A desk or a table? Kitchen or school room?

[Mopdop]

Hi all, I am sure this has been covered here a few times before however I can't find any links answering my specific question!

 

Once all ordered curriculum arrives, I will start in on K with ds and I need advice about what works best for you.

 

First, we do have a room in the basement that I can turn into a school room if I want to. It has a few windows that will let in more light if we pull the weeds out from the window well. So, a school room or the kitchen table? Right now we use the kitchen table and I am not enjoying getting everything out and then putting it away again. But, one reason we are homeschooling is to make education more fun for him. On the other hand, I like the idea that we 'get serious' when we go to the school room.

 

Second, should we invest in an individual desk for him? From what I understand, handwriting is easier to learn when your child's feet are on the floor, so that seems to rule out the kitchen table right now. I have a few friends whose kids use individual desks in their school rooms, and part of me likes this idea. However, when I visited a private Christian school to help me decide what to do for K, one thing that turned me off was them all sitting at individual desks in rows across the room. Maybe I could find a school table that adjusts its height as he grows? Is such a thing available? I am not sure that a table would fit into what may become the school room though ...

 

As you can see, I need a little advice!

 

Thanks :001_smile:

[mom2att]

My advice--start small and just make school part of something you do everyday. Don't worry about this room or that room, this desk or that chair, just do what works for you.

 

When I started out my oldest was in K and we lived in a small apartment. I had all of our school stuff in a laundry basket which we pulled out while we sat at the kitchen table and did school. When we moved I was thrilled to turn what was a dining room into a school room, but since we had little furniture my then-first grader did her work at one of those plastic kid-sized table and chair sets. Eventually we got to our current set-up of full sized table where we can all sit at once, a couple of bookshelves, armoire, computer desk, etc., but this only happened after we added a couple more children to the family, a lot more curriculum and books to the family, and as the children grew.

 

So for now, just find what's comfortable for you and your child. You'll grow into the rest of it together!

[gingersmom]

School rooms and school desks are too much like school for me.

 

We homeschool at the kitchen table for stuff like math and writing. All our reading is done on the couch in the living room or in the spare bedroom (aka den).

 

In warmer weather we have moved outside and done everything at a picnic table in the backyard.

 

Drawing pictures is usually done sprawled out on the floor.

 

And we have even done school at the library.

[Punks in Ontario]

Working at the kitchen table, or a kid's table is so much more integrated in everyday life than a separate schoolroom that no one would go to if it weren't "schooltime". I've never tried to use a formal schoolroom. I just never wanted schoolwork to be separated from life.

 

We've used a small table for littles at times, but have usually gravitated to the kitchen table. Ds6 could use a small table, but prefers to be with his brothers at the big table. The big table is definitely more comfortable for me. Reading time is usually in the L.R., but can be in other rooms. This makes an easy flow from chores, to devotions, extra projects and school work.

[applesing]

I know what you mean about wanting the correct writing surface height. We use older school desks for this purpose. If we had the money, though, I would purchase adjustable height tables. Google those, and you will find several companies who offer this type of product.

 

We have considered moving our school area to the basement, but we are keeping it in the "breakfast nook" because it is so near the kitchen and laundry room -- this helps me get some chores done while the children are doing independent work. We also like the huge window in our "breakfast nook;" this is necessary for us!

[Chris in VA]

I like having a schoolroom and then getting to decide if we will use it any particular day! We do read alouds on the couch in the living room, or outside, or in bed--we are flexible about using the table in the dining room, too. In fact, right now dd is finishing some math at the dr table!

 

When dd was in K, I was also homeschooling a 9th grader--each had a separate part of our walk-out basement room, and it was quite nice. I could set up something for dd to do while I worked with ds. Of course, she often went upstairs, too. I used an Ikea kids' table and sat beside her on a bench. I don't like desks because I find them too small for books AND manipulatives.

 

Whatever works, honey. Go with the flow. If you have a room where you can go and where you can keep stuff, it doesn't mean you always have to go there!

 

(There are pics on my blog under 2008 and 2009--might take a bit of scrolling.)

[kalanamak]

I got the 24x48" table you can see if you click on the first image here:

 

https://www.schooloutfitters.com/catalog/default/cPath/CAT10_CAT67

 

as an art table, but it is becoming a school table, slowly (I have an old lift-top desk we are outgrowing). This table is adjustable in height, easy to clean, and kiddo uses a light folding chair with a fabric seat at it.

