Sharing Space in Homeschooling
In homeschooling, the ‘school building’ is the home. Homes have limited space, and if we want homeschooling to be pleasant and productive, we have to be intentional how we share that space. Personal space is just as important as shared space. In fact, teenagers especially crave their own personal space. However, shared space also has its perks. Shared space can help with accountability. Everyone can see what you are doing (or not doing). Shared space also can help maximize the amount of usable space in a home for homeschooling. As homeschool moms, we need to take the lead on strategizing how best space can be used. But, how do we go about doing that? Well, read on!
Each homeschool student needs some personal space to call his/her own.
Homeschool students really do each need at least some personal space of their own. This becomes especially important for our teenagers. Each of my sons have always had a personal place for seatwork. Our first home was small, but we were still able to spread out enough where each son had a little personal space to call his own. Our next home was not very large either, but building an addition gave us more options. No matter what size your home is, try to find some personal space for each of your children for at least a portion of the school day. Some of our sons’ personal spaces through the years have been kitchen tables, little child-sized tables, library tables, desks, dining room tables, tiny leather chairs, and entryways. Get creative!
Each home needs shared space to be more social.Â
Homeschool students really do need some space to be more social. These are areas that might be more open, like a living room or a gathering place. Couches, recliners, cozy blankets, end tables for hot cocoa or water bottles, window seats, arm chairs by the fireplace, etc. are all wonderful places to settle in and read a good book. These special spaces should be enjoyed and shared by all!
Keep in mind sharing space doesn’t mean the noise level should be loud. Children need to be taught to share space politely. If everyone is quietly reading their books, the noise level should be minimal. If kiddos are sharing space in the kitchen, and one is singing his hymn, another is at the kitchen table doing his science project, and still another is at the counter by the sink doing his science experiment, the noise level will be louder – which is fine for these activities!
Each person needs space for their personal school supplies to call his/her own.
When each person has his/her own school supplies, we can customize supplies. Each of my sons enjoyed using different writing utensils. One liked Ticonderoga pencils, as well as an electric pencil sharpener. Another son liked clicky pencils. Still another son enjoyed erasable pens and electric erasers. Each son enjoyed choosing sizes of binders, colors of notebooks, and kinds of folders. One son kept his school supplies very neat. They were always put away in an armoire neatly. Another son liked to organize his school books in piles on the dining room table, which was where he did his seatwork.
Still another son was not so neat. Though he had an entire table to organize his books upon, and an entire pie safe with four shelves to store his books in at the end of the day, things were still messy and not put away. In fact, we are still working on these skills with this son. However, at least his less-than-neat-habits are in his own personal space and are not interfering with his brothers’ personal spaces. (On a bright note, this son’s ROOM is finally neat. In fact, it is always picked up. That is progress!)
Each home needs a space for common school supplies.
Common school supplies are needed by everyone. Glue sticks, scissors, markers, crayons, construction paper, index cards, dictionaries, thesauruses, dice, flashlights, page protectors, tape, rulers, calculators, protractors, yarn, paint, erasers, Sharpies, etc. fall in the common school supplies’ category. Having one place for kiddos to go for common supplies saves space in the long run. We have a closet lined with shelves and labeled bins for common school supplies. This has worked well! Everyone works to maintain this common space by putting supplies back when they are done with them. If we are running out of something, they put it on my grocery/errand list on the fridge. Everyone appreciates a well-stocked common supplies area, and this shared space makes it easy for kiddos to quickly grab what they need.
In Closing
I hope this post on sharing space has given you some ideas on how you can best work with the space you have! Planning for personal space, shared social space, and common school supplies’ space will help the day flow more smoothly. It will also help everyone get along, and that is always worth a little planning!
In Christ,
Julie
