Learning Space in Homeschool

Do you have a dedicated learning space in your home?

We have a dedicated space where we keep art supplies, one for science supplies, and one where we keep writing supplies and our workbooks. But do we have a desk and a “school” area – nope. Why would I have one?

Homeschooling is not the same as teaching your kid to study and do homework. When children go to school during the day and then come home and need to focus on a task – like homework – they need a set space to do it. A desk in a quiet area with light works well. But for a homeschooled child, who learns all the time and in all spaces, a dedicated learning space is almost counter productive.

That doesn’t mean we don’t have a set space where my child does bookwork – we do. He does his at the kitchen table. We use the same chair, in the same spot, in relatively the same time everyday when he is practicing letters, doing math worksheets, or working on some other bookwork. When it comes to learning, we use the whole house.

 

The kitchen is our chemistry lab. We test whether sugar cookie dough can be dyed colors, how yeast works, and what makes baking soda explode in the kitchen. Outside is for physics (as are the walls and all the floors). We test how things fly, how far things can fly, what can float in a bucket of water, and how rocks dry. Our stairs are also used for physics and how to go down them faster, or get things to go down them faster. Our windows, floors, outside, and tables are used as art room. Pictures are painted on the outside of windows – which is followed by a lesson in cleaning up our mess. Painting with brushes can be done on the table or on really big pieces of paper on the floor.

Parks are our nature lab. So are the vacant lots in our neighborhood. We scavenge through these for bugs and animals. We look for odd plants and cool rocks. Outside is our playground to learn about animals, smells, wind, clouds, and nature in general.

So do we have a dedicated learning space? Nope. Why would we? As a homeschooling family we learn everywhere, all the time. There’s no need for me to create a school room to limit learning. If I wanted that we wouldn’t be homeschooling.

Natasha Wunderlich

I’m a homeschooling mom who made the choice to homeschool because I saw how rigid schools were and noticed how fluid my son’s learning style was and how hands-on his learning style was. We have been at it for over 2 years now (we started when he was 2) and are enjoying our time together. Learning and teaching has brought us closer together as a family. I do believe in structure and lessons, not simply free form schooling, but those lessons are child-centered and directed by his interested. We are moving on through Kindergarten and 1st Grade material now, and watching him learn and grow is awesome. You can find me on: www.wunderfulhomeschool.wordpress.com

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