How to Create a Private Learning Area for Your Kids

Many parents are trying to figure out how to create a learning space at home for their kids, and there are several complicating factors to consider. If you’re working from home, they need to be close enough to you that you’re not trekking across the house every time they have a question or difficulty; but they can’t be so close that every phone or video call someone takes is a major distraction to everyone else. And if you’re setting up work spaces for multiple kids, that limits your options even more.

But one mum may have figured out a simple solution that gives each child a small, semi-private workspace of their own, even if they’re sharing the room with others — by using a tri-fold foam presentation board.

Angelina Harper posted her easy, affordable solution on Facebook last week after spending a lot of time debating whether to buy each of her three children their own desk for virtual learning:

I’ve thought about rearranging (again) our basement. My mind has been all over the place because 1) I will be working from home, 2) my husband is working from home, and 3) THREE kids in NTI [non-traditional learning instruction]. We have plenty space in the basement BUTTT they would have to move if mummy or daddy had meetings and that would just be too much.

[referenced id=”935430″ url=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2020/07/how-to-create-a-learning-space-for-kids-at-home/” thumb=”https://www.gizmodo.com.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2020/07/28/mbihbvfsyt9grzsfxf6i-300×168.jpg” title=”How to Create a Learning Space for Kids at Home” excerpt=”There is a very good chance our kids will spend at least part (or most, or all) of their week learning virtually from home after the school year starts back up this fall. And although we managed to make it through the spring with makeshift learning spaces where they completed…”]

Harper equipped each space with a small desk lamp, pencil holder, calendar, and a hanging folder for work or assignments — along with some sweet motivational messages. She told me she opted for tri-fold foam presentation board (like this one), rather than regular poster board, for its sturdiness. Think science-fair-meets-at-home-learning-during-global-pandemic.

Some kids may not like feeling as though they’re working in a mini-cubicle, but for those who are prone to distraction or prefer a little privacy while they work, it’s one possible solution to the issue of finding everyone in the home a workspace to call their own.