I’ve seen some gorgeous homework stations floating around Pinterest lately. And while they are amazing, I don’t have a separate room, loft or area in my home to create an elaborate homework area for my children. However, I needed to dedicate a space in our home that could be a quiet space filled with all the supplies my son needs to get his homework done each evening. So today I’m going to show you how I’ve set up a simple homework station in my home on a super tight budget!
This is the first post in my Back to School Prep series where I’m sharing all about how I’m organizing our home and life to prepare for going back to school. Make sure to subscribe by email below so you don’t miss a thing!
Our home is an open floor plan where our kitchen, dining room, and living room are all open to each other. While my son will most likely do his homework each day at our dining room table, I wanted to set up a system that was easily transportable. That way he can take everything he needs to his bedroom if he needs a quieter setting.
I wanted to make his supplies inconspicuous. While I think that crayons, markers, and colored pencils can look really pretty in a caddy or mason jars, it wasn’t what I was looking for in this space. Most of this area’s decor is neutral.
While I probably could have created something much “prettier,” my 6 year old needed something that he could maintain. Something easy. So I went to Target and grabbed a basic school pencil box. I also grabbed a few fresh school supplies while I was there including a new box of crayons, markers, and pencils. It’s always nice to start the school year off with some fresh supplies!
Inside the pencil box I included:
- Sharpened Pencils
- Markers
- Colored Pencils
- Crayons
- Pink Eraser
- Pencil Sharpener
- Glue Sticks (not shown)
I tried to only include the basic supplies he will need. If he needs other supplies, I can easily grab them out of my craft basket in the laundry room. However, I think these occasions will be few and far between. Plus, I can always add to this box if I find he needs other items on a regular basis.
I also ordered a handwriting notebook on Amazon that we will use at home. Unfortunately handwriting is no longer taught in the schools in our area so I’m choosing to teach this at home. It’s an important skill that I want my son to learn and as a former teacher I know the importance of learning proper handwriting both for reading and writing purposes. I ordered the 1st grade version of Handwriting without Tears.
I placed both the pencil box full of supplies into a basket I had on hand.
This basket is stored in a cabinet in our dining room. It’s easily transportable, but also hidden away when not in use. This also takes up a very small amount of space in our home which I love.
We didn’t need anything elaborate. Just functional. And this fits that to a T.
If you are looking to set up a homework station in your home, but don’t want to take up a ton of space in your home just remember to keep it simple.
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Sarah | The Teacher's Wife says
Perfect! Love that it’s simple and looks nice and neat in the basket. Savannah does her homework in her room at this point, but I’ve been meaning to work on desk organization with her!
Kaitlin says
I’ve been considering putting a desk in Caleb’s room. We are going to see how the kitchen table works out at the beginning of the school year, but I’m not sure how Ben (2 years old) is going to do with it! 🙂 It might be more trouble than it’s worth! haha You should do a desk organization post! 🙂