school room 1

Decide where your kids will do their work on home days:

  • Everyone at the kitchen table?
  • Each in his or her own room?
  • In the living room where your kids can spread out?
  • Giving your kids choices for certain activities can be motivational and break up the day.
 

Dedicated school room: Some families have a dedicated school room and some use the kitchen, dining room, or desks in student rooms. If your children are younger, it will be helpful to have them sitting close at hand for at least part of the day so they won’t spend large amounts of time waiting for you to come to them when they have questions. Where you choose to do school is up to you. The kitchen table works just as well for home days as a fancy school room.

What works best for your kids? Although you may like the idea of your child sitting at a designated desk to do schoolwork, you may find that this isn’t the environment most conducive to productivity for your child. Remember that boys are different from girls and each child is unique. Be willing to try different locations and have clipboards on hand for easy portability. Sometimes working outside is just what your child needs to break up the day and increase attention span. As long as the work is being done effectively, give it a try! That’s one of the benefits of school days at home.

school room 3

 

Staying Organized

Effective organization is key to your school day at home. It’s important for everyone to know where to find the supplies they need without searching or asking the co-teacher throughout the day. You can find great ideas for school room organization on Pinterest or by searching the internet if you need some inspiration.

Designate a place to keep returned work:

  • When take-home folders are full of papers, it’s hard for students to find assignments that need to be turned in. Remove graded work after school and place in a bin or file for each child. You can save time by just placing it in the bin, rather than filing it by subject.
  • Review assignments that show a lack of understanding. Look for opportunities to offer praise and encouragement!
  • Keep graded work until the end of the semester in case you need to locate a missing assignment or need to study the material for final exams.
 

Cleaning up: At the end of the school day, teach your kids to put away all materials. This is where a dedicated school room, closet, or cabinet becomes especially helpful. When the school day ends, everyone needs a break from the clutter that can naturally accumulate, and it becomes a large task for the co-teacher to put everything away alone. Even the youngest student can help.

 

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