Any ideas for an affordable "school" building/room?

Question

We have 3 kids that we plan to homeschool, the oldest is 6 and she has been doing very well with the Abeka program. Now we're planning to start with the second one this year, and the problem is that we use the living room as the school room and there are just too many distractions, especially with a 2 year old running around.
We're on Whidbey Island in Washington state, so it is pretty chilly outside, but I have given some thought to using something like an old camping trailer or van parked outside next to the house. I can run electricity out there and have some way to heat it, but I'm wondering what everybody else is doing. The house is just too cramped to set any rooms aside.

Answer 1

We use the 4th bedroom as a school room. I decked it out with school bulletin board items, library shelves and a white board. It has worked well for us because it is the largest bedroom next to the master bedroom and it gives us plenty of room. Plus, I can close the door if my oldest needs quiet time with a test. That's what we did, anyway.

The outside option sounds like a good one. I like the idea of setting space aside specifically for study. Our whiteboard has been a real life-saver.

I'm not sure if you have a library close by but sometimes they have study rooms you can use, also. That might save you the expense of purchasing some kind of portable outdoor spot. I'm considering the use of the library part-time for my eldest son this fall. I like the idea of maybe incorporating some power point slides, other media, etc. Plus, with the library right outside the door, that would be very handy.

Good luck!

Answer 2

I think most of us use our kitchen tables, for the reasons mentioned above that we can do other things in the short pieces of time. Is there any way of getting something quiet for the toddler to do while you are schooling the older one? I know some people keep certain toys for their little ones to use. Also, if you were playing a review game, you could include the 2 other ones. For instance, when the kid got their item right they get to ____[hop like a frog, bat the balloon back to you, kick the ball to you, through the ball into the trashcan hoop, do a jumping jack, etc], and for the 6 yo she has to read a blend you hold up, the next kid identifies a letter you hold up, and the 2 yo has to say the color of the item you hold up. It is fine to hold up the exact same color item every time the 2 yo has a turn. I'm not sure having the outside area would work, since as someone already pointed out you'd still have the 2 yo running around, although having more space might help, plus maybe the 2 yo would be calmer in there since it would be a slightly different place, esp if you kept different toys in there.

Answer 3

We have a very small house, 3 kids and a dog. We use the kitchen table. This works well because it is well lit, there are no toys in there and I can do cooking, laundry, etc... while helping the kids. We keep the books on shelves in the entertainment center which is in the adjoining living room. At 6 and under I would keep school book time to small periods of time with plenty of breaks or hands on activities. At this age they need a lot of movement and tactile activities. Sometimes when they get distracted it just means they need some more physical activity, which you can build into their learning.

My daughter was very fidgety, so we did phonics twister, we hid her letters around the house for to run and find before building words with them. We even used a number line on the sidewalk to teach adding and subtracting (even negative numbers) while playing a game of hopscotch. Kids need to move! The more you move 'em around the less inattentive they are.

Answer 4

We use both our living room and kitchen for most of our school work. The living room is for reading aloud, writing practice, and other things. The kitchen is for messier projects I don't want near my carpets! I also took the advice of various books, so we have a lot of educational posters hanging in the toy room and bedrooms (maps, solar system charts, etc.) where the kids see them and learn even while playing. We also have bookshelves in the living room, bedrooms, and toyroom. I considered turning the toy room into a classroom, but I doubt all the toys would fit into everyone's bedrooms! Plus, we have a 1 1/2 yr old who would love to eat legos if allowed, so it's easier if all the toys are confined to one room. As for him, he takes a nap during school, then gets up and has special toys he's only allowed to play with during school hours. This keeps him occupied (usually). As he's getting older, I try to include him more in what we're doing. They're never too young to learn!

Answer 5

If you use a trailer or out-building, I assume you'll still have the distraction of the toddler, as you wouldn't leave the toddler alone inside.

Like someone else already said, we use the kitchen table. I have a cabinet in the kitchen (one with doors on it) where we keep all our school books. We also use the living room a lot for reading (literature, read-alouds, history, science reading). Our house isn't that big either, so we've filled every nook and cranny with bookshelves.

Answer 6

Hey, Whidbey Island! I have family in Langley. I love it there.

