What would your dream school room look like?

[Squiddles]

(first off, is this the right forum to post this in?)

 

I have lurked on WTM for a long time, but just created an account today... we have a gutted basement that I am so excited to be able to finish in the next year or so! My husband is a contractor and will be building me custom cabinets/storage for all my homeschooling needs... with that in mind... how would YOU design it? I would love ideas from seasoned teachers, as my oldest is in K, so I don't know yet what I might wish for many years down the road.... I will have counter space with a sink for science/art fun and clean up... The only idea I had was a special shelf or drawer for all those posters that aren't currently being used... any other ideas?

Or... if there are already threads like this somewhere... please direct me to them! :D

[LucyStoner]

For me the only school room that will get used is one that is in the middle of everything else we are doing and in sight of what I need to entertain and contain my preschool aged son while his brother works. So my dream school room would be a room right off my kitchen and living room without doors which then magically disappeared every night so I wouldn't have to look at it. Especially when they are little. My son was not amenable to me walking around to do my normal household chores if he was in a separate room. Even nearing age 10, I need to be within sight range to help and to make sure he is on task. Sitting in a separate room with him while he works is not really practical for me- dinner, laundry, cleaning, playing with little brother etc. We set up a cute (small) homeschool room downstairs and it got moved back to the dining room pretty quickly. Within a year.

 

Or in a more world-like world without any magically disappearing and reappearing rooms, I guess my room could have double sliding doors. Still, a room that transformed back and forth between a school room and a tastefully decorated dining area would be ideal. ;)

 

I would give careful thought to how you see your day flowing. Where is the laundry room? When do you clean the kitchen and such? If you cook, do you need to cook while school is going on? If you plan on having more kids, how will you see to their needs in this room? Don't get me wrong, separate downstairs school rooms work for many people. But for many others, it proves impractical. I would be leery of spending money on anything hard to change/use for a different purpose until I was confident that a separate area was viable.

[jeninok]

We just moved, and I was going to set up the Den as a dedicated school room, but then I came to my senses and realized that we will do school at the bar in the kitchen or upstairs in my big bed on lazy days. I really like having him at the bar, it means I can do other stuff while being totally accessible, and he is on a surface that can handle all sorts of mess without being hurt.

 

I am however having built in bookshelves built on the outside of a weird cave thing we have downstairs. There will be two 30 inch wide 3 shelf cases framing a cabinet door that will open into a large storage area. I will keep our tubs of arts and crafts supplies, posters, and the other various minutia inside the cave, and our most used supplies and books on the outer shelves.

[helena]

My kids are older so my perfect classroom is more of a serious study/library type space. I hope our next home is our last move until finishing high school. I've been dreaming about it a lot!!

My dream classroom has dark walls, dark wood floors, a beautiful old red rug, at least one terrarium, our velvet chair, a vintage settee, a fireplace (a girl can dream :)), leaded and or stained glass, I'd like to replace our old vintage table with a solid antique pedestal table and chairs, a few more matching book shelves, a nice big print of Van Gogh's Roses, an antique library table, dark wood French doors with a view of a garden or fountain, and killer lighting (natural and lamps).

 

I have a lot of stuff in my classroom that I could never get rid of... piano, two bulletin boards, my red Chinese cabinet, lots of lovely old junk... :tongue_smilie:

 

You are so lucky to have a sink/science area! Right now we use a wet bar nook for science and nature study stuff. I'm glad to have the space, but it'd be much better to have in the classroom.

I've tried to keep visible plastic at a minimum, using lots of wood, metal, baskets, and fabrics instead. I also like to use furniture for storage. I find it more relaxing that way. If I had little ones again I'd go for the Montessori look (lots of low wood shelves and a wet area for sure). I'd probably find an old 50's style diner table and chairs.

 

Post pics when your done with it!

[Wheres Toto]

I would LOVE to have a separate school room. Right now we barely have room for anything but we manage. I console myself by making lists of what I would do in my dream school room. Of course, my kids are young now so this would change as they get older.

 

I want:

 

-a table where we could display things to go along with whatever science we are doing, or nature finds. Skulls, interesting rocks and minerals, magnifying glasses, etc. along with books.

-an art area with easel, paints, markers, easy to clean walls and floors. Near a sink would be perfect.

-a reading area with book shelves, comfortable cushions and chairs.

