Homeschool Desks--Where the Learning Happens

My desk has a nearby cabinet and laptop table.

We own lots of tables and desks.

If anyone were to come to my house, he/she would be astounded at how many desks and tables we own.  I have all sorts for all kinds of reasons and purposes.  I have wooden ones.  I have metal ones.  I even have some that fold.

This is the front of my desk, which I bought at Goodwill.

 

At this time, I am using this desk to plan our homeschooling and household.  I might change things up soon.  I am constantly moving things around until I see efficiency take shape.  My oldest son used this desk for a while.  I might take back an old wooden table that's in his room and give him back this desk; I think he needs it.

Currently, oldest son does his work here.

My oldest son does his schoolwork on this dining table.  We placed a wooden table in his room, but he didn't like it.  I know he likes to spread out.  What I don't like is that we have to rush after dinner at times.  Also, the table doesn't get cleaned properly; I'm afraid his work could get ruined with spilled food.

 

Oldest son holds his work on right sides of two shelves.

Around 7 or 8 p.m., my oldest son brings his work to the dining table.  He brings them from the shelves in his room.  He actually does his schoolwork a day ahead.  He does that so he can have the early part of the next day to play on his computer.  Don't worry; he still does his chores.

Hubby and youngest use this computer desk.

Youngest daughter uses this computer desk.

In the dining area, my husband and youngest daughter use the same computer.  During the day, while Daddy is at work, my youngest visits websites like www.starfall.com and www.netflix.com.  In the evening, my husband comes home to check the bank against his register.  He also visits www.craigslist.org for items he is interested in.

My daughters do their work here in their bedroom.

Both of these tables are adjustable.  Older daughter does work on the left table.  My youngest does her work on the right.  Previously, older one was sitting on her bed, but we removed the bunk beds.  I brought in the chair. 

I shifted the girls away from sitting on their bed because of their backs.  I noticed they were slouching too much.  Also, having removed the bunk beds has offered more lighting for their schoolwork.  The youngest one had also started doing her work on the bed and wanted to nip that in the bud.

When oldest is done with her work, she boxes it away.  From another box, she pulls out her Net book and tablet and places them on the green blue table. 

This was my younger son's previous desk.

This is currently younger son's "desk" in his room.

I decided to let my younger son have one of my folding tables as his "desk."  This is one of the tables that has had many uses, including for yard sale displays and as the guest's table.  I realized that the previous desk was too narrow.  We still have that table in my storage shed; don't know what I'll do with it.  We had bought it from another homeschool family.

It became obvious that my younger son needed to do his work at his own time and in his own space.  He can be highly distracted with too much stimuli.  Sometimes, he does his work ahead of time, too.  There are times when he's needed help; he's come to me and ended up doing some work on my bed.  That has become more rare as he has matured.

There is no right or wrong place to school within the home.

Well, I've blogged in bits and pieces about this topic before.  I just wanted to take the time to show where all of our children are learning.  Their spaces are tailored to their needs.  I wanted to compile it to show others who are struggling with whether they have the right spaces for their own  homeschooling families.  Realistically, every family should come up with what works for them.

Thanks so much for reading this entry about where my children are doing their learning.  I appreciate you stopping by my blog.

How about you, my readers?  For those of you who homeschool, where do your children learn?  Do your children school in one place?  Or are they scattered like mine?  Over the years, we have migrated from the dining table to other locations, including my bed, due to my illness or pregnancy.  The whole world, really, is our table.  Let's remember that, too.

I pray that God helps us homeschoolers to find the right locations for our children to learn.  May God bless us all with His wisdom and peace, as we teach our children.

This has been an entry for Thorough Thursdays.  Hope you liked it.

Homeschool Organization 1: Manipulatives, Books, Teaching Material, & Environment

Kaelyn, now 6 yrs. old, is happily using her learning space.

It is one thing to consider homeschooling.  It is another to realize that clutter can develop.  How does one handle it?  Decluttering is one solution.  Organizing is another option.

It is challenging to organize the homeschool.  A homeschool has the blending of a traditional house and the learning materials.  I have been homeschooling for over 10 years.  I have accumulated a lot of books, workbooks, and hands on materials.  It is easy to think of just chucking it all; that would be the end of the clutter.

