Halcyon Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 In our new home (assuming everything goes through smoothly with the closing *praying*) we will be converting one of the car spots in the three car garage to a homeschool room. It has a door leading to the pool area, and we will be able to "open up" the room via the garage door on sunny days. We will replace some of the garage panels with plexi and probably carve out another window. Obviously, we need TONS of shelves. I want hardwood laminate floors, a comfy , soft couch that will fit three, tables for the boys, table for me (preferably L shaped) for my computer and things..... What else? :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shannon in TN Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Tis may be a silly question, but will you have wall space for art/white board/maps/etc.? Also, good lighting is key. We have a spare bedroom that was converted into a school room and it's in desperate need of brighter wall color. I have ceiling lights, desk lamps, and a floor lamp, and it still feels dark in there. How fun for you and good luck with the closing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 A BIG whiteboard-that's the single nicest thing about our homeschool room-it's amazing how much easier it is to do math on a whiteboard vs on paper :). DD also loves having bulletin boards to display her work. DD once told me that her favorite thing about our homeschool room is that she has a window right by her desk-her kindergarten classroom had only a couple of small windows, and the kids' seats were placed so they couldn't really see out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 (edited) Our house in Hawaii had a detached 3 car garage in which one of of the bays had been turned into an apartment. It had a bathroom, a sink and fridge and cabinets. It was really nice because it allowed up to stay out there all day most days. We didn't need to go into the house for lunch or bathroom breaks. It also had an a/c, which we needed at least part of the year. We had one long wall with whiteboards and bulletin boards. Here's a mom who built a schoolhouse in their yard :) : http://stephanieandkids.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2007-08-30T15%3A45%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=7 Edited March 12, 2012 by Mrs Mungo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 I would do a giant section of white board, a couple of big comfy chairs. Does the room have AC? One suggestions on the flooring. If you think you'll be going in and out of the pool and into this room, I'd consider a wet area. Hardwood laminate can vary greatly on how it holds up under water. Price is not a good indicator either. Dh has installed various brands and seen even some higher priced ones that warp and buckled when wet. Another thing I'd consider is a nature/science area. I imagine you're going to find a lot of nature things to explore. I'd set up a shelving area, counter top just for those. Sounds like a great place to do school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SweetMissMagnolia Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 lots of open space-cubbies/shelves for storeage--large table/chairs for working--enough storeage where everything had a place..... :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted March 13, 2012 Author Share Posted March 13, 2012 Thanks for all these great ideas! Keep em coming!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted March 13, 2012 Author Share Posted March 13, 2012 Tis may be a silly question, but will you have wall space for art/white board/maps/etc.? Also, good lighting is key. We have a spare bedroom that was converted into a school room and it's in desperate need of brighter wall color. I have ceiling lights, desk lamps, and a floor lamp, and it still feels dark in there. How fun for you and good luck with the closing! Yes, we'll have wall space, and good lighting will be installed. Plus we'll be able to open the garage door on many days (we live in FLorida) when it's nice out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Wi-fi so you can hang out on this forum while the boys do lessons. :) A/c and fans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nukeswife Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 . Here's a mom who built a schoolhouse in their yard :) : http://stephanieandkids.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2007-08-30T15%3A45%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=7 Ok, that is just beyond cool. I want one, but I don't think the Navy would move that when we PCS:tongue_smilie: Now honestly, I would keep everything I have but just upgrade to more expedit shelves. Ike's is 3.5-4 hours away so the one I have is from craigslist and they seem hard to come by here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmmaNZ Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 I would want a 'messy' area for art and science etc with a sink nearby for cleaning up. Also a space for a kettle and a biscuit tin :001_smile: I'm excited for you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elizabeth in MN Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Oi, if money were no object I'd make it as Waldorf-y as possible. I'd have the special paint on the walls, all wooden everything, and a big black board. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angela Beshears Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 I would agree about the wood laminate and water. You might consider wood-look vinyl floors- the house we moved into had them, and the only reason people notice it's not real hardwood is because ours has a "gloss" to it- looks like you can get low-gloss like some found at this website which I bet would look great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-M- Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 I hail from the "No schoolroom!" camp, but if there were ever a renovation that might have swayed me -- even a little -- it's the one Heidi, a regular contributor to these forums and the voice behind the Mr. Hope Chronicles blog, recently did. Check out her "Live and Learn Studio" for some cool ideas: http://mthopeacademy.blogspot.com/2011/09/mt-hope-academy-live-and-learn-studio.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 My schoolroom would include a teacher. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heidi @ Mt Hope Posted March 14, 2012 Share Posted March 14, 2012 (edited) I hail from the "No schoolroom!" camp, but if there were ever a renovation that might have swayed me -- even a little -- it's the one Heidi, a regular contributor to these forums and the voice behind the Mr. Hope Chronicles blog, recently did. Check out her "Live and Learn Studio" for some cool ideas: http://mthopeacademy.blogspot.com/2011/09/mt-hope-academy-live-and-learn-studio.html :svengo: Well, color me tickled pink. :D Edited March 14, 2012 by Heidi @ Mt Hope Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted March 14, 2012 Share Posted March 14, 2012 :svengo: Well, color me tickled pink. :D Your school room is awesome, I've referred to those pictures several times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted March 14, 2012 Author Share Posted March 14, 2012 Your school room is awesome, I've referred to those pictures several times. