Well it has happened to me again, my OCD (Organizing, Cleaning, and Decorating) has let loose!!! We just celebrated the Fourth of July and will not start school until August but I could not wait any longer to bust out all my new ideas and set up our work area!!!!
We do not have a big house or an extra room to spare so we do school in the dining room and usually move into the living room before the morning is up! I have to utilize our space an I learned a lot from last year and especially some things that needed change.
Our laundry room is not to far from our school room so most of our stuff is kept neatly on the bookcase in there. I try to pull out what I need on a weekly basis. Last year I ran back and forth between the two rooms and though it was a great workout we missed a lot of learning time
This year I remembered the old art easel from my girls and pulled it out! 😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃
It has the whiteboard and chalk board. Last year I used a small portable whiteboard that sat on the table. I also like how I can utilize the trays, though I wish they could hold all the books but hey are not strong or big enough. It does hold our read loud, white boards, markers, stamps, tickets for good work, flash cards, and pointers at least for now! I can also clip posters or chart paper to write on to the easel. It is easy to move when needed, cute, functional, and a great space/organizer. I can even put my basket of weekly items needed underneath! It contains my plans, guide books, copies, and things for Ian, as well as my assessment binder.
I also added a poster and some clips to make the kids a place to display their work!
Another great thing I will add next year is letting the girls be responsible for their backpacks, bringing them to school, keeping them at their seats to take out what they need instead of me giving it to them, and them putting them up. They need a little accountability and mommy needs less to do each day. Their backpacks hold their workbooks for math and phonics, HOD binders, school boxes, and reading books.
Another new thing for this year is that I set up a place for Ian, even though he will not be doing formal school yet I felt he needed a special place to work. We will focus on shapes, numbers, letters, writing his name, using materials correctly, and other age appropriate things for him. Right now he has his posters, his own pocket chart : ), and the fridge is right behind his area so he had his magnetic letters!! He is already excited. I also made him a special drawer in the school shelf with things for him to use and will maintain as needed. I have a separate game/puzzle/coloring/play dough shelf in another closet that the kids can visit on their own. Ian's corner will also be used by two other preschoolers that I babysit. I hope it woks well. In my mind and the way it looks set up it is perfect but I won't truly know until we get up and running in the next month.
I know are space is small and not ideal for all but is us our happy homeschool corner of the world and it works for us. Now I am wondering where to put my OCD skills to work...bedrooms, bathrooms, closets, floors, the kitchen, the sheds, the possibilities are endless!
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