-somewhere to hang a timeline, posters, maps

-a large easy to clean table for playing games, doing big projects.

-smaller separate tables or one large table to do regular school work at - my kids need to be separated but I need to be able to watch both of them. Right now they have separate folding tables on opposite sides of our fireplace and I sit in between. With more space, I could probably do more with this - maybe back to a large table with mini-offices in between, which is what I did during the brief time we worked in our dining nook. Our dining nook table was actually too small for them each to have space to have a paper to write on and a book open for reference.

-a computer area with two desktops (we have this in one corner of our living room now).

[Punks in Ontario]

It would have to look alot like my kitchen and living room just with more bookshelves and wall space. Big table for working, couches for sitting and reading, lots of natural light, and close to laundry and kitchen so I can work while supervising. I would never spend time in the basement unless the windows were big and there was in floor heating.

 

Seriously, I keep books not currently in use in the basement, but other than that, I love schooling in the main rooms of the house. Going to the basement to do school would seem a bit like jail to my guys. And we have the in floor heat, a fair amount of light and a pretty comfy basement.

[Punks in Ontario]

Double post.

[Mrs Mungo]

http://www.designdaz...raft-play-room/

 

My kids are 11-17, and I would still rather have a fun, colorful space. I don't think that detracts from studies.

[helena]

I would LOVE to have a separate school room. Right now we barely have room for anything but we manage. I console myself by making lists of what I would do in my dream school room. Of course, my kids are young now so this would change as they get older.

 

I want:

 

-a table where we could display things to go along with whatever science we are doing, or nature finds. Skulls, interesting rocks and minerals, magnifying glasses, etc. along with books.

-an art area with easel, paints, markers, easy to clean walls and floors. Near a sink would be perfect.

-a reading area with book shelves, comfortable cushions and chairs.

-somewhere to hang a timeline, posters, maps

-a large easy to clean table for playing games, doing big projects.

-smaller separate tables or one large table to do regular school work at - my kids need to be separated but I need to be able to watch both of them. Right now they have separate folding tables on opposite sides of our fireplace and I sit in between. With more space, I could probably do more with this - maybe back to a large table with mini-offices in between, which is what I did during the brief time we worked in our dining nook. Our dining nook table was actually too small for them each to have space to have a paper to write on and a book open for reference.

-a computer area with two desktops (we have this in one corner of our living room now).

 

I agree! In my dream classroom there's room for a science area. :)

Here's kind of what we like (3rd and 4th pic) http://www.lampsplus.com/info-center/b/blog/archive/2012/02/02/design-trend-the-neo-naturalist-interior.aspx

 

I want our next classroom to look like the livingroom in Nanny Mcphee meets old English library. :tongue_smilie:

[swellmomma]

 

I agree! In my dream classroom there's room for a science area. :)

Here's kind of what we like (3rd and 4th pic) http://www.lampsplus...t-interior.aspx

 

I want our next classroom to look like the livingroom in Nanny Mcphee meets old English library. :tongue_smilie:

 

 

That 4th picture is like a modern version of what I picture Claire's "office" to look like when I read Outlander :p

[readinmom]

Don't be afraid of color. My classroom has an abundance of color...teachers come in and say how distracting it is (for them). The kids always comment on how it makes them feel at home.

 

I would like to have a library table, a comfy couch, an oversized chair/ottoman, bookshelves, storage baskets/expedit shelves.

[Parrothead]

If money were no object I'd have the first room on this slide show and a lab table that right behind the photographer.

[HS Mom in NC]

Be careful and thoughtful about the child(ren) that will be in the room. Many children are negatively affected by very bright visually cluttered rooms-I consider them visual vomit. My blood pressure has always gone up in typical classrooms full of colors and posters from the time I was a child until now in adulthood. Victorian decor has always set my teeth on edge. Cluttered homes make my chest tighten when I'm in them. I have a nephew (10) with focus problems that is terribly oppressed by his classroom's walls.

 

Other people respond very positively to brightly colored rooms with lots of visual stimulation. They find it energizing and pleasant.

 

Some children find being in the same room all day oppressive. They prefer to spend shorter periods of time in a different locations throughout their school day: the couch, the chair on the patio, lounging on their bed, at the writing desk in front of a window with a beautiful scene, at the craftroom table, sitting under a tree, etc. Are you going to demand a child like that stay in a room you spent so much time, money, and energy on?

