Karissa Tunis

How to Create the Perfect Teen Workspace

Teens spend a great deal of their time in their room and at their desk. Set your teen’s workspace up for success with just a few simple steps. Scroll down to see a fun DIY, that will help you transform a small space, into the perfect teen workspace!

This article is written by Pamela Rineer
For more on this topic, check out the full All About Teens collection

DIY – How To Create the Perfect Teen Workspace

1. Start with a desk that your teen will feel comfortable working at. Choose a desk that doesn’t offer too much room for items to get lost or piled up. But just enough room to have a few essentials and space to work.

2. A good supportive chair. A variety of office chairs are available in every color, plushness, with armrests, and wheels! But, don’t overlook kitchen chairs or even stools. Stools are ideal for teens who stand and move around when they work. Kitchen chairs add comfort, but don’t encourage lingering at the desk for too long. Add a lumbar pillow for back support when needed.

3. Organize calendar and activity schedules on a cork board, but leave plenty of room for additional papers that come home for projects that are due. If the calendar is electronic such as Google Calendar, simply print the calendar at the beginning of each month to help your teen stay on task.

4. Use a hook rail to hang headphones, scissors, or to clip on a good LED study light so it doesn’t take up valuable work space.

5. Teens also have fun showcasing special photos. Take the photos that they’ve taken on their smartphones and apply an easy preset filter! Check out the Greater than Gatsby portrait collection for beautiful, professional-looking options. First download the free Lightroom app. Then purchase your selected preset and read the step by step instructions. Watch your photos transform to give them the wow factor!

Make Sure Your Teen’s Workspace is Organized

6. Organize folders with an in and out file system. What still needs to be worked on kept on one side, while what is finished kept in the other.

7. Incorporating an electronic station is key when it comes to teens. This desk has a great shelf for electronics. Attach a surge protector to the desk using velcro on the back of the strip and the desk shelf. Cords can be kept out of sight using a reusable velcro wrap ties. (Note- Invest in a power surge protector that has USB ports and regular outlets.)

8. Add a rolling cart to contain the clutter. On the top tier most needed items are easily accessible. Pens, pencils, highlighter, sharpie, and scissors are all kept in a colander, while two colorful bowls hold paperclips, binder clips, rubber bands, white out, and staples. Add a stapler and an electronic pencil sharper so your teen has everything they need to get to work. The second tier is for paper and folders, while the bottom tier is intentionally left empty to be used however your teen needs.

9. Don’t forget to add a small basket for trash.

Your teen will be organized and ready to conquer any task big or small in their new, organized workspace! Happy Studying!

For more on this topic, check out the full All About Teens collection

Featured Contributor: Pamela Rineer

Pamela Rineer lives in Lititz, PA with her husband, two boys, and very large goldendoodle. With a love of real estate, design, and money management she began renovating their homes on a budget. Now, settling into their fifth house, she shares simple DIY’s for all things home.

- Instagram: @pamelarineerinteriors
- Facebook: @pamelarineerinteriors
- Pinterest: @pamelarineerinteriors
- Website: pamelarineerinteriors.weebly.com

When is it Time to Seek Help for Your Teen?

Being a teenager is hard work. In addition to hormone changes, your teen is also facing an array of academic and social pressures. The stress can be compounding, and some might find coping more difficult than others. But, should you be concerned? It can be hard to know. Keep reading below to learn what warning signs to look for in your teenager, and find out when you should be seeking help for your teen….

How to Set Expectations for Your Kids and Improve Child Behavior

A couple of years ago a dear friend shared with me some very valuable advice. Every morning on the way to school she told her children exactly what she expected of them for that day. She found that her kids responded very well to this, and almost always rose to the expectation. I have adopted this parenting advice, applied it in my own family, and have seen my children’s behavior improve! Read below to find out how to successfully set expectations, improve your child’s behavior, and discover helpful expectation examples that you can start implementing today.

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Why My Daughter’s Sensory Processing Disorder Diagnosis Was a Gift

It’s been three years… but the moment I received my daughter B’s official sensory processing disorder diagnosis, still remains a vivid memory. It’s as clear to me as the ladybug costume she wore on her first Halloween, and the smile on her face when she learned she’d be a big sister.

I remember everything about the chair I sat in while the doctor spoke. The uncomfortable dent in the cushion. And the wooden arms I kept knocking my elbows against as I tried in vain to comfortably position my pregnant body….

