For a lot of students across the country, remote learning is back on schedule for the upcoming school year. When the pandemic struck at the end of the 2019-2020 school year, most parents put their kids at the kitchen table for remote learning and online classes, hoping for the best. This year as remote learning takes off again, parents should strongly consider dedicated learning spaces for their kids. This is essential no matter the remote learning situation in your home; there are so many benefits to dedicated learning spaces whether your kid(s) are spending 1-2 days at a time or the full school week remote learning at home.
If your child is in Pre-K through second grade, their own dedicated school space is a great solution for remote learning. Here are just a few reasons why:
Sharing Doesn’t Always Work for Spaces – The downside of a shared space is that projects and activities must be started and completed in a short period of time to allow the space to be used for other activities. Sometimes kids need the opportunity to take a break from a project for lunch, for snacks, or for outdoor time and then return to their space and resume working.
It Needs to Be Sized Correctly – Chairs that are too big and tables that are too high simply aren’t comfortable for kids. When kids are uncomfortable, the fidgets start – and when the fidgets start, the learning stops. Success with remote schooling and remote lessons begins with comfort for your student!
A Separate Area Helps Focus and Concentration – While it would be ideal if at-home learning activities had a dedicated room, that’s not always practical. By giving students a dedicated desk, you can start to build the necessary mental routine of going to their “school space” for remote learning. That way, they’ll learn that when they are in their school zone, all other activities should stop and the habit of watching lessons and completing online assignments will kick in.
Have A Dedicated Storage Space – When kids understand that school supplies and materials are special and worthy of extra care, they will begin to approach them with more respect and appreciation. School books and materials that are simply piled into a corner or mixed in with toys set a bad precedent, not to mention make it very easy for things to get misplaced.
They Need the Right Mix of Stimulation and Focus – Pick a desk or work surface that has just the right mix of bright, vivid colors. You don’t want the visual appearance to be too chaotic, but you don’t want it so bland and boring that school feels like a chore.
Multiple Kids? Consider Multiple Desks – When kids have a dedicated space, they will spend less time arguing. It’s easier to keep assignments and supplies organized for each student, so that they’ll always stay on top of remote schoolwork with little opportunity for missing or borrowed laptop chargers, lost pencils, or rogue notebooks and textbooks.
Ready to jump into virtual school? Check out our selection of remote learning essentials to create the workspace your child needs here.
