Name: Spreading the Feast Gathering
Start: 2025-07-11T00:00:00-05:00
End: 2025-07-12T23:59:59-05:00
Location: LaGrange, KY

Tagged: morning basket, organization, Schooling in a small home, small house, small space

This topic has 11 replies, 10 voices, and was last updated 10 years, 9 months ago by Claire.

Viewing 12 posts - 1 through 12 (of 12 total)

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August 27, 2014 at 3:40 pm
Claire
Participant
Our home is very small now. When I started homeschooling it was very large. I’m afraid I’m not adjusting well! 🙁 Sadly this change did not just take place either. As you all know I moved years ago … so sad that I’m just now realizing it is an issue for us. I guess I’ve just had it with the struggles at this point and am sure their are solutions! Do you all have any tips on keeping things running smoothly in a small space? I’ll list a few things that I’ve realized are issues for us.
1. We feel crowded working in the room that houses all our supplies and books. If we spread out (we have a large dinning room table that is wonderful) then we tend to waste time on little things we need in the other room. I was thinking of trying to use something like a morning basket system to solve this but I haven’t wrapped my mind around it.
2. The two large dogs, one cat and six chickens are so close to us while we are schooling that everyone is falling victim to their needs and time’s a wasting. Take them all to the pound? LOL I’m thinking it’s habit training on all our parts to ignore them?
3. I reduced our computer count and one is located permanently (it’s a desktop) in the room with most of our other things and the other one is sort of mine- selfish I know. However, I like to be around the kids if they are doing current events, researching, typing up things, working online during lessons.
Thanks for any ideas of how to move about this space in an efficient way. I’m sure there is one! I can’t start up again – we’ve been on a little hiatus – with no new solutions. Help wise mamas.
August 27, 2014 at 6:10 pm
ibkim2
Participant
The only things I can think of are to use either part of a linen closet or a trunk/storage ottoman to store all books/supplies not in use. Then have a large portable crate (the kind with a handle and wheels) for each child’s current books, binders, and supplies (to be portable between rooms). Hopefully, these can be stored in their rooms or closets or under a side table when not in use. Create a cozy outdoor space for reading or journaling if possible. Maps and a dry erase board on the wall by the computer, in a hallway, or by the dining room table. A small coffee tin with extra pencils/pens in the center of the dining room table.
August 27, 2014 at 7:40 pm
Tristan
Participant
One idea I’ve considered trying before is giving the kids backpacks to put their books/pencils/etc in. Then they can simply grab the backpack and move anywhere to do school, with most of their materials right with them (independent work at least).
August 27, 2014 at 8:50 pm
Monica
Participant
I made crate seats for my kids this year, so their books, planner, and other materials are all contained and they are able to bring their work anywhere in the house. In the main living room, I have one small bookcase that holds this year’s book. Books for other years are stored away in other areas of the house (closets, other bookcases, etc.)
All of our schoolwork, though, is done in the living room, aside from when the kids are reading independently in their own rooms.
August 27, 2014 at 11:05 pm
cdm2kk
Participant
I have all school supplies in our living room, which is where we do school. First, I store all books for the current term under our coffee table. I have them where they can stand up and I can slide books in and out by using plastic desk organizer that is supposed to be for file folders. This keeps books from always falling over like they do with bookends etc. On other side of coffee table underneath, I have a child’s dictionary, thesarus, and their individual binders. On top of the coffee table I have a full plastic school box of map colors, another of pencils, and another of markers. My end table drawer contains post it notes, hole punch ring enforcement stickers, and my ear buds along with my lap top. I have my teacher binder between couch and end table. Lastly, I have a lap top table in living room beside entertainment center with a small child’s chair and kid’s laptop is there and situated where I can see the monitor at all times. on the wall is our white board so that they can work out math problems. They do teaching textbooks on the computer. beside the laptop is a box of whiteboard markers and an eraser. Our Map is mounted to a large corkboard that slides out from against a wall and we can flip it from the world map to the US map and mark all over it if we want. What helped me the most was their binders which are about 1″. I took any workbooks and hole punched the work and I place a weeks worth of work in the binder at a time. If I am goiing to have them do a written narration, then I just place a plain piece or paper under the tab for that subject. At a weeks end, I go through each childs binder and pull their work and enter work completed in CMO and then file work in binder labeled finished work. I have their master binders which are huge and hold the whole years worth of papers on a book shelf along with all the other books for the year that we will use. the rest of our library is on book shelves in our dining room, but if I didn’t have them, I would store books under my bed, or theirs if I had too. My teacher binder is also 1″ and again I place only my teacher’s guides or workbook answers etc for the term in there. So in all my school space is literally 10×8 space. I only have 2 kids though.
August 27, 2014 at 11:22 pm
Wings2fly
Participant
I love the bookcrate seats, jawgee!
Each student has a work box with lid and handles that their pencil and eraser fit in, too. They have all their seat work in it. And their reading books and art books and my teachers books go on one shelf. Their workboxes stack on one half of one shelf, with math manipulatives in a storage box on the other half of the shelf. The kids can grab their workbox and work where they need to and put everything back in it and put it away on the shelf when they are done.
Boxes like this, but the shorter 6.2 quart. (I tried this bigger box for son last year with readers and it was too heavy for him) http://www.walmart.com/ip/Sterilite-12.7-Quart-Latch-Box-Set-of-6/20699641
I have tall bookcases and cabinets throughout the house so I have my teacher supplies and future curriculum in another cabinet for storage.
August 28, 2014 at 5:01 am
vikingkirken
Participant
We also school in a small space 🙂 We recently finished our basement and added a very small addition, which took us from 650 sq ft up to 1100 sq ft and it feels really spacious! But that’s for six, going on seven of us 🙂
We have a 30″-wide cabinet in the living room where almost all our school books are stored. It has doors, so we’re not always staring at math workbooks and random worksheets. There’s also a small bookcase for library books and bedtime read-alouds. Writing and art supplies are stored in cardboard photo boxes from Michael’s–they’re nice-looking enough to leave out without it feeling like “school stuff” is taking over the house. A couple desktop magazine holders on a small desk surface, along with the laptop. A book basket by the fireplace that holds my “teacher” books and school read-alouds. I also have a rolling cart from IKEA that serves whatever is our most urgent need–it’s held playdoh and coloring books for the littles, science or art supplies, reading materials, etc. It’s wonderful because it’s so easy to roll from room to room.
Don’t waste vertical space! We are working on hanging shelves throughout our house at about a foot below the ceiling, wherever we can. They’re great for storing materials or household items you don’t use all the time, and they’re above head-height so they’re totally out-of-the-way.
If you need to store your materials in another room because of space, make it a routine each night to pull out everything you’ll need the next day. If your kids are responsible for their own materials, have them do the same. That way you’re not running to other rooms for stuff during school time… that’s a big one that has helped me a lot.
August 28, 2014 at 5:32 am
mom26gifts
Participant
I found this from Ikea–a rolling cart with 3 levels–for my morning basket. I really love it. Doesn’t take up much floor space, and you can roll it away when you are not using it. (Tried to copy and paste the link, but it didn’t work. Go to Ikea.com and look for the raskog kitchen cart.)

