Homework station setup checklist
A homework station is furniture plus rules — get the desk and the supplies right first, then agree when and where the work actually happens.
20 items
Makes your own editable copy. No account needed.
The items
- Desk or a clear table surfaceBig enough for a laptop and an open exercise book at the same time — the kitchen table with today's post still on it isn't quite that.
- Chair at the right heightFeet flat on the floor and elbows level with the desk. An hour hunched over a low stool is where the complaining starts.
- Desk lampA proper one, not just the overhead light — task lighting matters more once the evenings draw in.
- Pens, pencils and a ruler kept at the station×4Kept there, not borrowed from the kitchen drawer and never returned.
- Exercise books and paper
- Storage for books and folders
- A tray or shelf per subject
- An in-tray for anything that needs to go back to school
- Charger kept at the stationFor the laptop or tablet, so charging it isn't the reason homework starts twenty minutes late.
- Wall planner or whiteboard for deadlinesSomewhere the whole week is visible, not just tonight's task.
- TimerWork in blocks rather than one long open-ended sit — twenty-five minutes with a clear end is easier to start than 'until it's done'.
- Wifi checked in the room it's actually usedWorth testing before the first evening it matters, not during it.
- Printer, or a plan for using someone else'sFind out now which subjects actually need printing.
- HeadphonesFor background noise, a sibling's programme, or a full house.
- Somewhere agreed for phones during homework timeOut of reach rather than face-down on the desk — face-down still buzzes.
- Spare batteries×4
- Bin or a recycling tray nearbyFor the working-out that doesn't need keeping.
- Start and finish time agreed and written downA homework slot with no end tends to expand to fill the whole evening.
- The rest of the house kept reasonably quiet during that slotThe television two rooms away is still the television.
- A backup for when the wifi or the printer failsThe library, a neighbour, or a memory stick — decided before the night it's needed, not during it.
Makes your own editable copy. No account needed.
Questions people ask
- Where should a homework station be, if there's no space for a separate desk?
- Anywhere with a flat surface and reasonable quiet works — a corner of the kitchen table used consistently beats an unused desk in a spare room.
- How long should a homework slot actually be?
- Short enough to start without a fight and end before concentration does — most children do better with a few timed blocks than one long sitting.
- Should the station include the phone?
- Only as somewhere to charge it, not somewhere to use it — agree where it lives during homework time as part of your household's screen rules.