Well the secret is out! We’re officially homeschooling this year. The decision to homeschool came with a lot of prayer, conversation, thought and time. While I understand that schools are trying the best they can with the regulations they are given, I, as a parent have to do what I feel is best for my child(ren). So do you. What works best for us won’t necessarily work best for you. Because of all of our unique positions during this time, I thought it would be awesome to share our ideas for this year, share some others and hear yours!
I’m excited to partner together again with Tomorrow, powered by Remake Learning as we share how learning environments might look different this year but still be beneficial for our amazing children. They have an incredible article about this called Beyond the Classroom Desk. It shares how some local schools in the Pittsburgh area are renovating and getting creative with their schools and classrooms.
Even if your family is still attending an on-location school, there is still learning time at home. Perhaps you’re like us and picking up homeschooling for the first time this year. Your home is going to be a large part of their learning environment. I wanted to share a couple of the immediate changes or things we’ve already been implementing in our home!
What Makes a Great Learning Space: Montessori Style
Last year we had the pleasure of sending Emmett to a Montessori Preschool. On any given day that you picked him up from school and asked him what he did he would say, “Play.” Initially this was a little frustrating to hear, not because I undervalue play or didn’t understand the root of Montessori, but because I just wanted a sneak peek into the things he was learning! The beauty of Montessori IS children learning through play though.
How many times have you been out at the grocery store and had to summon your Algebra 2 knowledge from Sophomore year? Probably never. How many times have you had to count coins though or mentally add up your bill total to make sure you were staying with your budget though? I am going to assume this has happened! Montessori is much like that where it takes normal things that you do or play with and helps fine tune special skills via them (albeit grocery shopping probably isn’t as fun!).
My goal for our “learning room” is to involve play through learning. I never learned too well as a child with just textbooks and from what I know of my son, that’s the last thing he wants. How will we do this? Through counting objects, building, magnets, Legos, beads, etc. Do I have all the activities thought out and planned? Definitely not. But I have a great Pinterest board started 😉 Here are a couple of the fundamentals that we have and will apply to our learning.
1. Simplicity
An aspect of Montessori learning is simplicity. As a parent when I walk into my children’s playroom and it is a jumbled mess, it stresses me out. I don’t know where to begin. Imagine being a child walking into a room with a thousand options and toys stacked on top of each other. It’s overwhelming. They don’t always know where to start. We have begun an ever revolving cycle of decluttering the playroom (and now the learning room). Instead of toys stacked on top of each other, we have begun eliminating toys that aren’t played with and begun to organize toys next to each other. We’re being intentional about the toys and researching ones that are helpful to our children also. LESS IS MORE. It’s amazing what you can find in there now. I have found our daughter drawing in there more than normal. Emmett has taken a sudden interest in wanting to vacuum constantly since it is easy to access in the closet now. ( We don’t question that one!)
2. Beauty
This is what I find wonderful about ANY classroom ANYWHERE. No matter what the outside of the building or home looks like, you have the power to create beauty INside the classroom. It doesn’t need to be elaborate (remember above *simplicity*) but a couple pretty pictures on the walls, no clutter, and organization can help promote a learning place of peace and beauty.
3. Life Skills
Life skills is one of my favorite aspects of Montessori. Because even if we’re out and about for a day, life skills still happen. It’s as simple as bringing your child alongside you. Learning to feed the dog. Water the herbs. Put away the silverware. Put toys back where they belong. Cleaning up their lunch plate. This is something that children carry with them for the rest of their lives and their future spouse will probably thank you for 😉
Only the Beginning….
While this is only the beginning of the school year and my ideas, my hope is that you find this post encouraging and manageable. Creating a learning space and environment in your home doesn’t need to be expensive or extravagant. It can be changing over time. Less is more. Living is learning.
Share with me! What do you think are great characteristics of a learning space?
