anyone not do their homeschooling at home?

[luckymom]

I am wondering if anyone takes their books - on a regular basis - somewhere outside the home to do school.

 

It just occured to me that we could each have a rolling backpack with our books and take school to the library. I could teach each dc and have the others work independently or read from books at the library. OR, we could take the books to a diner and work there while eating BLTs. OR, we could go to the botanical gardens and do school there and take breaks by running through the trees.

 

PLUS - my house would be less of a mess! I could walk out in the morning with a picnic lunch, leave dinner in the crockpot, return after school and activities, and not have a huge mess in my house.

 

Ideas? Thoughts? Experiences?

[Guest Alte Veste Academy]

PLUS - my house would be less of a mess! I could walk out in the morning with a picnic lunch, leave dinner in the crockpot, return after school and activities, and not have a huge mess in my house.

 

We do this but only in the back yard. We have taken our poetry tea time and turned it into poetry picnics since Spring has sprung. We work on the patio table. We do most of our reading on my gazebo swing. DS6 takes a lot of his reading up to the swingset fort. We also do most of our messy science in the garage.

 

We live in Texas, where the weather is generally fit for this sort of thing year round. The kids play outside 75% of the time and yes, my house is much tidier for it. :001_smile:

 

The botanic garden is a great suggestion. Of course, with kids the ages of mine, they would have to bore of it before they would actuall be able to get anything accomplished, you know? The novelty of it would be very distracting at first.

 

You might be on to something as a general idea though.

[1GirlTwinBoys]

Sounds good to me. :001_smile:

 

My 3 are young~preK and K so we do a lot of our school in my bed being cozy which is nice too.

[Sara in WA]

Only you know your kids and if they can and will concentrate in different areas. I find routine and minimal distraction to be very helpful. My kids are younger, so things will change.

 

Our "out of home" schooling is once a week. We drive an hour each way to some music lessons. The way there we listen to SOTW and the kids do the coloring page and discuss the chapter. We do some school work between lessons. On the way home we listen to our Classical Conversations memory work or a book on CD.

[swellmomma]

On the really nice days of spring/summer/fall we often do school outside soaking up the rays. Here they are working this fall outside (and yes dd is sitting in a swing with the picnic table pulled up to her). I try not to bring school to public places because it is a futile effort to do it then, the kids get WAY too distracted. We do listen to audio books and sotw cd's in the car though.

[LunaLee]

When I started hsing w/dd 3 years ago, we would do Starbucks School not because of the house issue, but because dd thought it was cool. We'd drop ds off at school and cruise to Starbucks. We actually did get a lot done, but stopped that practice when it got to be too expensive because both kids were home.

 

Now that dd is at school part time and ds is home full time, I've thought about doing it again, but Starbucks would be too distracting for ds. The library is perfect, unfortunately it doesn't open until noon on most days and 10 on the others. I can't wait to start school that late-ds would be most uncooperative. Plus, I didn't go back into doing something like that because I had talked myself into thinking that it's too much work to put all that stuff together to travel, but I like the rolling cart idea. It might work now, though, because I've gone to a weekly binder routine, plus I've had to do something like that on days when ds comes to work with me... Hmmm...I might just try it agian and maybe I could find a library a little further away, but opens sooner.

 

I do like the idea of getting away from the home, I think it's better not just for the kids, but for me also because then I'm less distracted too. There are no computers or dirty dishes and laundry that needs to get done. Plus, you're right having the house staying cleanish would be a benefit because yes I am a neat freak and messes make me crazy. It's okay, call me crazy and laugh if you want...

 

I say if you can find a place and system that works for you, go for it. Isn't that the beauty of homeschooling, or carschooling or Starbucksschooling, or libraryschooling or parkschooling...

Edited April 8, 2009 by LunaLee

[specialmama]

We used to go to the library to school several times a week. Now it's once every few months. I'm just too lazy to make sure we have everything packed and actually get out the door. The only time we succeed is when we have to... for example, if we're working on a research paper, well, it just makes sense to hang out and do all the research and mind-maps at the library. Besides, they won't let us take home all the World Books. :tongue_smilie:

 

We do go out and enjoy nature when it's nicer. I think we did school at a park or pond a half dozen times last year. It's a nice change, granted, but it has to happen on a not-so-crazy-busy day because I find it a wee stressful packing everything.

