Support your child in a productive home based learning experience by creating an ideal learning space in the comfort of your home. A child’s environment is essential in expanding and challenging their learning. The placement of furniture and materials plays an important role in nurturing their ability to focus and stay motivated.
We encourage parents to place great emphasis on providing a learning space that is engaging, organised, comfortable and meaningful. Taking into consideration elements of nature, light and space to help deepen their motivation to engage and learn.
Follow the 5 tips below to create an ideal learning space for your child.
1. Get Organised
Some questions to ask yourself:
- Is the space open and uncluttered?
- Does the space enable your child to concentrate on being able to learn or play with limited distractions?
- Is there ample space for multiple children to learn or play alongside each other and together, or space for an adult to play alongside a child?
The learning environment should be clutter-free and kept neat. Label clear plastic containers for the different subjects and sort out resources and materials accordingly. Ensure that the table they are working on is clean and free from loose items. It is important they know where to locate their items.
2. Include Items of Interest
When creating this space of learning, we should also consider including items of interest. It could be a toy figurine of their favourite superhero character or a poster of their favourite video game. This will motivate them to learn better as it promotes independence, respect and a sense of belonging. For younger children, read this article on Designing Meaningful Spaces at Home for Purposeful Play.
3. Comfort is Key
Like adults, children need a comfortable working environment. Ensure they have a chair and table of the ideal height and comfort so they do not hunch and strain their back. Include blankets and cushions around the learning space to keep them cosy and alleviate stress. Taking reference from the learning spaces in our schools, you can include fabrics as drapes, warm fairy lights to light up the area and books to promote literacy.
Planning a purposeful educational space at home for your child is essential for home based learning. This is how they will constantly be encouraged to embark on their learning journey each morning. Do not forget to find out what motivates them and spark their interest, this way, both parent and child can work together to create the most ideal environment for learning at home.
4. Be Flexible
Spaces should be flexible enough so that pieces of furniture can be moved around or moved away. Initially, your child may need to face a wall to concentrate, sometimes it is helpful to be facing nature. If your child refuses to sit on a chair, he/she can choose a beloved chair or bean bag to sit on. Sometimes even an exercise ball helps!
Sometimes we presume that children need a table and chair to work. But more often than not, the younger children prefer to work on the floor or a mat. So make arrangements for that to take place!
Ensure that work is done but be flexible about the time in which your child can get it done. Sometimes the house is just too noisy for your child to concentrate on math because of a younger sibling. Perhaps waiting for the younger sibling to go down for a nap or is doing a quiet activity before going back to the math assignments.
5. Involve Your Child
Finally, involve your child in creating his/her learning space. By involving your child, it gives your child a sense of ownership of the space and cultivates the mindset that this is his/her space, therefore he/she is responsible for it.
Your child needs to feel good about the space, and be inspired to use it the way you set it up to be. You can begin this process by inviting him/her to include some items of interest in the space. Identifying a theme your child is fond of is also a fun way to encourage his/ her involvement in designing the learning space. Start by getting your child to share his or her theme ideas and take time to develop those ideas together. The themes could be anything from an enchanted forest to outer space. This helps give the space identity and sense of belonging your child is able to connect with.
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