Homework Spaces – How to Create One
I have twin five year olds who are in kindergarten this year. It’s a year full of learning for all of us. It’s full of Winter and sub-zero temperatures here, and we experienced our first eLearning this past winter due to massive snowfall in the Chicagoland area. Luckily we can work from home so it was a case of moving things around, but it seemed fitting to write an article about creating a successful homework and eLearning space in your home.
Thankfully, our eLearning experience wasn’t too bad. We moved a kids’ table from Emily’s bedroom to the basement and set them up so we could all work together in the same space. My husband and I were both there to offer assistance as they needed and to keep them on track of when they were supposed to be in their live meetings with their class vs independent work. That part was seamless.
I noticed that most families didn’t do that though. I saw children working in kitchens, dining rooms, and all kinds of spaces in the home. Let’s be real, with that many kindergarteners on a call, we also saw a ton of ceilings!
So how can you prepare your home for when the kids need to do their school work from home? Let’s explore some ideas and tips to make this as seamless as possible!
Homework Area
It’s helpful to carve out a small corner somewhere in the home that can be made into a homework area. This helps kids to associate homework with a specific place and helps them to start developing healthy routines.
Young kids don’t need a fully fledged home office set up, but a simple area that can store any supplies and school gear. Kids need regular movement breaks so ideally this homework area is somewhere with lots of space around for them to do that.
Furniture
Next up is furniture. As we’ve mentioned previously, you don’t need to have a fully equipped home office space designated for your kids, but having kid sized furniture available that you can bring in and out of a space is super helpful for those odd days they need to be schooled from home.
When your kids grow older, you may wish to add a desk space to their bedroom, or a small desk beside yours in the home office for example.
For younger kids though, it’s important to have that flexibility and furniture that is tailor made for them. This provides them with a comfortable area to stay when doing homework.
You don’t need to spend a fortune on kids furniture, as after all – they will soon grow out of them! Choose items that are sturdy and fit for purpose.
Wooden Table and Chairs
This set of kids table and chairs is perfect for using to create a homework space!
Folding Padded Table and Chairs
We love the padded element of the chairs in this set! This is perfect for using as a homework or craft space.
Wood Table and Chairs Set
Another great option to consider is this two-tone table and chairs set.
Kids Table and Chairs
This set of kids table and chairs feature a more traditional design. It’s ideal for using for creating a homework space.
Electrical Allowances
It’s important to have some electrical outlets in the homework space to charge devices. This enables you to keep their tablets together, and fully charged for when you need them.
Within this area, consider having kids headphones so they can watch educational videos or tune into school calls when needed.
Supplies
One of the most important things is to make sure there are supplies nearby. You could have a wheeled cart that keeps stationary neatly organized that can be wheeled around to wherever they’re needed.
Organize crayons, markers, pencils, scissors, colored pencils, rules, glue sticks, paper, and other items by type, making the most regularly used items easy to reach.
Extras
If your kids will be spending prolonged periods of time in their homework area (perhaps for an eLearning day), having a water bottle with lid available, pencil sharpeners, stylus, and iPad stands can be particularly helpful.
3-Tier Cart
This 3-tier wheeled cart is perfect for using in the homework space to organize supplies.
Colored Pencils (Set of 72)
Stock up on colored pencils with this set of 72!
Marker Pens (Set of 24)
This set of colored marker pens are ideal for keeping in a homework area.
Assorted Pencils (Set of 48)
You can never have too many pencils with kids in the house!