Chore Chart by Age & the Benefits of Teaching Responsibility

With a family of five, there is a lot to be done in and around the house! Thankfully I have three eager and able sets of little hands that like to jump in and help out! But each one is a different age, and they each have different strengths. So I take that into consideration before asking for their involvement or assigning any tasks. Continue reading for parenting tips and for a free printable chore chart broken down by age….

Parent Report Card (free printable for kids)

Day in and day out, we talk to our kids about how they can improve, what they need to work on, and how to go about doing that. We are, hopefully, offering a lot of praise and encouragement along the way as well! But how often are we asking our children for feedback on how we are doing as parents? Printing out copies of the parent report card below is a great way to start this process! It will allow you to see things through your children’s eyes and assess areas where you could use some improvement.

For more on this topic, check out the full Child Behavior collection

A Few Pointers for the Parent Report Card

Before you hand over this exercise to your children there are a few important points to keep in mind…

Create a No-Fear Environment

In order for this to be a positive and helpful exercise, your child needs to feel like they have the ability to share their feelings without consequence or without the fear of hurting your feelings. It is important for them to know that you love them no matter what, and that parents have things that they need to work on to!

It’s About the Child’s Perspective

This parent report card gives you insight into your child’s perspective. It may not seem factually accurate. It may not match your perception of the situation. BUT… it is their perception of the situation, which is very important in and of itself.

When your child gives the report card back to you, it is very important not to get defensive. You don’t want to start offering a defense of how you do spend a ton of time with them even though they gave you a “D” in that area. This opportunity to bond with your children and improve your relationship will have the opposite effect if you start telling them why their assessment is wrong.

Build on Your Strengths

Don’t forget to take notice of the areas where your child graded you very highly! All of us have our strengths and weaknesses. You may struggle to get them to eat well-balanced meals, but you may be fantastic at helping with homework. Take those strengths and continue to build on them as well.

Ask for Feedback

Take their feedback and ask questions about it. Maybe you spend a lot of time together, but they feel like they need more time with your full attention. Maybe you are a good role model overall, but your child is remembering that one time that you lost your cool and threw a toy across the room into the toy box. Maybe you value their opinion highly, but you are not vocalizing that as much as you could be so that they truly feel validated and heard. Your children’s feedback is a starting point to further conversation – it is never a black and white issue.

Take the time to talk things over with a friend or partner as well. If something your child says is hurtful to you, talk it out with a trusted adult – not your child. As parents, we try so hard to be everything for our children; and it is hard to hear that we might be falling short in an area since that is our biggest fear.

Most Important Advice for the Parent Report Card …

This parent report card is meant to be a fun, positive, and bonding experience for your family! So let it be just as simple as that 🙂

For more on this topic, check out the full Child Behavior collection

Teen Advice: 3 Important Topics That Every Parent Should Be Addressing

What if you had to switch places with your teen for a day? How do you think you would fare? It’s difficult to wrap our heads around how challenging it is to be a teen in today’s world. The truth is it isn’t what it was fifteen or twenty years ago; technology has blown all of what you knew out of the water. It’s a whole new ball game! Read below for some important teen advice that every parent should know!…

Four Steps to Stand Your Ground and Outlast Your Teen

I remember when my kids were toddlers and wouldn’t let up about something they wanted. Fast forward 10 plus years, and it now seems as if nothing much has changed. They still wheedle and whine. You know what I’m talking about. As teens, your kids are bigger, louder, have more words, and want more than anything to be accepted by their peers. The stakes are higher, and you have more reasons to say no. Now you need nerves of steel. And a plan! Read below for 4 steps to stand your ground….

The Best Way to Pay Your Child a Compliment

“Of course you’re good-looking.” “You’re the best friend ever.” “Who wouldn’t want you on their team?” Is there a parent out there (including me) who hasn’t praised a child in order to make him or her feel better? Sometimes it’s true, and sometimes we say it because we just can’t stand to see them hurt. But our kids usually know the difference. We’ve missed the mark, and they tell us so. This kind of well-intentioned compliment doesn’t work….

Connectedness – How to Successfully Help Your Teen Get Through Puberty

For some reason unbeknown to most, there is very little in the way of advice or support for parents who have adolescent aged children. And even more so, information on how to successfully help your teen throughout the puberty phase.

It could be that after the initial tentative steps into parenthood, most people assume that they should be able to manage. After all, they’ve got their child through the ‘tying-of-the-shoe-laces-phase’, and teachers then take over in the learning field; what more is there to do after the child hits the school years?

I can totally understand this sentiment. Things are generally quite settled for the next few years – that is until puberty! Keep reading below to learn how to help your teen through puberty….