How to Organize Kids’ Toys in 10 Easy Steps by Ariane Benefit
DO YOU DREAM OF A CLUTTER-FREE PLAY AREA that you and the kids can easily keep neat? Here’s how to keep toys & art supplies under control and make your life a lot simpler and easier!
Play Room Before
Play Room After
1. Empty Everything! Start with surfaces such as a desk and then move on to shelves and other storage units.
2. Sort. As you empty, sort items into piles or bins. Group items using categories such as dolls, small toys, toys requiring supervision, etc.
TIP: Create a container for things with missing items. As you find missing pieces, put them in the same container till you find all the pieces.
3. Assess how much you have of each thing and set limits. Do they really need 72 stuffed animals? Determine how many is a reasonable amount to keep and set a policy. Remember, kids get overwhelmed when they have too much stuff. They take far better care of their things and enjoy them more when they have fewer of them.
4. Communicate Limits and conduct a treasure hunt. Have your child pick his or her favorites according to the limits you have set. Set aside the rest to donate. Let them know that the rest will be going to kids who don't have as much as they do.
5. Assign Homes & Containers. Now that you know what you have and have reduced everything to a reasonable amount, it’s time to contain. Smaller items need to be contained. Label each container (consider using photos.) For larger items such as big trucks, assign a "parking spot" on a shelf or floor.
6. Be Creative. Containers don't have to be expensive. You can use plastic containers from product packaging, or even empty tissue and tea boxes. Decorating recycled containers is a great art project!
7. Make Things Easy to access and easy to put away.
*Store frequently used items on lower shelves.
*Use containers without lids where possible. Lids often discourage kids from putting things away.
8. Be Safe. Store items requiring supervision either out of reach or locked. If you use tall shelving units, anchor them to the wall so they can't fall over. Store heavy items on the bottom shelves.
9. Teach the Kids how to put everything away. Kids don't always know what to do when you tell them to “clean your room!” Take the time to teach them how to organize and put each thing away. Explain to them that organizing their toys will make it easy to find them later and prevent them from losing toys. Practice with them several times. Make a game out of cleaning up and reward them with lots of praise for putting things away.
10. Maintain. Once you’ve decluttered, it’s time to maintain limits. How about adopting a "give to get" policy? Whenever your child gets a new toy, have them pick one to donate. This is a great way to teach children the joy of giving. Set up a monthly donation pickup with your favorite charity and you'll never have to do a big cleanout again!
Play Room Before
Play Room After
Play Room Before
Play Room After
1. Empty Everything! Start with surfaces such as a desk and then move on to shelves and other storage units.
2. Sort. As you empty, sort items into piles or bins. Group items using categories such as dolls, small toys, toys requiring supervision, etc.
TIP: Create a container for things with missing items. As you find missing pieces, put them in the same container till you find all the pieces.
3. Assess how much you have of each thing and set limits. Do they really need 72 stuffed animals? Determine how many is a reasonable amount to keep and set a policy. Remember, kids get overwhelmed when they have too much stuff. They take far better care of their things and enjoy them more when they have fewer of them.
4. Communicate Limits and conduct a treasure hunt. Have your child pick his or her favorites according to the limits you have set. Set aside the rest to donate. Let them know that the rest will be going to kids who don't have as much as they do.
5. Assign Homes & Containers. Now that you know what you have and have reduced everything to a reasonable amount, it’s time to contain. Smaller items need to be contained. Label each container (consider using photos.) For larger items such as big trucks, assign a "parking spot" on a shelf or floor.
6. Be Creative. Containers don't have to be expensive. You can use plastic containers from product packaging, or even empty tissue and tea boxes. Decorating recycled containers is a great art project!
7. Make Things Easy to access and easy to put away.
*Store frequently used items on lower shelves.
*Use containers without lids where possible. Lids often discourage kids from putting things away.
8. Be Safe. Store items requiring supervision either out of reach or locked. If you use tall shelving units, anchor them to the wall so they can't fall over. Store heavy items on the bottom shelves.
9. Teach the Kids how to put everything away. Kids don't always know what to do when you tell them to “clean your room!” Take the time to teach them how to organize and put each thing away. Explain to them that organizing their toys will make it easy to find them later and prevent them from losing toys. Practice with them several times. Make a game out of cleaning up and reward them with lots of praise for putting things away.
10. Maintain. Once you’ve decluttered, it’s time to maintain limits. How about adopting a "give to get" policy? Whenever your child gets a new toy, have them pick one to donate. This is a great way to teach children the joy of giving. Set up a monthly donation pickup with your favorite charity and you'll never have to do a big cleanout again!
Play Room Before
Play Room After
posted by Brian at 6:33 PM
1 Comments:
I would think a child would find that many toys overwhelming, anyway.
I think one good way to keep clean and save space is to have toys like wooden blocks, which children can use at different ages for different play tasks.
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