The reality is that I have children ranging from Kindergarten all the way to high school.  Any good homeschooling parent will tell you that they keep some of that stuff for the younger children.  Fortunately, I have been slowly getting rid of material as Kaelyn, the youngest, outgrows it.  I've given away countless books, workbooks, and puzzles that all my children no longer need.  No, I'm not planning to have any more children, either; that's why I've been sharing Kaelyn's stuff.

Old entertainment center holds learning material like board games and 3D shapes.

Having a background in teaching has given me an edge at homeschooling.  I learned how to teach children.  I learned how to discipline students.  I learned about teaching styles and learning styles.  I also learned how to organize teaching material.

Organize books according to theme or type.  Line up spine to edge of shelf.

I learned about the need for books, which are rich sources of information.  I worked several times in libraries before having my children.  I learned a few tricks to organize books.  I organize books by subject.  I organize books by type, whether hard back or softback.

Hardback books are separate from softback books.

Manipulatives--hands on materials I've collected.

I learned about the need for manipulatives.  They are hands on learning materials, like the ones above.  It has been fun to use colorful rhyming wheels to teach phonics.  I also had to learn how to store them properly.  That's why I decided to use Kaelyn's panda bear box to store those for her grade in her room.

Panda Bear box holds Kaelyn's kindergarten manipulatives.

White bookcase holds material by grade level.

I've learned that it is necessary to have our learning materials in an organized manner.  That helps the educator, me, pull out the necessary tools for teaching a particular lesson.  It also helps my children reach the material if they desire to learn more about a particular subject.  When the homeschooling materials are organized, learning is more efficient.  Everyone is happier in our homeschool.

I hope this blog entry has served to help with ideas on how to organize learning materials.  Whether you are a homeschooling parent or not, you can still glean some ideas on how to organize your books and other learning aids.  I hope to blog on how to organize the posters, arts and crafts, audio/visual aids, and other manipulatives in the future.

My living room houses organized bookcases and cleared sofas, as part of an inviting learning space.

I keep dining table clear where my oldest does his schoolwork.

How about you, my readers?  Are your books organized in some way?  Is your home an inviting environment, conducive to learning?  I highly suggest assessing your home to see if the children in your life have opportunities (learning tools) to find books and other materials to use.

I pray that God bless you all, my dear readers, with His wisdom and peace.

This has been an entry for Thorough Thursdays. 

Training Up a Child

Training is part of a child's upbringing.

Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

--Proverbs 22:6

I thought I would start this entry in a funny way.  Perhaps seeing this picture of a train will remind you of this entry.  This old Hot Wheels train has been in our family for many years.  You can see how old it is by looking at its wheels.  Yes, it has been played with so many times.

Just like that Hot Wheels toy has been played with many times, this Bible verse has been used many times as well.  I like to use a concordance, specifically The New Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible.  I use it to define words that I might not understand.  I use it to help me get a better grasp of something special in the Bible.  It is a perfect companion for Bible studies.

Let's break down the verse I am focusing on:

train-to discipline; to hone in on the learning; to dedicate

child-youth

way-journey; course of life

old-grown up

depart-reject; leave undone

Now that we have a few definitions, we can understand more fully what the Bible verse says.  Basically, the parent, guardian, caretaker, teacher, or any other such person dedicates his/her life to raise the youth.  This person must discipline and/or hone the learning for the child.  This individual is charged with showing the child the journey or the course of life that he/she should follow.  When that youth grows up, because of all the learning he has done, in the hands of the teacher, he will leave nothing undone.  

He/She will not reject their learning because it is ground down into their psyche.  Now, I'm gonna give you the definition of psyche:

psyche  psy·che (sī'kē)
n.
 The mind functioning as the center of thought, emotion, and behavior and consciously or unconsciously mediating the body's responses to the social and physical environment.

psyche. (n.d.). The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary. Retrieved March 27, 2011, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/psyche

I added psyche to the mix because it explains why the child will not veer from what he has learned.  It is like the child has information seared into his brain, like a rancher who brands his cattle for identification.  This is like when a person burns songs onto a CD.  

