How to Create a Homeschool Resource Room
Resources mean many different things for many people. In the homeschool world, resources can be anything from notebooks to the internet to glue. The point is, every homeschool family knows, you need lots of resources and a variety of them in order for the day to day teaching to occur.
Flashcards for math? Crayons for maps? Websites for review? Journals, binders, craft sticks for this week’s history project? The list goes on and on.
I never used to think I would become all that crafty or be that mom that has a designated craft room. Then we had our third child who is very creative and an NF, and boom, I had a craft room out of necessity. Those little hands wanted to make and design everything.
Trying out anything from bracelets to hot gluing, paint and pipe cleaners, our crafty little one wanted to dig into everything, including sand and glitter. That was a bit of mistake. But I won’t go into those messy stories right now. The point is, crafting made him happy. And it still does.
Different resources for different ages and personalities…
What is just a cardboard box for my two older children is a beautiful wide open palette for our youngest to design. Suddenly I found myself asking, “what if we add this starfish design and water and sea kelp to our box too?” and then he said, “why don’t we have a fisherman on the top of the boat fishing into the ocean box?”
I used to have one small box of crayons, pencils and glue with some construction paper. (My eldest aren’t too into crafting.) When my youngest got interested in the monthly craft packet at our local public library, it required hot glue, so I bought a hot glue gun. Reasons just kept popping up, and eventually the new house we are in had a room filled with buckets of crafts.
Resources don’t have to be just craft materials though…
It’s hard to keep track of all the resources you may use in any given week or month or season in homeschooling. What you may use for highschoolers you don’t need for elementary kids and what you may use for one curriculum may not work for another curriculum. So you have may need a separate list or log for that. Simply put, the resources you accumulate can just get out of hand.
What can I do when everything is everywhere?
Start small. Homeschooling is long term and it’s part of life. For many of us homeschool parents, we have made a conscious choice to homeschool for personal reasons motivated out of a situation that demanded we be proactive, maybe proactive in a hurry. That’s okay. That doesn’t always mean organization comes easily. It sure didn’t with us. We are just learning as we go. Some systems and setups work, some don’t. We used shelves, buckets, etc. as the years go on and we accumulate more, we adapt and learn what systems work and what don’t.
Resources:
| Essentials to go with your curriculum: | Organizational Resources: |
| 1. Art supplies (colored pencils/crayons/scissors/glue) 2. Writing supplies 3. White board 4. Folders 5. Journals 6. Binders | 1. Section for books (shelving etc.) 2. Pencil boxes for crayons, colored pencils etc. 3. Bucket for immediate use resources (sticky notes, flashcards etc) 4. Pencil cups (for pencils and erasers and dry erase markers) 5. Three-hole punch 6. Label maker (or we label with permanent marker and put clear packing tape over) |
| Structural Resources: | Other/Outside Resources: |
| 1. Shelving units 2. Printer/scanner 3. Checklists 4. White board 5. Magnet boards 6. Table/chairs/station/couch | 1. Co-ops 2. Amazon 3. Walmart 4. Dollar Store 5. Websites 6. Facebook groups |
If you really aren’t sure, jump into a homeschool co-op group or Facebook page to help.
We recently found a great new curriculum for writing called IEW because we connected with another homeschool parent on Facebook and got some old textbooks from her. You never know who you may meet.
Why are resources essential for homeschool?
- Good for improvised learning
- Good for a rainy day
- Good for an “off day” with freestyle homeschooling
- Good for projects/requirements in curriculum
- Good for teaching the more creative learner or ADD
- Good for the daily connection and encouragement
Whether you are homeschooling on a budget or have infinite financial means or something in between, build a resource room. Give it time and over the years it will grow and be beneficial. Keep track of your resources. You never know when you may need it. After many years of accumulating items from family members, friends and many store trips, I love being able to access (almost) anything I need for a last minute craft or boredom-buster day. Try it. You won’t regre tit.