If you haven't checked out the ideas presented by the Autism Treatment Center of America it's worth a look. They train parents in setting up a distraction free environment thhat improves your child's focus and attention span. www.autismtreatmentcenter.org. There is some great information there and they help children all over the spectrum so if you talk to one of the counselors they can help you apply the principles and ideas to a higher functioning child than they feature in most of their DVDs. It makes a huge difference having a distraction free room. It is really important for us that it is not just the living room but a totally converted room.

I've done them all. I think it really depends on the personality of the child. My daughter works better in a common area because at her desk in her room she stares off into space. My son works better in his room at his desk because none of the other kids bother him and he gets his work done and he isn't distracted by the others. My ASD son probably works in the common area only because his desk is *his* area to draw or play on the Ipad...kitchen area didn't work because well because in his mind...it was for eating of course..LOL. And so he needed an area that was "for school" in his mind. But all this discovery was a looooong journey of trying it all and seeing what's worked. And trust me...it changes even after it works....it may not work a few years from now. Flexibility is a homeschoolers mantra...lol

I've heard people homeschool in both circumstances depending on what they had available. Believe it or not, I even know someone who transformed a slightly large closet type room for homeschooling their child! It works perfectly for their special needs child. We use a small bedroom although we used to do schoolwork in my bedroom, sprawled on my bed. Try one and if that doesn't work for you, try the other one is my best advice because what may work for me might not work for you and vice versa.
Edwina

We use our dining room pretty much. In one corner is his computer. Along one wall are cabinets and half of them are shelves where I store various books and supplies. Then, I use wall space to display a map we are putting together as we study geography and above his computer are shelves we put up in the corner with a globe on it and the planets hanging from it we use for astronomy. During the day, the table gets used for doing "desk" work like his reading and science. I found a terrific math curriculum he does right on his computer. From time to time, some of his work is displayed on the wall in the living room along with a calendar we use to keep up to date on what's going on in his schooling. If this doesn't answer your question or if I can help you with anything homeschooling wise, email me at [[email: [[email: [[email: (Email address can only be seen by the question and answer creators)

We have a schoolroom but most of our work typically winds up being done either at the kitchen table or on one of our living room couches.