 

Other kids like to stay in one spot all day. It helps them focus and calms them.

 

I suggest coming up with something that is inherently flexible should your children need more or less visual stimulation as they live in it and use it.

[PachiSusan]

 

This site has the most amazing homeschool room. A warning, it has background music. I hate that.

 

 

I have to say, I bawled going to this link. I am feeling a huge dichotomy of what I dreamed for home schooling and what reality is for / with my child. Not worse, just totally different and it makes me cry.

[PachiSusan]

It is, but moreso because what *I* envisioned HS to be is not what is working for my daughter and I've had to give up some of my dreams, which that school room looked very much like.

 

It is beautiful, inspiring and intimidating at the same time isn't it?


I almost forgot, a reading tree! I wrote a post on my blogthat had more options, but this one is my favorite.

http://dalidecals.co...s-Stickers.html

I would buy extra leaves and write the books we've read on them.

[mom2samlibby]

Here's my pinterest board of ideas. http://pinterest.com/mom2samlibby/homeschool-room/

 

We are building, so I'm trying to figure out what I want for our room.

[Guest]

Well, I've had a school room. Didn't use it. When we moved, I had two options for a school room. (Well, three, actually.) I had an actual room or a huge loft to choose from. I chose door #3 and we use the dining/living room. I find it much more efficient to not be secluded in a separate room. Also, my son does not like to be alone, so having him close by when I am cooking or doing laundry or just reading (when he is dawdling!) is very helpful. I could not imagine having a school room down in a basement, I would never go down there. I made our spare room our library. It is full of books, but we only go in there to grab a book and we bring it out to the family room. I would personally use a basement for another purpose, just my $.02.

 

As far as color, my library is teal. :) I am definitely a visual person that likes happy colors.

[Heather in Neverland]

 

I have to say, I bawled going to this link. I am feeling a huge dichotomy of what I dreamed for home schooling and what reality is for / with my child. Not worse, just totally different and it makes me cry.

 

 

 

I think these rooms are designed to make us feel bad about ourselves! :) No worries, I have LOADS of homeschool friends in real life and I have never seen a homeschool room even close to one of these designer rooms.

 

There is a blog, I can't exactly remember the name, homeschool hop or something like that, where people share pics of their ACTUAL homeschool rooms. They are more imperfect but more real. :grouphug:

[Heather in Neverland]

Be careful and thoughtful about the child(ren) that will be in the room. Many children are negatively affected by very bright visually cluttered rooms-I consider them visual vomit. My blood pressure has always gone up in typical classrooms full of colors and posters from the time I was a child until now in adulthood. Victorian decor has always set my teeth on edge. Cluttered homes make my chest tighten when I'm in them. I have a nephew (10) with focus problems that is terribly oppressed by his classroom's walls.

 

Other people respond very positively to brightly colored rooms with lots of visual stimulation. They find it energizing and pleasant.

 

Some children find being in the same room all day oppressive. They prefer to spend shorter periods of time in a different locations throughout their school day: the couch, the chair on the patio, lounging on their bed, at the writing desk in front of a window with a beautiful scene, at the craftroom table, sitting under a tree, etc. Are you going to demand a child like that stay in a room you spent so much time, money, and energy on?

 

Other kids like to stay in one spot all day. It helps them focus and calms them.

 

I suggest coming up with something that is inherently flexible should your children need more or less visual stimulation as they live in it and use it.

 

This is very true. Some of the pics posted were great...others made me twitch. I can't do clutter. It gives me anxiety. I need clean, open spaces with less items on the wall and desk top. The pics with stuff everywhere make me hyperventilate. My oldest ds is the same way. My younger ds doesn't seem to mind one way or the other. My dd? Too early to tell!

[ElizabethB]

I think these rooms are designed to make us feel bad about ourselves! :) No worries, I have LOADS of homeschool friends in real life and I have never seen a homeschool room even close to one of these designer rooms.

 

There is a blog, I can't exactly remember the name, homeschool hop or something like that, where people share pics of their ACTUAL homeschool rooms. They are more imperfect but more real. :grouphug:

 

LOL, I was thinking they all looked like no one actually lived or did school in them as well!

