Family with 3 new homeschoolers transforms barn into classroom

WASHINGTON COUNTY, Va. (WCYB) — The Knickerbocker family is navigating through the coronavirus pandemic.

"We felt that it would be better interest for the children at this point, to homeschool. And after we sent out the enrollment, I was like, now we know now we have to come up with a learning space," said dad Brian.

Mom Shawna also works from home. "When you have three [children] and you have a three bedroom house, there's no space," she said.

So for the past three months, it's been a team effort to transform a section of their barn into a classroom. The barn is right outside their house. For a long time, it stored horse carriages and heavy farm equipment.

"We've repurposed a lot of different things to make this come together," said Brian. They also had to build from scratch, wire outlets, add new walls and a window. The room will be entirely ready to do in about a week.

"This is gonna be something exciting," said 12-year-old Amelia with younger siblings Callie and Holston beside her. "It's just more comfortable in a space like this."

"It's not going to make that at home feeling. It's going to be more of a environment where it's geared towards learning as if you would be in a classroom," said Brian. However, he said the space doesn't have to be a barn. He recommends designating an area where it's available, in or around your home, for virtual learning.