I'm just trying to help you, my reader, understand why it is so important to take the time to assess what the youth around you are learning.  

Our children are constantly learning from us, whether we understand it or not.  I think it is important to purposely teach our children what they need to learn.  After all, our children are a reflection of us.  We must teach our children quickly before they leave our homes.  It is important to note that what we teach them will determine how they interact with the world around them.

Oh, there is so much to teach.  

Will we fit it all in?  

With God's help anything is possible.

How about you, my readers?  Do you every wonder what your children are learning?  Are you taking time to discuss with them their path in life?  I hope you do have conversations with them.  Our youth need direction.

My beloveds, may God bless you all with His peace and wisdom.

This has been an entry for Spiritual Sundays.  I hope you enjoyed it.

To compile this mini- bible study, I visited: http://www.biblestudytools.com/

Animal Crossing Wii Game for Learning

Kaelyn playing on the Wii Animal Crossing game and learning.

There are controversial ways for children to get educated.  One of those ways is with technology.  Take, for example, the Nintendo Wii game console.  Video gaming is thought to produce obese children, but mine are not obese (as you can see from the picture above).  Before buying this console, we researched and found that the alternatives to this gaming console would offer violent games.

I trust the Nintendo family of gaming systems.  Many of their games are educational.  Nintendo was also the first to offer exercise alternatives for adults.  We had originally bought the Animal Crossing game for the GameCube.  Even I played it for a while because it helped the kids and me bond.

READING AND WRITING

The pull of Animal Crossing is multi-faceted.  It encourages reading in that you need to read what the animal villagers say to you and each other.  You also need to read the letters that are sent to you by the villager or your "fake" mom as my five year-old calls her.  Along with that, you are encouraged to write letters to the villagers.  You also get to create greetings for the villagers and read the town signs for upcoming events like fishing tourneys and birthdays.

MATH

For math, you pay with bells for merchandise like furniture at a store.  You learn how to make money by selling fruit, furniture, clothing, fish, insects, and sea shells.  You get to participate in flea market days.  You  pay a mortgage for your home and its upgrades.  You learn how to save money in the bank and use a debit card in the city if you need to withdraw money for a big purchase.

SCIENCE

For science, you catch fish and insects (and are provided with a dictionary) and find fossils.  You also take some of the animal life to the museum (where the curator, who is an owl, informs you of the specimen) to build up the collections.  You plant flowers to decorate the village and learn how to make new breeds of flowers (in Wii version of the game).  You learn how to balance the ratio of trees and flowers within your village.  You are also encouraged to participate in a yearly exercise special around the beginning of the traditional school year. 

ART

For art, there are paintings you buy and then donate to the museum.   You also get to decorate the inside of your house with the furniture you accumulate.  Some of the furniture is sold by themes which boost your points in your decorating skills.  You can design, wear, and display clothes (which the animal villagers might actually wear)  For music, you attend a concert given by the visiting dog who sings you a random song (or a special request) which you download into a radio inside your house; and you can create a town tune.

EXTRAS

You are responsible for watering plants or else they will die (in the more recent versions of the game).  You are introduced to grooming for your hair and shoes.  You learn about recycling.  You get to donate to the town fund.  You get to visit the city where you socialize with other animals.  You learn about emotions, while attending a theater.

I hope I have provided valid educational merit for the Animal Crossing game.  I think it's sad that some people are not willing to utilize technology.  I, for one, appreciate it.  I stand out as a home educator because at my university (where I was studying to be an elementary teacher), I was trained to analyze the usefulness of a piece of technology.  Since then, I have been a true believer in the merit of using games like Oregon Trail software with computers to interact with history.

Using technology to educate children may not be everyone's cup of tea.  I respect that.  I have realized, though, that our world has changed so much.  We have technology all around us--Smartphones, Laptops, Blue-ray Disc Players, MP3 Players, Apple ipods, and HD TVs.  We must somehow embrace the technological advances or get left behind.

How about you, my wonderful readers?  Do you allow the use of video games in your homes?  Do you use technology to teach the children in your life?  I hope you will consider it.  Some visual learners may benefit from it.

God bless you all with His peace, my beloveds.