Our Learning Spaces 2013-2014

Aug 12, 2013


This week in the Not Back-to-School Blog Hop, we are showing off our "school room" photos, but first, I have something to tell you. 

I have no specific space for homeschooling.

Unlike previous years, I have no area set up at all at this time. In fact, if you look at the space I had before, it was actually my storage setup rather than a "school room".

I believe children learn best in a natural environment and so that's what they're provided.

We just moved into our home in June and I've been so busy working and trying to get Alexis through her essay program that I haven't even finished setting up my house. I still have unpacked boxes!

Learning Happens Everywhere

We do lessons at our dining table, at a table outside, or "on the go" with field trips, co-ops, classes and other activities or wherever else life takes us.;

Instead of pictures of our storage spaces, this year I'm sharing photos of our "learning spaces". These are the types of things we do in our homeschool.


A field trip to Blue Springs State Park where we learned about Manatees.
Cooking as a family
Visiting a county park, we learned about trees and searched for animal tracks. By the way, we found raccoon, deer and bear tracks that day.
Biggers teaching littles. Auntie teaching niece to write.
In the congregation
On cooler days, we homeschool in the yard, including tree and plant studies. In the summer, we garden.


Our "home base" is the dining room table where the majority of our formal lessons take place.
The dining table is also for arts and crafts.
Lorelai likes to do her chalk pastel lessons at kitchen bar.
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The girls really enjoy learning music, painting, drawing and calligraphy from their older brother when he's not busy with his own college work. These lessons happen where they may.
Online classes find us in the dining room again.
Older sister teaches sewing and crochet to the younger girls.
Visiting a Timucuan Village. We have been studying the Timucuan off and on for 3 years now.
The neighbors' yards are always great for learning about the farm animals.
Charlotte Mason said, "Education is an atmosphere." I find that we do not need specialized areas. The most conducive environment for learning is the world we've been given.

The world is our classroom.

not back-to-school blog hop 2013



This post is a part of the iHomeschool Network's 5th Annual "Not Back-to-School Blog Hop. Please visit all the great homeschool blogs and link yours up too! 


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Happy Homeschooling!

8 comments

  1. You are so right - we try to provide an "atmosphere of exploration" in our house, for all of us, and it's so much fun! Thanks for sharing :)

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    1. You and I agree on a lot of things, don't we?

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  2. We just cleaned up our "school room" this morning we just moved into our house in May and we too have unpacked boxes. I have gotten our main living floor situated to where I am happy with it until our basement is finished. The basement is right now full of boxes and stuff I don't feel like dealing with yet. We will use our school room, the dining room table and as much of our 10 acres as we can for schooling as well as field trips and other activities.

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    1. OH wow! I'm glad to know I'm not the only one that hasn't finished unpacking! Sometimes (all the time?) I feel like I'm failing in that area. I'm usually so diligent in getting things done "right away". I just feel so overwhelmed right now. Work, starting a new career, the essay program my daughter is taking, my other daughter getting married in a week.. my brain is on overload I think!

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  3. Dena S.8/13/2013

    Having toddlers (20mos & 3yo), I tend to look at nature as a great teaching tool too. From Great-Grandparents teaching them about vegetables when we help out in the garden, my husband taking the 3 yo fishing, and us going on nature hikes (we are surrounded by 4 National Forests). I feel like they are able to ask about things, I can show them things, and we are all learning something new. It's beautiful moments that I feel grateful to have and hope to continue to have for many more years.

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    1. I agree. The earth is a ready-for-homeschool tool, isn't it?

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  4. My kids would be so jealous of the farm next door.

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    1. Hi, Ticia!

      We've been blessed with a country life where neighbors have cows, pigs, horses and the like. Yesterday we went for a walk to the library and were able to observe a mama chicken with her baby chicks along the way.

      What's it like where you live?

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