Homeschooling in a small house

[rootzdawta]

I realize that I avoid certain craft activities because we just don't have a lot of space to spread things out and it just feels like everything is piled on top of everything else. I'm trying to think of ways to troubleshoot this and then I realize as the kids get older and we need more materials and books, how will I get everything organized and flowing in this small house? I'd love a separate room for our work but that's not the reality here. So do you have a small house? What are some organizational tips you have? Where do you do most of your work? TIA.

[moss]

i feel your pain

we have a teeny tiny house too. i try to keep clutter to a minimum (clutter eats space that we need!), we have lots of bookshelves lining the walls to help store the myriad learning resources that we have available. we have a very very large dining room table (ie it takes up the entire dining area) that works well for some projects. i refuse to have a coffee table in the living area because we use that space for big sprawling projects. we use old, large, queen sized sheets as dropsheets to protect the floor from crafts and to make cleanup easier. we dont leave projects out from day to day, it's just impossible. our rule is that everything gets put away before the next project gets started. i'd love to have a dedicated room for projects to live for their duration, but we just dont have the room for it right now.

i'll be watching this thread to see how other people cope with small spaces too.

[littlemizflava]

hmmm i am way past a small house we live in a 2 bedroom apartment. all i can say is the walls are my friends.
down the hall i have a bunch of small (20Lx20hx6d) wooden frame shelf with 9 cubbies in it. baskets sit on top of them. above them is 6"d shelves on the walls. we have 4 booksheves for books, "schoolbooks" and one & 1/2 hold games. 2 shelving units for stuff . the kids dont have a desk i built a drop table/desk on the wall in their room.
i use banker boxes for things that are needed but dont need to be out. the stack neat easy to pull out. i label them so it is easy to find what i need.

[Savoir Faire]

how small are we talking about?

[rootzdawta]

Two bedrooms, living room, kitchen and bathroom. One bedroom (the kids' room) is actually really small. Right now there are two toddler beds in there that take up 50% of the room. The rest is their bookcase (piled high with learning materials), a short (small) dresser (also piled high) and a chest of drawers which both are for clothes and diapers (DS2 is still cloth diapered).

The way my kitchen is set up, the kitchen table also serves as counter space. So if we do work in there, I have to move things off the table or aside and just kind of jam ourselves in there. I'm thinking of how we could make better use of the living room. We end up doing a lot of work on the coffee table but it's not really conducive to comfort.

[littlemizflava]

i think it has more to do with trying to figure out how to make more room. you can double the space for hanging clothing by having a length of pipe thread a wire threw. then wrap the wire around the closet rod at both ends and bingo a second rod it also makes the rod shorter for the little ones.

for the work table what about something like thishttp://www.ikea.com/ca/en/catalog/products/30062572

another homeschooling thing is my hall wall. the side with no shelfs due to having to walk down the hall but it gets well used. i painted 1-100, times table, shapes in different colors, animals, abc's. the months and seasons

[cappuccinosmom]

We've lived in houses at or under 1200 sq ft. Right now we're co-housing with family, so different situation, but I don't have the ability to store things the way I would if the house were all mine.

Wherever we live, I have a set space for school materials. At school time, we get them out. After school, we put them away. I have another set space for arts and crafts, and we do them at the dining room table, and then put everything away when we're done. I ahve also taken crafts out onto a porch or in the back yard, too. Especially if they're messy.

Right now this is how I'm set up: The boy's school books and materials are on two shelves in my (small) bedroom. Every morning I check the day's lesson and bring out to the table what we will need for it. In the dining room there is a small bench under one window. On top of that is where the school laptop is kept, on the shelf underneath is where all the craft paper goes, and under neath on the floor is a large plastic bin with stuff like puzzles and occasionally used craft stuff. To one side of that is a tiny plastic 3-drawer thing in which crayons, markers, glue, paints and scissors are kept. And that's about it. It's not my ideal set up but it's all well contained and organized so it works.

[MamaMonica]

Our place is bigger but still small with little storage space. The best thing I've found is to have a card table that can be folded up and put beside the couch when not used.

Craft projects take place on the card table if they are going to be set up for awhile. Otherwise lunch time comes, everyone is hungry and the kitchen table has a project strewn over it so there is no place to eat.

If it's a finite project like painting, I set up on the kitchen table right after lunch so it can be all cleaned up before dinner.

