It’s that time of year again! BACK TO SCHOOL time! We had a busy summer with the most incredible trip to the Virgin Islands , we spent 2 months in hotels, sold two properties and moved into our new house! We moved from Country Music City (Nashville) to Blues City (Memphis). Which means the kids both started new schools. I’ve been sharing sneak peeks of the new house on Instagram, follow us on Instagram for more new house updates.
When our boxes got here the very first thing I started doing was organizing the kids’ stuff. Most importantly, making sure that our homework station was stocked and ready for the new school year. Why? because the homework station is essential to our homework routine. ESSENTIAL and I’m going to explain why!
5 Reasons Your Kids Need a Homework Station
- Having everything in one central location makes homework time shorter because you don’t have to run around looking for supplies. Your kids can sit down and get to work!
- Creating a Homework station saves you money. If you buy in bulk you can use half of the supplies for school and half at home.
- Your children will have the right materials to complete their homework. You won’t believe how many times my teen has to use crayons, glue or scissors to complete an assignment. If we did not have these supplies readily available he would not be able to successfully follow instructions.
- A homework station also encourages free time art and handwriting practice. My kids choose to use these materials during their free time. They draw, color, and write stories which in turns helps with all sorts of skills!
- Storing all items in a tray or station not only keeps things organized but makes it easy to move homework to any location in the house! You can even take it outside and have homework or art time in the grass!
How to Create an Easy Homework Station
Now that you know the benefits of a homework station let’s talk about how to create one. I used galvanized containers but you can replicate this look with any types of containers. I would just suggest avoiding most glass containers or trays because they are easily breakable. (Photos below are affiliate links for your shopping convenience. Click here for full disclosure. )
Use small jars and cups to organize markers, pens, and colored pencils. If you are using a lot of containers you can sort by colors too.
Using a small caddy or collection of cans like this one makes finding the perfect crayons color easy. Make sure the containers are not too tall or else your little one will struggle with getting the crayons out.
Don’t forget other supplies like erasers, scissors, glue sticks, and watercolors. Oh and TAPE we always need tape! Whatever you think your child may need I would try to include! You’d be surprised what they may need for their homework.
Last year when Jude was in Kindergarten we had his name card in here for easy access. He no longer needs it but it definitely helped. We also just added index cards for Gavin because he needs them to make flash cards! You’d be surprised what they may need for their homework.
This may seem like such a simple and unoriginal idea but it really helps are family. My hope is that even something this simple can help your family as well! What do you think?!? Do you have a homework station? I’d love to see it!
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I agree with you 100 %!Homework is like punishment for the parents, at the same time it reinforces the skills the kids learned in school.
I have a plastic tub with homework supplies in it so the kids can find anything they need and carry it to another room if needed. I also have a clipboard in mine. I’d never tell my 2nd grader this, but when my older kids were in middle and high school there were sometimes easy homework papers they could do on the car ride home on the clipboard. when they were old enough to write neatly and figured this out themselves I let them do it. Some kids can handle this OK, some cannot. If your child can deal with the car movement, distractions of other kids, and can knock off an assignment on the way home, why not? (And I’m a former teacher- I just hate the way homework takes time away from playing, sports, chores, etc!
Great idea! My older soon could totally work in the car but not the little one, he struggles with fine motor skills. Homework is a great reinforcer I just wish there wasn’t so much everyday! My kids also are super rule followers and stress about it at school which I believe takes up even more energy when they get home it’s like they are ready to release the beast! Asking them to sit down and work some more is just so hard but it must be done!