing learning experience without those things because homeschool is not the same as public school. Don’t attempt to recreate a system you are choosing not to participate in.
Read also: 4th Grade Multiplication Strategies For Homeschoolers
Involve Your Kids
Once you’ve decided on the location of your homeschool space, ask your kids to help you with the set up! See if they have any ideas or things they would like to see in their homeschool area.
Allowing them to contribute their ideas gives them a sense of ownership and is a great way to get them excited! Even young children can get involved by helping to organize their homeschool supplies and putting their school books on the shelf. It’s the simple little things that have a big impact on how they will feel about their space.
Be Proud Of Your Homeschool Space
Like I said before, you do not need to turn an entire room of your home into a classroom in order to have a great homeschool space. If that’s what you want to do and you have the space to do it, then go for it! But if you are more limited on space and that’s not an option for you, that’s 100% ok!
Wherever you decide to homeschool, be proud of your space! Know that you are doing a wonderful thing for your children by homeschooling them and don’t get caught up in the comparison game. Just because somebody else’s homeschool space might be bigger or fancier than yours, doesn’t mean it’s better!
When your children grow up, they will remember their school time as a family and all the amazing experiences you had together! They won’t be forever talking about the size of the white board, or the classroom décor you provided. Those things are fine, but they aren’t what makes your homeschool memorable for your children.
My Advice To You
When it comes to setting up a homeschool space, I really do think that good organization is the most important thing. Whether you have a large homeschool room, a small kitchen table, or somewhere in between – if you aren’t organized, it’s going to feel chaotic!
Here are a few simple tips for keeping your homeschool space organized:
- Keep the everyday items you know your kids will need close and accessible
- Do your best to keep your work area (such as your table or desk), clean and decluttered
- Clean up after each homeschool day so that everything goes back in its place
- A few times throughout the homeschool year, go through your supplies and do a bit of decluttering. This helps to keep things running smoothly with much less frustration!
Make It Your Own
Bottom line here is….this is YOUR homeschool space and these are YOUR kids! So have fun with it and make it your own! Don’t be afraid to let your personality shine through in how you set up your homeschool space.
If you like art and bright colors, add some cool pictures to the walls or a funky tablecloth! If you have a library of amazing books you want your kids to read, then make that the focal point of your homeschool area.
This is your own homeschool room and you get to set it up however you want! So have fun, don’t compare, and keep it simple!
Blessings!
~Maryann
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