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Erin
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| Posted: July 15 2013 at 6:31am | IP Logged
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A very exciting day here today, as you may remember we have been building for the past three years (and probably two more to go). Today we finally have a games room!! 
Dh has been busy plastering and painting for several weeks, we moved the piles of timber out (so that room no longer looks like a building site  )
We've moved in the playstation/wii and screen, games cupboard, beautiful new games table and pool table. We'd like to move in a lounge, think it is doable. Anyhow it all looks so incredible but.... I had also planned on having the younger children's toys, dress ups etc. But I can now see it won't really work so well. I think it far better to have this as a games room only without younger children's toys cluttering.
So a possible (long term) solution is to have the toys at one end of the learning room. In a couple of years our current kitchen (not that big) will be incorporated into our learning room. Would toys in a learning room work? Do any of you have toys in your learning areas? I'd love thoughts, opinions, advice? What has worked/ hasn't for you?
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Erin
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Bridget
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| Posted: July 15 2013 at 6:55am | IP Logged
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I think it's wise to keep the game room more for older kids. They will enjoy it! We keep our toys right in the living room because the littles want to be near the adults, they just play more contentedly. I would think anywhere near the main living area would be best for little kid toys.
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CrunchyMom
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| Posted: July 15 2013 at 7:32am | IP Logged
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I prefer having the bulk of the toys away from the main living area. I have a basket and a couple of crates on their side for board books and baby/toddler things to keep in the living room, but the lego, playmobile, dress-up, etc... are in the toy room. We live in a split level, and the uppermost level has two large bedrooms and a bath, and we have one of the bedrooms designated as a toy room with quad bunks in the bedroom. It just seemed simpler to us to keep the toys separated rather than mixed with the sleeping or the living spaces since we have that option.
I would be leery of putting the toys directly in the learning space given the ages of your kiddos. I rely on the younger set playing independently while my older two do school work. A highschooler might be able to go off and find a quiet corner or tune out the play, but it could be hard to get your 3rd or 4th grader to sit and focus on school if the preschool-K crowd he normally plays with are engaging nearby without him. KWIM? I know *I* would have a hard time focusing on teaching something with that going on in the same room. I don't deal well with distraction.
Also, how often do you entertain younger children? When families come visit our home, the children often play independently in the toy room. I don't think I would be as comfortable having guest children playing in my learning room (yk, if I had one  ) without direct supervision. Too many more valuable things that could be a real temptation.
I know your family room is just off from the learning room. Is that your only living space or do you have a separate living room/den to keep calm and kid free?
Your learning room is already a nice size. What if your long term plan was two-fold, done in phases, and you delayed the full-blown extension of it until your younger set were school age? You could make the old kitchen a space oriented toward the young ones with toys and a table their size for coloring, etc... but with a little more separation so the ages could work/play more independently of each other. And then, once the little ones were older, continue with the master plan of opening up the entire space.
And maybe you would find out you liked having a separate space, too, even once the younger set joined the game-room set. Since it is a former kitchen with plumbing, etc..., it would be perfect for a craft/studio/art space. That, too, could be useful to have separated somewhat from the learning room, even once the children were older. Maybe even plan on a half wall instead of something completely open so you could move on with more of your long-term modifications but still have the feel of a more open space some day? The half wall could actually make your long-term idea of stations for different subjects easier than one large open space would but still bring in the light and airiness from the other side.
Just brainstorming. Probably off-topic a bit from your original post.
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myheaven1967
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| Posted: July 15 2013 at 8:43am | IP Logged
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I never really considered all this. I think it is time for some reorganization in our home. There is no reason the majority of toys cannot be up in the bedrooms now. With the exception of a few down here in the living space for the littlest one.
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Erin
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| Posted: July 16 2013 at 3:41pm | IP Logged
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CrunchyMom wrote:
| I would be leery of putting the toys directly in the learning space given the ages of your kiddos. I rely on the younger set playing independently while my older two do school work. A highschooler might be able to go off and find a quiet corner or tune out the play, but it could be hard to get your 3rd or 4th grader to sit and focus on school if the preschool-K crowd he normally plays with are engaging nearby without him. KWIM? |
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I DO know what you mean, very good point.
CrunchyMom wrote:
| Also, how often do you entertain younger children? When families come visit our home, the children often play independently in the toy room. I don't think I would be as comfortable having guest children playing in my learning room (yk, if I had one ) without direct supervision. Too many more valuable things that could be a real temptation. |
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Actually not anymore, my children are the youngest in my group of friends. They've stopped having babies and I'm the only one still with little ones. Which is quite sad for my younger three boys, no other little friends. Though it has its benefits  But you make a very good point, I could see this being a major problem.
CrunchyMom wrote:
| I know your family room is just off from the learning room. Is that your only living space or do you have a separate living room/den to keep calm and kid free? |
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We have lots of living areas which makes it crazy I can't find a space for toys! We've a formal loungeroom (TV/piano in there), the games room, learning room and off them are the library and study. Also have a seperate dining room.
CrunchyMom wrote:
| Your learning room is already a nice size. What if your long term plan was two-fold, done in phases, and you delayed the full-blown extension of it until your younger set were school age? You could make the old kitchen a space oriented toward the young ones with toys and a table their size for coloring, etc... but with a little more separation so the ages could work/play more independently of each other. And then, once the little ones were older, continue with the master plan of opening up the entire space. |
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Now this is a brilliant idea! I could see this being the answer.
CrunchyMom wrote:
| Maybe even plan on a half wall instead of something completely open so you could move on with more of your long-term modifications but still have the feel of a more open space some day? The half wall could actually make your long-term idea of stations for different subjects easier than one large open space would but still bring in the light and airiness from the other side. |
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I had wondered about a half wall, or even just have short shelving to create a divide.
Conversation with dh yesterday resulted in a totally different direction altogether. As we are living in our home as we build we are seeing a couple of drawbacks to our original plans. This is off topic but one of our drawbacks is the dining room isn't large enough for a table to meet our needs. He is rethinking our kitchen space, so far we have only done the downlight wiring for that area so we could totally move where it was planned. (Though we'll probably have to resubmit to council) When we re-roof the old section we'll be able to totally gut the entire 'old' house if we wished. So we're now thinking walls down and rooms moved about. Perhaps having the kitchen and dining room in the old section after all. This means our learning room and library would be moved to the sunnier rooms Though they will be the first rooms you see as you come into the house. Enter and see bookcases 
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Erin
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4Real Forums : Planning and Ordering our Days
Topic: Toy Room - Opinion