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rbsmrter Posted March 14, 2012 Share Posted March 14, 2012 Not sure if it's possible to fit into the space, but we loved having a storage closet. It was nice to be able to get some of the stuff out of the way when we weren't using it. If water is an issue with the floors, check out cork floors. A friend just had them installed in her kitchen and she's had many spills in there without a problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mandylubug Posted March 14, 2012 Share Posted March 14, 2012 I am DREAMING of a family room/school room. We had once upon a time converted our garage into a playroom when I used to babysit for income... I put down tiled carpet squares, hung a curtain to hide the door and had a window ac unit. It looked ok but before long realized it didn't work for us here in GA. The humidity ruined all our books, etc. even though the garage itself was insulated minus the garage door. Bugs came in under the garage door and we started smelling mold. Turns out water was seeping under the door and under the carpet tiles.... Just a friendly word of caution! Wish we could properly build out our garage by leveling the floor and closing the door and adding central air... but until then I will just drool at other peoples photos! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rbsmrter Posted March 14, 2012 Share Posted March 14, 2012 Your school room is awesome, I've referred to those pictures several times. :iagree: I absolutely LOVE this room! I really enjoyed our last school room it just screamed school to me. Of course there's nothing wrong with that, but I would have loved to have the room serve more than one purpose. Your room seems so comfortable and inviting. I can't wait to use some of your fantastic ideas in our next room. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mhg Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 If it's a carport...I'm assuming it has a concrete floor. My friend ripped up her old carpet and refinished her concrete herself. I can't recall if she did it with stain or paint but she did her own faux finish look and it turned out really nicely. It was a light cocacola color. Might work well with the pool drippage as well. Here's our local company's site and they have a color chart section where you can get some ideas. www.scoreandstain.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allearia Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 We are doing that exact thing now, only it is the whole garage which is part of the house and connects to the office area. We replaced the door with a carriage door so it wouldn't have the garage look, but if I had known what it would cost probably would not have. I am hoping to have two tables, a large table for regular work and a bar height table for science and messier projects that we can leave out. In between will be a large rug, I was hoping to have a cozy sofa but that would take up too much room, so will probably put some rocking chairs and bean bag chairs and a coffee table. It is possible I will need to drop the idea of the science table though because it may be too cramped with all that. We will have of course bookcases lining the walls, and there is a window that will have a low table in front of it. One wall will have a large white board and hopefully some way to hang different charts and maps. One smaller wall I plan to paint with magnetic paint to hang artwork or bulletin board type stuff. I want to have a medium sized computer monitor and computer on one bookshelf. For educational movies and demonstrations. The next room has dh's work computer, but for during the day while he is gone we wil have eithe r a table or some desks for them to use when they do independent quiet work while I work one on one with the other. We are adding some ceiling lights and outlets, and fortunately a heating duct runs right through it so w will open that up for heat. I am so excited, we have the doors up and hopefully it will be done soon. We will see if we have any money left for bookcases, some of the other stuff we have or can repurpose from the rest of the house until we can afford other stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolybear Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 A reading corner Display areas for artwork, nature finds, hands on projects Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted March 18, 2012 Author Share Posted March 18, 2012 We are doing that exact thing now, only it is the whole garage which is part of the house and connects to the office area. We replaced the door with a carriage door so it wouldn't have the garage look, but if I had known what it would cost probably would not have. I am hoping to have two tables, a large table for regular work and a bar height table for science and messier projects that we can leave out. In between will be a large rug, I was hoping to have a cozy sofa but that would take up too much room, so will probably put some rocking chairs and bean bag chairs and a coffee table. It is possible I will need to drop the idea of the science table though because it may be too cramped with all that. We will have of course bookcases lining the walls, and there is a window that will have a low table in front of it. One wall will have a large white board and hopefully some way to hang different charts and maps. One smaller wall I plan to paint with magnetic paint to hang artwork or bulletin board type stuff. I want to have a medium sized computer monitor and computer on one bookshelf. For educational movies and demonstrations. The next room has dh's work computer, but for during the day while he is gone we wil have eithe r a table or some desks for them to use when they do independent quiet work while I work one on one with the other. We are adding some ceiling lights and outlets, and fortunately a heating duct runs right through it so w will open that up for heat. I am so excited, we have the doors up and hopefully it will be done soon. We will see if we have any money left for bookcases, some of the other stuff we have or can repurpose from the rest of the house until we can afford other stuff. I'd love to see photo before and after! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlet Pimpernel Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 Our house in Hawaii had a detached 3 car garage in which one of of the bays had been turned into an apartment. It had a bathroom, a sink and fridge and cabinets. It was really nice because it allowed up to stay out there all day most days. We didn't need to go into the house for lunch or bathroom breaks. It also had an a/c, which we needed at least part of the year. We had one long wall with whiteboards and bulletin boards. Here's a mom who built a schoolhouse in their yard :) : http://stephanieandkids.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2007-08-30T15%3A45%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=7 Love that! So cute! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xilka Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 We have a day-bed in our classroom/office space and spend quite a bit of time on it. I would recommend one over a sofa. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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