[Lillian J]

Originally Posted by littlemizflava

for the work table what about something like thishttp://www.ikea.com/ca/en/catalog/products/30062572

I just saw that at IKEA the other day - looked good! - and I also liked this roomy double one that's freestanding and has drawer storage: Gateleg table. Lillian

[Lillian J]

Also,for ease of set up and take down, art supplies can be kept in open caddies or baskets with handles. Supplies can be used right out of them. I use several different kinds of caddies for art supplies, but I can't recall where I got them. I know they're all over, though - probably in hardware and art/craft stores. Seems to me some of them are even sold in cleaning supply departments? - Lillian

[rootzdawta]

Originally Posted by littlemizflava

i think it has more to do with trying to figure out how to make more room. you can double the space for hanging clothing by having a length of pipe thread a wire threw. then wrap the wire around the closet rod at both ends and bingo a second rod it also makes the rod shorter for the little ones.

for the work table what about something like thishttp://www.ikea.com/ca/en/catalog/products/30062572

another homeschooling thing is my hall wall. the side with no shelfs due to having to walk down the hall but it gets well used. i painted 1-100, times table, shapes in different colors, animals, abc's. the months and seasons

Yes, I realize it definitely is about maximizing the space. The hall wall is an excellent idea. I could definitely use that area for colors and shapes for the baby and another part of that area as a word wall for my four year old.

Originally Posted by cappuccinosmom

We've lived in houses at or under 1200 sq ft. Right now we're co-housing with family, so different situation, but I don't have the ability to store things the way I would if the house were all mine.

Wherever we live, I have a set space for school materials. At school time, we get them out. After school, we put them away. I have another set space for arts and crafts, and we do them at the dining room table, and then put everything away when we're done. I ahve also taken crafts out onto a porch or in the back yard, too. Especially if they're messy.

Right now this is how I'm set up: The boy's school books and materials are on two shelves in my (small) bedroom. Every morning I check the day's lesson and bring out to the table what we will need for it. In the dining room there is a small bench under one window. On top of that is where the school laptop is kept, on the shelf underneath is where all the craft paper goes, and under neath on the floor is a large plastic bin with stuff like puzzles and occasionally used craft stuff. To one side of that is a tiny plastic 3-drawer thing in which crayons, markers, glue, paints and scissors are kept. And that's about it. It's not my ideal set up but it's all well contained and organized so it works.

I just thought about getting (yet another) bin. Wasn't too excited about it but really, bins really helped to get my kids room in order. I use a three-drawer bin for my yarn and stuff. If I get another one with wheels I could make that work I think. But ah, more bins. LoL.

Originally Posted by MamaMonica

Our place is bigger but still small with little storage space. The best thing I've found is to have a card table that can be folded up and put beside the couch when not used.

Craft projects take place on the card table if they are going to be set up for awhile. Otherwise lunch time comes, everyone is hungry and the kitchen table has a project strewn over it so there is no place to eat.

If it's a finite project like painting, I set up on the kitchen table right after lunch so it can be all cleaned up before dinner.

Now a card table I already have! This is a great idea and very portable.

Originally Posted by Lillian J

Also,for ease of set up and take down, art supplies can be kept in open caddies or baskets with handles. Supplies can be used right out of them. I use several different kinds of caddies for art supplies, but I can't recall where I got them. I know they're all over, though - probably in hardware and art/craft stores. Seems to me some of them are even sold in cleaning supply departments? - Lillian

I like the idea of open baskets but my little one is at a stage where that's too much of a temptation. He loves to dump things out just for the effect.

Thanks for the ideas everyone. I really want to get moving on this because we hardly do any art and crafts right now and I've come across some really cool ideas that I might actually enjoy doing myself.

[CariOfOz]

Our house isn't so small NOW, but the last place we rented had almost no storage and was fairly small. My secret weapon? The linen closet in the hallway I stole it! All of our towels & face cloths fit in the cabinet under the sink, and the extra set of sheets for each bed is stored in it's respective bedroom. I put an over the door pocket organizer (like the shoe ones) on the inside of the door and organized all our craft materials and a lot of our curriculum stuff on the shelves. I fit an amazing amount of stuff in there!

[FreeRangeMama]

I live in a house that is <1000sqft. We are a homeschooling family of 6. I found that in the early stages of homeschooling I felt compelled to collect learning materials. Educational books, manipulatives of all varieties, and more arts and craft supplies than anyone really needs. We were drowning in stuff!

One day it hit me, we don't really use MOST of the stuff I had collected. It is much more fun to get new and interesting books from the library. It is so great to collect art materials from nature! And the internet is an amazing resource for so many things! I got rid of an entire bookshelf worth of homeschooling books and drastically liquidated educational board games and manipulatives. We really keep very little around.

Right now each of my 4 have a work book (where all their stuff goes.....the 2 youngers like to copy the big kids). I have a collection of books we are working from that I got from the library (art- Van Gogh, inventors - Edison, etc.). I will just keep them until we are done with them and renew as necessary. Other stuff I found online and just keep saved for regular use (Shakespeare for kids, poetry, nature stories). I also use Rosetta Stone for French so I don't need to keep French books handy.

Other than that I keep paper, glue, crayons of all varieties, and a few select educational resources. It has been great because the kids are no longer overwhelmed by homeschooling clutter. They actually USE what we have. What we get from the library is treasured because we won't be keeping it forever. Everything else we need to know we learn from experiencing it.

