Intro
You may never have given it a thought, but your child needs a designated area in your house to study.
Photo by cottonbro from Pexels
Just as workspaces are gaining popularity in the corporate environment, children also need a space to read with minimal distractions. And if your child is homeschooled or learns math for kids online, they need an organized workspace urgently.
But how do you start?
This article will provide ideas for organizing a workspace for your child. Go through them and choose the ones that work best for you.
Take note of your child’s study behaviors
Before setting up a workspace for your child, consider their study patterns. Some prefer to read in total seclusion, while others appreciate seeing people walk around. Your child may want their favorite stuffed animal in their workspace to help them relax.
If your kid easily gets distracted, put their workspace in a part of the house without a TV, gadgets, or windows that face a busy street. But if they are comfortable reading amidst activities around them, you can set up a space for them in the corner of the living room or dining room.
Get your child’s opinion
Many parents start organizing their children’s workspaces without the kids’ consent or input — putting the cart before the horse. The problem with this approach is that parents organize a workspace that they assume suits their kids. Some even design the space to mirror theirs, either consciously or subconsciously, forgetting that an adult’s needs differ from children’s.
You need your child’s opinion to organize a suitable workspace for them. Ask them what subjects they would be learning at home, their preferred reading times, and how long they can study before breaks. These factors will indicate how their workspace should look, make them feel like a part of the decision, and encourage them to use the workspace often.
Choose a suitable desk
The desk you get your child should depend on their ages, heights, workload, and study patterns. If your child uses papers, pencils, and other stationery while studying, get a desk with a storage unit. These drawers will help your child keep their workspace decluttered and prevent them from losing progress after studying due to missing worksheets and papers.
An appropriate desk will help your child’s posture. If your child is active or old enough to study with a laptop or tablet, get a smaller desk, preferably an adjustable type or one with wheels. The mobility will help them rearrange their workspace and ensure they can study in different sitting positions.
Include visualization tools
Not many strategies accelerate your child’s learning the way visual aids do. In online math classes for kids, creative tutors use visualization tools like worksheets, math manipulatives, and illustrations or images. They can draw objects, write formulas, or plot their learning trajectory. You can set your child’s workspace up similarly by hanging a magnetic whiteboard.
Pinboards, pegboards, and cork tiles are alternatives to whiteboards. They can double as extra space for storing school supplies. Lastly, visual aids will help your child create a relationship between abstract concepts they learn and physical objects while exercising their memory and boosting retention.
Ensure the workspace is well-lit
Proper lighting in your child’s workspace is vital for many reasons. The first is for health reasons; your child will harm their eyesight if they study in dimly-lit rooms. Any damage they inflict on their eyes at such early stages will likely affect them throughout life, so keep their workspaces bright.
Good lighting will encourage your child to study for extended periods. If your child’s workspace is dark, they may be tempted to fall asleep. However, overly bright bulbs and blue lights will lead to visual fatigue. So, opt for warm lighting that is bright enough to write and read in any condition.
Teach your child the importance of decluttering
Your child will mess their workspace up if you don’t teach them to declutter after each study session. Getting the necessary stuff like atlases, dictionaries, paper clips, etc., are essential for comfortable learning. However, your child should learn to differentiate between keeping study items they still need and hoarding.
Reading in a cluttered environment distracts your child. So, show them how to keep their workspace clean. Explain the use of various drawers, shelves, and storage spaces. Then let them discard papers, broken pencils, worksheets, and redundant items.
Conclusion
Organizing your child’s workspace is no mean feat; however, it will be less challenging than expected with the proper strategy. The project will succeed as long as you focus on your kid’s needs, seek their opinions, and get items that make studying convenient and fun. The tips in this article will help you create a workspace to accelerate your kids’ educational growth and make them enjoy learning.