You don't mention whether you have acrage, and I don't know how zoning laws would apply, but have you considered one of those industrial containers that can be moved from a ship to a train or a truck? the big rectangular things?
I don't know what's affordable to you, but I think they start around $1000.

here's a place that serves the washington area: http://azteccontainer.com/storagecontainer20a.htm

Answer 7

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Answer 8

think most of us use our kitchen tables, for the reasons mentioned above that we can do other things in the short pieces of time. Is there any way of getting something quiet for the toddler to do while you are schooling the older one? I know some people keep certain toys for their little ones to use. Also, if you were playing a review game, you could include the 2 other ones. For instance, when the kid got their item right they get to ____[hop like a frothink most of us use our kitchen tables, for the reasons mentioned above that we can do other things in the short pieces of time. Is there any way of getting something quiet for the toddler to do while you are schooling the older one? I know some people keep certain toys for their little ones to use. Also, if you were playing a review game, you could include the 2 other ones. For instance, when the kid got their item right they get to ____[hop like a frog, bat the balloon back to you, kick the ball to you, through the ball into the trashcan hoop, do a jumping jack, etc], and for the 6 yo she has to read a blend you hold up, the next kid identifies a letter you hold up, and the 2 yo has to say the color of the item you hold up. It is fine to hold up the exact same color item every time the 2 yo has a turn. I'm not sure having the outside area would work, since as someone already pointed out you'd still have the 2 yo running around, although having more space might help, plus maybe the 2 yo would be calmer in there since it would be a slightly different place, esp if you kept different toys in there.
g, bat the balloon back to you, kick the ball to you, through the ball into the trashcan hoop, do a jumping jack, etc], and for the 6 yo she has to read a blend you hold up, the next kid identifies a letter you hold up, and the 2 yo has to say the color of the item you hold up. It is fine to hold up the exact same color item every time the 2 yo has a turn. I'm not sure having the outside area would work, since as someone already pointed out you'd still have the 2 yo running around, although having more space might help, plus maybe the 2 yo would be calmer in there since it would be a slightly different place, esp if you kept different toys in there.
think most of us use our kitchen tables, for the reasons mentioned above that we can do other things in the short pieces of time. Is there any way of getting something quiet for the toddler to do while you are schooling the older one? I know some people keep certain toys for their little ones to use. Also, if you were playing a review game, you could include the 2 other ones. For instance, when the kid got their item right they get to ____[hop like a frog, bat the balloon back to you, kick the ball to you, through the ball into the trashcan hoop, do a jumping jack, etc], and for the 6 yo she has to read a blend you hold up, the next kid identifies a letter you hold up, and the 2 yo has to say the color of the item you hold up. It is fine to hold up the exact same color item every time the 2 yo has a turn. I'm not sure having the outside area would work, since as someone already pointed out you'd still have the 2 yo running around, although having more space might help, plus maybe the 2 yo would be calmer in there since it would be a slightly different place, esp if you kept different toys in there.
think most of us use our kitchen tables, for the reasons mentioned above that we can do other things in the short pieces of time. Is there any way of getting something quiet for the toddler to do while you are schooling the older one? I know some people keep certain toys for their little ones to use. Also, if you were playing a review game, you could include the 2 other ones. For instance, when the kid got their item right they get to ____[hop like a frog, bat the balloon back to you, kick the ball to you, through the ball into the trashcan hoop, do a jumping jack, etc], and for the 6 yo she has to read a blend you hold up, the next kid identifies a letter you hold up, and the 2 yo has to say the color of the item you hold up. It is fine to hold up the exact same color item every time the 2 yo has a turn. I'm not sure having the outside area would work, since as someone already pointed out you'd still have the 2 yo running around, although having more space might help, plus maybe the 2 yo would be calmer in there since it would be a slightly different place, esp if you kept different toys in there.
think most of us use our kitchen tables, for the reasons mentioned above that we can do other things in the short pieces of time. Is there any way of getting something quiet for the toddler to do while you are schooling the older one? I know some people keep certain toys for their little ones to use. Also, if you were playing a review game, you could include the 2 other ones. For instance, when the kid got their item right they get to ____[hop like a frog, bat the balloon back to you, kick the ball to you, through the ball into the trashcan hoop, do a jumping jack, etc], and for the 6 yo she has to read a blend you hold up, the next kid identifies a letter you hold up, and the 2 yo has to say the color of the item you hold up. It is fine to hold up the exact same color item every time the 2 yo has a turn. I'm not sure having the outside area would work, since as someone already pointed out you'd still have the 2 yo running around, although having more space might help, plus maybe the 2 yo would be calmer in there since it would be a slightly different place, esp if you kept different toys in there.