One of the other benefits of having less is that I spend less time cleaning it all up which leaves more time for actual projects (like our herb garden!).

So instead of looking for more ways to store the stuff you already have, maybe you could try eliminating enough stuff so you can comfortably contain what is left

[Lillian J]

One of the best things I've ever found is this door rack - it hangs on the door very firmly, and it really holds a whole lot of stuff. I have mine facing inside a closet, but it could as easily hang on the outside of a door. If you click on the photo, you'll see a much better view of it. Everyone who sees it practically gasps - it's such a wonderful way of making the most of space that would otherwise be unused. I'm going to get more for other closet doors. - Lillian

[CariOfOz]

Originally Posted by Lillian J

One of the best things I've ever found is this door rack - it hangs on the door very firmly,

I'm heading to our equivalent shop the very next time I have the spare $$ and getting SEVERAL of those! I hate the way the other types work.. the fabric ones swing around or bang the door if they have anything hard in them and the other metal styles don't hang as firmly against the door as I'd like. THAT looks awesome

[Princess ConsuelaB]

We live in a small 2 bedroom apt. and have a similar kitchen table as counter space issue.

-We have a tall bookshelf in the living room which is dedicated to homeschooling stuff(actually it's more like one of those utility shelves which I've curtained nicely to *hide* the homeschool mess lol) ; it holds books, games and plastic caddies with art and craft supplies, math manipulatives or the like.

-Next to the bookshelf is a few small stacking milk-type crates I picked up cheap at walmart,they are kind of funky and colorful so they don't look too bad...Target or someplace like that would have something similar. One crate houses our "daily" work, that is, the girls language and math workbooks, read alouds, plus whichever history/science/etc materials we need for *right now*, this way I don't have to dig for stuff and I can just pull that crate and take it with us to wherever we want to work...whether that's the kitchen, a bedroom or the park.

-Tucked away in the little space by the fridge is a folding table. Most days at school time this table comes out by the shelves and we have school there in living room...and I don't have to worry about cramming into the kitchen, then when we are done the table slides back into it's slot by the fridge. On nice days we set the folding table up outside and bring our crate with us.

The kids also use the card table for crafts and art and it has to be put away when they are done, or done in their room. I'm pretty tolerant of having craft mess around however, because me and DH are creative too and usually have projects half done and lying around

[shoefairy3]

Oh I like the crate idea. Right now we are using a filing cabinet; one drawer per child's books, work, papers, etc.

[magnolia_mama]

We have small house issues too. Our house is a little less than 1000 square feet and we have 5 people and 2 pets occupying this space.

Our schooling has always taken place at either the kitchen table or living room couch. If the weather is nice, we sometimes sit on our front porch swing for reading, etc. The kids really like that! We have a small bookshelf in our dining area that houses many of our materials. We also have some things stored in what is meant to be a coat closet. My husband installed a shelving system (5 shelves) in the closet and we also use small plastic shoeboxes and those clear plastic drawer systems to organize the materials inside the closet.

Like most homeschoolers, we have more materials than space. I rotate items and have a large, plastic bin in our basement to store materials we aren't currently using.

I do have plans of creating a work area in our unfinished basement. We have a play room/storage room that I am working to clean out. I would like to have an area to hang up maps/artwork and more room to do crafts, etc.

[Fairy4tmama]

Right now we are 5ppl living in a 2 bd apartment on campus it only 547 sq feet and we are making it .

We have kitchen issues as well and what we do to help with the counter issue is to pull out the two utensil drawers and place a cutting board on each while cooking and prepping. This works better for me because I am not hunching over the table. we also have two kitchen tables. One table is for eating, one is for studying(mostly for dh and its where the laptop gets set up or projects that need to be left out like an in progress puzzle. That said DS lessons usually happen at the eating table. I wipe down the table after lunch and we do lessons at it using a modified workbox system (a box like thiswith 90% of what he needs for the days lessons).

We don't have a coffee table but we do have a big rubbermaid type bin at the end of the couch that serves as a storage and an end table.

Trays are our friend when it comes to projects weather, its legos, counting beans or play dough.

The biggest challenge for me is keeping the youngest two out from under foot while ds1 and I are working. even when they are happily playing together in the bedroom the noise level is very distracting.

[rootzdawta]

Originally Posted by Lillian J

One of the best things I've ever found is this door rack - it hangs on the door very firmly, and it really holds a whole lot of stuff. I have mine facing inside a closet, but it could as easily hang on the outside of a door. If you click on the photo, you'll see a much better view of it. Everyone who sees it practically gasps - it's such a wonderful way of making the most of space that would otherwise be unused. I'm going to get more for other closet doors. - Lillian

This is awesome. We have two doors leading into the kitchen. That would really add lots of storage.

And I like the idea of a work box and trays. . . something to contain all the things we are working on right now. Are these trays like serving trays?

Great ideas!