[ElizabethB]

My kids don't like to drive over 2 minutes (yes, our moves are always fun!) and they both enjoy being home, so we generally do school at home...but we do school outside or in different rooms. (Including the pantry--not me, just my daughter. She thought it was funny. I don't think we'd both fit in there, although it is the nicest pantry we've had in a while.)

 

Most churches have empty child care rooms during the day for people who really want another place to do school, you could always ask. I'm thinking most churches would be open to the idea, especially if offered a few donuts or cookies given on Friday for their Sunday service in return for using their space. (Or a homemade lunch once a week for staff!)

[Janet in Toronto]

I homeschooled one of my children for grades 4 and 5. We often spent a couple of afternoons a week schooling at the public library. I found it much less distracting than working at home, and he also had access to lots of reference material. We typically did history and science at the library and he also brought any other work that hadn't been finished up in the morning. We also did silent reading in the comfy chairs.

[christine in al]

I was a performing storyteller in a previous life and loved doing prep and research in diners. I liked the buzz around me and to be able to drink coffee while I worked....coffee that I didn't have to make :-)

 

I have read that that's a learning style thing. Some people work well with a bit of back ground energy/noise and some folks need it absolutely quiet.

 

If I'm going to be out, I want snacks. :)

but the library has worked for us too.

 

Sometimes I'm just sick of the house. Yesterday the kids wanted to work at the kitchen table. and our back deck is a favorite place.. but I still have to make the coffee.

 

~Christine in AL

[Harriet Vane]

I have done it quite a bit. At times when our discipline was flagging, schooling elsewhere really helped.

 

Both my kids keep their schoolbooks in rolling suitcases. Ds' is a cheap carry-on style from WalMart. Dd's workload is heavier, so this year I bought her a scrapbooking suitcase. That has worked well for her. It is effective not only for schooling elsewhere, but also because we tend to school all over the house. The suitcase goes where they go, and clean-up is quick and easy.

 

Usually we went to the library, though sometimes we went to a coffee shop or restaurant. My kids preferred the library because they could get fresh new free reading. The library was also nice because there is a park right outside. Sometimes I could sit inside by the window and watch ds take a skateboarding break; other times we'd leave our books at the table and have a long break in the park altogether. We got a ton of work done this way.

 

As dd has gotten older there are some things she prefers to type on the computer, so this has limited us somewhat. I am considering getting her a laptop so that we can be more mobile.

[NavyWifeandMommy]

I take our books outside and I teach my oldest while the younger ones play. There is also a play area on the base and I will take books there for my daughter to work on while the younger two play. I tried the library but it just got to distracting with trying to watch my younger two and teach. Then again the time I went it was crazy with preschoolers/babies and a school group. I'd go in the afternoon but my 4 year old NEEDS to rest/nap or my evenings are not so great. My 5 year old could still use a rest time also.

[springmama]

This is a great idea. I've seen other homeschooling families at the park and thought about doing it with my kids, but then I felt bad about my 3 year old playing on the slides while my 6year old sits at the table with me doing school. I guess if she were in ps, she'd be sitting in a classroom while I take the 3 year old to the park, so it would probably be fine. We could stay all day and take breaks to run around and play in between subjects. Maybe we'll do this today actually!

[AuntPol]

On Tuesdays, we do our homeschool out. We go to guitar for my son and I work with my daughter in the waiting area. Then we stop at the park for a snack and do mutual things. Then we go to tumbling for my daughter and I work with my son there. Before my daughter homeschooled, we could do all of the reading and writing portions of homeschool at her practice.

 

I work from home and occasionally have to work in the office and the kids do all school there on those days.

 

I promised them that since we are going to a year around calendar, we will take some of our stuff to pool in the mornings and do some lessons on the breaks (our pool makes kids get out for 10 minutes every hour).

 

I've been thinking of doing school at the park while it's so nice.

[DarlaS]

Every other Wednesday, my eldest has a class in a town 45 minutes from here. It's in a church and we're there for two hours. I get together snacks and enough schoolwork to do for the other three kids and we settle into an empty Sunday school room. We always leave it the way we found it (and go eat our snacks in the car).

 

That's 1.5 hrs of reading in the drivetime and 2 hrs of uninterrupted other academics. I've been amazed at how much we get done!