[nukeswife]

I love my school room (pictures on my blog http://www.fawkesacademy.blogspot.com) but it's not in a basement. We don't have basements here and between our kitchen and living room is a pretty good sized space, I think it's intended as a breakfast nook, but it's much to large for that. So we put our dining room table in the "too large to be a nook" area and turned the formal dining room into our school room. It's right off the kitchen and then opens up into what would normally be a family room but we use it as a toy/game room. So my little guy can play in there while I work with my older two in the school room.

 

I've always had a room like that to use, but if it had to be in a basement I'm not sure we'd use it as much and may just go with the kitchen table schooling. We move a lot because dh is in the Navy so one of the requirements of the new house was always an extra room we could use for the school room.

 

Sorry not sure I was much help :001_huh:

[Mopdop]

Thanks so much for your input! I love how quickly people reply in this group. As we get a little further into the journey, I hope to offer support to you all in some way!

[keptwoman]

DD works at a cheap ikea kids table, it's the perfect height for her right now. I'm thinking of splurging on an adjustable height table for her next, so it will grow with her. The boys work at desks or the kitchen table, the desks are in our school area which is a corner of our main living area.

[MariannNOVA]

We did have a 'classroom' in the lower level - with real school desks, whiteboard, etc - that was how we started the school year -- the kids loved it.....they wanted it to look, sound, smell and act like school.

 

Six weeks later, we were homeschooling in an extended stay hotel and that continued for 4 months till we were able to move back into our house.

 

The lower level is still being renovated so we have moved 'school' to the main level of the house -- kitchen, living room, lots of table tops, lots of light, big windows -- I am much happier up here and i think the kids are as well. Being in the hotel did get them used to having school in an unconventional space, a small space, and forced them to think outside the BIG box and think inside the small box.

 

When we moved back into our house, DH and I decided to use a very large armoire in the living room for school stuff -- everything fits wonderfully and I take out what we need in the a.m., and we all put it back when we are finished.

 

Right now, I am counting the days till we get the screened gazebo that is right off the kitchen ready for the warm weather so we can spread out to there.

 

I have had to become relaxed about books being 'out' at lunch time, and stuff like that, but I think that was one of the lessons I had to learn when we were living in the hotel.

 

Finally, I have noticed that for us, with school taking place in the main part of the house now that we are back home, the kids involve dh in what we have done during the day as opposed to school being 'separate' when we were using our classroom downstairs. HTH

Edited March 13, 2010 by MariannNOVA

[5forMe]

My son does his math and any written assignments at the kitchen table. Reading (all subjects) and discussion questions we do on the couch. Other things he does on the computer (writing assignments, etc). He is 12 and in 7th grade though, so that may make a difference.

[Guest]

No horizontal surface is safe from homeschooling in our house. There are papers all over the tables, counters, sometimes piled on the floor (especially around my daughter's bed; she likes to write on a lap desk at night while listening to books on tape), shelves, you name it. We use the kitchen quite heavily for science. There have been bowls and mini-aquariums of various things (like our ill-fated triops) in the bathrooms. We've done bird watching (not a big success) and Science Experiments You Can Do With Your Dog in the back yard (huge hit). For years I couldn't sit down in the living room without moving things off furniture, and the floor usually had things built with Legos or blocks or contraptions strung or taped together...this was with one very busy, very excitable child! We even used the big windows for practicing handwriting, when someone gave us window paints one year.

 

Now that my daughter is in 8th grade things are slightly -- but only slightly -- less chaotic. I can usually sit down on the couch without moving more than a pile of books. I can go into a bathroom that is animal free. But there is enough stuff all over that when people visit they always say within moments of walking in the door, "Oh, you must homeschool."

[Mommee & Baba]

When I started hs'ing we used clipboards and the sofa...along with the kitchen table. I found that in time my children were getting more distracted and as was I. So we decided to rearrange a little bit. Now we use a kids table that they share in our office. The office is used for the computer, storing all school supplies and sewing machines...That is where we do school and like it that way. The kids seem more focused and the "fun" aspect comes out because we have a "school" in our house. They like it. But that could be because they're in elementary grades. I've noticed that my oldest dd will need something bigger next year and have decided to shelf my serger and sewing machine so she can use my desk as her school desk. This will give her sister the table fully to herself. Once they are both needing something bigger I think we'll consider purchasing another desk of some sort to place in the office OR just allow them to trade. Either way I like a designated area for school.