Our School Room {We Don’t Have One}
Last year I set up a school room in our finished basement. It was fun and inspiring to have everything all together in one place. We had a table, bookshelves, a computer, sewing corner, etc. But after a few months, we found that we were gravitating upstairs to the kitchen table. Especially as the darker days of winter came upon us, we all just continued to prefer the kitchen to the darker basement. And then, we started having water issues down there. The drainage system around our house failed, and we found ourselves needing to move some of the furniture in the basement due to water coming in during heavy rains. All of our bookshelves and sewing things and computer remain down there, but now in place of some of the furniture, we have exercise equipment. I meant to take a picture, but forgot.
So, we now do most of our work at the kitchen table. I also have a one-on-one teaching time with each child in my bedroom. So, we now use the living room, master bedroom, kitchen/dining room, and also the basement (for computer-based subjects, such as the Teaching Textbooks math) for our school days.
After breakfast and chores, we gather at the table for our Morning Time, or Circle Time. We go over the date, months, and other calendar items, character study, and Scripture memory. Then I have preschool (Before Five in a Row) with my little one while the older children work on workbooks that they can do independently. Then we’ll go into the living room for history and science read-alouds. After that, the older children rotate between playing with their little brother, working independently, and having a one-on-one teaching time with me.
This little wooden box (which years ago used to hold recipe cards) holds our Scripture memory system.
Several years ago, I set up the Scripture memory system from Simply Charlotte Mason. This year I decided to print out the actual cards they offer for free.
The pie safe from a local flea market (which was inexpensive, since one of the doors had broken off) now holds school supplies and educational games and puzzles (another thing I forgot to take a picture of!). Each child also has a shelf for keeping the books they use at the table. After several years of using our school bags to hold books and supplies, this year we’re using shelves. I just decided that a few days ago. For our current setup it just seems more practical. And the bags will still be useful for many other things (who knows, I may even return to them eventually).
Even though our bookshelves and other supplies remain in the basement, we all enjoy having our daily learning time upstairs in the sunnier kitchen. (And, someday I hope to paint this red kitchen. The former owners painted it this color, and I just haven’t had a chance to repaint it. But it’s really too dark for a room that only has a couple of windows. Painting it a lighter color would make it even lighter and sunnier. But for now, it is nice that it hides so many fingerprints and things!)
Do you have a school room, or do you learn all over the house like we do?
Related Posts:
Our Daily Calendar
Last Year’s School Room
Our 2013-2014 Curriculum
Circle Time
Planning for Before Five in a Row
Love your learning space! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you!
Stopping by from the blog hop. I love your space and the cabinet. Have a blessed year!
Thank you so much for stopping by, Jacquelin! I hope your year is blessed, also!
Lovely! I like the set up.
Thank you!
We utilize the kitchen table, living room and my daughter's bedroom! Visiting from the blog hop!
Thank you so much for visiting, Barbie!
I love your red walls! Very cozy. We have a large home, with a designated "school room" but, we have ended up doing school at the dining room table and playing ping pong in the school room…lol
Thank you! The dining room table seems to be a natural place, doesn't it? And that is so funny about playing ping pong in the school room! 🙂
Love it! We use our dining room for most of our schooling 🙂 I just love having lots of natural light coming in 🙂
http://plentyofpaperhs.wordpress.com/
Thank you, Bekah!
My oldest will be a junior this fall, and we've never had a school room. We used to do most of our work on the couch, but at this house it's in the basement. So now we do our read alouds and such in a sunny corner of the living/dining room. The kids have always done their independent work wherever they choose: in their rooms, laying on the hall floor, maybe even sitting at the table.
They used to all have a school bag for their supplies; the last few years I have kept everything on shelves downstairs (no space upstairs–our table for 8 takes up most of the living room). We should start using bags again since we can't store our books & supplies in the room where we use them.
We successfully used school bags for several years, and they can be so handy! They're especially nice for portability. Thanks so much for stopping by!
We have a daylight rambler with a finished basement downstairs. It's the same with us – we always gravitate to the sunny kitchen table to work on school, but the downstairs serves as "home base" for "stuff". We use shelves too, but I have canvas bins that hold their school. Each child has a bin and a shelf. This way they can put it away, but it's portable to where ever they need to be. 🙂
I love the idea of canvas bins on the shelves!
We, like you, enjoy the comforts of our kitchen table for most of our activities! We have a playroom and I think I'll eventually make it more of a school room set up. For now it holds our supplies on big shelves along with all our toys and games. I love the idea of school at the kitchen table. It's already where great moments and discussion happen so why not make it a bigger part of the day by having school there?!
I love your set up. It looks cozy and the perfect place for school!
You're so right, Ginny! The kitchen table is so central in our lives, and doing school there works well for us right now. Although if I had the option for a school room right off the kitchen (like a dining room) I would love that!
Beautiful! I was just thinking how I LOVE the paint color! It makes the room warm and inviting. 🙂 When we first began homeschooling, we had our school room in our basement, but have also moved ours upstairs in our dining room. I love having the kids upstairs with me that way I can keep an eye on them to make sure they are doing what they are supposed to be doing. 🙂 I love how organized you are!
Thank you, Kristin! Liz has the same paint color, too. 🙂 I do like it, but it does make the kitchen a bit dark. That's wonderful that you have a dining room you can use. It is so nice to have the kids where you can see them! 🙂
We have never had a school room! We do our work together in the living room or at the table (our kitchen and living room are all one big room) and then the kids do their independent work in their rooms, at the table or even outside in a tree! (My Sarah loves to read sitting in one of our trees in the front yard!)
Deanna
Oh, yes, trees are such wonderful "chairs!" 🙂 It's so picturesque, to see children reading in the trees.
I love your pictures, your house feels so home-y. I don't yet homeschool. My son is 8 months old, but we plan to homeschool him when he's older. We'll probably do much of the same and do the school work at the kitchen table. I'm not sure yet though because it's so far in the future, I just love reading about homeschooling to get myself prepared!
I have a blog link-up on Fridays, called Free to Talk Friday, I hope you'll come and join. It's open now at dreamingofperfect.weebly.com
Thanks!
Hannah J
Thank you, Hannah!