August 28, 2014 at 1:17 pm
HollyS
Participant
We are currently in a large house, but have homeschooled in smaller spaces. In the past, we’ve stored commonly used supplies in a cabinet or on a microwave stand (I kept art supplies in the bottom cabinet and books on the larger shelf where the microwave is supposed to go). I’ve also stored things in large rubbermaid bins and pulled them out as needed. We keep our large timline behind the couch and pull it out on our timeline day…you could keep maps this way if you had something to mount them on.
We keep their individual materials in those plastic bins for rinsing dishes (they are $2 each at Walmart). They can pull them out when it’s time to work on 3Rs. The rest of the time they are stored in the schoolroom. We sometimes work in there and more often work in our large living/dining room.
I keep our dog outside or on the back porch while we are doing school. Sometimes I keep him gated in the kitchen when it’s too hot or cold outside. We have noisy parakeets that I had to move out of the schoolroom! They get really loud in the mid-morning and early afternoon.
We keep our computer on an endtable in the living room. It’s not the most eye-appealing spot, but it’s easier to keep an eye on them there. We have a computer in an upstairs office, but I don’t like them using it…the computer is usually locked. We keep passwords on both computers so they aren’t getting online when they shouldn’t be. DH and I are the only ones that know the password.
August 28, 2014 at 8:12 pm
vikingkirken
Participant
mom26gifts, that’s the cart I have! I love it 🙂
August 28, 2014 at 11:53 pm
anniepeter
Participant
We’re schooling in small qtrs now too – camper and a 7.5′ x 15′ “bunkhouse”. The bunkhouse is our schoolroom/laundry room/storage of everything that needs to be at hand and doesn’t fit well in the camper. It’s interesting!! I have 12-square cube storage unit that houses our current things. I think we have everything we need for two term at least there. A few string instuments between there and my desk w/ the laptop and printer on it. Table at the other end w/ whiteboard on it against the wall. Sits me and two kids…not ideal since I have 4 at home, but so far it works. My oldest takes her things to the camper or a blanket outside and does most of her work independently. I haven’t figures out where/how to do our “together” things yet. Still getting rolling here, but we did it outside the one day we did it thus far. Probably will continue that unless the weather is bad and we do it in the camper. Life’s great isn’t it?!?? I’m just a little concerned about how this is all going to work when baby arrives in Oct. and winter is upon us!!!!
August 29, 2014 at 7:42 pm
Claire
Participant
Awesome! I love you all. Three cheers for our forum ladies! Here’s what I came up …
1) I’m going the baskets. We’ve always kept their current materials in old, retro, metal ones but now we will simply take those to the dinning room table to do our day’s lessons. I found a great tool box type of tote thing (poor explanation, I know) to house our little things – markers, pencils, sharpeners, etc. That can easily be put away at the end of the day too. I’ve taken my things off the shelf and placed them in a Mornings Basket, Science Basket, History Basket so I think that will allow me to do the same daily – take it to the table; only needing to take History and Science 2 days each every week and letting those stay put away otherwise.
2) I’ve settled on using the dog crates during our main lessons and shutting the kitchen door between them and us to obscure their noises. I hate to leave them out of the fun but seriously, something is wrong with these animals and I’m a total big dog person so for me to say that … well, they’re high maintainance. I’ve given the two roosters to a friend on a farm and the cat has always ignored us for the most part.
3) I’ll grow a little and we can all use the one laptop during lessons unless something’s really long, etc.
THANKS FOR THE GREAT IMAGES AND IDEAS.