Homeschool Room: 2020 Update

Our Homeschool Room undergoes the most changes in our home. I find myself constantly reorganizing as the kids grow older and as we acquire more books and materials.

This is how our room currently looks like as of March 2020. This is where I teach my 5 year old who starts Kindergarten and a 1 year old who isn’t really homeschooling yet. Haha. 😉

A Shared Workspace

Welcome! This is the view upon entering the door to our homeschool room. I have a kiddie table and chair for Luke at the center and my own table at the back.

The room was definitely designed with the kids in mind but I’ve always made sure that I have my own space as well. My table faces the rest of the room, so that I can work and keep an eye out at the same time. Think of it as my Teacher’s desk. 😉

School Shelf: Curriculum + Materials

Here we have our front-facing book shelf, where I put books that I want the kids to check out themselves. Beside it is Luke’s guitar, hooked on a wall. And on the other side is a shelf, where I put our materials for schooling (see more below!)

The shelf on the left is custom built to make sure that they fit all of our bigger books. You cannot believe how hard it is to find shelves that are big enough to house those gorgeous reference books!

I utilized the very top space to display prints of artworks that we are currently using for picture study. We are doing Matisse right now, as you can see! 😉

The upper shelf is where I placed all our curriculum (with workbooks and materials.)

I sorted them according to subject and placed them on individual bins. This system really works for us. I find it very convenient because all I need to do is just pull out the bin of whichever subject we will be discussing at that time.

The lower shelf contains most of the big, picture reference books we use often.

It’s also where I placed our collection of book sets. I used my all-time favorite rectangular bins from Keyway, which are perfect in keeping these paperback book sets tidy. Don’t they look SO nice, all grouped together and neatly labelled? 😉

Easy Access Materials

I use Simply Modular panels for our shelves on this section. I love that I have the flexibility to adjust them.

But most of all, I love how they coincidentally fit exactly 5 of my book bins! YES! Talk about things being meant to be.

Let’s start at the top of the shelves. I call these my easy-access bins because we go back to them regularly. They are arranged according to category.

I highly recommend having a “CLEAN” bin on playrooms, complete with tissue, rags, a mini table sweeper alcohol spray and wipes. So useful.

Again, I used my favorite rectangular bins from Keyway. You’ll see these bins all around our home because I just LOVE how neat they make things look and how versatile they are at the same time. Clean, straight-edged containers are great for maximizing the space.*

* I got these bins at The SM Store but you can also checkout their website and inquire directly.

Display Area

One of my better ideas, if I may say so myself lol, was creating a designated space for all of the kids’ “Works-in-Progress.” This is where we put crafts that are not yet done or maybe artworks that need drying up!

Beside it is a space with a sign that says “Currently on Display” where we get to showcase their latest finished craft.

And on the other side, is a wooden box labelled “Scratch Papers.” Also very useful to have,

Having these designated spaces for those specific purposes really helped us keep the room tidy even as we work on messy projects!

Fiction Book Collection

I use book bins to sort our fiction books. They’re not really “book bins” though, but are actually plastic document/file holders that I got from one of those Japanese dollar stores. Hehe. But they are PERFECT for storing books in.

Since a lot of our fiction books are thin paperbacks, it really helps to have them all grouped and sorted out together this way. I also arranged them into sub-categories depending on their theme.

Bible Study Corner

I grouped all our Bibles, devotionals and books related to studying the Bible, together in one shelf. We always start our day with a prayer and Bible reading so it’s important that these materials are within easy reach.

Nature Study Corner

Inspired by Charlotte Mason’s philosophy, we are trying to encourage more outdoor time and nature study for the kids.

This is the designated area for Luke’s nature journal, outdoor tools and the spot where he dumps his leaf and rock treasures after a walk. Haha.

Hidden Corner Box for Educational Toys

I wanted to maximize literally every corner. And since it was impossible to form a shelf at this area, I formed an open top box using our Simply Modular panels instead. This is where I store educational games and puzzles for the kids to use.

Non-Fiction Book Collection

This built-in shelf was already here when we got the house. It was meant to be a TV cabinet but we don’t really need a TV here.

So, I had shelves installed and turned it into a bookshelf. This is where we place almost all of our non-fiction books. Yes, our walls are basically covered in books. Haha.

I had a hard time thinking of the perfect way to organize these. I initially thought of size, color and even alphabetical but they just don’t seem practical.

Finally, I decided to arrange them by topic (with sub-topics) and it has been working well for us!

All the labels have icons to make it easier for our visual learners. You can tell I had fun choosing the illustrations, right? Haha.

I made these labels on my own: just designed them in Photoshop, printed then laminated and stuck them using tape!

Our Supplies Cabinet

And because we have a TON of other things, I decided to stuff them all inside a closed cabinet. Keeping them inside, instead of displayed outside, helps keep the room from looking too busy.

Of course, it also helps if it’s neat inside! So I really tried my best with this one.

This cabinet was originally intended to be one for clothes. But since we are using this room as a school room, I had shelves installed instead.

Here you can see how I organize things like the kids’ artworks, their handwritten letters and more. It was a challenge to come up with a suitable arrangement, but I think I’m happy with how this looks.

P.S. Spot my favorite Keyway bins again! Haha.

I had such a HARD TIME thinking of ways on how to sort all our bits and bobs.

But probably the tip that really helped me the most was to begin by taking out a LOT of things at the beginning so that they are easier to organize.

Baby Area

And lastly, here is our little baby corner with a few toys in cute baskets at the bottom.

Ok, it’s not really a full baby corner because I still placed learning materials on top, which are NOT for the baby and this is admittedly a problem. Dylan takes this as an invitation to grab all the things up there. Haha. I know, I know. It’s my fault. I’m working on it! 😉

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And there you have it!! This is the first year that Luke will be officially enrolled and we are both very excited. Ok, maybe more me than him. Haha!

Praying we have a fruitful homeschooling year ahead where God will be able to change Luke and I both for the better, for His glory!

Let me know at the comments below what you think and if you have questions!

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Related Posts:

• Tips When Setting Up Your Homeschool Room
• Homeschool Room: 2017-2018
• How We Homeschool: 5 Years Old
• How We Homeschool: 4 Years Old
• How We Homeschool: Pre-K Level