 

This is very true. Some of the pics posted were great...others made me twitch. I can't do clutter. It gives me anxiety. I need clean, open spaces with less items on the wall and desk top. The pics with stuff everywhere make me hyperventilate. My oldest ds is the same way. My younger ds doesn't seem to mind one way or the other. My dd? Too early to tell!

 

I kept thinking that while our current house has a fairly nice homeschool room, a current picture would not be good...you would be hyperventilating. My daughter is making stuffed Webkinz beds out of cardboard, fabric, stuffing, etc in there. It looks like a craft bomb exploded. Plus, there are still a few boxes left from our move and a few books that I haven't decided where to shelve them.

[PachiSusan]

 

 

 

I think these rooms are designed to make us feel bad about ourselves! :) No worries, I have LOADS of homeschool friends in real life and I have never seen a homeschool room even close to one of these designer rooms.

 

There is a blog, I can't exactly remember the name, homeschool hop or something like that, where people share pics of their ACTUAL homeschool rooms. They are more imperfect but more real. :grouphug:

 

I'd like to see that blog! If you remember it, post it for us.

[Heather in Neverland]

 

 

I'd like to see that blog! If you remember it, post it for us.

 

 

Found it!! It has pics of over 300 home school rooms: http://heartofthematteronline.com/nbtsbh-2011-week-two/

 

 

[Wheres Toto]

I find looking at gorgeous homeschool rooms depressing, yet I can't stop. And I can't stop making lists of all the things I will do when I get my dream homeschool room. Even though my kids will probably have graduated by then.

 

My reality - a very small house with not enough room for everyone who lives here. Definitely no extra spaces. Squeezing school into a corner, hanging posters in random places, trying to fit things in wherever I can. Nothing is simple because in order to do anything, five other things have to be moved around. And this time of year is even worse because it's too cold to do anything outside.

[MommaOfalotta]

We will be house hunting in just a few months so I will be keeping this question in mind!

 

Im pretty happy with what we are using now, its nothing too fancy but its cute!

 

If I had extra $$ right now to do some improvements I would add:

- a big ol comfy couch for read alouds

-A nice big ol table for writing, crafts, etc.. I get so sick of cluttering up the kitchen table (which is usually cluttered anyway :glare: )

-A TV/DVD player for our movie days..

 

I would just like a room that has a place/area for everything we do. So that we dont have to keep going somewhere else in the house to use something, kwim?

 

Also a warm room! Ours right now is in an add-on and its quite chilly. When the spring comes I love it because we have a lottttt of windows (almost one whole wall is windows) which I would like to have in our future school room. They are great for making observations throughout the day.

[PachiSusan]

 

 

Found it!! It has pics of over 300 home school rooms: http://heartofthematteronline.com/nbtsbh-2011-week-two/

 

 

Thank you!!! Off to looksie!!

[LNC]

 

 

Found it!! It has pics of over 300 home school rooms: http://heartofthematteronline.com/nbtsbh-2011-week-two/

 

Here is the 2012 schoolroom blog hop link:

http://www.ihomeschoolnetwork.com/nbts-blog-hop-school-room-week/

[chicagoshannon]

If I were to make a homeschool room in the basement it would have to have an adjacent play room for the 2 yr old. That would be my #1 requirement.

 

Beyond that I'd want a bathroom, full wall of floor to ceiling bookshelves, a walk in closet to store paper/art supplies ect, a dining room sized table, and a comfy couch.

[Shawna in North CA]

Well, I've had a school room. Didn't use it. When we moved, I had two options for a school room. (Well, three, actually.) I had an actual room or a huge loft to choose from. I chose door #3 and we use the dining/living room. I find it much more efficient to not be secluded in a separate room. Also, my son does not like to be alone, so having him close by when I am cooking or doing laundry or just reading (when he is dawdling!) is very helpful. I could not imagine having a school room down in a basement, I would never go down there. I made our spare room our library. It is full of books, but we only go in there to grab a book and we bring it out to the family room. I would personally use a basement for another purpose, just my $.02.

 

As far as color, my library is teal. :) I am definitely a visual person that likes happy colors.

 

 

I totally agree, and this has been my experience. We lived in a darling, farmhouse style home with an attached garage that we converted to my dream school room. It was absolutely beautiful, especially when there were not kids in it. But when thre were kids in it, it quickly became a disaster zone, because more times than not, they were in there with out me. That is because my house is a home and not a school. I have to integrate "school" with "life." And that means lots of multitasking. Putting dinner in the crockpot while facilitating a spelling test. Folding laundry while we listen to an audiobook, etc. Separating school from life by way of a separate room DID NOT work for me.

