Creating a Study Area for Your Teen

Writing notes

Homework is an important part of school life for teens and having a dedicated area at home in which to get the work done helps considerably. Read on to discover how you can create an effective study area for your teen.

Children of all ages get homework, but when they reach the teenage years, the amount of homework received typically increases.

Whilst your child may have successfully managed their homework on the kitchen table for many years, there comes a time when they really need a dedicated space in which to do their work.

Where to Create a Teen Study Area?

Teen study areas are often located within a family study or computer room, in part of the teen’s bedroom or in another area of the home where a desk can be tucked away and there’s likely to be a decent amount of peace and quiet for studying.

If the space in your home is limited, then a simple screen can offer a practical way of splitting up space and creating a work area, or alternatively you could use a functional piece of furniture, like a bookcase, to divide the space.

This is especially useful if you’re creating a study area in a teenager’s bedroom, as it helps define the areas more appropriately, making clear which is the part of the room for sleeping and relaxing, and which is for working.

What to Include in a Teen Study Area

The ideal teen study area should have a good sized desk, with room to work on a computer if need be, and room to spread out books, folders and homework material.

As the focus is on working and learning, distractions should be kept to a minimum – so it’s a good idea to not have a television or video games in the same area, if at all possible.

As well as a desk, a bookcase is useful and you may like to put up a noticeboard, calendar, memo board or even a small whiteboard in the area too.

Your teen could be encouraged to record details of all the homework assignments they have to do, so that they don’t forget anything, and take pleasure in ticking tasks off as they complete them.

Good lighting is important in any study area, so ensure the desk area is well lit. A desk lamp is ideal for this and you can find a variety of options in funky colours.

Other essentials for a desk are stationary supplies such as pens, paper, highlighters, notepads, paperclips and a calculator.

Standard reference book such as a dictionary and thesaurus are useful to have.

Traditionally all study areas had an encyclopaedia too, but online resources are widely available now, so you may not need this.

Decorating the Study Area

As this will be your teen’s area for doing their homework, it’s important that it’s a space they like and will enjoy using.

One way of getting them interested from the outset is to get them involved in choosing study furniture, like desks or chairs, and choosing how the area will be decorated.

Even if it’s just a case of a simple paint job, they could choose the paint or colour scheme that they’d like used on the walls.

Hanging a picture on the wall, or putting up a poster or two, can help define the space too and create an area of individuality.

Homework is such an important part of a teen’s education that it helps to provide a proper area for them to knuckle down and study in.

By creating their own unique study area, they’ll have no excuse for not getting homework done!

See Also
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