 

He'll be taking community college classes this fall and I'm looking forward to being out of the house at least 1-2 days a week for 2-3 hours (depending on which classes he chooses). This town's only 25 minutes away but there's still not a lot of sense in going home.

[momofkhm]

The olders said no. They would rather stay home with the distractions they knew.

[Jen in PA]

We have had some recent success using the library for schoolwork. I can put ds on a computer while I work with dd, then they switch places, then they curl up with a new book.... so it works out very nicely. I do a lot of reading aloud to both kids while they play outside or we sit on a picnic blanket.

[dragons in the flower bed]

I've done this with my six-year-old, who tends to be focused and disciplined about getting his schoolwork done anyway. Our local coffeehouse is staffed by nerdy hipsters and riot grrls. Last time we were there, we were served by a girl with bright red dreadlocks, multiple facial piercings, a red and black goth fairy outfit complete with striped tights, wings, giant black boots and tattoos. At one point, she came over to say that anytime we needed help we should bring it to the coffeehouse because she was a maths major at one of local colleges. She said it would be a joy to explain math stuff to such interested, disciplined and cute students!

 

I'm not sure how it would work with my other children, though. Also, I get performance anxiety about teaching. Even when I was a professional tutor, it was really hard to get into the flow if I knew parents were listening and critiquing my teaching in their heads.

[SheWillFly]

As soon as it is nice we are out of the house. My daughter loves reading while among the trees. The only thing we struggle to do out of the house is math. There is something about math that requires a table and real sit down consistency.

[skaterbabs]

We school at home... just not OUR home. ;) My MIL has a "sunroom" that we've transformed into the schoolroom/art studio (BIL is an artist) and every day we go over there for school.

[laughing lioness]

My friend used to school at her church. They lived 5 minutes away and the nursery of their church was a converted house. There were toys for her littles to play with, a kitchen and bath and it was familiar, but not familiar enough to trash :). She loved it!

[elegantlion]

We (both of us) are much too noisy and wiggly to get by doing school at the library. :001_huh:

 

My dh just set up a gazebo tent in the backyard and once it isn't freezing we'll do school under the tent.

 

I would love a coffee house with a math fairy, but I would also be apprehensive about doing too much teaching in public.

[Rhondabee]

I'm not planning this on a daily basis, but I am thinking at least once a week next year, we'll do part of our homeschool at the library. (They have rooms for privacy.) I just can't think of any other way to get my ds's to do their own searching and to use the reference books! I admit I haven't taken advantage of the library nearly enough, and this may completely fail!!!

[scrapbookbuzz]

Such wonderful ideas! May utilize a few of them myself!

[Rosy]

Our local grocery store has a kids drop-off area, I've dropped off the 3 youngers and done school with my oldest in the cafe area inside the store. We've only done that a few times, and they recently closed the drop-off area. :( Days like today I would LOVE to school somewhere else, but my younger kids would be even more of a distraction than they are at home.

[momto2Cs]

We school outisde in nice weather, and at the library a lot during the winter. Somehow we get more done at the library than at home - I think it's the peace and quiet, and lack of toys/TV/etc.

[Sahamamama]

I'm interested in these quiet libraries! I'd like to have one of those. Our library is always so NOISY, there's no way we would find it LESS distracting than being home (or on the subway).

 

There are usually groups of toddlers, children, school-aged children -- not always well supervised, if you KWIM. There is "Story Time," there are the library workers (also not well supervised, LOL), the front desk/circulation desk noises, the phones ringing, the copier, the bathrooms... all in the children's section. Sigh.

 

We probably need to move to a warmer climate, so we can HS outside, under the pine trees. My children and I seem to do best with the quiet "distractions" of nature. ;) They are less irritating to our souls.

[tammi]

I don't do it now, but I use to take the kids to the library. We would do it there while I read the newspaper or some books. The kids were a little older so they were more independent.

 

Tammi

[Mom22ns]

is our favorite "out of the house" place for homeschooling. We go to the library and to orchestra weekly, but we don't do "home" work in those places. My ds would find public places far too distracting to get work done, but we do make use our whole house. In the winter, we move upstairs in front of the fireplace sometimes. On nice days we head outside to the treehouse. I do think a change of scenery can be rejuvenating, but it has to remain "school".