 

It also caused me to accumulate lots of stuff that I didnt' need. When we did move, I purged about 75% of my "school" stuff, becuase again, this is not a school...its a home. Our new house is an open ranch style. Bedrooms surround a huge, open, living and dining area. I have 2 kitchen tables and a short kids-size tables, book shelves, toys shelves, my desk, art cabinets, comfy couches, a woodstove, and awesome views out to our barnyard and pond. Learning and living are very integrated in this space, and I find it is much more natural to homeschool in this integrated room.

[Squiddles]

Well... the basement is a daylight basement... so it is where we go in and out to the backyard/garden, it is also where our woodstove is, where the TV/couch is, where the piano is, there is a full bathroom and a laundry room... it is the only place in the house where I will have room for our homeschool supplies... so it makes no sense for us to have a schooling space anywhere else in the house. I don't spend a lot of time in the kitchen, so that is not a worry for me.

 

And, of course, I will never "demand" that a child stay in a specific place to study... I grew up doing my school all over the house, including laying on my bed or sun bathing on the roof... :thumbup1:

 

I love the Reggio Emilia approach to learning... my whole home is painted in neutral colors, with lots of wood, plants and other natural materials, so I imagine the downstairs will be the same... decorated of course with the colors of my kids' artwork...

 

Thanks for all the ideas! :thumbup:

[AK_Mom4]

My "perfect" homeschool room would be an open porch near the beach with gentle tropical breezes and gorgeous views of the ocean.

 

What I have though, is one end of our dining room where our computer desk is up against the wall. DD11 has a smaller desk up against the end of mine and we have a small book case for DD's text books. School often overflows to the dining room table for extra space or the living room for reading. We have a small white board on the wall. There is a giant pair of moose horns on the wall above my desk and a 4'x3' poster of the moon above DD's desk. That's our whole decorating scheme right there.

[ChrisOR]

We have a home for homeschool ... with a kitchen table, many bookshelves, and a cute old dresser full of supplies. We started this when we had a house that had the most beautiful natural light in the living room, so that's where we put up our shelves and a little round coffee table with vintage wooden chairs (our kids were early elementary at the time).

[mamawaabangi]

Here is our current home school room... this...

I would add some more color, a cool globe light hanging over our table, floor to ceiling bookshelves and a "cooler" chair for me!

[momto10blessings]

I don't even care what it looks like, so long as it comes with a maid that cleans while we sleep so we can awake to a nice clean room with all the papers put away and crayons in their place. I'd love not to ever have to worry about it.

[Oakblossoms]

I have had one and it was ok. But, in your situation I would have cabinets that were deep with doors so I could cover up all the supplies.

 

I would put in a mini kitchen for snacks and a little fridge. I would have a science spot and a locked cabinet for all the supplies.

 

I would do a chalkboard wall and cubbies to rotate toys for my younger one.

 

I would make an area for jackets and shoes.

 

Comfy couch and chairs. Maybe the TV down there because I love not having a TV in my living room. It is awesome to have guests and they have to talk instead of watch TV.

 

A comfort corner with pillows and little shelves for cranky kids to go to when upset.

 

A punching bag.

A hammock.

 

[Angie in VA]

After seeing the one below, all others are inferior!

 

http://mthopeacademy.blogspot.com/2011/09/mt-hope-academy-live-and-learn-studio.html

[ZeeMommy]

Cabinets that stuff actually fits into, and clear bins to organize them with (glass-clear, not fuzzy-plastic clear). The kind of bookshelves where the front of the book faces out (maybe the muchkins could actually get books put away neatly then!) Big sliding glass window facing a backyard with bird feeders. Kitchen sink or something like it (have that, thankfully). Lots of wall space for posters and artwork. Big table and chairs (have that too, again thankfully!) Room for wiggling and jumping. Lots of natural light. Bathroom close by. Did I say cabinets with bins and pull-out drawers? Oh, and good cabinets...

 

Our "school room" is downstairs, in what used to be our MIL's kitchen. It's there because there is no other space available for the school stuff, and because the computer is there too.