Maybe a crazy question...

J

JoshTuransky

New Member
So let me just throw this crazy question out there to hear your feedback. This question is based on our upcoming move and search for a new house.

What style of house would you recommend for homeschooling? If you could pick a house style what do you think would best suit the homeschooling dynamics?

Also, are there any parts to your house that really hinder or help homeschooling?

Thanks for your help!
 
Hmm I think a home that feels like home when you enter is a great buy. Also one with an extra room for your school work or crafting messes. And lets not forget a large entryway is also good for taking off muddy shoes which there are more of with kids being home more :p. A home near but not next door to a nice play park also a bonus.
 
I would also want an extra room for HSing and crafts. I also HS 2 yrs. in a single story house and now going on 2yrs in a two story house and I much rather have a one story house to HS in. Reason, so I could keep a better eye on my independent DSs easier and better. I would also love a mud room. Oh, and don't forget a house with a lot of storage space.
 
You'll want storage space, room on your walls for plenty of bookshelves, and a place to do messy art/craft/science projects where they can be spread out and left to dry without wreaking havoc with the rest of your life. :) It would also help if your house cleaned itself, went grocery shopping, weeded the garden and did the laundry, but that might be asking a bit too much. :lol:
 
Thanks for those comments. We were also thinking that a one story house would be easier than our current two story house. It seems like noise might be more isolated in a one story house that is spread out.

Maybe this is a ranch style home. Visually this is not my favorite style, but maybe it would be the best set up for homeschooling.
 
I would think an open floor plan, but with tons of storage, all on one floor. Not necessarily an extra BEDroom, but maybe both a living/family room and a den, or both an eat-in kitchen and a dining room, or some sort of arrangement like that, so that the family has a room to use, and a room where you can leave stuff out for a couple of days at a time if you want to without having to pick up and put up before every meal or television show. That would be my ideal...
 
JoshTuransky said:
Thanks for those comments. We were also thinking that a one story house would be easier than our current two story house. It seems like noise might be more isolated in a one story house that is spread out.

Maybe this is a ranch style home. Visually this is not my favorite style, but maybe it would be the best set up for homeschooling.
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Unless there's a large finished (preferably walk-out) basement that could be for schooling activities....
 
I don't want an "extra" room necesarrily. But I would need a kitchen with a large dining area attached (not a seperate dining room!). I do the majority of my teaching in the kitchen, with the kids at the table. I will do dishes and give dictation or spelling at the same time. LOTS of shelves would be a plus!!! And I'd love a sun room!!!
 
I liked northernmomma's first sentence.. The first thing you need to look for is a house that will feel like home. You need enough room to not get into each other's ways... but enough coziness that you feel like family. Enough air and light to be able to be in the house happily for long lengths of time - and hopefully a yard or nearby park, so you can also go outside easily. Everything else - including floorplans, and square footage, and the abundance or lack of mod cons - is adaptable. :)
 
Lindina said:
Unless there's a large finished (preferably walk-out) basement that could be for schooling activities....
Click to expand...

We homeschool in our walk-out basement and I love it. Of course, everyone has a walk-out here so they are super easy to find. In CA they don't really have basements. I always missed that when we lived there.

If I were buying another house I'd look for a nice finished walk-out like we have now. It could be substituted with a big loft - like a rec room that some houses have on the second floor. I see those on House Hunters all the time.

Also - coming from a rural person - if I had to choose again I would live closer to town so we could have cable internet. And cable TV for that matter. We get DSL and satellite but it isn't the same and for homeschooling those things are important for us.
 
We've lived in three houses over the past ten years of homeschooling. What worked for me was having a one story with a seperate living and family room. Our front room was supposed to be a formal dining room, but we took out the chandelier, put in a sofa, bookshelf and two computer desks. The room was bright and had plenty of wall space. The older two could do their reading or SOS work there while I was at the kitchen table or on the couch in the family room with the youngest. It was close enough for me to keep track of goings on but seperate enough for us not to be so much a distraction.

We have a very small house now. We do our work at kitchen table or my dd goes off to her room. It really does not work. We have one living room, and a dining room and the bedrooms are small.

It really makes a difference when everyone is together day in and day out. Too small space=crabby.
 
Marylyn_TX said:
I liked northernmomma's first sentence.. The first thing you need to look for is a house that will feel like home. You need enough room to not get into each other's ways... but enough coziness that you feel like family. Enough air and light to be able to be in the house happily for long lengths of time - and hopefully a yard or nearby park, so you can also go outside easily. Everything else - including floorplans, and square footage, and the abundance or lack of mod cons - is adaptable. :)
Click to expand...

Oh, nicely said, Marylyn!!!
 
I would say one story for sure.

Then I would say a large open kitchen/breakfast/dining/living/den area. We have a seperate classroom, but the open living room/dining room/eating area/kitchen just comes in super handy for keeping a good eye on the kids when we aren't doing school or when we need more room than our small classroom affords us.
 
We have a big old Victorian that's working great for us!

On the main floor we have a big playroom (converted porch) off the back of the house. We have a mud room, two bathroom, kitchen with large dining area, a large family room and a "formal" front room. There is also a small bedroom off the frontroom and a medium bedroom off the family room. The front formal room became our school room. It has an extra dining table, shelving, and the piano. The small bedroom became my craft room and extra school storage. The medum bedroom off the family room is our computer room/study.

Upstairs we have a bathroom and 4 bedrooms. We generally only go up there to sleep or bathe, so having the upstairs works fine for us.

The key for us was having a separate school room and storage. It's nice to also have a separate space for the kids and their toys. Even if school doesn't always happen in the school room, we have a space for it when we need it! We also use that big table for messy crafts, so it works out great!

To top it off, we have a nice big park across the street! Recess!

Edie
 
After living in several homes during our homeschooling endeavor....AND after building our own home....I still keep learning what I wish I had! :lol: Our biggest issue is not enough wall space for bookshelves. We also wish we had more room for the computer work station. We make sure that the computer is in the open kitchen/dining/family room area. We built a 1 1/2 story with a walk-out basement and we spend 99% of our time outside or on the main floor. :roll:
 
We have an "extra" room and while we store school in there, we don't seem to DO school in there.
I wish I had a desk area that worked better with the computer in the kitchen. (our office is the former mud room and still doubles as the pantry) It is a little more private than I am comfortable with considering teenage boys.
I am not a huge fan of stairs...but I do love that we have a walk out basement for the laundry and "game" tv. It is a great set up because the kids can get away from us and we can't hear the mess. (although we CAN hear if it gets out of hand.)
My boys seem to want to be with me...even as they get older, so we do most of our school at the kitchen table and on the couch.
I have always wanted a formal dining room that could double as a library...or really a library that could double as a dining room. ;) But I bought a nook, so now I don't even need shelves. If ds homeschools high school, I will buy him either a kindle or nook...I think that will cut down on textbooks and space needed for storage, not that that has much to do with buying a house.
MOST important aspect. 1. you can afford it. 2. You like it 3. It has a hot tub. (oh wait, maybe that is just me.;)
 
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